Author: Press Room

The European Parliament will vote soon on a law aiming to increase returns of irregular migrants, also through controversial deportation centers outside the EU, detentions up to two years, and raids on homes that NGOs compare to US style ICE’s methods. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) approved on Monday a version of the text supported by the center-right, right-wing, and far-right groups, breaking the traditional “centrist majority”. Left side groups of the hemicycle announced their opposition to the bill, which has now to be voted on by the entire Parliament. The committee…

Published on 09/03/2026 – 14:20 GMT+1 The European Union shouldn’t shy away from a trade war with China if it wants to avoid deindustrialisation, according to a report published Monday by the bloc’s foreign-policy think tank, the European Union Institute for Security Studies. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The report argues that confrontation with Beijing is likely unavoidable and urges Brussels to make it easier to deploy its most powerful trade-defence weapon, the Anti-Coercion Instrument (ACI). The analysis lands after year in which China continued to weaponise Europe’s dependence on rare earths and chips through export controls, while its trade surplus with the…

Published on 09/03/2026 – 16:44 GMT+1 Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has been accused of trying to manipulate Italy’s next general election in 2027 through a controversial overhaul of the electoral system. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Her conservative government wants to introduce a new law that would guarantee a parliamentary majority to any party or coalition winning more than 40% of the vote. Italy’s main opposition force, the centre-left Democratic Party, says the move is politically motivated, accusing the government of “fearing defeat under the current electoral system” and “changing the rules of the game without any real debate with the opposition”.…

Published on 09/03/2026 – 17:36 GMT+1 Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has called on the European Union to suspend sanctions on Russian energy imports, citing rising energy prices across Europe. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Oil prices have surpassed $100 (€87) per barrel for the first time since August 2022, threatening to push consumer prices higher. Natural gas prices also rose sharply. The EU imposed sanctions on Russian oil imports in 2022 following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Hungary and Slovakia received exemptions and continued to import significant volumes of pipeline oil from Russia via the Druzhba pipeline, which runs through Ukrainian territory.…

EU economy and finance ministers are gathering in Brussels on Monday and Tuesday to discuss how to respond to surging energy prices and anticipated inflation amid the ongoing strikes and counter-strikes in the Middle East. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “We are ready to take necessary and coordinated steps in order to stabilise markets, such as strategic stockpiling,” French Economy Minister Roland Lescure told journalists on Monday after chairing a meeting of G7 finance ministers. Asked whether G7 finance ministers had agreed on releasing the system’s strategic stockpile, Lescure said: “We are not there yet.” “What we’ve agreed upon is to use any…

Published on 09/03/2026 – 18:02 GMT+1•Updated 18:29 NATO forces have intercepted an Iranian missile heading to Türkiye for the second time in less than a week, as US-Israeli strikes on Iran throw the wider Middle East into conflict. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Last Wednesday, Türkiye’s Ministry of Defence said it intercepted an Iranian ballistic missile headed toward Turkish airspace close to the Syria border. Confirming the incident, NATO spokesperson Allison Hart said “NATO stands firm in its readiness to defend all Allies against any threat”. According to NATO sources, there is as yet no indication Türkiye is triggering formal proceedings within the…

The European Union’s vision of a local energy revolution is hitting serious roadblocks, a new report from the European Court of Auditors (ECA) revealed on Monday, as plans for citizens, local authorities and small businesses to create so-called “energy communities” – where they produce, share, and consume their own renewable energy – are moving far slower than promised. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Citizens who belong to energy communities often express confusion about permits and legal steps and insufficient information and support, shattering dreams of energy self-sufficiency by way of shared rooftops or village-owned wind turbines. The EU gave citizens the power to…

As high costs continue to affect industries and economic competitiveness, the European Commission plans to protect its heavy industry from rising electricity prices by considering changes to national taxes, network charges and carbon costs, a document discussed by EU leaders and seen by Euronews reveals. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Energy-intensive industries such as chemicals, steel, and aluminium, which depend heavily on large amounts of power to operate, have been calling on the EU to address rising electricity and gas prices even before energy prices soared further after the United States and Israel launched their strikes on Iran. Industrial electricity prices in the…

Published on 09/03/2026 – 14:59 GMT+1 Washington and Beijing are both trying to weaken Europe because it constitutes an “unknown variable” in their power struggle, France’s foreign minister said on Monday, urging the European Union to stop doubting itself and assert itself on the global stage. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “The main geopolitical challenge is the growing rivalry between two powers, two superpowers,” Jean‑Noël Barrot told the annual European Union Ambassadors Conference on Monday, citing the US and China. The two countries’ increasingly confrontational stances, coupled with their common desire to reshape the international order to their advantage, Barrot said, could see…

Published on 09/03/2026 – 14:28 GMT+1 Ukraine’s Oschadbank is demanding the immediate return of cash and gold confiscated by Hungarian authorities last week, lawyers representing the bank in Hungary told Euronews. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The incident triggered a diplomatic row after Hungarian police raided a convoy of cash carriers near Budapest and seized $40 million, €35 million and 9kg of gold. Hungary expelled seven Ukrainian nationals accompanying the transport the following day and opened an investigation into suspected money laundering. Horváth Lawyers, a law firm representing Oschadbank and its seven employees in Hungary, told Euronews that the Ukrainian vehicles were carrying…