Author: Press Room
Political parties in Lithuania signed a coalition agreement on Thursday, with the Social Democrats, the Democrats “For Lithuania” and the Farmers and Greens Union, along with partners, the Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania – Christian Families Alliance, striking a new deal. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “Third time’s the charm,” Mindaugas Sinkevičius said in a press briefing on Thursday. The coalition deal is focused on defence and social security. The partners committed to allocating no less than 5% of GDP to defence, prioritising air threat detection and defence systems and strengthening cybersecurity. The agreement also includes a commitment to resolve internal disputes…
Published on 18/06/2026 – 15:58 GMT+2 NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has downplayed a blistering attack by US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth who described European allies as “shameful” for not helping the US in the war in Iran. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Hegseth was in Brussels for a meeting of NATO defence ministers, where he informed allies the Pentagon will review the number of US forces in Europe within the next six months. Announcing the details of what he described as “NATO 3.0”, Hegseth also told allies the US would reduce its contributions to overall NATO budget if countries weren’t on…
Polish police have arrested a man suspected of participating in the murder of a Russian artist critical of President Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Thursday. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The suspect in the daylight murder, which took place on Monday, “is using a Georgian passport,” Tusk wrote in a post on X. “Services are working to establish the mastermind,” he added. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński confirmed the Georgian passport at a news conference in Warsaw and said the suspect is 36 years old. Kierwiński said the man is suspected of links to organised crime and is being linked by…
Updated: 18/06/2026 – 11:54 GMT+2 Retired US General Ben Hodges believes the situation is now “much worse” than four months ago. With Israel and Lebanon left out of the deal between the US and Iran, Hodges thinks the potential for Israel and Hezbollah to “resume fighting is really high”. … More
Published on 18/06/2026 – 12:07 GMT+2•Updated 12:20 “If Putin does not want to end this war and wishes to continue it — we will not sit quietly, we will respond,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his comments on Ukraine’s strike on Moscow’s oil refinery on Thursday morning. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “If Ukraine burns, so will Moscow,” Zelenskyy said. Ukraine’s president said Kyiv’s drone strike on the Moscow oil refinery is Kyiv’s response to Russia’s attack against the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, one of the most important historic and religious symbols of Ukraine. “We were at the Lavra, and I said we will…
Published on 18/06/2026 – 10:25 GMT+2•Updated 10:31 US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has said Europe must take the lead on building out a revamped “NATO 3.0” and creating a “real, hardline military alliance”. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Hegseth made the comments while speaking ahead of a meeting with his NATO counterparts in Brussels on Thursday. “NATO 3.0 is post-Cold War recognition that needs to go back to a real, hardline military alliance that has real military capabilities capable of deterring right here on the continent and taking the lead for the conventional defence of Europe,” Hegseth said. US president Donald Trump…
By Alessio Dell’Anna & video by Damaso Jaivenois and Loredana Dumitru Published on 18/06/2026 – 10:46 GMT+2 Good news for EV drivers out there in Europe planning to set off with their car this summer. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The continent’s public EV charging network has now grown to 1.3 million public charging points. That’s up by 6% in the first four months of 2026. But where is it most and least expensive? In Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Belgium and the UK, being an electric car owner doesn’t look that much convenient, as a full recharge for a Tesla Y RWD can cost between €30…
Ukraine’s Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov confirmed that Kyiv is deliberately isolating Crimea from Russian supplies and ultimately from Moscow’s control. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “Crimea is being isolated by drones. In the near future, it appears that the Crimean peninsula will turn into an island,” Fedorov said in an interview on Wednesday. “And this could lead to very unexpected consequences for the Russians. I can’t say anything more,” Fedorov added. Fedorov said Kyiv secured 300% more middle-strike drones in the first four months of 2026 than in all of 2025. Middle-strike drones have a range between 20 and 200 km and allow…
Hello and welcome to Thursday. I’m Mared Gwyn. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT In the last few hours, the presidents of the US and Iran have signed copies of the US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding, with mediator Pakistan saying the peace deal is now in effect. Oil prices are down this morning on the prospect of the re-opening of the Strait of Hormuz, with Brent crude futures falling below €70 per barrel, the lowest level since the war began at the end of February. But there are lingering doubts. Speaking live to Europe Today earlier, former US commander general Ben Hodges said that the…
A new psychoactive substance appears on Europe’s drug market about once a week. EU officials say synthetic opioids pose a risk so acute that a single gram can contain several thousand lethal doses. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The warning comes from the European Union Drugs Agency (EUDA), which published its 2026 European Drug Report on 9 June. The report found 50 new drugs detected for the first time across Europe in 2025 alone, many synthetic opioids and cathinones. The agency now monitors more than 1,000 new psychoactive substances through its Early Warning System, including over 100 synthetic opioids, a category that barely…