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China's green tech dominance creates dilemma for Western climate goals
University of Manchester report warns that tariffs and local-content rules risk slowing decarbonisation while China supplies 70 to 80 percent of key technologies
Security and Defence Editor
Hélène Mercier
Hélène Mercier writes on European defence, NATO and the continent's relationships beyond its borders. She reported from Kyiv and the Baltic states between 2022 and 2024, and covers procurement and force structure rather than communiqués.
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Recent articles
World
Poland targets Europe's largest army as Tusk warns of Russian threat
Prime minister says armed forces will reach 300,000 active personnel, doubling 2014 levels, while dismissing far-right narratives that blame the EU and Ukraine.
World
NATO jets down drone over eastern Latvia as Baltic airspace violations persist
Latvian defence ministry says alliance fighters destroyed unmanned aerial vehicle that entered its territory, attributing incursion to Russian electromagnetic warfare amid fifth year of Ukraine conflict.
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Chinese scholar challenges Western narrative linking subsidies to industrial overcapacity
University of International Business and Economics professor Cui Fan argues in People's Daily that China ranks eleventh in industrial policy use among major economies, citing University of British Columbia research covering 2009 to 2020.
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Anchorage summit legacy fades as Russia-Ukraine war escalates
One year after Trump hosted Putin in Alaska, the promised diplomatic breakthrough has evaporated. Both sides are intensifying military operations while US mediation has stalled amid a new Middle East conflict.
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US intelligence points to Russia over Leipzig airport drone bomb
A quadcopter carrying Semtex explosives breached defences at the major logistics hub for four hours before a bus driver spotted it. Berlin stops short of accusing Moscow as eastern state elections approach.
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Lithuania warns of Russian false-flag drone attacks on Baltic infrastructure
Lithuanian intelligence says Moscow may use captured Ukrainian drones to strike energy and transport hubs, framing Kyiv, while German investigators examine an explosive device found near a Ukrainian cargo plane at Leipzig airport.
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Drone incidents in Bulgaria and Germany sharpen NATO eastern flank concerns
A suspected Ukrainian decoy drone exploded near a strategic gas pipeline in Bulgaria while German forces detected multiple incursions at military sites, reviving questions about alliance air defences and escalation risks.
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Ukraine shoots down zero ballistic missiles as Patriot shortage reaches critical level
A Russian barrage of 24 ballistic missiles penetrated Ukrainian defences entirely on Wednesday, killing at least 17 people, while NATO admits supply lines have collapsed to a third of last year's rate.
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Zaluzhnyi declares Ukraine will never join NATO, cites outdated doctrines
Kyiv's ambassador to London and former military chief says the alliance relies on Second World War thinking while Ukraine has surpassed Western forces in drone and missile production.
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Zaluzhnyi says Ukraine will never join NATO, urges European security bloc
Former commander-in-chief and current UK ambassador argues alliance standards are obsolete, contradicting Kyiv's official constitutional objective
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NATO installs new NSATU commander as alliance shifts Ukraine support toward European leadership
Lieutenant General Guillaume Beaurpere succeeds Curtis Buzzard at the Wiesbaden-based command coordinating allied military aid to Ukraine, with SACEUR signalling a European or Canadian officer will take permanent charge within a year.
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Boris Nadezhdin flees to Paris as Kremlin tightens pre-election grip
The last prominent anti-war figure in Russian public life has left the country after detention, foreign-agent designation and exclusion from September's parliamentary vote.
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China strikes back hard after EU sanctions on Russian war suppliers
Beijing's retaliatory measures target European firms with extraterritorial reach, escalating trade tensions before October negotiations on electric vehicle tariffs.
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EU foreign ministers adopt hardline China threat assessment
The Council's new position paper labels Beijing a strategic challenge and Russia enabler, but stops short of concrete measures as economic ties complicate a unified response.
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Montreux Convention at 90: how a 1936 treaty still blocks NATO from the Black Sea
Turkey's control of the straits keeps the alliance out while Russia and Ukraine fight a drone war the treaty never imagined. The result is a Black Sea largely empty of warships.
