Category Archives: Europe

Denmark votes for defence bill giving US access to its airbases

Posted on by

New agreement would see cities such as Karup and Skrydstrup fall under US jurisdiction

Denmark has voted overwhelmingly in favour of a new defence agreement giving the US sweeping powers on Danish soil, including “unhindered access” to its airbases.

The deal, which has been strongly criticised by politicians and human rights experts, means US soldiers in Denmark will remain under US jurisdiction. It gives US soldiers access to Danish airbases in three Danish cities – Karup, Skrydstrup and Aalborg – and grants American soldiers and military police powers over Danish civilians at these locations and outside them.

Continue reading...

UK yet to commit to Nato plan for rise in defence spending to 3.5% of GDP

Posted on by

Nato chief Mark Rutte wants members to agree to plan at summit this month but UK remains cautious

Britain has still not committed to an increase in defence spending to 3.5% of GDP by the mid-2030s at this month’s Nato summit in line with a proposal from the alliance’s secretary general, Mark Rutte, defence sources said.

Though Rutte visited Downing Street on Monday and expressed confidence afterwards that countries would sign up, senior insiders said Britain was dragging its heels.

Continue reading...

Funds to tackle Europe’s forest fires poorly targeted, says EU watchdog

Posted on by

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...

Competition watchdog to investigate Evri merger with DHL’s UK parcel arm

Posted on by

CMA to decide whether deal will substantially lessen competition in delivery market

The UK’s competition watchdog has announced an investigation into the proposed merger of the delivery company Evri with DHL’s UK e-commerce business, a deal set to create one of the biggest parcel couriers in Britain.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said on Wednesday it was investigating Evri’s purchase of DHL eCommerce UK, as well as the parent company DHL Group’s acquisition of a minority stake in Evri.

Continue reading...

Gisèle Pelicot settles claim for invasion of privacy against French magazine

Posted on by

Paris Match agrees to pay €40,000 to two charities after publishing photos of Pelicot

Gisèle Pelicot, who survived almost a decade of rape involving dozens of men after she was drugged by her ex-husband, has settled an invasion of privacy case with the French magazine Paris Match.

Pelicot, who became a feminist hero after she decided to waive her right to anonymity in the trial of her former husband and 50 other men last year, took legal action against the publication in April.

Continue reading...

Survivors of Ireland’s mother and baby homes risk losing UK benefits over compensation

Posted on by

Campaign pushes to change law that could lead to survivors living in UK being disqualified from means-tested benefits

Survivors of Ireland’s mother and baby homes are being “retraumatised” by the prospect of losing benefits in the UK if they accept compensation from the Irish state, Westminster has been told.

The warning comes amid a campaign backed by representatives of almost every political party in the UK and figures including Steve Coogan, who starred in Philomena, a film about the mother and baby homes scandal.

Continue reading...

Greek court strips three far-right MPs of seats over electoral fraud

Posted on by

Tribunal rules Spartans lawmakers ‘deceived’ voters after convicted ex-leader of Golden Dawn found to hold influence over party

A landmark court decision has dealt a blow to the far-right movement in Greece after MPs with the neo-fascist Spartans party were deprived of seats in parliament.

Citing electoral fraud, a specially assembled electoral tribunal stripped three of the group’s lawmakers, including its leader, of their status in a move that, for the first time since the collapse of military rule, leaves Athens’ 300-seat parliament operating with just 297 MPs.

Continue reading...

Two men jailed for life for supplying car bomb that killed Daphne Caruana Galizia

Posted on by

Robert Agius and Jamie Vella were convicted last week of their role in the anti-corruption journalist’s murder in 2017

Two men have been sentenced to life in prison for supplying the car bomb that killed the anti-corruption journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in Malta eight years ago.

The sentencing on Tuesday of Robert Agius and Jamie Vella, reported to be members of the island’s criminal underworld, marked a significant step in the long campaign to bring those charged with Caruana Galizia’s murder to justice.

Continue reading...

Zelenskyy calls for ‘concrete actions’ as Russian strikes hit seven of Kyiv’s 10 districts

Posted on by

Ukraine president criticises lack of response from US and others after one of Moscow’s largest attacks of war on Kyiv

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has voiced his frustration with Donald Trump by calling for “concrete actions” rather than “silence” after Russia launched one of its largest attacks on Kyiv, with seven of the Ukrainian capital’s 10 districts hit overnight.

A total of 315 drones and seven missiles were launched at Ukrainian targets across the country in the early hours of Tuesday, including Odesa in the south-east. But it was the capital that was the focus of Russia’s ferocious barrage.

Continue reading...

EU calls for lower price cap on Russian oil in move to tighten sanctions

Posted on by

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...

Eurostar vows to run direct trains from UK to Germany and Switzerland

Posted on by

Cross-Channel rail operator, which is trying to fend off rivals for its London depot space, regards early 2030s as feasible

Eurostar has vowed to run direct trains from the UK to Germany and Switzerland, as it attempts to fend off potential competitors eyeing its London depot space.

The cross-Channel rail operator’s chief executive, Gwendoline Cazenave, said she had no doubt the direct services would run in the early 2030s despite the failure of previous ventures to connect London and Frankfurt.

Continue reading...

Russia could be ready to attack Nato within five years, says secretary general

Posted on by

In speech in London Mark Rutte says he expects alliance members to agree to raise military spending to 5% of GDP

Russia could be ready to attack Nato within five years and leaders of the western alliance are expected to agree to increase military spending to 5% of GDP this month to contain the threat, the alliance’s secretary general has said.

