Friedrich Merz

Merz faces chancellor swap talk as AfD surges before eastern elections

Conservative politicians discuss replacing Friedrich Merz after one year as AfD leads national polls and threatens to win state power for the first time in September.

Marek Jankowski7 August 20267 min read

Merz warns US over $3m grant scheme targeting European elections

German chancellor says foreign financing of political parties is illegal as State Department launches programme framed around 'civilizational heritage' and 'lawfare'

Marek Jankowski16 July 20267 min read

Merz warns US against election interference as Trump funds European civil society

German chancellor rejects nearly $5 million State Department programme targeting 'Western civilisational heritage' weeks before key regional vote where AfD leads polls.

Clara Devereux15 July 20267 min read

Le Pen confirms 2027 presidential bid as RN courts German conservatives

French far-right leader announces candidacy hours after court upholds embezzlement conviction, while party president Bardella signals pragmatic shift toward Berlin's centre-right

Clara Devereux8 July 20267 min read

European leaders meet in Berlin to show defence unity before Ankara NATO summit

Chancellor Merz hosts five-nation dinner as Franco-German fighter project collapses and Trump pressures allies over Iran and troop levels

Marek Jankowski24 June 20267 min read

Ukraine shifts from security consumer to provider as Europe rethinks defence architecture

Kyiv's battlefield experience and defence innovation are reshaping European security debates, with Germany and the European Commission proposing deeper integration before full EU membership.

Clara Devereux24 June 20267 min read

EU opens accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova after Hungary lifts veto

Intergovernmental conference in Luxembourg launches formal negotiations on five policy clusters, marking the start of a process that typically takes years and requires sweeping reforms in both candidate countries.

Clara Devereux15 June 20268 min read

Montenegro leads EU enlargement queue as bloc debates new accession model

Brussels has opened the first accession treaty working group in 17 years for Montenegro, but disagreement over veto rights, staged integration and institutional reform threatens to stall wider enlargement.

Peter van den Berg27 May 20268 min read

Mario Draghi receives Charlemagne Prize for stabilizing euro and shaping EU competitiveness agenda

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz honored the former ECB president and Italian prime minister in Aachen, citing his crisis leadership and the 2024 Draghi Report as a blueprint for European renewal.

Sofia Marchetti14 May 20268 min read

EU budget battle lines harden as member states reject Commission's €1.76 trillion plan

The European Parliament has voted to raise the proposed 2028-2035 spending ceiling above the Commission's €1.76 trillion, but Germany and the Netherlands are pushing back while net recipients demand more. Negotiations resume in June with concrete figures.

Marek Jankowski29 April 20267 min read

Technology

EU legislators collapse in AI Act delay talks over German industrial exemption demand

Negotiators missed an informal end-of-April deadline to postpone high-risk AI rules until December 2027, leaving an August implementation date that industry warns will create legal chaos.

Ana Belić29 April 202610 min read

Hungary elects Peter Magyar with two-thirds majority ending Orban era

Pro-European Tisza party wins 138 of 199 seats on record 80% turnout, promising constitutional reform and renewed EU ties after 16 years of Viktor Orban's rule.

Sofia Marchetti13 April 20267 min read

Germany accuses JD Vance of election interference hypocrisy over Hungary vote

Berlin counters US vice president's claim that Brussels meddled in Hungarian election, noting his own Budapest visit days before the ballot amounted to endorsement of Viktor Orbán.

Clara Devereux8 April 20267 min read

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.

Hélène Mercier2 April 20266 min read

European Parliament backs migrant return hubs outside EU borders

MEPs voted 389 to 206 to advance legislation allowing rejected asylum seekers to be sent to centres in third countries, with penalties for those who refuse relocation.

Marek Jankowski26 March 20268 min read

Europe faces another energy crisis as Middle East conflict exposes persistent vulnerabilities

Four years after vowing to end reliance on Russian gas, the EU finds itself dependent on US LNG and Norwegian pipeline gas, with prices surging 20 percent after the Strait of Hormuz closure.

Peter van den Berg19 March 20267 min read

Baden-Württemberg election dead heat and Iran war fuel prices test Merz's Germany

Greens edge CDU by half a percentage point in the first of five 2026 state votes as diesel hits €2.20 a litre and the chancellor pins war responsibility solely on Tehran.

Marek Jankowski9 March 20269 min read

FDP faces extinction in Baden-Württemberg vote that could end 70-year role in German politics

The Free Democrats poll at 4, 5 percent days before Sunday's election, risking their first ever exit from the southwestern state parliament and raising doubts about the party's national survival after last year's federal wipeout.

Clara Devereux7 March 20268 min read

Europe races to lock in deals before France's 2027 far-right risk

With Marine Le Pen or Jordan Bardella favoured to win next year's presidential election, Berlin, Brussels and Kyiv are accelerating nuclear, budget and enlargement agreements that a National Rally government could unpick.

Clara Devereux6 March 20268 min read

EU energy ministers meet as Iran war drives gas prices to 2023 highs

Persian Gulf closure pushes European benchmark prices up sharply, reviving fights over electricity market design, the emissions trading system and the pace of electrification.

Peter van den Berg5 March 20268 min read

Orbán picks fight with Brussels and Kyiv to salvage election campaign

Trailing by eight points weeks before the April vote, Hungary's prime minister blocks €90 billion in EU aid for Ukraine and brands his rival a foreign stooge. Péter Magyar refuses the bait.

Sofia Marchetti25 February 20268 min read

European Parliament delays US trade deal vote after Trump tariff surprise

Emergency meeting of trade committee puts legislative work on hold as 15% universal levy throws Turnberry agreement into doubt

Clara Devereux23 February 20268 min read

Greek central bank chief presses Berlin on eurobonds as ECB backs joint debt

Yannis Stournaras argues narrowed spreads and ECB consensus make common issuance essential for defence, green transition and innovation, but Friedrich Merz remains opposed.

Clara Devereux19 February 20266 min read

EU finance ministers confront euro's weak global role as geopolitical risks mount

Brussels meeting exposes deep divisions over joint debt and capital markets union while the dollar still dominates 60 percent of global goods invoicing.

Clara Devereux16 February 20267 min read

Business

Von der Leyen demands capital market overhaul to end EU fragmentation

European Commission president tells MEPs the bloc's 27 financial systems and 300-plus trading venues are strangling growth, urging savings and investment union legislation this year even if some member states refuse to join.

Tomás Lindqvist11 February 20268 min read

Bundesbank chief breaks with German orthodoxy to back permanent EU joint debt

Joachim Nagel argues Europe needs a permanent joint borrowing instrument to finance defence and technology, putting the Bundesbank at odds with Chancellor Merz and marking a historic shift for Germany's central bank.

Peter van den Berg11 February 20268 min read

EU leaders assess damage after Trump retreats on Greenland tariffs

Emergency summit in Brussels reveals frayed transatlantic trust as Kaja Kallas warns of a 'big blow' while member states disagree on how firmly to respond to US volatility.

Sofia Marchetti23 January 20267 min read

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.

Hélène Mercier6 January 20268 min read

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.

Hélène Mercier6 January 20267 min read