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EU ministers weigh trade curbs on Israeli settlements as violence surges
Foreign ministers meet in Brussels to test support for three Commission options, but Germany and Italy remain undecided while Belgium dismisses the proposals as a delaying tactic.
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Trump grants Ukraine Patriot production licence at Ankara NATO summit
US president reverses long-standing policy on missile technology transfer while NATO leaders pledge $80 billion for Kyiv and defence spending targets slip.
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NATO summit in Ankara reveals fractures as Ukraine secures drone deals and presses for air defence
Volodymyr Zelensky signs agreements with Estonia, the Netherlands and Denmark while demanding Patriot licences and a European anti-ballistic system, as Donald Trump questions allied resolve and Mark Rutte unveils $217 billion in defence financing.
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Trump presses NATO allies to deliver on 5% defence spending pledge at Ankara summit
The US president travels to Turkey expecting concrete plans from European members after last year's Hague agreement, while his administration reviews force posture in Europe and feuds with several allied leaders.
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Pashinyan wins Armenian election but misses supermajority for peace referendum
Civil Contract takes 49.81 percent of the vote, securing a parliamentary majority but falling short of the two-thirds threshold needed to ratify a constitutional referendum demanded by Azerbaijan.
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One Nation leads Australian poll as populist right surges past Labor and Coalition
Pauline Hanson's party hits 31 per cent in primary vote while government and traditional opposition both lose ground after May budget
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Finland's Stubb dismisses NATO crisis talk as US shifts burden to Europe
Finnish president says alliance stronger after Nordic enlargement, welcomes European defence responsibility, downplays US troop withdrawal from Germany
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EU agrees sanctions on Hamas leaders and Israeli settlers after Orbán exit
Foreign ministers unanimously back asset freezes and travel bans on settler organisations and Hamas figures, but stop short of trade measures against Israel despite pressure from Spain, Ireland and the Netherlands.
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Europe accelerates defence planning as Trump's NATO stance creates security vacuum
Germany unveils first military strategy since 1945 while France extends nuclear talks to seven partners, but capability gaps and US arsenal depletion leave a lengthening window of vulnerability.
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NATO and EU split over Turkey as defence reliance deepens
Mark Rutte praises Ankara's military expansion while Ursula von der Leyen brackets it with China and Russia, exposing a strategic contradiction Europe cannot resolve before the July NATO summit.
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EU trust rises in Southeast Asia but strategic gaps persist
The latest ISEAS survey shows the EU is the region's preferred hedge against US-China rivalry, yet Brussels still struggles to convert goodwill into diplomatic weight.
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Iran war triggers European energy scramble as prices surge 70 percent
With the Strait of Hormuz blocked and Asian buyers outbidding Europe for LNG, the EU faces its most severe supply test since the Ukraine invasion, forcing ministers to ask citizens to cut consumption while industry warns of factory shutdowns.
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Trump says he is considering US exit from NATO as European allies weigh the consequences
The US president called the alliance a 'paper tiger' in a Telegraph interview, while Hungary blocks a €90 billion Ukraine loan and European capitals assess whether Article 5 deterrence has already collapsed.
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Rutte says allies weeks from Hormuz mission as Europeans question Trump's Iran war
NATO secretary general claims consensus forming on securing Strait of Hormuz, but European capitals see a US-led conflict they did not choose and a potential diversion from Ukraine.
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EU rejects Trump call to guard Hormuz as energy costs hit €3 billion
European foreign ministers rule out naval mission in the Gulf while warning that soaring oil and gas prices are handing Russia a windfall and diverting air defences from Ukraine.
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Iran conflict doubles European gas prices as Hormuz shipping halts
Strait of Hormuz closure removes a fifth of global oil trade, pushing European gas to €56 per megawatt-hour while storage sits at a four-year low of 30 percent capacity.
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Rutte says Russia losing 65,000 troops in two months as Munich conference exposes European defence gaps
NATO chief details staggering Russian casualties while Zelensky demands longer security guarantees and von der Leyen invokes EU mutual defence clause.
