Author: Press Room
The United States is unlikely to reach an agreement with Ukraine on the joint production of Patriot interceptor missiles before this winter, US ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker said on Monday, fuelling uncertainty over the most critical aspect of Kyiv’s air defences. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “A long-term production agreement will not be concluded before this winter. So we will continue working on it,” Whitaker said in a Fox News interview, stressing that PAC-3 Patriot interceptors remain tightly controlled under US export rules, meaning the scope for rapid licensing is limited. “We do not allow anybody but US manufacturers to make those…
By Alessio Dell’Anna & video by Léa Becquet Published on 04/08/2026 – 9:37 GMT+2 As Ukraine’s EU membership negotiations advance with the opening of a new cluster, a recent poll reveals public sentiment in the bloc on Kyiv’s potential accession. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Support is particularly strong in Spain, where 65% back Ukraine’s joining the EU, according to a Polling Europe survey. Kyiv-Madrid ties have grown significantly after Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022. Since then, Spain has trained more than 9,000 Ukrainian military personnel, and in 2026, it announced a €1 billion military aid package for the country. Italians also broadly support…
Published on 04/08/2026 – 9:40 GMT+2 Russia’s state news agency reports that Russian forces have shot down a “rare” Portuguese-made drone operating with the Ukrainian army. The Tekever AR3 was brought down by a Russian anti-drone battalion in the border region of Bryansk, the unit’s commander told TASS. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “An enemy reconnaissance drone entered our sector. We were surprised because we had never seen anything like it. The unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) had a different structure at the tail and on the wings. When we reached the crash site, we found it was a Portuguese reconnaissance drone. It is…
It all started with Instagram posts suggesting that Spain’s border with Morocco was opening up. Then came Facebook users tracking coastguard patrols and TikTok videos showing where to swim. After numerous posts and comments, thousands of Moroccans became convinced that Europe was suddenly within reach. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Within hours, young people began heading for the border with the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in North Africa. Packed buses were arriving in the neighbouring Moroccan city of Fnideq. Commuter trains filled up. So did taxis. By the time the authorities reacted, an estimated 60,000 people had reached Ceuta in just a few…
Firefighters in Greece were hoping to contain a wildfire on the outskirts of Athens on Tuesday that is burning for a fifth day, with easing winds enabling the use of vital aircraft. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “Today, more than 30 aircraft will be deployed in the area,” enabling access to difficult mountain terrain, fire department deputy spokesperson Yiannis Artopios told state TV ERT. Over 500 firefighters were deployed in villages around Mount Kithairon, some 60 kilometres northwest of the capital according to the fire service. “We want to keep the fire in a controlled situation,” Artopios said. Large areas affected by the…
It was never meant to be like this. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT When European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced her blueprint for the 20th package of economic sanctions against Russia, she made maritime services the centrepiece. “On energy, we introduce a full maritime services ban for Russian crude oil. It will slash further Russia’s energy revenues and make it more difficult to find buyers for its oil,” von der Leyen said in early February. For Brussels, it was an overdue opportunity to complete unfinished business. The EU first tried to ban the provision of maritime services for Russian tankers in…
Published on 04/08/2026 – 7:42 GMT+2 Firefighters are rushing to contain a forest blaze in the southeast of the Netherlands that spread overnight to engulf 100 hectares on Tuesday, authorities said. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT It was the latest in a string of wildfires to hit western Europe, following deadly heatwaves that have dried up riverbeds and vegetation, extreme weather events scientists have linked to human-made climate change. The fire started around Monday afternoon in a nature reserve near the village of Oostrum in Limburg province, close to the border with Germany. The blaze spread to 100 hectares as of early Tuesday…
Parisians are taking to the Seine on a new type of electric surfboard that lifts riders above the water, creating the sensation of flying. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Known as an e-foil, the board combines an electric motor, a submerged hydrofoil and a rechargeable battery, allowing it to glide above the river’s surface once it gains speed. “It’s got a board to climb on, and it’s got a mast that’s fitted with a motor at the back. It’s got a wing, like an aircraft wing, and that’s the surface we’re going to use to ‘fly’. Then you put the battery inside, and…
At least 88 people died during the recent mass influx of migrants into Spain’s Ceuta enclave from Morocco, Spanish officials said on Monday, though Moroccan officials later presented a lower estimate. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Most of the estimated 60,000 people who rushed into Spain’s north African territory, most by swimming, have returned to Morocco since the territory’s largest mass migrant crossing. “The latest figure that we have is 72,” the government’s delegate to Ceuta, Miguel Angel Perez Triano, told reporters, when asked about the number of fatalities. The previous toll was 67 deaths. Later on Sunday, Morocco’s interior ministry issued its…
Published on 03/08/2026 – 15:16 GMT+2 Two British universities have merged to form what they describe as the UK’s first “super-university.” ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT London’s University of Greenwich and the University of Kent in southeast England announced on Monday that they had completed a merger establishing the new “London and South East University Group, which will be known as LASE. The new group, which has been designed to allow other universities to potentially join in the future, will have more than 50,000 students, making it the third largest university in the UK. The two universities will continue to operate under their…