European leaders hold emergency talks, fearing that Trump has abandoned age-old allies

European leaders sought to form a united front Monday at emergency talks in Paris, called after a U.S. diplomatic blitz on Ukraine which has thrown a once-solid alliance into turmoil and left the Europeans questioning the reliability of their key tran…

Europe tries to shore up fragile unity as it realises it cannot rely on US

Leaders arrive at Paris summit for urgent talks on Ukraine after week that showed how far values have divergedEurope live โ€“ latest updatesThey came smiling, but the task was immense. After dozens of summits at which a hesitant and discordant EU had fai…

Spanish food without tomatoes and chilli? 14th-century cookbook shows you how

Recipes for offal and spice-heavy dishes in Book of Sent Sovi show how transatlantic travel reshaped cuisineForget gazpacho, patatas bravas or the tang of paprika in your chorizo. Such dishes may be considered staples of the Mediterranean diet but a ne…

Trumpโ€™s Ukraine bombshell puts British support to the test

Prime Minister Keir Starmer promised to be a โ€œsteadfastโ€ backer of Ukraine. But Britain is cash-strapped and struggling to build links.

Starlink looks pale in comparison with what Europeans can get

SNEAK PEEK โ€” Has Elon Muskโ€™s Starlink got a shot in Europe? Not really. โ€” The withdrawal of the EUโ€™s AI liability rules has fans and critics. โ€”ย Thereโ€™s a new report about the price tag of the Eurostack. Good morning and welcome to Morning Tech. Hi, this is Pieter, back in Brussels after frantic days [โ€ฆ]

Trumpโ€™s plan for Ukraine a great deal โ€” โ€˜for the Kremlin,โ€™ Kyivโ€™s backers say

“Letโ€™s not mince words about what this represents: a surrender of Ukraineโ€™s interests and our own, even before negotiations begin,โ€ says U.S. Senator Adam Schiff.

Ukraine war briefing: Nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine, say European ministers

If we canโ€™t join Nato we must build our own, says Zelenskyy; Russian trial begins over explosion that crippled Kerch bridge. What we know on day 1,086 Nothing about ending Russiaโ€™s war against Ukraine should be decided without the Ukrainians, Europea…

โ€˜No doubtโ€™ kiss Luis Rubiales gave Jenni Hermoso was not consensual, court told

Prosecutor tells sexual assault trial that Spanish player has no reason not to tell the truth about what happenedThere is no doubt the kiss Luis Rubiales gave Jenni Hermoso after her triumph with Spain at the 2023 Womenโ€™s World Cup was non-consensual, …

Luis Rubiales tells court he asked Jenni Hermoso if he could kiss her

Former Spanish football federation boss is accused of sexual assault after kissing player at Womenโ€™s World CupThe former Spanish football federation boss Luis Rubiales has told a court that he asked the player Jenni Hermoso if he could kiss her before …

The EUโ€™s ticking debt bomb โ€” and why it matters for its next budget

Repayment of the EU’s โ‚ฌ300 billion joint borrowing hangs like a cloud over the European Commission’s budget brainstorm.

Spain pushes to double EU budget to over โ‚ฌ2 trillion

Madrid wants governments to be jointly liable for borrowing huge amounts of money to boost the bloc’s coffers.

Greece presses France over missile sale to Turkey

Turkey wants to buy Eurofighters equipped with air-to-air Meteor missiles.

EU considers giving countries wiggle room to boost defense spending

The move would allow governments with overstretched budgets more flexibility under the bloc’s debt and deficit rules.

Emilia Pรฉrez movie wins top Spanish film prize amid Karla Sofรญa Gascรณn furore

Best European film at Goya awards goes to movie at the centre of a storm over past social media posts written by its star, Karla Sofรญa GascรณnNarco-musical Emilia Pรฉrez has won best European film at Spainโ€™s equivalent of the Oscars amid the fallout from…

Looking at Trump, Europeโ€™s far right vows to โ€˜reconquerโ€™ the continent

โ€œOur friend Trump, the Trump tornado, has changed the world in just a couple of weeks,โ€ Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbรกn tells far-right rally in Madrid.

