Author: Press Room

A major reform of European migration rules aimed at hardening border procedures and overhauling the asylum process comes into force on Friday. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “For the first time we have a comprehensive European system,” said Magnus Brunner, the European Union’s migration chief, adding that the reform would hand EU nations more control over their borders. Here are the main features of the new initiative: Beefed-up border screenings Migrants irregularly entering the European Union will undergo identity and security checks in a process lasting up to seven days. Identity documents and biometric readings of their faces and fingerprints will be recorded…

Published on 12/06/2026 – 17:30 GMT+2 A Belgian driver was convicted of murdering seven people on Friday by ploughing his car into a carnival procession while filming himself at the wheel. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Paolo Falzone, 38, is due to be sentenced next week over the fatal March 2022 crash in the southern town of La Louvière. He faces up to 30 years in jail. Prosecutors said the tragedy happened when Falzone, who had previous speeding and drink driving offences, raced his BMW at 170 kilometres per hour through a 50-kilometre zone on the town’s outskirts. They said he was driving…

Pope Leo XIV left the Canary Islands for Rome on Friday in a Falcon plane offered by Spanish King Felipe VI after his original aircraft suffered a technical glitch, according to reporters at the scene. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The flight took off just after 6:00 pm and is expected to arrive in Rome at around 11:00 pm. The pope wrapped up a week-long visit to Spain on Friday. The pontiff’s departure from Tenerife was delayed earlier on Friday by a technical problem with the plane which led him to disembark, according to an AFP reporter at the scene. Spain’s King Felipe…

Published on 12/06/2026 – 19:15 GMT+2•Updated 19:29 The 27 countries of the European Union have reached an agreement to open the first cluster of accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova, building on the momentum created after Hungary lifted its two-year veto last week. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The breakthrough was achieved on Friday evening by ambassadors in Brussels, who endorsed a common position to go ahead with the next phase of negotiations. The position comes with a rule-of-law roadmap and an action plan on minority rights, the main bone of contention between Budapest and Kyiv. The action plan was amended to reflect…

For the first time, Poles were able to see the most advanced fighter jets, which in the coming years will become one of the pillars of the country’s military aviation. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Three fifth-generation F-35 aircraft, nicknamed “Husarz,” performed a ceremonial flypast over Poland’s largest cities as part of the “Welcome to Poland” operation. The event preceded the official ceremony to induct the jets into the Polish Armed Forces at the 32nd Tactical Air Base in Łask. ‘Welcome to Poland’ The fighters took off in the morning from the base in Łask and began their demonstration flight, intended to give…

Published on 12/06/2026 – 15:49 GMT+2•Updated 17:20 The US is planning to withdraw access to deep strike capabilities for NATO allies as part of its wider plan to pull out of Europe’s security architecture. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The Trump administration informed NATO allies last year it would cut military assets available to Europe even during times of war or invasion, but until now, the details of exactly how the Pentagon intends to scale back access to such assets were unclear. According to sources, everything linked to deep strike capabilities will be cut, Euronews has learned. Specifically, this includes US long-range bombers…

In 2025, Brussels launched its first-ever common borrowing programme for defence. One year on, EU policymakers are already planning a second edition of the flagship financing tool — with a push to shift from loans to grants — although several key questions about its future remain unresolved. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The Security Action for Europe (SAFE) allows EU countries to borrow low-interest loans to finance defence spending outside the EU fiscal stability framework via the so-called national escape clause. The programme has been running for about a year. Recent hybrid threats on the eastern flank — notably drone incursions — are…

Pope Leo XIV landed in Tenerife on Friday, the final stop on his tour of Spain, which has also taken him to Madrid, Barcelona and Gran Canaria. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The pontiff’s visit to the Canary Islands has been marked by the migration crisis affecting the region, one of the main gateways to Europe for thousands of people crossing the Atlantic from Africa. On the last day of his trip, the leader of the Catholic Church issued an appeal in support of migrants and called for efforts to protect those embarking on these dangerous routes to be stepped up, while stressing…

The European Union’s new Pact on Migration enters into force on Friday, meaning the bloc finally has a set of clear-cut rules to manage migration that applies to all EU member states – at least, on paper. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The pact includes eight legislative acts, which together are meant to improve member states’ cooperation on migration management, hold frontline states to stricter standards for minimising irregular entries into the EU, and speed up asylum procedures. The new law introduces a border procedure which shortens the period to assess an asylum request for certain categories of applicants to 12 weeks, with…

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not represent in any way the editorial position of Euronews. When I began researching, writing, and publishing on the subject of space capitalism several years ago, many people laughed. They asked why I had chosen such a niche topic and suggested that it sounded more like science fiction than reality. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Well, space capitalism is now a reality. Within a few hours, we will witness what is expected to be the largest IPO in history: Elon Musk’s company SpaceX aims to raise $75 billion. As a…