Monday, 17 August 2026Europe · Analysis
Independent · Brussels & Berlin
Politics · page 14 of 14
Prime Minister Miloš Vučević's cabinet formally steps down after weeks of mass protests over a deadly train station collapse, while President Aleksandar Vučić sets a 30-day deadline to form a new government or face a snap vote.
Kaja Kallas tells foreign ministers the bloc lacks mechanisms to fill the void left by US Agency for Global Media grant termination, as Czech Republic leads push for partial support.
President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa dissolves parliament following confidence vote defeat, triggering third general election in three years amid growing voter fatigue
Federal prosecutors confirm 21 raids across Belgium and Portugal, with allegations of corruption, forgery and excessive gifts benefiting the Chinese telecoms company since 2021.
Prime minister's minority government falls 142-88 over consultancy firm allegations, triggering caretaker period and likely May ballot with polls showing no clear winner
Minority centre-right alliance loses confidence vote after less than a year in office, plunging the country into fresh political uncertainty as €22bn in EU funds await deployment.
Prime Minister Luis Montenegro's minority coalition lost 142-88 after opposition parties pressed a conflict-of-interest row involving his family's law firm and a state contractor.
Emergency Brussels summit agrees 150 billion euro loan facility and fiscal flexibility but splits remain on nuclear deterrence, Hungarian veto and how to replace US military aid worth 40 percent of Kyiv's support.
Christian Stocker becomes chancellor as conservatives, social democrats and liberals unite to keep the far-right Freedom Party out of government despite its election victory.
Tens of thousands gathered in Bucharest backing Călin Georgescu after Constitutional Court cancelled December vote citing Russian interference. Criminal probe launched against Georgescu as May rerun approaches.
The ÖVP, SPÖ and Neos have agreed a three-party government programme that avoids an EU deficit procedure, tightens asylum rules and names Christian Stocker chancellor, but the Neos membership must still approve it on Sunday.
The ÖVP, SPÖ and Neos agree a 200-page programme after five months of deadlock, giving Christian Stocker a slim parliamentary majority but leaving the Freedom Party polling at 35 per cent.
CDU leader's election win triggers immediate pressure from NATO and EU capitals for Germany to raise military expenditure and clarify its position on joint financing.
Conservative frontrunner Friedrich Merz promises four-year fix for Europe's largest economy while far-right AfD surges to second place and migration dominates the campaign.
CDU leader's push for permanent Schengen controls and blanket entry denials would invoke emergency treaty powers despite falling asylum numbers, risking a chain reaction across European borders.
The February 23 vote follows the collapse of Olaf Scholz's traffic light government. Polls point to a CDU-led administration, but the shape of the next coalition depends on whether smaller parties clear the five percent threshold.
The Commission president's second term began with a rapid simplification agenda announced in Budapest, leaving her own staff, MEPs and national capitals scrambling to catch up.
The draft agenda reveals three omnibus simplification packages, a Clean Industrial Deal and migration returns overhaul, but omits promised automotive and maritime strategies.
Conservatives lead polls at 30 percent but AfD's 20 percent blocks simple majority, forcing CDU/CSU into complex negotiations with SPD or Greens as migration policy fractures traditional alliances.
A defunding drive led by the EPP and far-right blocs targets the LIFE programme's operating grants, which cover up to 70% of some groups' budgets. A plenary vote on the budgetary discharge is expected in May.
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