Author: Press Room
In a word increasingly dominated by conflict and tension, international aid seems to be one of the first casualties. The past few years have seen a growing number of countries slashing or scaling back their budget devoted to developing economies. With some exceptions, cuts have been particularly severe in the US (-56% from 2023 to 2025) as well as in Canada (-25%) and several European countries. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) estimated a drop in international aid resources ranging from 9% to 17% in 2025. Germany, the UK, France and Italyareamong the countries that, whether in GDP…
Good morning from Brussels. I’m Mared Gwyn, taking you once again to our EU editor Maria Tadeo in New Delhi to start this morning’s newsletter. Speaking to Maria last night after the signing of a landmark free trade deal between the EU and India, European Council President António Costa hailed the agreement as a major economic opportunity and strategic victory in an “uncertain world.” “The deal shows that it’s possible – in this very uncertain world – to provide predictability, when reliable partners agree on trade, on security, on defence, on people-to-people contact,” Costa told Maria. “It has great value…
Published on 28/01/2026 – 7:25 GMT+1 •Updated 7:36 EU leaders are pumped with adrenaline and exhaustion after their successful stay in India this week. Brussels and New Delhi signed a historic deal that will cut tariffs on numerous products from steel to plastics. To enter into force, the deal must get the nod from EU member states, the European parliament and the Indian cabinet. But the EU will keep tariffs on beef and chicken as a gesture to European farming communities. Euronews’ EU editor Maria Tadeo was one of the few European journalists on the ground and send us an…
“Time is of the essence” to quickly develop a European space policy that relies much more heavily on European-made equipment and services in order to boost the continent’s security and competitiveness, French and German space ministers said on Tuesday. “The world is changing very fast,” Philipe Baptiste, France’s minister for higher education, research and space said at the European Space Conference in a discussion moderated by Euronews’ Alice Tidey. “What used to be our first strong ally is now very predictable, and this has the most consequences,” he added, referring to the United States, which earlier this month threatened several…
Former European Central Bank president Mario Draghi will attend an informal meeting of European Union leaders at the invitation of European Council President António Costa, who is looking to accelerate the implementation of his competitiveness report. The retreat will take place on 12 February and will focus on boosting the European economy. Former Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta will also participate in the gathering. Draghi and Letta penned two influential reports on the EU single market and competitiveness in 2024. In an interview with Euronews from New Delhi, where the EU signed a major trade deal with India, Costa said…
Published on 27/01/2026 – 19:13 GMT+1 European lawmakers issued a declaration on Tuesday urging the European Union to unlock the potential of nuclear fusion energy, stressing its role in boosting the bloc’s competitiveness as a future electricity source. MEPs made the case during a public hearing in the European Parliament calling for a “clear, predictable regulatory framework” that would attract investment, given the astronomical costs that fusion energy will likely demand. “Fusion has reached a turning point. European industrial capability and private investments are converging toward deployment. What is now required is clear political backing and effective mechanisms to attract…
Published on 27/01/2026 – 18:40 GMT+1 •Updated 19:07 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has announced that his country is aiming to join the European Union in 2027. Posting on X after a phone conversation with the Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker, Zelenskyy said EU membership could be a part of a range of international security guarantees after ending the war. “Ukraine’s accession to the European Union is one of the key security guarantees not only for us, but also for all of Europe,” Zelenskyy said, adding that Ukraine contributes to Europe’s collective strength in the fields of security, technology, and economy. “That…
Existing differences of opinion about digital rules in the European Union and the United States should not be a source of confrontation, but should be treated in a respectful way, the Executive Vice President of the EU Commission, Henna Virkkunen, said on Euronews’ flagship programme The Europe Conversation. “When we speak about democracies like the European Union and the USA, I think democratic countries and friends, we can handle those kinds of differences in our rules with respect,” urged Virkkunen, whose portfolio in the Commission includes Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy. “Europeans are very committed to our rules because we…
More than one in four young Europeans aged between 15 and 29 were working and studying at the same time in 2024, according to the latest Eurostat figures. This situation was most common in the Netherlands (74.3%), Denmark (56.4%) and Germany (45.8%). By contrast, Romania (2.4%), Greece (6%) and Croatia (6.4%) reported the lowest shares among EU countries. The main driver for working alongside one’s studies is financial concerns, but experts say that students’ motivations can differ depending on where they’re from and which sector they’re in. “Some students are motivated primarily by financial considerations, and others use employment or…
Published on 27/01/2026 – 15:40 GMT+1 According to France’s health watchdog, half of teens spend between two and five hours a day on their smartphones. But your reporter went for dinner with some tech lobbyists, and it is clear now this ban sounds like a nightmare. Let us investigate. Supporters say it protects kids from harmful content. Over one-half of European teens have seen online pornography. The average age of first exposure? Just 11. And in the era of Elon Musk’s GrokAI, they do not even need to search for it. They can generate it. Let us cheer for the…