Author: staff
The European Commission wants to boost nature-based products in a bid to develop a fossil-free economy by 2040, according to its latest bioeconomy strategy, which prioritises plant-based food, natural medicines, energy from crops and trees, and even natural construction materials. The strategy, bio-based solutions could lead to more sustainable societies and economies, as their byproducts could be biodegradable or compostable, slowly disintegrating until fully decomposing. Yet critics argue there’s an underlying conflict within the Commission’s strategy, as the exploitation of nature to boost the bloc’s competitiveness could put significant pressure on finite resources and prove unsustainable in the long term.…
Published on 28/11/2025 – 14:54 GMT+1 Italian defence company Leonardo has unveiled plans for a shield powered by artificial intelligence (AI) to protect cities and critical infrastructure amid geopolitical tensions. Called the “Michelangelo Dome,” the shield was developed to protect critical infrastructure, sensitive urban areas, and assets of national and European strategic importance, the company said. “With Michelangelo, Leonardo reaffirms its commitment to developing solutions that safeguard citizens, institutions, and infrastructure by combining advanced technology, a systemic vision, and strong industrial capabilities,” said Roberto Cingolani, Leonardo’s chief executive officer and general manager. “In a world where threats evolve rapidly and…
Macron promised to push for action at the EU level, adding: “We have a geopolitical battle to fight. This is not Russian interference, it is clearly American because these platforms do not want us to bother them.” Macron’s remarks follow a week that saw renewed pressure from the U.S. over the EU’s two tech rulebooks, the DSA and the Digital Markets Act. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick urged EU ministers on Monday to “reconsider” the rulebooks in exchange for lower U.S. steel and aluminium tariffs, in line with the American playbook of treating the EU’s tech rules as a bargaining…
Only about one in five tech companies across Europe created between 2020 and 2025 included at least one woman founder, according to the European Commission’s The Gender Investment Gap report. Even when adjusting for this disparity, companies with female founders also received less investment than firms with male founders. The highest levels of gender diversity were found in Latvia, at 27%, Italy, at 25.9 %, and Portugal, at 25.2%. These rates represent the proportion of companies with at least one female founder. In contrast, countries such as the Czech Republic (9%) and Hungary (14.4%) remain well below the European average…
Rescuers in Indonesia’s West Sumatra province searched rivers and wrecked villages on Thursday after flash floods and landslides killed at least 69 people and left 59 missing. Thousands of homes were submerged, forcing about 12,000 people to seek shelter. Teams in Tanah Datar and Agam districts pulled more bodies from the mud, including a child, as efforts continued near the Anai Valley Waterfall. Officials said some hillside villages remain cut off after roads collapsed. Heavy rain often triggers flooding and landslides across Indonesia between October and March, when unstable soil and steep terrain make rescue work slower and more dangerous.
The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) began to restore trading on Friday after a technical issue disrupted operations on the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and Nasdaq. The shutdown was triggered by a cooling system failure at a data centre in the Chicago area, according to the facility’s operator, CyrusOne. Engineering teams have since restarted several chillers and installed temporary cooling equipment to stabilise conditions, a spokesperson told Bloomberg. According to CME Group’s indications, trading in US equity futures should be restarting soon after a glitch knocked it out for several hours. The CME, one of the world’s largest derivatives…
Moșteanu’s resignation just months into the job follows the ousting of Dovilė Šakalienė as Lithuania’s defense minister over a dispute about the Baltic country’s defense budget — and as Europe mulls how to respond to intensifying Russian hybrid attacks. Romania’s Economy Minister Radu Miruță is expected to take over the defense portfolio on an interim basis, the government said. Moșteanu’s departure comes with Romania facing regular Russian drone incursions. Bucharest is also 48 hours away from a deadline for EU countries to submit a plan to the European Commission for how they will spend money from the EU’s loans-for-weapons SAFE…
By Euronews with AP Published on 28/11/2025 – 14:47 GMT+1 Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán met with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin on Friday, pursuing additional oil and gas supplies from Moscow following a recent sanctions exemption granted by US President Donald Trump. Few EU member states continue importing substantial volumes of Russian fossil fuels, with Hungary pushing back on bloc-wide efforts to eliminate these imports by 2027. “We have important areas of cooperation, and we haven’t given up on any area of that cooperation, no matter the external pressure,” Orbán said. “Russian energy forms the basis of Hungary’s energy supply,…
Inflation figures from the eurozone’s major economies paint a mixed picture of the bloc’s price prospects. In Germany, the region’s biggest economy, the inflation rate unexpectedly rose to the highest level in nine months. Mainly driven by food prices, as energy prices fell modestly, EU-harmonised inflation in Germany was 2.6% higher in November compared with the previous year, after inflation hit 2.3% in October of 2025. This is according to preliminary results from the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis). Month-on-month, the harmonised inflation rate showed that German prices fell by 0.5% in November, from a 0.3% rise in October. French prices…
By Euronews Published on 28/11/2025 – 10:47 GMT+1 Patronage, sponsorship or advertising? Netflix’s financing of a light show for Lyon’s treasured Fête des Lumières this year has some elected representatives up in arms. The French city will once again light up for four days in December, with historic monuments, public buildings and squares serving as a canvas for illuminated works of art. The event attracts millions of visitors, and this year comes with a controversial installation. Stranger Lights, a Stranger Things-themed light show, will plunge visitors into the Upside Down. And not everyone is thrilled about taking a trip inside the…