Belgium’s migration minister advocates for ‘the strictest policy ever implemented’
Anneleen Van Bossuyt has taken a hard line on migration and integration policy, while distancing herself from Vlaams Belang, the powerful far-right party in Flanders.
๐ง๐ช Belgium
A Dutch dangerous experiment in criminalizing compassion: How a parliamentary "slip-up" could create Europe’s harshest migration law
Huub Verbaten, Research
Fellow at the Clingendael Institute
Photo credit: Markus Bernet, via Wikimedia
commons
On the evening of
July 3, 2025, as Dutch parliamentarians prepared to vote on what could become
some of Europe’s most restrictive asy…
French billionaire interrogated as part of probe into National Rally campaign financing
Pierre-Edouard Stรฉrin was questioned last year over loans linked to National Rally local election campaigns.
Belgian MEP Sommen says โpredictability is vitalโ from pharma trilogue
As Commissioner Vรกrhelyi pushes to finalise a pharma deal in 2025, the Belgian MEP sees common institutional approaches emerging, but she cautions against a system that rewards only marginal improvements.
Brussels sees uptick in public transport use, decline in car ownership
Brussels’ residents make an average of 2.7 journeys a day, and walking is their favourite way of getting around.
Europe must act now to seize Russiaโs frozen assets
Using Moscowโs immobilised holdings in Belgium to bolster Ukraineโs economy and defence is both legal and necessary
Belgium takes bronze in global work-life balance survey
โCementing its place in the top three (…) life-work balance is becoming just as much a hallmark of Belgian culture as chocolate, waffles and beer,” the ranking reads.
When reuse isnโt better: The case of pallet packaging
A one-size-fits-all reuse mandate under the EUโs packaging rules risks overlooking real-world logistics and sustainability. Independent studies show recyclable single-use solutions deliver better outcomes for the climate and the economy.
Donโt kill equal treatment at work bill, EU countries and MEPs tell Commission
More than a dozen EU countries and a parliamentary committee have urged the European Commission not to axe the bill.
Moldova pushes for EU entry assurances as Hungary blocks Ukraine
The 2 Eastern European nations are being considered together as prospective members โ for now.
โSheโs pretty much aloneโ: The EUโs greenest leader fights the tide
The European Commissionโs second most powerful politician is isolated, beleaguered and under attack โ just like the green policy she has vowed to protect.
Europeโs politicians suffer through heat wave โ with or without air conditioning
While some politicians go red in the face trying to make their contemporaries pay attention to climate change, others are trying to make political hay while the sun is shining.
Top of Eiffel Tower closed due to extreme heat
Paris landmark’s highest level shut as France swelters.
Belgian biotech stakeholders urge EU to fast-track innovation and financing reforms
Responding to the European Commissionโs call for evidence, Biovia says regulatory delays, fragmented markets, and lack of capital are costing Europe its biotech edge.
Brusselsโ Atomium closes early because its balls are too hot
Belgian landmark cuts hours as Europe melts under heat wave.
Europe heat wave in pictures
Europe is sweltering under one of the most intense heatwaves in recorded history, as a punishing heat dome drives temperatures well above 40โฏยฐC across much of the continent.
Temperature records shatter as heatwave grips Europe and UK records hottest day of year โ as it happened
Public health warnings as heatwave raises concerns about impact of climate changeWhat you need to know about heatwavesThe French prime minister Franรงois Bayrou, who attended a government crisis meeting over the heatwave, was asked about the great diffi…
TACO Trump vs EUCO Europe
The US president has been widely mocked for โalways chickening outโ. No one, however, backs down better than the Europeans.
Belgium issues new travel advice for Hungary ahead of Budapest Pride
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbรกn warned of “legal consequences” for those who defy the government’s ban on Pride parades.
European Parliament to stop Belgium โtarnishingโ MEPsโ reputations
“I will not accept the targeting and tarnishing of MEPs without a solid basis,” says Parliament President Metsola.
