Author: Press Room

Belgium has forcefully pushed back against a new attempt to tap into the Russian Central Bank’s immobilised assets to provide additional support to Ukraine. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The European Union holds €210 billion in these assets, the bulk of which is kept at Euroclear, a depository in central Brussels. The hot-button topic was discussed at an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers on Tuesday, with Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain and Poland leading the push following their joint letter sent last week. The Baltic countries also voiced support. But according to Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot, the debate “generated little enthusiasm or…

Published on 02/09/2026 – 17:41 GMT+2 EU member states agreed to press ahead with an EU-wide visa ban for former and current members of the Russian army, alongside tougher visa restrictions for Russian tourists, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on Wednesday. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “There was broad support to move with an EU visa entry ban for Russian ex-combatants and tougher visa restrictions for Russian tourists,” Kallas said at a press conference following an informal meeting of Foreign Affairs Ministers in Wicklow, Ireland. In the 21st sanctions package adopted in July, the European Commission had originally proposed barring EU…

Brussels is assessing a new payment request from Kyiv worth several billion euros to bolster Ukraine’s air defences, as Russia intensifies its aerial attacks and Ukraine seeks more US-made Patriot interceptors. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “We have received a new payment request. It is worth several billion euros and would cover Ukraine’s air defences, including the highly advanced PAC-3 Patriot air defence systems,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said at a joint press conference with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. EU countries now need to approve a derogation from the conditions of the Ukraine Support Loan, which limits non-European sourcing…

The European Union’s worsening exposure to extreme weather and imported fossil fuels makes decarbonisation as much a matter of economic and security policy as climate policy, a senior European Commission official said. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Russia’s war against Ukraine and the disruption around the Strait of Hormuz have raised successive warnings about Europe’s dependence on imported oil and gas, Jan Dusik, director general at the Commission’s climate department, said on the sidelines of the think tank Bruegel Annual Meetings on Wednesday. “Climate policy must survive, because we want to survive in Europe,” Dusik said, arguing that abandoning or weakening the agenda…

In an exclusive interview, European Union Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič told Euronews that the EU is not in a position to mediate in the trade war between Canada and the United States following the collapse of their trade talks. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Ten days ago, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney walked away from the negotiations with the Trump administration, blaming them for pressuring Canada over the use of the French language. In the following days, US President Donald Trump announced 50% US tariffs on Canadian cars and trucks, to which Ottawa retaliated with tariffs on more than 700 US imports, worth…

Spain’s interior minister has asked police to check a report that a government agency blamed Moroccan security forces for July’s mass entry of migrants to the enclave of Ceuta, ministry sources said on Wednesday. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said on Monday that Morocco was not responsible, instead accusing Israel, Russia and the far right of spreading disinformation about the mass entry of around 70,000 migrants into Ceuta. Sánchez told Cadena SER radio that “no intelligence service with which the Spanish government normally cooperates” had suggested “any involvement in one way or another of the Moroccan authorities.” But…

The EU’s diplomatic service presented on Wednesday additional listings targeting 27 Russian individuals and entities involved in the forced deportation and indoctrination of Ukrainian children. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT EU ambassadors reviewed the new blacklisting at their first meeting since the summer recess. It is expected to be adopted by the end of the month. It is not the first time Brussels has targeted those responsible for Russia’s illegal mass abduction, deportation and re-education of minors from Ukraine’s occupied territories. Several individual listings have already featured in previous sanctions packages. In May, EU countries blacklisted 16 individuals and seven entities to mark…

After a stop in the Netherlands to meet with Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten on Wednesday, French President Emmanuel Macron will embark on a two-day visit to Britain, becoming the first EU leader to meet new Prime Minister Andy Burnham in Downing Street. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The French President and Dutch Premier will meet in Eindhoven to discuss how to strengthen ties, especially concerning the shared priority of bolstering European sovereignty. According to the Elysée, Macron is set to be accompanied by a delegation of French companies, including Mistral AI — widely viewed as Europe’s leading AI champion — during his…

This morning, there’s a palpable sense here that the confrontation between Russia and European nations has entered a dangerous new phase. Leaders across Europe have issued scathing condemnations after Germany formally concluded yesterday that the Kremlin was responsible for a recent attempted drone attack on Leipzig airport. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Not at war, but…: Announcing fresh sanctions on Moscow in response to the incident – including tighter entry controls on Russian nationals – German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said on Tuesday: “Let me be very clear: we are not at war. But we are the target of hybrid attacks on a…

On 29 August, a majority of Icelanders rejected reopening EU accession talks, frozen since 2013, turning down what the government called a “now or never” moment. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The result means no new negotiations with Brussels and no change to Iceland’s existing ties: full access to the single market and Schengen area through the European Economic Area, but no seat in the European Parliament or vote in the Council. The referendum was legally advisory, but the government pledged to respect it, effectively shelving the question for years. Iceland already adopts most EU law through the European Economic Area. Still, it…