โ€˜I was deeply upsetโ€™: Karla Sofรญa Gascรณn to miss Spanish โ€˜Oscarsโ€™ as storm over racist tweets continues

The actor was due to attend the Goya awards on Saturday but has pulled out and has also been dropped by publishersKarla Sofรญa Gascรณn will not attend this weekendโ€™s prestigious Goya awards as the fallout from the Spanish actorโ€™s racist and Islamophobic …

Spain teammates testify how distraught Jenni Hermoso was by Luis Rubiales kiss

Alexia Putellas and Irene Paredes tell trial how Hermoso wept on flight home to Spain from their World Cup victoryTeammates of Jenni Hermoso corroborated her account of being distraught and angered by the forced World Cup kiss from the former Spanish f…

Refugee shot in eye during deadly 2014 crossing into Spain files complaint to UN

Survivor of Ceuta incident that ended with 14 deaths asks why use of anti-riot equipment was never investigatedA refugee who was almost blinded in one eye during a police operation that ended with the deaths of at least 14 people off the coast of Spain…

Spain menโ€™s coach says he was unaware of efforts to downplay Rubiales kiss

Luis de la Fuente appears at trial of ex-federation chief Luis Rubiales who kissed Jenni Hermoso after she had just helped Spain win 2023 World CupThe coach of Spainโ€™s menโ€™s football team, Luis de la Fuente, has told the forced kiss trial of ex-federat…

Threatened by populist superpowers, Europe too needs a dose of patriotism | Lorenzo Marsili

In this unsettling world order, polite, middle-size democracies are easy prey for bullies. It is time to reassert European powerSqueezed between US oligarchy and Russian and Chinese autocracy, Europeโ€™s democracies stand out like a relic from a bygone a…

Jenni Hermoso tells court Rubialesโ€™s kiss โ€˜tarnishedโ€™ World Cup win โ€“ video

The Spanish footballer Jenni Hermoso has told a court that โ€˜one of the happiest momentsโ€™ of her life was ruined when the then president of the Spanish football federation, Luis Rubiales, grabbed her and kissed her on the lips after Spainโ€™s World Cup wi…

Jenni Hermoso tells court Rubialesโ€™s kiss โ€˜tarnishedโ€™ World Cup win

Spanish footballer says she has not been able to โ€˜live freelyโ€™ since incident in 2023 that changed her lifeThe Spanish footballer Jenni Hermoso has told a court that โ€œone of the happiest momentsโ€ of her life was ruined when the then president of the Sp…

Global stock markets come under pressure amid โ€˜Trump tariff tantrumโ€™

Markets recover some losses after Trump agreed to delay new duties on Mexico goods, sparking hopes of a reprieveGlobal stock markets came under pressure after Donald Trump signed off on new US tariffs on China, Canada and Mexico, prompting fears of a t…

The Mediterranean diet is a lie

Italy’s food is supposed to be the world’s healthiest. So why are so many of its kids obese?

German conservatives to back Weber for second term as EPP leader

Friedrich Merzโ€™s CDU is set to endorse the EPP head on Sunday, boosting Weber’s chances at a decisive party congress in April.

Luis Rubiales to go on trial in Spain over Jenni Hermoso kiss at World Cup

Spanish football federationโ€™s former president is accused of sexual assault and coercion over incident in 2023Spainโ€™s former football chief Luis Rubiales will go on trial in Madrid on Monday over the unsolicited kiss he planted on the World Cup winner …

Nearly 180 detainees released by Israel, Hamas

As part of the cease-fire deal, Israel and Egypt on Saturday opened the Rafah border crossing, which has been closed for months.

France leads fight against EU plans to merge health crisis and civil protection units

11 countries signed a paper to Ursula von der Leyen warning the move would downgrade Europe’s health crisis resiliency.