Europe managed to keep Trump in NATO. Now what?
National leaders now need to find the money and buy weapons to deter Russia while facing a potential reduction of U.S. troops on the continent.
NATO clinches defense spending deal in big win for Trump
Leaders signed off on a new 5 percent of GDP defense spending target by 2035.
Frontline NATO countries put on brave face as Trump casts doubt on collective defense
Trump’s comments have shown the U.S. doesn’t have to leave NATO to undermine the alliance’s credibility.
Spain is the ally NATO loves to hate
Madrid’s effort to wriggle out of the alliance’s new spending targets is angering other members.
Germany backs major NATO defense spending boost โ but not to please Trump
Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government will boost defense spending to โฌ153 billion in 2029, up from โฌ86 billion this year.
Train cable outage near NATO summit sparks fears of sabotage
Dutch justice minister says disruption “could be sabotage.”
Spainโs NATO spending deal under fire
NATO chief says he’s convinced Spain will have to spend 3.5 percent, even if Madrid doesn’t want to.
The winners and losers in Trumpโs NATO arms race
A POLITICO analysis reveals telling gaps between the big spenders near Eastern Europe and those further from Russia, who are still creeping toward a decade-old target.
Trump wants one thing from the NATO summit. Europe is going to give it to him.
A streamlined summit centering around a new pledge to increase defense spending has been designed to give the president a victory lap.
Sanctioned Russian media still partnered with Facebook
Sanctioned pro-Russian media are still part of Facebookโs advertising revenue program, new research out Friday showed. Russian state broadcasters, including Rossiya Segodnya โ the organization that oversees both RT (formerly Russia Today) and Sputnik โ were sanctioned following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine and barred from broadcasting inside the EU. Key figures in its operations [โฆ]
Sanctioned Russian media still partnered with Facebook
Sanctioned pro-Russian media are still part of Facebookโs advertising revenue program, new research out Friday showed. Russian state broadcasters, including Rossiya Segodnya โ the organization that oversees both RT (formerly Russia Today) and Sputnik โ were sanctioned following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine and barred from broadcasting inside the EU. Key figures in its operations [โฆ]
Israel in breach of EU deal over Gaza human rights, report signals
EU leaders will now have to decide whether there is sufficient support to take action.
National Limits, European Claims: The Ultra Vires Conflict in EU Constitutional Law (part 1)
Dr Benedikt Riedl,
Mjur (Oxford), postdoctoral researcher
and academic assistant at the Chair of Public Law and Legal Philosophy (Prof Dr
Peter M. Huber, former Justice of the Federal Constitutional Court and former
Minister of the Interior…
Belgium brings back border checks amid migration fears
Itโs the latest blow to the dream of a single, open space where 450 million Europeans could move freely.
ArcelorMittal ditches plan to convert German factories to green production
Steel producer may also shutter flagship Belgium biofuels plant in a blow to Europeโs bid to decarbonise heavy industry
Markus Pieperโs revenge
In todayโs edition of The Capitals, read about Belgium leading a push to pressure the EU to end trade with Israeli settlements, the Commission sending Athens to the Court of Justice for failing to implement noise action plans, and so much more.
Danish minister slams Metaโs lobbying amid fight over kidsโ social media use
Caroline Stage Olsen says she is “furious” over Meta advertising campaign.
Whatโs really behind Europeโs 5% defense push
Presented by Equinor.
Italyโs ex-PM Conte calls for NATO counter-summit
Left-leaning party representatives from 10 EU countries set to attend.
EU weighs sperm donor cap to curb risk of accidental incest
Donations are booming, increasing the health and psychological risks to donor children.
EU devises scheme to squeeze more profit from Russian frozen assets
Putting โฌ200 billion of Russian funds in riskier investments would boost payments to Ukraine without touching the underlying capital.
