X challenges German court decision that forces it to share election data

Elon Muskโ€™s X has challenged a German court decision that instructed the platform to share data with researchers, the court confirmed to POLITICO. In an urgent injunction, the Berlin Regional Court last Thursday instructed X to share real-time access to the data on the upcoming German elections via its online interface until Feb. 25.ย  The [โ€ฆ]

Germanyโ€™s Merz again rules out coalition with far right, but opens door to center-left parties

Signaling a pivot, Germany’s likely next chancellor suggested he’d consider governing with the center left โ€” but not the AfD or the liberals.

Stรฉphane Sรฉjournรฉ is on a nuclear mission as EU industry chief

With Germany embroiled in political and economic difficulties, nuclear advocates see an opportunity to score points in Brussels.

Angry farmers push Poland away from Ukraine

After nearly three years of war in Ukraine, protests by Polish farmers are opening up social and political fractures in a once-unshakeable alliance.

Germanyโ€™s labor market โ€” long the envy of Europe โ€” is losing its shine

For the first time in a decade, the number of unemployed is closing in on 3 million โ€” and there’s more to come.

UK โ€˜readyโ€™ to send peace-keepers to Ukraine, PM Starmer says

Ahead of a crunch meeting in Paris on Monday, the U.K. leader commits to putting British troops in harm’s way to secure lasting peace.

Vanceโ€™s week of waging war on EU tech law

The U.S. vice president attacked Europe’s regulations governing American Big Tech giants and online speech.

German chancellor hits back after Vance tirade at security conference โ€“ video

Olaf Scholz has responded strongly in defence of his stance against the far right and said Germany will not accept people who ‘intervene in our democracy’, a day after the US vice-president, JD Vance, attacked European governments for the way they soug…

Scholz calls for reform of German debt brake right after election

The chancellor, who is trailing in the polls ahead of the Feb. 23 snap election, expressed confidence that Germany will have a parliamentary majority to loosen the debt brake.

Scholz slams Vanceโ€™s support for far right as โ€˜interferenceโ€™ by โ€˜outsidersโ€™

‘We will decide for ourselves what happens to our democracy,’ German chancellor tells the U.S.

โ€˜I fear free speech is in retreat,โ€™ JD Vance rebukes Europeโ€™s leaders โ€“ video

In a chastising speech on Friday that openly questioned whether current European values warranted defence by the US, the US vice-president painted a picture of European politics infected by media censorship, cancelled elections and political correctnes…

JD Vance meets with leader of far-right German political party backed by Musk

The vice president met with the leaders of all four major German political parties โ€” including Alice Weidel, leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany.

Vance brings a wrecking ball to diplomatic gathering in Munich

The U.S. vice president roasted the continent’s way of governing itself.

โ€˜Thought crimeโ€™ and cancelled elections: how do JD Vanceโ€™s claims about Europe stand up?

US vice-president told litany of tales of Europeโ€™s rights infringements in speech to leaders at defence gatheringJD Vance stuns Munich conference with blistering attack on Europeโ€™s leadersIn JD Vanceโ€™s confrontational and pugnacious speech at the Munic…

New Geo-Political Challenges and the Past and Future of EU-Greenland Relations

  

Ulla Neergaard, Professor of EU Law, University of Copenhagen

Photo credit: Gordon Leggett, via Wikimedia Commons 

 

*This contribution draws upon Ulla
Neergaardโ€™s forthcoming work, โ€œโ€˜Eurarcticโ€™: Colonialism and EU-Greenland…

US Democrats slam Vance Munich speech as โ€˜hypocrisyโ€™

The U.S. vice president’s admonition of Europeโ€™s policies splits American lawmakers.

German prosecutors confirm Islamic extremism in Munich attack, stoking election debate

A suspected Islamist attack in Munich has ignited fierce political debate on security and migration just over a week before Germanyโ€™s federal election.

Musk will face consequences for interfering in German election, says front-runner Merz

The next German government’s response could be political, legal, or possibly target Musk’s gigafactory near Berlin, center-right leader says in interview.