Mark Rutte said in a speech in London on Monday that Nato needed “a quantum leap in our collective defence”, which would include significant rearmament to deter an increasingly militarised Russia.

Continue reading...

France to use UK drama Adolescence to teach teenagers about toxic masculinity

Posted on by

French education ministry follows Britain and Netherlands in incorporating Netflix hit into school curriculums

France has followed the UK and the Netherlands in allowing the Netflix drama Adolescence to be used in secondary schools as part of efforts to teach teenagers about toxic masculinity and online harms.

The French education ministry will offer schools five classes based on excerpts from the critically acclaimed mini-series, which has provoked a global debate about the impact on young boys of misogynistic content online and on social media.

Continue reading...

Weather tracker: Storms make way for summer heat in Europe

Posted on by

Florence in Italy could hit 39C as hot weather sweeps continent, while parts of South Africa brace for snow

The severe thunderstorms that have been lashing parts of Europe over recent days are expected to give way to high temperatures this week. Several regions could climb to 10C (50F) above seasonal norms, with Italy braced for the full force of the heat. Florence in Tuscany is forecast to soar to a sweltering 39C on Thursday and across the weekend.

Germany, France and Belgium will also face hot weather from Wednesday, with widespread highs at least 9C above the June average. Many other parts of Europe are forecast to experience temperatures 5-7C above normal. This is the result of a high-pressure system creating a heat dome over the region, whereby sinking air compresses and warms as it descends, trapping heat near the surface.

Continue reading...

‘It will lift the spirits’: Kyiv to stage ‘most English of ballets’ after Russian repertoire boycott

Posted on by

Frederick Ashton’s La Fille mal gardée to be performed for first time, replacing classics by Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky after fundraising in London

One of the “most English of ballets” will be performed for the first time at the National Opera of Ukraine in Kyiv after a boycott of the classic Russian repertoire, including Swan Lake and the Nutcracker.

Sir Frederick Ashton’s La Fille mal gardée, a celebrated romantic comedy, will be performed to a sell-out audience on Thursday after Ukraine turned away from the works of Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky and Prokofiev.

Continue reading...

Andrew Tate to appear in court for allegedly driving 90mph over limit in Romania

Posted on by

Self-styled ‘misogynist influencer’ claims police radar gun must have been ‘calibrated incorrectly’ and says he cannot afford £300 fine

The controversial British-American influencer Andrew Tate is due to appear in court in Romania on Monday after allegedly being caught at the weekend driving at 196km/h (122mph) in an area with a 50km/h speed limit.

Tate, a 38-year-old professional kickboxer and self-styled “misogynist influencer” who uses social media to share his love of supercars, expensive watches and private jets, lives in Romania with his younger brother, Tristan, where both face charges including trafficking minors and money laundering.

Continue reading...

Trump tariffs could wipe out European steel sector, senior industry figure says

Posted on by

ThyssenKrupp executive warns of ‘collateral damage’ to supply chains and urges protective action on energy pricing

Europe’s steel industry faces being wiped out in the face of Donald Trump’s prohibitive 50% tariffs, high energy costs and a mountain of cheaper Chinese steel, one of Germany’s biggest industrial groups has warned.

Ilse Henne, a board member at the steel, engineering and chemicals group ThyssenKrupp, said the industry faced an existential crisis after the US president’s decision last week to double tariffs on steel and aluminium imports from 25% to 50%.

Continue reading...

Brussels celebrates art deco’s mass-produced objects for the middle class

Posted on by

An exhibition in the Belgian capital shows the artistic style was first to seek to appeal to a wider group of consumers

The glazed porcelain vases with bold colours and geometric shapes of the 1920s and 30s are immediately recognisable to many people, says the art historian Cécile Dubois. Often given as a wedding present, these vases were usually passed down as family heirlooms, revealing the accessibility of art deco works, she says, gesturing to the glass cabinet beside her. “If you were a collector, you could find works that cost a fortune, but these pieces were destined for people of more modest means for very reasonable prices.”

Art deco was the first artistic movement that sought to appeal to a wider public beyond the elites, say the organisers of a new exhibition dedicated to the artistic movement of the interwar years, co-curated by Dubois, the president of the Brussels Art Deco Society.

Continue reading...

Russian forces closing in on Sumy city three years after Ukraine forced them out of region

Posted on by

Independent monitors confirm Kremlin claims of new and symbolically important advances in east of Ukraine

Russian military units appear to be within 18 miles (29km) of the city of Sumy, three years after Ukraine forced them out of the northern region, while also making new and symbolically important ground in the east.

Independent monitors confirmed Kremlin claims to have retaken the village of Loknia, which had been liberated along with the rest of the Sumy region during Ukraine’s 2022 spring counteroffensive.

Continue reading...

Thousands protest in Madrid against Pedro Sánchez’s government

Posted on by

Ruling Spanish Socialist Workers’ party has faced series of corruption allegations over past year

Tens of thousands of people have gathered in central Madrid to protest against the government of Spain’s socialist prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, and to demand an early general election, as his party, his administration and his family continue to be beset by a succession of corruption allegations.

Sunday’s protest, called by the opposition conservative People’s party (PP) under the slogan “mafia or democracy”, attracted between 45,000 and 50,000 people, according to the central government’s delegation to the region. Organisers put the attendance at 100,000.

Continue reading...