Belgian pharma sector wants agreement โcourse correctionโ in trilogue
Belgium’s Health Minister told Euractiv that joining those who would have ‘sunk the deal’ would have taken the EU further from a solution. Belgium backtracked, says the pharma sector.
Belgium seeking to put ex-official on trial over killing of Congo’s Lumumba
Over 60 years after the killing of the first Congolese prime minister, Patrice Lumumba, prosecutors in Belgium announced Tuesday they were looking to try the last of 10 Belgians accused of complicity in the murder of the iconic leader, in the European…
Baltic countries team up on mass evacuation plans as Russian threat grows
โClear procedures are crucial, as is the rapid exchange of information,โ says Lithuanian interior minister.
Weather tracker: Europe and China in midst of record-breaking heat
Temperatures over 40C recorded in Portugal and Spain, while China endures heatwave conditions in high 40sTemperature records for early June are being broken across large parts of Europe, with the mercury reaching 40.5C (104.9F) in Mรฉrtola, Portugal, on…
Vandenbrouckeโs healthcare reforms facing doctorsโ resistance and broken systems
Belgian Health Minister says he seeks a debate based on facts, not fear, as he navigates cultural, systemic and budget landmines.
France to use UK drama Adolescence to teach teenagers about toxic masculinity
French education ministry follows Britain and Netherlands in incorporating Netflix hit into school curriculumsFrance has followed the UK and the Netherlands in allowing the Netflix drama Adolescence to be used in secondary schools as part of efforts to…
Weather tracker: Storms make way for summer heat in Europe
Florence in Italy could hit 39C as hot weather sweeps continent, while parts of South Africa brace for snowThe severe thunderstorms that have been lashing parts of Europe over recent days are expected to give way to high temperatures this week. Several…
France considers requiring Muskโs X to verify usersโ age
โX has indicated since 2024 that it accepts the distribution of pornographic content. It must therefore be treated as such,โ Digital Minister Clara Chappazโs office said.
Brussels celebrates art decoโs mass-produced objects for the middle class
An exhibition in the Belgian capital shows the artistic style was first to seek to appeal to a wider group of consumersThe glazed porcelain vases with bold colours and geometric shapes of the 1920s and 30s are immediately recognisable to many people, s…
Link innovation clusters to boost biotech competitiveness, says Commissionโs Becker
European Commission eyes regional success stories as models to boost life sciences competitiveness. Flandersโ Biovia cluster offers a new life sciences innovation paradigm.
Scandal in Belgium sees sperm donor with cancer gene conceive 52 children
The Belgian government is pushing forward with efforts to get rid of the anonymity of sperm donors after it transpired that a Danish sperm donor with an inherited cancer mutation had conceived 52 children in the western European country.
Commission flags โBelgium-sized gapโ in EU 2030 energy efficiency targets [Advocacy Lab Content]
With five years left for the EU to hit its 2030 energy milestones, the European Commission is urging member states to urgently step up their ambitions and implementation efforts to reach their energy efficiency targets.
Haribo sweets recalled in Belgium after cannabis found in Dutch gummies
The same packages of fizzy colas were withdrawn in the Netherlands after sample studies revealed three bags were laced with cannabis.
Trump sparks Europeโs โnew Enlightenmentโย
The EU aims to grab a rare chance generated by the White House’s repression of U.S. higher education.
Franceโs lower house approves assisted dying bill with 305 votes in favor
Franceโs lower house of parliament on Thursday approved a bill to legalise assisted dying, marking a significant step in a long-running national debate. The bill passed with 305 votes in favour and 199 against. However, the proposed legislation remain…
Ukraine must urgently be given the โฌ300bn of frozen Russian assets | Phillip Inman
Confiscating the funds would shock Putin, help Ukraine, and take advantage of disillusionment in the US economyUkraine needs more than long-range missiles and fibre-optic drones in its fight with Russia. What it needs is more money, and lots of it.In p…
Chaos on German autobahns as Google Maps wrongly says they are closed
Drivers using the navigation app confronted with mass of red dots indicating stop signsConfusion reigned on German autobahns and highways at the start of one of the busiest holiday breaks of the year on Thursday after Google Maps wrongly indicated that…
The eternal recurrence of the Brexit summits
National sovereignty never tasted so dairy.
