EU says it ‘favours a negotiated solution’ but is prepared for potential trade war with retaliatory duties
Donald Trump threatened to impose 17% tariffs on food and farm produce exports from Europe during talks in Washington this week, it has emerged.
Such tariffs would hit everything from Belgian chocolate to Kerrygold butter from Ireland and olive oil from Italy, Spain and France, all big sellers in the US.
Continue reading...Stefan Scherer, boss of AMG Lithium, says Europe must become more self-sufficient in critical raw materials and new technologies
The EU may as well “apply to be a province of China” such is its inability to wean itself off that country’s supply of critical raw materials used in everything from electric vehicles to smartphones and wind turbines, a leading German industrialist has said.
As chief executive of AMG Lithium, the EU’s first factory to make the lithium hydroxide used in many car batteries, Stefan Scherer sits at the centre of what has been dubbed a new gold rush.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Green groups furious at plans to let member states buy controversial carbon offsets from abroad
EU member states may be allowed to count controversial carbon credits from developing countries towards their climate targets, the European climate commissioner has said as states meet for a crucial decision on the issue.
The EU will discuss on Wednesday its target for slashing carbon dioxide by 2040, with an expected cut of 90% compared with 1990 levels, in line with the bloc’s overarching target of reaching net zero by mid-century.
Continue reading...Kyriakos Mitsotakis sets up taskforce over alleged scamming of EU agricultural funds after resignation of five senior officials
The Greek prime minister has vowed to get to the bottom of how a scheme of fraudulent EU subsidy claims could have operated undetected in the country for years, as he admitted that the scandal had revealed “the state’s inadequacy” in dealing with corruption.
Faced with revelations that “fake” farmers had been scamming designated agricultural funds to the tune of a reputed €290m (£249m), Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Monday a special taskforce would be set up to “immediately and exhaustively” investigate the illegal payments.
Continue reading...European pharmaceutical body says it would be ‘negative for both sides’ if Brussels hits back on threatened US levies
The European pharmaceutical industry has urged Brussels not to retaliate if Donald Trump brings in threatened tariffs on imported drugs, amid fears he could impose the levies as early as next week.
The US president said last week that the sector-specific tariffs were coming “very soon”. There is concern in Brussels that he could impose them imminently to give himself further leverage ahead of his self-imposed 9 July deadline for trade deals with the EU and about 60 countries.
Continue reading...Nato spending plan overlooks risks to security posed by environmental breakdown and social decay, say economists
Europe risks choosing militarism over social and environmental security, economists have warned, as the head of Nato said all 32 members had agreed to increase weapons spending.
Analyses drafted in anticipation of a Nato summit beginning on Tuesday warned of the opportunity cost that higher military spending would pose to the continent’s climate mitigation and social programmes, which are consistently underfunded.
Continue reading...Amid Trump’s disrespect of old allies, EU and Canada vow more support for Ukraine and joint work on climate crisis
Canada has signed a wide-ranging defence pact with the EU, as Donald Trump and global instability prompt traditional US allies to deepen their alliances.
Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, on Monday joined European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, and head of the European Council, António Costa, in Brussels, where they signed a security and defence partnership, pledged more support for Ukraine, as well as joint work on issues from the climate crisis to artificial intelligence.
Continue reading...Scale of death and destruction in Gaza, and the violence of settlers in the West Bank, has shifted public opinion in the EU
In Israel, it can seem like only one other place really matters. Washington DC is on the other side of the world but provides Israel with weapons, the backing of the most powerful military in the world, and a critical diplomatic shield in forums like the United Nations.
Yet the country’s economy is bound far more closely to Europe than to the United States. A third of its trade is with the European Union, key academic work is supported by grants from the EU’s multi-billion dollar Horizon research fund, and it is the top destination for Israelis who want to travel.
Continue reading...Foreign minister Abbas Araghchi says he supports more talks with European counterparts despite lack of progress
Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, has said that his country is ready for more diplomacy with the US only if Israel’s war on his country is brought to an end “and the aggressor is held accountable for the crimes he committed”.
After several hours of talks with European foreign ministers in Geneva on Friday, there was no sign of a diplomatic breakthrough – or a resumption of negotiations with the US.
Continue reading...Leaked document marks significant moment in relations with ally but stops short of calling for immediate sanctions
The EU has said “there are indications” that Israel is in breach of human rights obligations over its conduct in Gaza, but stopped short of calling for immediate sanctions.
“There are indications that Israel would be in breach of its human rights obligations under article 2 of the EU-Israel association agreement,” states a leaked document from the EU’s foreign policy service, seen by the Guardian.
