Voting in favor of von der Leyen, as her group will do, “doesn’t mean everything is fine,” Hayer said. “Because since the first motion of censure last July, we can’t say we’ve really made any progress.” 11. The Greens are not part of the von der Leyen club Von der Leyen’s EPP is weakening Europe … Read more
Demonstrators said Italy’s government did not do enough to defend the crews on the flotilla. They are calling on the government to cut military ties with Israel, recognize a Palestinian state and cut arms spending. Rome has said it will not recognize Palestinian statehood until the hostages are released and militant group Hamas is out … Read more
The two crew members, the captain and his deputy, were arrested on charges of refusing to obey a summons and failing to justify the ship’s nationality, according to the prosecutor’s office. Discussions between EU leaders in Copenhagen Oct. 1 were dominated by Russia drone incursions against EU countries and a proposal by the European Commission … Read more
Rutte said the alliance was actively working to fix that problem. “One of the reasons why we launched Eastern Sentry,” he said, is “it is not sustainable to take down … a let’s say, $1,000 or $2,000-costing drone, [with] a half a million or a million [dollar]-costing missile.” Meanwhile, the incidents have prompted some NATO … Read more
The plan for the huge settlement in what is technically termed E1, just east of Jerusalem, has been pushed for years by Israeli ultranationalists and settler leaders, including Smotrich, but had been on hold for decades because of fierce international opposition. In August, the project for 20,000 housing units got final approval, prompting Smotrich to … Read more
The violent protest triggered a backlash among Dutch officials from both the left and right. Dutch Justice Minister Foort van Oosten called violence against police “absolutely unacceptable.” “Demonstrating is a great thing in the Netherlands, but hands off our officers!” van Oosten wrote on social media. Far-right leader Geert Wilders also condemned the violence, calling … Read more
Memory politics After Tusk’s government came to power, it dropped the demands of the previous PiS government that Germany pay €1.3 trillion in reparations — a figure Nawrocki continues to back. The Tusk government, while believing there is a moral case for reparations, maintains they are legally a non-starter and argues that pursuing them undermines Poland’s ties … Read more
Europe’s eastern borders were already on high alert after NATO forces shot down 19 Russian drones that invaded Poland’s airspace last Wednesday. On Saturday, two Romanian F-16 fighter jets spotted a Russian drone over Romanian territory while doing a scouting exercise to monitor Russian airstrikes across the border in Ukraine. Romania’s foreign minister slammed the … Read more
The race that pitted the SAMP/T against the Patriot was closely watched — it was the first test of Europe’s willingness to limit procurement from the U.S. in reaction to Trump’s unreliability. Copenhagen was also targeted by the U.S. president with repeated threats to annex Greenland, an autonomous part of the Kingdom of Denmark. Denmark’s choice … Read more
“Last night’s ‘training wheel’ attack by the Russians on Poland (and that is what it was) shows how the states of the alliance have not bothered to prepare properly for not only future war —but the war that is staring them right now in the face,” he said. Ukraine, which is used to almost daily … Read more