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Munich Security Conference confronts Trump's rupture of transatlantic order
As leaders gather in Bavaria, the Greenland crisis, a US strategy document targeting European governments, and doubts over Article 5 credibility frame the most uncertain transatlantic moment in decades.
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Ukraine builds steel porcupine as security guarantees fray
Kyiv plans an 800,000-strong army and domestic missile industry after concluding it cannot rely on Western promises, with EU loans and drone output already scaling up.
World
Wind and solar surpass fossil fuels in EU electricity generation for first time
Record renewable growth in 2025 pushes wind and solar past coal and gas across the bloc, while global capacity expands 11 per cent despite political headwinds from Washington
World
EU rejects Myanmar junta election as sham while keeping trade preferences intact
Brussels says polls cannot be free or fair amid civil war and mass detention, but Myanmar retains duty-free access to the European market under the Everything But Arms scheme.
World
US backs European security guarantees for Ukraine at Paris summit
Washington joins coalition of willing for first time as Trump envoys signal support for binding commitments, while Britain and France pledge troops and territorial disputes remain unresolved.
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Europe and US draft legally binding security guarantees for Ukraine
Leaders in Paris agree text committing Washington to ceasefire monitoring, intelligence and backing for a European-led multinational force, though Moscow has not signed on.
World
Europe's Greenland dilemma exposes NATO fault lines as Trump threatens military action
Six European powers issued a joint statement defending Danish sovereignty over Greenland after the White House said military options remain on the table, but the response reveals deep divisions and reliance on US security guarantees.
World
Ukraine's security guarantees rest on Putin's calculations, not European wishes
US security commitments are the only credible deterrent, but their durability depends on Russian acceptance and Congressional ratification, neither of which is assured.
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Berlin talks sketch Ukraine security guarantees but Russia stays cold
European leaders outlined a multinational force and legally binding commitments in Berlin, yet experts disagree on whether the guarantees match NATO's Article 5 and the Kremlin has already dismissed a Christmas ceasefire.
World
US offers NATO-style security guarantees to Ukraine at Berlin talks
Trump envoys make unprecedented offer to Zelenskyy as European leaders express cautious optimism, but Moscow has yet to signal willingness to negotiate territorial concessions.
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US offers Ukraine Article 5-style security guarantees as Donbas dispute stalls Berlin peace talks
Washington proposes Senate-ratified mutual defence pledge modelled on NATO's collective security clause, but territorial sovereignty over occupied eastern regions remains unresolved as European leaders press for Ukrainian energy infrastructure protection.
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Kremlin endorses Trump security strategy as alignment with Russian interests
Moscow's unprecedented praise for a US national security document signals expectations of reduced American commitments to Europe and Ukraine, according to analysts watching the transatlantic relationship.
World
Trump's second term exports MAGA ideology into European politics
From Honduras to Brussels, the US president is treating foreign policy as an extension of domestic culture war, backing right-wing candidates, attacking EU climate laws and funding conservative networks across the continent.
World
US runs Ukraine peace talks while keeping Europe at arm's length
Washington's 28-point proposal crosses European red lines on territory, force caps and NATO infrastructure. A counter-offer from Berlin, Paris and London has been floated but Europeans remain excluded from direct talks with Kyiv in Miami.
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US demands EU rewrite digital rules in exchange for metals tariff relief
Washington links steel and aluminium concessions to changes in the Digital Markets Act and digital services taxes, while Brussels insists its regulations are non-discriminatory and not negotiable.
World
Germany deepens defence ties with Turkey as NATO production gaps widen
Berlin is turning to Ankara for artillery ammunition, drone technology and industrial capacity, while Turkey seeks entry to the EU's €150 billion SAFE financing programme.
World
Rasmussen warns of forever war unless Europe escalates pressure on Russia
Former NATO chief calls for air defences on alliance territory, European troops in Ukraine and seizure of frozen Russian assets to force Putin to negotiate
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EU refuses to roll back green rules despite US trade pressure
Brussels tells member states it will not accept Washington's demand to drop supply chain and climate legislation as the price of a tariff agreement, setting up a clash at next month's European Council summit.