Continue reading...As many as 70 said to be planning to show solidarity at LGBTQ+ march after Hungary’s PM tried to ban it
Dozens of MEPs are expected to attend the Pride march in Budapest this month, in defiance of the Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orbán, who has tried to ban the event.
In a debate in the European parliament in Strasbourg, MEPs from liberal, left and green groups pledged to be in Budapest on 28 June for the parade to show solidarity with gay Hungarians.
Continue reading...Body unveils plans to ban all gas imports from Russia by January 2028 – but faces backlash from Hungary, Slovakia and Austria
The European Commission has insisted there will be no return to Russian gas, as it published plans to phase out fossil fuel imports from its eastern neighbour by 2028.
The EU energy commissioner, Dan Jørgensen, said a proposed ban on Russian gas imports would remain, irrespective of whether there was peace in Ukraine.
Continue reading...French president is first foreign head of state to visit Arctic territory since US president made comments
Emmanuel Macron has criticised Donald Trump’s threats to take over Greenland as he became the first foreign head of state to visit the vast, mineral-rich Arctic territory since the US president began making explicit threats to annex it.
“I don’t think that’s what allies do,” Macron said as he arrived in the Danish autonomous territory for a highly symbolic visit aimed at conveying “France’s and the EU’s solidarity” with Greenland on his way to a summit of G7 leaders in Canada.
Continue reading...Transaction tax ‘acceptable’ to EU is part of deal to allow greater freedom of movement and link with customs union
Gibraltar will apply a 15% sales tax on goods to avoid unfair competition with Spain, as a result of the agreement on the post-Brexit future of the British overseas territory, it has emerged.
The territory has agreed to ensure a 15% minimum “transaction tax” on goods within three years of the ratification of the agreement, according to a senior European official.
Continue reading...Report raises concerns that money allocated to combat fires not reaching areas where it could make biggest difference
European funds to prevent forest fires have been poorly targeted and sometimes distributed in a hurry, according to a report from the EU’s spending watchdog.
The number of forest fires in EU countries has increased dramatically over the last two decades as the climate crisis fuels ever bigger conflagrations. An area twice the size of Luxembourg has been consumed by flames in an average recent year, killing people, destroying homes and wildlife and sending megatonnes of planet-heating emissions into the air.
Continue reading...Other measures include greater restrictions on ‘shadow fleet’, banks and Nord Stream investment
The EU executive has called for lowering the price cap on Russian oil as it seeks to tighten energy and financial sanctions against the Kremlin’s ability to wage war.
The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, proposed that western countries reduce the price at which Russian oil can be sold to $45 (£30) a barrel, down from the current $60.
Continue reading...Consumer watchdogs accuse Chinese fashion firm of ‘dark’ practices in formal complaint to European Commission
Consumer watchdogs from 21 countries have filed a formal complaint to EU authorities about alleged “dark” practices by the Chinese fast fashion firm Shein including the “shaming” of customers into buying more than they can afford.
The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) has submitted a 29-page dossier to the European Commission citing multiple examples of “dark patterns”, or deceptive techniques designed to encourage purchases.
Continue reading...Victory of radical-right candidate could seriously destabilise the coalition government of pro-EU prime minister Donald Tusk
The victory margin of the nationalist Karol Nawrocki in Poland’s presidential elections may have been wafer-thin, but it marks a huge upheaval in the country’s political landscape whose impact will be felt not just in Warsaw but across the EU.
Backed by the previous ruling conservative Law & Justice (PiS) party and, openly, by Donald Trump’s Maga movement, Nawrocki, a radical-right historian, defeated his liberal rival, the capital’s mayor, Rafał Trzaskowski, by 50.89% to 49.11%.
Continue reading...Biometrics app not ready, meaning travellers through Port of Dover will have to exit vehicles to have identity verified
British citizens who travel frequently to the EU face having their fingerprints individually checked each time they cross the border into the Schengen area because of delays in developing an app to verify biometrics digitally, it has emerged.
It will be “business as usual” this summer but “a big change” in travel will be phased in from November, Doug Bannister, the chief executive of the Port of Dover has said.
Continue reading...Close-run race between pro-EU and nationalist candidates pits liberal vision against a radical-right, EU-critical stance
Poland’s presidential election runoff could have far-reaching implications for its place in Europe – either cementing the country’s hard-won seat at the EU’s top table, or heralding a return to altogether trickier times.
The mayor of Warsaw, Rafał Trzaskowski, faces off against the historian Karol Nawrocki on Sunday in a neck-and-neck race, pitting a liberal vision of Poland at the heart of European policymaking against a nationalist, radical-right, EU-critical stance.
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