I met the โ€˜godfathers of AIโ€™ in Paris โ€“ hereโ€™s what they told me to really worry about | Alexander Hurst

Experts are split between concerns about future threats and present dangers. Both camps issued dire warningsI was a technophile in my early teenage days, sometimes wishing that I had been born in 2090, rather than 1990, so that I could see all the incr…

Austria’s far right fails to form a coalition

The FPร– has returned its mandate to the president, the ecologist Alexander Van der Bellen, who must find a solution to get the country out of the political stalemate it has been in since the September 2024 legislative elections.

โ€˜We will soon be nextโ€™: German leaders sound alarm on Trumpโ€™s Ukraine plan

Berlin wants more robust military spending following a bombshell move by the Trump administration to negotiate a peace deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

JD Vance snubs Germanyโ€™s Scholz at Munich Security Conference

โ€œWe donโ€™t need to see him, he wonโ€™t be chancellor long,โ€ a former U.S. official said of Vance’s thinking.

At least 28 injured after car hits union rally in โ€˜suspected attackโ€™ in Munich โ€“ video

A 24-year-old Afghan man has driven a car into a trade union demonstration in Munich, injuring at least 28 people including children, some of them critically, according to German police. The Bavarian state premier, Markus Sรถder, told reporters the inci…

The EU must not be a โ€˜dwarfโ€™ in Washington, says Germanyโ€™s likely next chancellor

The bloc has to get tougher in the age of Donald Trump, argues Friedrich Merz.

How to watch the German election like a pro

Germany’s election will be a gauge of how far the world’s third biggest economy has swung to the right.

Von der Leyen labels Trumpโ€™s VP an ally after first meeting

First high-level meeting with Trump official strikes surprisingly positive note after he slapped tariffs on steel and aluminum.

Macron says โ€˜itโ€™s normalโ€™ Musk skipped AI summit in Paris

The French president said the tech mogul’s absence was due to his new role assisting the Trump administration.

‘AfD becoming strong in German Parliament: Increasingly difficult to form coalitions excluding them’

In the lead-up to Germany’s Parliamentary Elections, centre-left Chancellor Olaf Scholz accused his conservative election arch rival Friedrich Merz of planning an immigration crackdown that would “bury Europe”. For in-depth analysis and a deeper persp…

German frontrunner Merz will take EU โ€˜to its grave,โ€™ says Scholz

Country’s role in Europe gets a surprise central focus in election campaign.

Germanyโ€™s far-left party sees membership surge before election

The Left’s boost in numbers fuels hope of clearing the 5 percent threshold to enter the Bundestag.

Macron picks close ally to lead court that could decide Le Penโ€™s fate

Richard Ferrand’s appointment drew criticism even before being made official.

The 9 AI power players at the Paris AI Action Summit

Academics can be as influential as tech bros in swaying policymakers to both invest in and set guardrails for the powerful technology.

Moldovaโ€™s Russia-backed breakaway region strikes deal to end energy crisis

Separatist leaders said they will take a Russian loan to pay for supplies despite an EU aid offer.

5 times politicians were humiliated by WhatsApp leaks

Numerous UK politicos have found their group chats getting two ticks โ€” from the entire British public.

Romaniaโ€™s Klaus Iohannis announces heโ€™ll resign as president

Longtime leader heads for the exit amid political turmoil in Bucharest.

Exit polls show incumbent PM Albin Kurti’s party in lead in Kosovo legislative elections

Kosovans headed to the polls against a backdrop of a stagnant economy and renewed ethnic tensions but the Central Election Commission says turnout was low.

โ€‹โ€‹Justin Trudeauโ€™s not the only Canadian pushing for a UK trade deal

Pierre Poilievre โ€” frontrunner to be the next Canadian PM โ€” is also on board with push to reboot stalled talks amid Trump’s trade war.

Kosovo PM Albin Kurti wins election amid tensions with Brussels and Washington

His ruling party fell short of a majority and will need to find a coalition partner if it hopes to continue in power.