World
Germany, Poland and France pledge NATO unity as Zelenskyy urges joint air shield
German foreign minister Johann Wadephul says no alliance member will face Russian provocations alone, while Ukraine's president proposes a shared aerial defence system at Warsaw Security Forum.
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Trump shifts to backing full Ukrainian territorial recovery after Zelenskyy meeting
US president tells UN gathering that Ukraine can retake all land lost to Russia with European and NATO support, reversing his previous call for mutual territorial concessions.
World
NATO launches Eastern Sentry after Russian drones violate Polish airspace
The alliance's new mission begins within days with air and ground assets from France, Germany, the UK and Denmark, as 43 nations condemn Moscow at the UN Security Council.
World
Putin rejects Western troop deployment to Ukraine as ceasefire hopes fade
Russian president warns any foreign forces would be legitimate targets while Macron says 26 allies have committed to a reassurance force, but US rules out ground troops and ceasefire remains distant.
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Germany withholds military pledge as 26 nations commit to Ukraine security force
Berlin says it will decide on troop deployment only when US engagement and negotiation framework are clear, while Trump presses Europeans to halt Russian oil purchases.
World
Lagarde warns Fed independence under threat from Trump pressure
ECB president says political control of US interest rates would destabilise the world's largest economy, though legal constraints make a takeover difficult.
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Lagarde warns Trump Fed interference would endanger global economy
ECB president tells Radio Classique that US central bank independence is legally protected but its loss would threaten price stability worldwide
World
US-EU trade framework draws criticism over China policy alignment
A geopolitics analyst argues the August agreement makes the EU an auxiliary enforcer of American containment strategy toward Beijing, with clause 19 requiring investment screening and export controls mirroring US measures.
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Trump offers US security role for Ukraine but rules out NATO membership and American ground troops
European leaders joined Zelenskyy at the White House as Trump described a guarantee framework reliant on European troops backed by US air power, with formal details promised within ten days.
World
EU Taiwan engagement tests Beijing red line as diplomatic anniversaries arrive
Fifty years after recognising Beijing, several European capitals are expanding unofficial ties with Taipei while Brussels pursues de-risking, prompting Chinese concern that the bloc's one-China commitment is eroding.
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EU convenes emergency Ukraine talks as Trump-Putin summit looms in Alaska
Kaja Kallas warns any US-Russia deal excluding Kyiv and Brussels will collapse, with foreign ministers meeting online Monday before Friday's Alaska summit where Trump has suggested territorial swaps.
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EU prepares 19th Russia sanctions package as Trump-Putin meeting looms
Kaja Kallas rules out concessions to Moscow before a verified ceasefire while EU leaders coordinate ahead of Friday's Alaska summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.
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Vance and Lammy convene Ukraine talks as Trump-Putin summit looms
US vice-president and UK foreign secretary host Ukrainian and European officials at Chevening days before Alaska meeting where territorial concessions are expected to dominate.
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European NATO allies pledge over $1 billion for US weapons to Ukraine in two days
The Netherlands, Sweden, Norway and Denmark have committed funds through NATO's new procurement mechanism, marking the first concrete deliveries under the alliance's accelerated support programme agreed at The Hague summit.
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Eastern Europe races to rearm as US commitment to NATO wavers
Central and eastern European states are accelerating defence industrial conversion while pressing Washington for concrete security guarantees, fearing a negotiated Ukraine settlement could leave them exposed.
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Europe buys US weapons for Ukraine to bypass Trump hesitation
Germany leads a coalition of European nations purchasing American arms for Kyiv, allowing Washington to profit while avoiding direct confrontation with Moscow.
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Trump seals NATO arms deal for Ukraine with European funding and 50-day ultimatum to Putin
US president announces Patriots and other systems paid for by allies, threatens secondary tariffs on Russian energy buyers, and signals a sharp rhetorical shift toward Kyiv and Europe.
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EU-China summit cut to one day as trade deficit hits €400 billion
Beijing summit reduced from two days after Xi Jinping declined Brussels invitation. Rare earth curbs, EV tariffs and sanctions on Chinese banks dominate agenda.