Barcelona players hit out at plans for Womenโ€™s Supercopa in Saudi Arabia

โ€˜To a country that doesnโ€™t respect women? I donโ€™t see itโ€™RFEF in dicussions with Saudi Arabia over competitionFemale players in Spain have hit out at plans to take the womenโ€™s Supercopa to Saudi Arabia. The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has been i…

Chasing the Don: How EU politicians are jockeying for position with Trump

From Nigel Farage to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, EU politicians are competing for the privilege of being Europe’s Trump whisperer.

China-linked influence operation tried to overthrow Spainโ€™s government, report says

Fake accounts attempted to fan discontent as people raged against establishment figures following floods in the Valencia region that killed more than 200 people.

Valencia councillor โ€˜caught shopping onlineโ€™ at flood relief meeting

Josรฉ Marรญ Olano from Peopleโ€™s party says sorry after cameras appear to capture him scrolling through winesA Peopleโ€™s party (PP) politician in the city of Valencia has apologised after cameras appeared to capture him shopping online for wine and spirits…

Kidnapped Spanish man rescued using photo of steering wheel

Man sent coordinates and photo of steering wheel to his girlfriend allowing officers to locate car and rescue himSpanish police have rescued a man who was kidnapped and bundled into the boot of a car after he managed to alert his girlfriend by sending …

EU lets Russian LNG slip in new sanctions package

The proposal will not include a blanket prohibition of LNG imports, as scores of EU hawks have been urging.

Spain, Portugal double down on 2% defence target

While both countries reaffirmed their NATO spending commitments, Portugal’s prime minister also urged the EU to act as a bloc.
The post Spain, Portugal double down on 2% defence target appeared first on Euractiv.

Murder in the House of Ullens: The fall from grace of one of Belgiumโ€™s richest families

Police say a dispute over money is behind the shooting of Baroness Myriam Ullens.

Washed-up Brits, local lowlifes and a Kray twinโ€™s lighter: noir novel Spanish Beauty shines fond light on Benidorm

Recently published in English for the first time, Esther Garcรญa Llovetโ€™s story pays tribute to the resort regarded by many as โ€˜the worst place in Spainโ€™Despite spending the summers of her youth in Fuengirola, watching the foreign tourists at play and d…

El Hierro: the tiny Canary Island at centre of migration crisis โ€“ photo essay

Ten years ago, El Hierro staked everything on sustainability and renewable energy. Today it faces another epochal challenge: migration from Africa, a phenomenon that is turning it into the Lampedusa of the Atlanticโ€œWe canโ€™t go on like this. We are only…

Tech billionaires want to โ€˜overthrow democracyโ€™ with social media, Spain PM Sรกnchez says

“The technology that was intended to free us has become the tool of our own oppression.”

Micheรกl Martin accuses opposition of โ€˜subversion of Irish constitutionโ€™ amid chaos over his appointment as PM โ€“ Europe live

Angry scenes over speaking time arrangements in the Dรกil with rows delaying the expected confirmation of Martinโ€™s role by the presidentTusk, a historian by training, also urged Europe to increase its defence spending:Some people think itโ€™s extravagant …

EUโ€™s biggest secessionist movement is losing momentum

And Catalonia’s new President wants to shoot it dead.

Elon Muskโ€™s โ€˜Naziโ€™ salute sparks fury from Europeโ€™s left wing

Lawmakers and media pour scorn on the key adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump.

โ€˜We ask to be recognisedโ€™: small fishers claim โ‚ฌ12bn EU fund favours big players

Artisanal shellfish farmers face ruinous losses but money meant to help is going to the powerful fishing industry, say criticsEarly on a warm September morning in southern Italy, Giovanni Nicandro sets out from the port of Taranto in his small boat. Su…

Illegal German waste dumping in Czech village lands at EUโ€™s door

In todayโ€™s edition of the Capitals, find out more about experts warning about Smer’s dangerous rhetroic, Spain’s Sanchez taking aim at Trump, Musk and Zuckerberg, and so much more.ย 
The post Illegal German waste dumping in Czech village lands at EU&#82…

Manfred Weber to seek reelection as EPP president

The Bavarian conservative may well be in charge of the EPP for another three years as of April.