Kosovo’s PM party leads in parliamentary polls, may fall of majority

In Kosovo’s parliamentary elections, Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s ruling party led with the most seats but faced uncertainty in forming a majority. The election highlighted Kurti’s anti-Serbian agenda against the opposition’s economic promises. Withou…

Merz and Scholz clash on migration, economy and Trump: โ€˜How dumb can somebody be?โ€™

Center-right and center-left chancellor candidates clashed in a fiery debate, exposing deep divisions just weeks ahead of a national election.

The โ€˜Gaza-ificationโ€™ of the West Bank

With a cease-fire holding in Gaza, Israel shifts its war to the West Bank.

Parliamentary elections in Kosovo: ‘Key issue is relationship with Serbia’

Polls opened in Kosovo on Sunday after a combative election campaign in which opposition candidates clashed with Prime Minister Albin Kurti over the economy, corruption and relations with the country’s old foe and neighbour Serbia. “As ever, with Koso…

As Trump steamrolls Washington, courts flex their power to slow him down

Numerous federal district judges around the country have blocked major portions of Trumpโ€™s early agenda โ€” but Supreme Court showdowns loom.

Kosovo votes in parliamentary elections amid tensions with Serbia

Voters began casting ballots in Kosovo elections Sunday in a contest that pits combative incumbent Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s quest to stamp out Serbian influence against a fractured opposition’s vow to boost the economy. Condemned by the EU and the…

Super Bowl: The NFL team Trump loves to hate

The president has left a breadcrumb trail suggesting nothing would make him happier than to see the Eagles get slaughtered in the Super Bowl.

Kosovo votes in legislative elections seen as key test for PM Kurti

Kosovars cast their votes Sunday in a parliamentary election considered a key test for Prime Minister Albin Kurti as talks on normalising ties with rival Serbia remain stalled and foreign funding for one of Europe’s poorest countries in question.

EU far-right parties rally in Madrid behind slogan ‘Make Europe Great Again’

After last year’s European Parliament elections, in which far-right parties performed strongly in several countries, a rally Saturday in Madrid was a meant as a show of force by the EU parliament’s biggest far-right bloc. The rally adopted the slogan …

Kosovo votes in parliamentary elections clouded by tensions with Serbia

Kosovars are voting Sunday in parliamentary elections that could determine who will lead the Kosovo side in negotiations with Serbia, which stalled last year. Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s party campaigned on a tough line with Serbia while the oppositi…

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€˜New realityโ€™ hailed as Slovak protests against pro-Russia PM widen to small towns

More than 100,000 people hit the streets Friday across Slovakia and elsewhere in Europe to defend the country’s Western orientation.

Georgia ramps up restrictions on media, NGOs with drastic new laws

The fresh restrictions come amid a political crisis over disputed elections and the government’s reversal on its EU membership bid.

EU far-right parties rally in Madrid behind slogan ‘Make Europe Great Again’

After last year’s European Parliament elections, in which far-right parties performed strongly in several countries, a rally Saturday in Madrid was a meant as a show of force of the EU parliament’s biggest far-right bloc. The rally adopted the slogan …

Germanyโ€™s Habeck casts doubt on coalition with conservatives

The possibilities for conservative frontrunner Friedrich Merz to form a coalition government are looking increasingly uncertain.

Economy, migration, defence loom large in German election: A turning point for Europe?

Of all the elections happening in the EU this year, the vote in Germany is probably the one that is being watched most closely across the bloc. Europe’s largest economy is in trouble; the old model of cheap gas and easily accessible export markets is …

Germanyโ€™s likely next chancellor wants to tell Trump to rein in Musk

โ€œI do not approve of someone in Trumpโ€™s orbit attempting such direct interference in Germanyโ€™s elections,โ€ says Friedrich Merz.

How Germany found itself holding an Italian election

POLITICO has processed 35 years’ worth of election data to find out why this month’s vote is messier than ever โ€• and what will happen next.

