Belgian government struggling with fallout from Tehran mayoral visit
Belgian politics is still reeling over the controversial recent visit to Brussels of the hard-line Iranian Islamist Mayor of Tehran, Alireza Zakani.
Politics
Latest reporting and analysis on politics.
Twitter boss Musk folds on free speech in India, claiming he has ‘no choice’
US billionaire and Twitter owner, Elon Musk, seems less of a free-speech advocate than he would like the world’s public to think.
Candidate countries hopeful as Council discusses EU enlargement
Things look promising for three new hopefuls aiming to join the European Union as the heads of Member States gather at an EU Council meeting in Sweden to discuss…
France and Italy kiss and make up after heated migrant dispute
French President, Emmanuel Macron, and Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, have buried the hatchet at a meeting in the French presidential palace on June 20…
Qatargate scandal takes murky turn as photo of Arena and Panzeri emerges
The Qatargate scandal engulfing Europe took a murky turn on June 20 after the emergence of a photo showing what appeared to be an intimate embrace between the investigators'…
Europe is falling behind. Other than regulation, is it still a world leader at anything?
Who remembers the EU’s Lisbon strategy of 2000? Probably not many, so let’s revisit its ambitious goals.
Alternative für Deutschland internal document calls for ‘orderly dissolution of the EU’
The German nationalist Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) opposition party looks set to call for the dissolution of the European Union, according to an internal…
Member States approve watered-down Nature Restoration law by slim majority
In an extremely tight vote, EU Member States have agreed on a ‘general approach’ to the new Nature Restoration Law, despite strong opposition.
EU Parliament accuses Morocco of espionage
The European Parliament has agreed a resolution to investigate Morocco for its alleged use of the digital spyware Pegasus.
Scientific theory that right-wingers are prettier given the European Parliament test
Can we really judge people by their looks? Science suggests we may just be able to, at least when it comes to politics.
Poland smells a rat in EC proposal for Migration Pact opt-outs
The Polish government is suspicious about suggestions in Brussels regarding amendments to the European Union’s proposed Migration Pact.
Qatargate lead investigator forced to step aside
Michael Claise, the investigating judge leading the Qatargate inquiry, has had to disqualify himself due to a possible conflict of interest.
UK dodges Brexit slump, says upbeat French bank report
Despite doom-laden headlines dogging the UK post-Brexit predicting prolonged economic misery, one of Europe’s biggest banks has now concluded that leaving the…
As much as Europe’s liberal elites abhor America’s divisive abortion fights, they are here already
Abortion has been a hugely divisive issue in the United States ever since the 1973 Roe v Wade judgment fifty years ago.
Left-wing extremists carried out more attacks than jihadists, says Europol
Left-wing extremists and anarchists carried out more attacks across the European Union in 2022 than any other group officially identified as a terrorist threat,…
Right-wing bloc taking shape in Spain
The Spanish centre-Right Partido Popular (PP) party is signing pacts with Vox, a party further to the Right, in a move that looks likely to lead to a political shift…
Kosovo Serbs vow to ‘take matters into their own hands’
In what could be the latest escalation in the standoff between Serbs and the Kosovar Government, the Serbian minority is set to unilaterally proclaim an association…
Invitation of Islamist Teheran mayor forces Brussels State Secretary to resign
Pascal Smet, Secretary of State for the Brussels-Capital Region, stepped down on June 18, claiming he had been "thrown under the bus" after the backlash he received…
German government coalition averts collapse, again
Germany's governing coalition has narrowly avoided collapse over the European Union’s new Migration Pact.
The honeymoon is over: Ukraine snubs Poland and pivots west
Further signs of growing tension between Poland and Ukraine have emerged, this time over Ukrainian monuments in Poland. Speaking to Ukrainian portal glavcom.
Brussels and Washington win skirmish with Poland over Russian influence legislation
Poland’s ruling Conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party on June 16 agreed to water down a law targeting possible Russian influence on Polish policy-making over…
Trump has much to learn from Berlusconi’s successes
Comparisons have long-been made between former US President Donald Trump and former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
Finnish right-wing parties agree to form government
A Conservative coalition has been formed in Finland after the previous leader’s resignation in April.
EU struggling to define tenable Syria policy
The European Union faces tough questions on the future of EU-Syrian relations following its seventh annual Syria Conference.
Institutional bias: the European Parliament has failed to tackle the real issues raised by Covid-19 and its lockdowns
After 15 months of considering the EU’s management of the Covid-19 pandemic, an EU Parliament special committee has released its 56-page report.
Belgian Socialist leader says he’s bisexual in controversial YouTube video
Conner Rousseau, the leader of Vooruit, Belgium's Dutch-speaking socialist party, announced publicly on June 15 that he is sexually attracted to men and women.
Kaczynski throws down gauntlet to EU with Migration Pact referendum call
The leader of Poland’s ruling conservative Law and Justice party (PiS), Jarosław Kaczyński, has called for a referendum to be held on the European Union’s…
European Commission urges Germany not to dig in on stricter EU debt rules
European Economy Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni urged governments to set aside rigid positions on the reform of the bloc’s debt rules and seek common ground as the…
EU Nature Restoration Act grinds to a halt amid growing division
The European Parliament’s Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) was forced to postpone the vote on a proposed nature restoration law…
US senator blocks arms sales to Hungary in revenge for Budapest’s Sweden NATO veto
Jim Risch, the top-ranking Republican on the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said on June 14 he will postpone a $735 million arms sale to Hungary until the…