Trump presidency will help to โ€˜occupy Brusselsโ€™, says Orbรกn

Hungary PM says new US leader will bolster Europeโ€™s rightwing forces as nationalist politicians attend inaugurationDonald Trump inauguration โ€“ live updatesWhat time is Trumpโ€™s inauguration? How to watch the eventsDonald Trumpโ€™s presidency will boost ri…

โ€˜A vicious circleโ€™: how the roof blew off Spainโ€™s housing crisis

Rents spiral and neighbourhoods lose charm as cities report tourist flat boom and surge in housing speculationCiutat Vella, the old city of Barcelona, was once quirky and mysterious.Now it has become a parody of itself, a place from which the local pop…

โ€˜Has the world gone mad? It hasโ€™: foreign reporters share a view of Trump from abroad

Journalists from countries that have seen challenges to democracy give their view on the second Trump presidencyWhat is the view of US democracy from abroad, and what can Americans learn from other nations with a history of political tumult?During his …

Several injured after ski lift collapses at Spanish resort in Astรบn โ€“ย video

Ten people have been hurt, two of them seriously, after a ski lift collapsed at a resort in north-east Spain on Saturday, hurling dozens of passengers into the snow below. Miguel รngel Clavero, the head of Aragรณnโ€™s emergency services, said the accident…

Tuscany among top 10 cheapest summer holiday destinations for 2025

Italian region comes surprise eighth place and has plenty of budget package deals available, according to Which?January is the best month to book a summer holiday โ€“ and this year there is a surprise budget option: Tuscany. According to Which?, the cent…

Up to 50 people on small boat bound for Canary Islands feared drowned

Migration NGO says at least 10,457 people died while trying to reach Spain by sea last yearAs many as 50 people are thought to have died after a boat bound for the Canary Islands got into difficulties after a 13-day voyage along the perilous Atlantic m…

A 100% tax on Brits buying homes in Spain sounds satisfying โ€“ but it wonโ€™t solve our housing crisis | Marรญa Ramรญrez

Making visitors pay more may bolster Treasury revenues, but itโ€™s no match for building more housesLast October, tens of thousands of people marched through Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia and other big Spanish cities demanding affordable housing. Protester…

Worldโ€™s far-right populists pack guest list for Trumpโ€™s inauguration

While itโ€™s not usual to invite foreign dignitaries, Trump is laying down a clear ideological marker with his invitees from across the world.

EU leaders urge Israel and Hamas to abide by new cease-fire deal

Multiple officials underlined the fragility of the agreement and stressed the importance of how it is implemented. The fighting continues.

Spanish oppositions slams โ€˜xenophobicโ€™ homebuyer tax

Spain’s Socialist government said it would limit the purchase of homes by non-EU residents by increasing the tax they have to pay by as much as 100% of a property’s value.
The post Spanish oppositions slams ‘xenophobic’ homebuyer tax appear…

Spain mulls 100% tax on homes bought by non-EU residents to address housing crisis

Spanish Prime Minister Pedroย Sรกnchez this week announced a plan to bring down rents and house prices through a raft of measures including building more public housing, higher taxes on holiday rentals and raising taxes by up to 100 percent on propertie…

EU warns US over new AI chips blocks

Export restrictions on cutting-edge microchips will affect some EU countries, including Poland.

Spain taxes tourism to save housing

In todayโ€™s edition of the Capitals, find out more about Spain’s Sรกnchez announcing tax hikes on tourist flats, Bulgaria hoping to join the US visa waiver programme in 2026, and so much more.ย 
The post Spain taxes tourism to save housing appeared first …

Reversal of fortunes: Europeโ€™s thriving south and stagnant north

With Germanyโ€™s economy stalling, tentative growth in Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain is some good news for the Eurozone. Will it last?