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US State Department document calls for civilizational alliance with European far right
A May paper by a senior State Department official frames European elections as opportunities to install Trump-aligned governments, marking a break from eight decades of transatlantic policy.
World
EU mission warns political dynasties tightening grip on Philippine democracy
European Union election observers say dynastic families control four in five congressional seats and two-thirds of party-list posts meant for marginalised groups, calling the legal framework obsolete and fragmented.
World
China raises brandy tariffs as Wang Yi tours Europe amid trade and security disputes
Beijing imposes duties of up to 34.9 per cent on EU brandy from 5 July while restricting rare earth exports, as the EU faces a 9 July US tariff deadline and prepares for a strained 50th anniversary summit with China.
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Rutte presses Washington for flexibility as US pauses Ukraine artillery and air defence shipments
NATO chief warns alliance credibility depends on keeping Ukraine supplied while Pentagon reviews stockpiles and Trump signals frustration with Putin
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Georgia jails six opposition leaders in one week as crackdown accelerates
Six prominent pro-Western politicians sentenced to prison for refusing to testify before a parliamentary commission, leaving most opposition leadership behind bars and drawing condemnation from Norway and Transparency International.
World
NATO summit opens in The Hague with 5% spending target in doubt
Allies gather amid Spanish rejection of the proposed target, Trump's contradictory demands, and uncertainty over Ukraine's place at the table.
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Kaja Kallas demands realism in EU-China ties before Wang Yi meeting
EU foreign ministers aligned on a harder line toward Beijing ahead of a July summit, citing enablement of Russia's war, cyber operations and trade coercion as core irritants.
World
EU ministers weigh Israel association agreement after Gaza human rights review
Kaja Kallas presents findings suggesting Israel may have breached human rights obligations under the EU-Israel association agreement, as Spain and Ireland push for suspension while Germany urges restraint.
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Trump's second term reshapes transatlantic ties as allies brace for G7 and NATO tests
Five months into Donald Trump's return, the US has abandoned indivisible security, imposed sweeping tariffs and launched a political offensive against European values, forcing allies to coordinate a response before July tariff deadlines.
World
Lagarde warns China over trade surplus in Beijing speech
ECB president tells PBOC that both surplus and deficit nations must adjust, citing 1930s parallels and saying de-risking is now permanent.
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German peace researchers urge Europe to prepare for post-NATO future
The 2025 Peace Report from four leading institutes argues the transatlantic partnership has ended and NATO's mutual defence commitment has lost credibility, recommending a step-by-step plan for integrated European defence structures.
World
EU proposes Black Sea maritime hub but leaves funding and location unresolved
Kaja Kallas unveils a strategy to counter Russian influence and protect undersea cables, yet the plan lacks a budget, a host country or a clear list of participants.
World
EU reviews Israel trade deal as UK suspends talks over Gaza blockade
European foreign ministers back review of association agreement while Britain imposes settler sanctions and halts free-trade negotiations, marking the sharpest Western diplomatic pressure on Israel since the war resumed in March.
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EU and UK launch coordinated sanctions on Russian shadow fleet and weapons supply chains
Brussels targets 189 tankers while London hits missile components and disinformation networks, acting in concert after Trump failed to extract a ceasefire commitment from Putin.
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Europe's defence spending surges 17 percent but capability gaps remain
SIPRI data shows European NATO members spent $693 billion last year, yet experts warn the money will take years to translate into deployable force and may duplicate existing systems.
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EU holds Xinjiang sanctions as China lifts measures on MEPs
Brussels says no improvement in human rights situation despite Beijing's move to ease retaliatory sanctions on European Parliament members imposed in 2021.
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How Trump's first month shattered European security assumptions
A series of shocks in February 2025 forced European leaders to confront the possibility that Washington is no longer a reliable partner, triggering frantic diplomacy and a scramble for strategic autonomy.
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EU's China policy vacuum exposed as Trump returns and trade deficit widens
Brussels still operates from a 2019 framework that called Beijing partner, competitor and rival simultaneously. With Washington turning inward, the cost of that ambiguity is now measurable in a €304.5 billion trade gap.