Europe should shrug off Trumpโs tariff threats
Not all provocations require a reaction โ and sometimes showing courage entails doing nothing.
Right to assisted dying provides ‘autonomous choice for patient suffering endlessly, unbearably’
Franceโs lower house of parliament adopted a bill Tuesday to allow adults with incurable illness to take lethal medication, as public demands grow across Europe for legal end-of-life options. The National Assembly vote is a key step on the long-debate…
EU roughly on track to hit 2030 emissions goal, Brussels says
The updated analysis reflects progress, but relies on countries following through on promises amid a green backlash.
French lawmakers pass assisted dying bill in historic first vote
The legislation must now be approved by the majority-conservative Senate.
Belgium to tighten controls over private aircraft in anti-smuggling crackdown
Belgian customs authorities will place an officer at the national airspace security centre to access military radar and clamp down on private aircraft being used in smuggling operations.
Why nuclear energy is making a comeback across Europe
Belgium has scrapped its nuclear phase-out law, joining a growing number of EU nations reconsidering atomic energy as part of their climate strategies.
France lobbying Europeans, UK to recognize Palestinian statehood
Paris is set to move forward with recognition as pressure mounts on Israel to halt its military campaign in the Gaza Strip.
If Trump recognizes Crimea as Russian, he risks blowing a hole in war crimes cases
Legalizing Moscow’s occupation would also send a dangerous message to other aggressive powers.
EU countries urge crackdown on Hungary over Pride ban
The move comes as EU diplomats warn the bloc is inching closer to deploying its “nuclear option” against Hungary.
Trumpโs NIH funding cuts hit Belgian HIV projects
Four projects at Belgium’s UZ Gent have been halted by the suspension of funding for the National Institute of Health’s international research partnerships.
Council of Europe hits back at EU leaders calling to ease migrant expulsions
Secretary-General Alain Berset warned that courts must not be “weaponized” for political gain.
The Young Motherโs Home review โ outstanding return to form for the Dardenne brothers
Cannes film festivalTeen mums are taught how to take care of their babies or prepare them for adoption amid drug addiction, mental illness and family conflict in this poignant, compassionate work of unforced social realismGentleness, compassion and lov…
EU countries resist Spain on making Catalan official language
At least seven capitals have raised concerns over the costs and political implications of the move, which Sรกnchez links to defense spending.
Belgiumโs future queen caught up in Trumpโs war on Harvard
Trump’s foreign student ban affects more than 7,000 students โ including Princess Elisabeth.
Belgiumโs future queen caught up in Harvard foreign student ban
Princess Elisabeth has completed first year of masterโs degree but Trump administrationโs crackdown may jeopardise studiesPrincess Elisabeth, the 23-year-old future queen of Belgium, has just completed her first year at Harvard University but the ban i…
France grapples with high cases of tropical diseases amid spread of tiger mosquitoes
The insects can spread the virus from biting infected people.
9 EU countries ask European court to ease expulsion of foreign criminals
Document spearheaded by Italy and Denmark also calls for an end to the exploitation of migrants by hostile states.
Huawei scandal: Belgium backtracks on MEP immunity request
Italian EU lawmaker Princi was one of five for whom Belgian authorities had requested a waiver of immunity in the case.
Why Romaniaโs new leader is already facing a domestic political storm
Also in this newsletter: Belgium asks to lift immunity of five MEPs in probe over alleged corruption involving Huawei
Poland hits a wall trying to curb Big Pharmaโs profits
The EU’s ‘competitiveness’ mantra appears to be swaying more countries to back the pharmaceutical industry.
Belgiumโs oldest university elects first-ever female rector
KU Leuven is breaking fresh grounds after 600 years.