How political is your pizza? The Mediterranean Diet and Europeโ€™s food battles

Pasta, pizza, and Parmigiano โ€” delicious? Absolutely. But in 2025, theyโ€™re also deeply political. This week on EU Confidential, host Sarah Wheaton digs into how food has become a battleground, with POLITICO agriculture reporter Alessandro Ford explaining how Italyโ€™s far-right โ€” and politicians across Europe โ€” are using the Mediterranean diet to push back against [โ€ฆ]

Tony Blair picks his Labour rising stars

The former U.K. prime minister has quietly been meeting Labour’s new MPs โ€” and he’s not the only Blairite who’s at it.

Putinโ€™s disinformation networks flood social media in bid to skew German election

A Kremlin-backed campaign is trying to influence voters ahead of Feb. 23 poll, according to government report obtained by POLITICO.

Like an episode of The Wire: Brussels gang wars spiral out of control

โ€œMafiaโ€ shootings with Kalashnikovs trigger alarm in the city as politicians convene an emergency meeting.

German election frontrunners push for nuclear comeback

Germanyโ€™s nuclear exit was meant to be final. But with energy costs soaring, conservatives are reopening the debate.

UKโ€™s attorney general called Trump an โ€˜orange tyrantโ€™

Richard Hermer said the U.S. president was an โ€œautocratic populistโ€ in the latest uncomfortable comments by British ministers.

Merkel โ€˜could not remain silentโ€™ as she jabs Merz again over far-right AfD vote

Former German leader reiterates swipe at chancellor candidate from her own Christian Democratic Union ahead of Feb. 23 election.

Was, wenn Scholz einfach sitzen bleibt?

โ€“ Beรคngstigendes Szenario fรผr die Union: Droht nach der Wahl durch die SPD die Deutschland-Blockade?ย  โ€“ Im 200-Sekunden-Interview: Die Co-Bundessprecherin der Grรผnen, Jette Nietzard รผber Kritik an Habecks 10-Punkte-Plan und Forderungen in der Migrationspolitik. โ€“ CSU-Parteitag am Wochenende: Wie die Christsozialen besorgt nach ร–sterreich schauen.ย  โ€“ Karneval und Kanzler: Olaf Scholz รผbt sich in Bรผttenreden.ย  [โ€ฆ]

Turning aspirations into action for rare disease patients

Inspired by the rare disease communityโ€™s passionate drive to advance policies that provide equitable access to care, UCB spearheaded Aspire4Rare: a global initiative supporting the development of rare disease policies.

Hereโ€™s what Germanyโ€™s next government will look like

Germanyโ€™s conservatives are desperate to avoid a three-party coalition, but the outcome depends on how many small parties make it into parliament.

How do you get a German to vote? Give them free beer of course!

The pilsner plan is finding parts of the electorate other initiatives can’t reach.

The US is โ€˜no longer the America we used to know,โ€™ warns Germanyโ€™s Merz

“The way they’re pardoning people who have been sentenced to years in prison, that will have consequences for America,” Merz cautioned.

AI-driven Russian disinformation campaign targets German elections [Advocacy Lab Content]

Disinformation tactics similar to those used against the United States have been deployed, including using African media outlets for credibility and AI-generated testimonies in influence operations.

EU hires Trump-linked lobbying firm to survive trade war

DCI Group has worked with sanctioned organizations, the Azeri government and oil companies.

PMQs: Starmer wins as Badenochโ€™s scattergun approach falls flat

The Tory leader went for the government on the Chagos Islands and oil drilling โ€” but didn’t hone an effective argument.

‘Bayrou needs to be careful about managing a lot of very sensitive groups in French Parliament’

French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou is expected to survive a no-confidence vote in parliament, winning some breathing space after less than two months in office. All the while, risk analysis firm Eurasia Group is giving a 70-percent chance that the …

Justin Trudeau wants to revive UK-Canada trade talks in shadow of Trump

The offer comes as Ottawa remains in the White Houseโ€™s crosshairs.