World
Rubio seeks to calm NATO allies as France warns of growing cracks in alliance
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in Brussels insisting American commitment to NATO remains ironclad, but French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said the alliance is being tested by President Trump's latest decisions, while European capitals quietly prepare for a possible US troop drawdown.
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Rubio reassures NATO but Trump tariffs and 5% spending demand deepen European doubts
US Secretary of State tells Brussels the alliance is rock-solid while President Trump slaps 20% tariffs on EU goods and demands defence spending that would require a command economy.
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Finnish President Stubb calls for European special envoy on Ukraine as coalition of willing meets in Paris
Alexander Stubb argues Europe needs a single negotiating figure while defending Finland's defence contributions against US criticism of freeloading.
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Greenland forms unity government as US vice president arrives
Four of five parliamentary parties unite behind centre-right Democrats, excluding only the pro-independence Naleraq, hours before JD Vance visits Pituffik Space Base.
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EU and partners pledge 5.8 billion euros for Syria at Brussels donor conference
First post-Assad conference falls short of last year's 7.5 billion as US aid retreats; interim Syrian government attends for first time amid renewed sectarian violence
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NATO faces existential test as Trump pivots toward Moscow
The alliance's strategic concept still names Russia as its principal threat, yet its largest member now echoes Kremlin talking points. With the June summit in The Hague approaching, Europeans are building alternatives while trying to keep the US inside the tent.
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Europe confronts the cost of securing Ukraine without American backing
European leaders meeting in London pledged to build security guarantees for Ukraine after Trump ruled out US commitments, but the military and financial gap left by Washington is vast.
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Europe drafts Ukraine peace plan as US backstop evaporates
Britain and France advance a stabilisation force proposal without American security guarantees, leaving European troops exposed if Russia violates a ceasefire.
World
Europe cannot deter Russia alone as Trump rules out US troops for Ukraine
British Army at 70,000 regulars; Russia spends 6.7% of GDP on defence. European leaders meet this weekend to decide whether to deploy up to 30,000 troops without American security guarantees.
World
Merz pushes European defence independence as Trump undermines NATO Article 5
Germany's incoming chancellor says his priority is independence from the US after Trump's statements weaken collective defence assumptions. European capitals scramble to fill a capability gap the Americans have filled for decades.
World
Transatlantic rift deepens as Trump administration sidelines Europe on Ukraine
Vice President Vance's Munich speech, U.S.-Russia talks excluding Kyiv, and a UN vote aligning Washington with Moscow signal a fundamental shift in the security architecture that has underpinned Europe since 1949.
World
US defence secretary tells Europe to lead on Ukraine and raise spending to 5% of GDP
Pete Hegseth says Washington will no longer be primarily focused on European security, rules out NATO membership for Ukraine and demands allies double defence budgets.
World
Pistorius in Lithuania: Germany prepares permanent brigade as US pivots to Indo-Pacific
German defence minister says Europe must shoulder more security burden regardless of US administration, while permanent Bundeswehr deployment to Lithuania targets 2027 combat readiness.
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Europe braces for Trump 2.0 as trade and defence tensions escalate
With Germany's economy shrinking and the EU-US trade surplus at €15.4 billion, European leaders scramble to manage an unpredictable US president who links tariffs to NATO commitments and threatens Greenland.
World
Ukraine could join NATO with occupied territories excluded from Article 5
A former Hudson Institute fellow argues that historical precedent allows NATO to admit Ukraine while temporarily suspending collective defence guarantees over Russian-held land, removing Moscow's de facto veto on enlargement.
World
Trump says Putin meeting being arranged before inauguration
President-elect signals direct talks with Moscow within days of taking office, while demanding NATO allies raise defence spending to five percent of GDP.
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Former Latvian PM urges European coalition to guarantee Ukraine ceasefire line
Krišjānis Kariņš argues NATO's European members must lead a military mission to secure any future demarcation zone, warning that a ceasefire without hard guarantees will collapse as it did in 2014.