โA catastrophic situationโ: Belgiumโs new security chief launches crusade against Brussels drug crime
Former diplomat wants to push through political paralysis in Brussels to get police reform done.
Belgium asks European Parliament to lift MEP immunities linked to Huawei corruption scandal
Belgian authorities want to investigate five MEPs over cash-for-influence case, official says.
Belgian Health Minister eyes WHO support on mental health policies
In its European Mental Health Week call to action, Belgium urges EU-wide action to protect youth mental health in the digital age.
Tennis: Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani triumph at Internazionali d’Italia women’s doubles
Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini win in the final of the doubles tournament against Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova and Belgium’s Elise Mertens and are confirmed as champions in Rome.
Belgium weighs EU pharma package position, Polish presidency pushes for breakthrough
Belgian regulators have acknowledged that external trade dynamics could influence national and EU-level positions on the new pharmaceutical legislation.
‘Europe will never drop Ukraine: There is no prospect of complete victory for Russia’
Delegations from Russia and Ukraine are meeting in Istanbul for their first direct peace talks in three years. A Ukrainian delegation led by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov sat down with a low-level Russian team headed by presidential aide Vladimir Med…
Weather tracker: dry spring in northern Europe sets off drought warnings
Belgium and UK on course to experience driest spring in more than 100 years due to high-pressure blocking patternNorth-west Europe has experienced an unusually dry spring so far. Belgium has been particularly dry, experiencing four times less rain than…
Low emission zones are successful in cutting air pollution, study finds
Team in Belgium find improvement in air quality after launch of traffic measures in Brussels, Antwerp and GhentLow emission zones are successful at reducing air pollution and its effects on health, researchers have found.The team, working for the Belgi…
Belgium parliament votes to ditch nuclear power phase-out
The latest move comes as global interest in the nuclear sector is at its highest since the oil crises of the 1970s, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Romanian wild card George Simion sets Brusselsโ nerves on edge
The presidential front-runnerโs hostility to Ukraine is creating a rift with fellow European conservatives.
Calls for Russiaโs frozen assets held in Belgium to be used in rebuilding Ukraine
Brussels-based Euroclear holds most of Russiaโs frozen assets, but some say confiscation could be โan act of warโThe boxy glass and steel tower at a traffic-clogged junction on King Albert II Boulevard hardly stands out among the other buildings in the…
EXCLUSIVE: Belgium pushes โcoalition of the willingโ to keep Russian assets frozen
The country’s foreign minister said Belgium would not shoulder the legal risk alone.
Chinese companies bought up European ports โ and now Brussels is starting to worry
Chinese companies own stakes in about 30 European ports, and that’s raising security concerns.
Chinese companies bought up European ports โ and now Brussels is starting to worry
Chinese companies own stakes in about 30 European ports, and that’s raising security concerns.
Europe has more cardinals than is fair
Europe isn’t the most Catholic continent by a long shot โย but it still dominates the Sistine Chapel.
Belgiumโs biggest party backs Macronโs plan to recognize Palestinian stateย
The positional shift follows growing criticism of the partyโs silence on Israel’s war in Gaza.
Belgiumโs advanced cancer diagnostics still behind the curve
Belgiumโs breast cancer patients are often left without reimbursed treatments, exposing a growing gap between precision oncology’s promise and policy reality.
Riots rock Brussels as mayor condemns Bruges hooligans
โThey hate Brussels because itโs a multicultural city,โ Philippe Close fumes in an interview with POLITICO after disorder tarnished a football final.
Press release – โฌ8 million in EU aid for 2,400 dismissed workers in Belgium
Employees affected by the bankruptcy of Belgian automotive company Van Hool will benefit from an EU aid package worth โฌ8 million.Committee on Budgets Source : ยฉ European Union, 2025 – EP
How George Simion became a right-wing โmessiahโ for Romanians abroad
TikTok and ultranationalism propels hard-right chief to cult status among Romania’s diaspora.