Author: Press Room
Published on 15/05/2026 – 11:40 GMT+2 German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Thursday that joint debt was not an option to finance the European economy, speaking at a ceremony awarding former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi the Charlemagne Prize. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT In his speech at Aachen Cathedral, Merz echoed Draghi’s call to boost European competitiveness, but differences remain over how to finance it. “Some now believe we can evade this painful task by taking on new debt, European debt, by financing regular spending through debt. Germany cannot follow this path for constitutional reasons alone, and, ladies and gentlemen, we…
By Inês Trindade Pereira & video by Léa Becquet Published on 15/05/2026 – 10:23 GMT+2•Updated 10:40 Germany was the world’s largest exporter of plastic waste in 2025, sending 810,000 tonnes overseas, according to a new study. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT It was followed by the UK, which exported 675,000 tonnes abroad, said the report, which was carried out by journalists at Watershed Investigations and the environmental NGO Basel Action Network (BAN) for British news outlet The Guardian. It’s the country’s highest level in eight years and produced enough to fill about 127,000 shipping containers. Meanwhile, at an EU level, the bloc exported 1.5 billion kg/year…
Good morning from Brussels. This is Maïa de la Baume and Angela Skujins, writing Friday’s newsletter from the Belgian capital, where EU officials have already slipped into long-weekend mode. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Just in: Latvia’s former defence minister Andris Sprūds, who resigned on Sunday, told the Europe Today programme that he had “always said that it is difficult to deal with drones which have lost their trajectory.” Sprūds is at the center of a political firestorm that brought down Latvia’s Prime Minister Evika Siliņa on Thursday, following a coalition collapse over a drone-related security dispute near the Russian border. Reminder :…
Good morning. Angela Skujins penning this Thursday’s newsletter from the Belgian capital, where I can say with quiet confidence that everyone not enjoying the public holiday has their eyes firmly fixed to what is happening nearly 8,000 kilometres to the east. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Before US President Donald Trump departed the White House on Tuesday for an almost 14-hour flight to the Chinese capital, he outlined in plain English the importance of the visit. “We’re the two superpowers,” he said unabashedly. “We’re the strongest nation on earth in terms of military. China’s considered second,” Trump said. After landing, both presidents expressed…
The EU’s equality chief Hadja Lahbib told Euronews’ Europe Today programme that conversion therapy is “torture” that can lead to depression and suicide – “and that’s why we need really to react and to combat these practices.” ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The comments came following a presentation by the European Commission regarding a citizens initiative signed by more than one million signatures calling for a bloc-wide ban on the practice. Instead of meeting the demands, the Commission will next year will put forth the non-binding recommendation that cover actions to increase societal awareness, help victims seek legal action and strengthen medical and…
Published on 14/05/2026 – 10:04 GMT+2 A court in Kyiv ruled on Thursday that a powerful former aide of Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky be detained ahead of a high-profile trial on corruption allegations in a probe that has roiled the country. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Former chief of staff Andriy Yermak has been placed in custody for two months with bail set for €2.7 million. Yermak said he will stay behind bars as he cannot pay the sum. “I don’t have that kind of money for bail. Right now, my lawyer will be working with friends and acquaintances. I deny any accusations.…
Poland’s capital, Warsaw, registered its first same-sex marriage on Thursday, implementing court rulings that require the country to recognise same-sex marriages registered abroad. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT In November, the European Union’s highest court ordered Poland to register same-sex marriages that were entered into in other EU countries even if Polish law does not currently permit them. In March, Poland’s Supreme Administrative Court cited that ruling in ordering authorities to recognise the marriage in Germany of two Polish men. “This morning we issued the first transcription of a marriage certificate for a same-sex couple, in accordance with the court rulings,” Warsaw Mayor…
Published on 14/05/2026 – 10:44 GMT+2 First, Elon Musk is there to protect Tesla’s massive Chinese footprint and his interests as head of xAI. Tim Cook is managing his final lap as Apple’s CEO, balancing billions in sales with a shift of production away from China. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT There is also the “king of chips,” Nvidia’s Jensen Huang, who joined at the last minute to lobby for the sale of powerful H200 AI chips currently stalled by US and Chinese regulations. Joining them are the giants of the supply chain. Micron is there to fight Beijing’s ban on American memory…
Published on 14/05/2026 – 15:28 GMT+2 Denmark’s Queen Margrethe, who abdicated in 2024 has been admitted to hospital due to chest pain, the Royal House of Denmark said on Thursday. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The 86-year-old Queen was admitted to Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen’s main hospital, “this afternoon due to angina,” the court said in a statement. She will remain in hospital over the weekend for observation and further examinations, the court added. “Her Majesty is tired, but in good spirits,” it said. The former sovereign reigned in the Scandinavian country for 52 years before passing the throne to her eldest son Frederik in…
Pope Leo XIV denounced how investments in artificial intelligence and high-tech weaponry were leading the world into a “spiral of annihilation” on Thursday, as he called for peace in the Middle East and Ukraine during a visit to Europe’s largest university. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The pontiff’s speech at Rome’s La Sapienza University marked the first time a pope has visited the campus since Pope Benedict XVI called off a planned speech there in 2008 in the face of protests from faculty and students. The American pope was warmly welcomed on Thursday, including by some of Sapienza’s newest students: Young Palestinians who…