Author: Press Room

Published on 26/06/2026 – 10:36 GMT+2 The European Commission proposed excluding military-age Ukrainian men from the EU’s temporary protection scheme while extending the program until March 2028, in a move intended to bolster Kyiv’s armed forces. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The measure followed pressure from several EU member states to tighten temporary protection rules, citing integration challenges and Ukraine’s need for additional military personnel. It was also backed by Kyiv, which, under martial law, bars most men aged 23 and older from leaving the country. “Our proposal takes into account Ukraine’s evolving defence needs,” EU Home Affairs Commissioner Magnus Brunner said. Despite…

In 2025, inland demand in the EU for natural gas increased by 2.5% compared with 2024, according to the latest Eurostat figures. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The largest increases in consumption across the bloc were recorded in Croatia (11.3%), Portugal (11.2%) and Slovenia (10.3%). In contrast, the largest drops were seen in Finland (17.7%), Sweden (9.7%) and Estonia (9.6%). Last year, Germany, Italy and France had the highest inland demand for natural gas. Gas is mainly used for power generation, household heating and industrial processes. For instance, around 30% of households in the EU are heated using gas. Inbalance in production Romania…

The EU’s efforts to return irregular migrants to Afghanistan face a fundamental dilemma: how to solve the long-standing and intractable issue of the repatriation of Afghans while avoiding legitimising the Taliban, a regime the bloc has refused to formally recognise since it seized power in 2021. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT UN and migration experts have warned that it will become increasingly difficult for the EU to maintain its boycott of a government that’s long sought diplomatic legitimacy in Europe while also managing the politically sensitive issue of Afghan returns. That tension was reflected on Tuesday, when officials from the European Commission and…

Former European Union Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier told Euronews that it is up to the United Kingdom to decide whether it would want to rejoin the bloc, but that Brussels has made its conditions clear. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT His comments come ten years after the UK voted to leave the EU by 52% to 48%, and at a time when polling shows a clear majority of the British public, across party lines, views doing so as a mistake. “Brexit decided by a sovereign vote 10 years ago is done, but the future is open, and the door is open,” Barnier, a…

Published on 25/06/2026 – 10:27 GMT+2•Updated 16:21 The EU Pay Transparency Directive was to enter into force on June 7, and it requires employers to disclose pay ranges before hiring, report on gender pay gaps, and take corrective action when those gaps exceed 5 percent without justification. Workers will know what a role pays before they apply, and the burden of proof in discrimination cases shifts onto employers. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The figures behind the law remain stark. Eurostat data shows women’s average gross hourly earnings across the EU stood 11.1 percent below men’s in 2024, a gap that has barely…

Published on 25/06/2026 – 17:25 GMT+2 Europe is breaking heat records. These extreme events pose a threat to people’s health both at home and at work. The European Trade Union Institute (ETUI), a research centre affiliated with the European Trade Union Confederation, presented a report on Thursday laying out solutions aimed at safeguarding workers’ health in the face of climate change. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT One of the report’s authors emphasised that the danger is not limited to the south of the continent. “The problem is the worst in the south, of course; that’s where we see most of the accidents. At…

Published on 25/06/2026 – 16:56 GMT+2 During a visit to Washington on Wednesday, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte met US President Donald Trump, offering warm words while gently pushing back on his latest criticism of the alliance. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Trump reiterated grievances with NATO over its failure to back the US-Israeli war against Iran, saying he had been “let down”. The United States and Israel jointly attacked Iran on 28 February. Trump did not consult NATO ahead of time, and key European allies have voiced scepticism over the need for the war. Trump called on allies to “just be loyal”,…

Updated: 25/06/2026 – 15:22 GMT+2 The French navy boarded a tanker suspected of belonging to Russia’s so-called “ghost fleet” in the Mediterranean, the fifth such operation since September 2025, as Paris steps up efforts to enforce sanctions linked to the war in Ukraine. … More

You may have come across a video that has been circulating widely on social media in recent weeks, showing what appears to be a portable military system intercepting a drone and sparking speculation about its origins. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT A review of the accompanying captions reveals conflicting claims. Some posts describe the technology as a Ukrainian-made drone interceptor, while others insist it comes from Russia. The claims attributing the system to Ukraine are misleading, as the device shown in the video is the Yolka drone interceptor, an unmanned aerial vehicle developed in Russia to counter small aerial threats. It’s been used…

Published on 25/06/2026 – 11:11 GMT+2 The Barcelona provincial prosecutor’s office has agreed to process a complaint against Pilar Rahola on charges of incitement to hatred and complicity in genocide related to the Gaza war. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The legal action was brought by two activists from the Socialist Youth Organisation (OJS) of Catalonia. The activists were already known to Rahola. They threw red paint over her during a lecture organised by the Fundació Martí l’Humà in La Garriga in October 2024. The pair faced their own charges over that incident. The public prosecutor has opened pre-trial investigative proceedings, preliminary steps…