Spain proposes 100% tax on homes bought by non-EU residents

Pedro Sรกnchez announces measure in response to anger over rising housing costsSpain has announced plans to impose a tax of up to 100% on real estate bought by non-residents from countries outside the EU, such as the UK, in an aim to tackle the countryโ€™…

Germanyโ€™s Baerbock cautions on Syria as EU signals sanctions relief

Syria’s transitional government โ€œsounds good so far,” Germany’s foreign minister told POLITICO โ€” but actions speak louder than words.

As Trump enters the fray, the danger is that a nationalist Europe will fragment, not stick together | Nathalie Tocci

Rightwing leaders such as Meloni and Orbรกn set themselves up as Trump whisperers โ€“ but they only want to preserve their own interests A far-right wind is blowing across the Atlantic. While the rise of the populist right in Europe predated Donald Trumpโ€™…

Northern Irish nun killed in Ecuador earthquake takes step towards sainthood

Beatification ceremony for Clare Crockett, former party girl from Derry, draws more than 100 people to MadridA nun from Northern Ireland who was killed in an earthquake while she was teaching music in Ecuador has taken a step closer to sainthood.A cere…

Football on TV: fans โ€˜paying almost 60% more to watch all big games than in 2020โ€™

Analysis shows rise from ยฃ89.23 a month to ยฃ140.21 between 2019-2020 and 2024-2025 seasonsFootball superfans are paying almost 60% more than they were five years ago to watch the 15 most popular tournaments and leagues, as the number of broadcasters an…

โ€˜Each year you delay giving a phone is a big winโ€™: child screen-time solutions from around the world

From stringent legislation to grassroots action, Australia and Spain lead the way in tackling childrenโ€™s use of mobile phones and tabletsIf the advent of the affordable mobile phone has given parents a new way to stay in touch with their ยญchildren, it …

โ€˜It was extraordinaryโ€™: Spanish captain recalls rescue of woman who gave birth in dinghy

Mother and newborn saved from inflatable boat off Canary Islands, on a route on which thousands have diedThe call that would lead to one of the most poignant images of the humanitarian emergency in the deadly waters off the Canary Islands came at 4am.I…

World โ€˜teetering on edgeโ€™ of breaching Paris Agreement, scientists say

2024 was the first year to break through the 1.5C temperature barrier, an EU agency finds.

Murder investigation in Spain after body of missing Belfast man found

Family โ€˜heartbrokenโ€™ after discovery of body of John George, 37, who went missing in Alicante area in DecemberA murder investigation is under way in Spain after the body of a 37-year-old man from Northern Ireland was found three weeks after he went mis…

A reality check for Trump, would-be-ruler of Greenland

Here is what the president-elect can do with the autonomous territory.

Doctors present first barrier for rare diseaseย patientsย 

Overcoming the doctor’s ego is a first hurdle for many rare disease patients in search of a diagnosis.

Brussels will be watching whether Musk breaks EU law in far-right livestream

Up to 150 experts in Brussels and Seville will be checking whether Musk’s livestream interview boosts the German far right.

Baby born on crowded small boat crossing from Africa to Canary Islands

The boy and his mother as well as dozens of others were rescued off the coast of Lanzarote, SpainA baby boy has been born on a small, crowded boat carrying 60 people on the deadly Atlantic migration route from Africa to the Canary Islands.The boat was …

Spanish PM Pedro Sรกnchez denounces Elon Musk at Franco anniversary event

Sรกnchez accuses X owner of inciting hatred as country marks 50 years since start of its return to democracyPedro Sรกnchez has hit out at Elon Musk and his allies for โ€œopenly attacking our institutions, inciting hatred and openly calling for people to su…