Germany is main EU target of Trump tariffs, warns economy minister
Germany is “a thorn in Donald Trump’s side,” said Robert Habeck.
Thorn
Musk, a pro-populist thorn in the EU’s side: Concerns grow over ‘foreign interference’
He has called the German chancellor an “incompetent idiot” and the countryโs president an “anti-democratic tyrant”.ย Perhaps such invective would not matter if Elon Musk did not have the influence that he does. But Europe is a key market for the tech b…
โCroatiaโs Trumpโ wins first round of presidential election but now faces runoff
Incumbent Zoran Milanoviฤ, a combative critic of NATO and the EU, finished well ahead of the ruling party candidate but just short of a majority.
Croatia set to reelect its โDonald Trumpโ
Zoran Milanoviฤ, a critic of the EU and NATO, is expected to come in first in Sundayโs presidential election.
POLITICO London Playbook awards 2024
From minister of the year to WTF moment, Westminster’s essential newsletter picks the winners of 2024.
Viktor Orbรกn
Dreamer No. 4 โ Hungary
Business leaders are worried about JD Vance and the future of the GOP
Theyโve watched the party move away from them under Donald Trump. Theyโre worried his chosen successor could accelerate the shift.
How Gรผlenโs feud with Erdoฤan shaped todayโs Turkey
The cleric’s supporters infiltrated the police and judiciary โ but went too far when they challenged Erdoฤan’s allies and family.
Yulia Navalnaya: After Putin, Iโll run to be Russiaโs president
Alexei Navalny’s wife says she doesn’t “hate” the Russian president โ she just wants to see him in prison.
Brussels yawns as Europeโs populists notch yet another win
How many far-right governments need to be elected before the EU admits it has a problem?
Iranโs president seeks โregionalโ response to Israel
โHezbollah by herself cannot stand against a country that is armed to the teeth,โ he said.
So long, no thanks to all the fash: review of Character Limit: How Elon Musk Destroyed Twitter, by Kate Conger and Ryan Mac
Professor Steve Peers, Royal Holloway University of
London
Photo credit: mikemacmarketing, image via vpnsrus
Full disclosure first: After exactly
ten and a half years, I stopped posting on X (formerly Twitter) on August 10,
2024. I cou…
โAll must be beheadedโ: Revelations of atrocities at French energy giantโs African stronghold
Mozambican soldiers operating out of TotalEnergies’ natural gas plant abducted, raped and killed dozens of civilians.
Vance and Walz to speak at gathering of CEOs this week
The two vice presidential nominees have previously bashed elite corporate interests.
Bulgaria elections postponed as political crisis deepens
President Rumen Radev wants interior minister out in ongoing feud with sanctioned oligarch.
Wolf 2 โ von der Leyen 0: EU court insists on being careful with wolf hunting
Ursula von der Leyen’s furry nemesis strikes back.
Meet Lucie Castets, the French PM-hopeful vowing to be a thorn in Macronโs side
The 37-year-old’s low profile helped make her a consensus pick on the left, but now she needs to take the fight to the French president.
Jeremy Corbyn leads left-wing Gaza revolt against Labour
Independent MPs set to be thorn in PM Keir Starmer’s side over the Middle East.
The far-right โhooliganโ disrupting Spanish politicsย
Luis โAlviseโ Pรฉrez has gone from online agitator to MEP and thorn in the side of Spanish politics.
The Hungarian presidency: Let the games begin
Brussels holds its breath as Budapest takes over rotating Council presidency.
The Nigel Farage effect is real
Conservatives lose out while Farage’s Reform UK is projected to win 5 seats in latest in-depth model.
Orbรกn ally-turned-rival Pรฉter Magyar joins centre-right EPP group in the European Parliament
The European Parliament’s centre-right faction has opened its arms to the political movement of Pรฉter Magyar, the thorn in Orbรกnโs side who is expected to swap Budapest for Brussels.
From Albanian and Hungarian prisons to EU Parliament: Meet the jailed MEPs
Freshly elected Ilaria Salis and Fredi Beleri may prove a thorn in the side of Hungary and Albania, as supposedly political charges raise questions over the rule of law.
Tech file on online child abuse material remains incomplete, risks grodlock
The draft law on detecting and reporting online child sexual abuse material (CSAM), sparking criticism and tension in the past, remains one of the important yet incomplete tech files of the EU, highlighting its significance as it risks being abandoned …
Give Nigel Farage a job to save the Tories, says Jacob Rees-Mogg
Backbencher says uniting right-wing parties puts election victory ‘within reach.’
Free media face crackdown from Croatiaโs new leaders
Nationalists joining PM Andrej Plenkovic’s new coalition have demanded cuts to funding for an independent newspaper.
Serbia to Xi Jinping: No one reveres you like we do
Serbian President Aleksandar Vuฤiฤ said โthe sky is the limit” on future cooperation.
Europolโs declaration against end-to-end encryption reignites debate, sparks privacy concerns
Europol’s recent joint declaration with European police chiefs urges action against end-to-end encryption, citing concerns of possible justice obstruction, amid an ongoing debate about balancing data privacy with combating crime.
Lost Caravaggio that almost sold for โฌ1,500 to go on show at Prado in Madrid
Ecce Homo will be museumโs second Caravaggio, after being spotted on sale in Spanish capital in 2021A lost Caravaggio painting of the scourged and thorn-crowned Christ that was misattributed and almost sold for just โฌ1,500 is to go on show at the Prado…
Rishi Sunak the โdevoted Swiftieโ โฆ and 9 other times UK politicos ruined music
From Taylor Swift to Skepta, artists have long had to contend with cringe politicians pretending to like them.
Poland arrests 2 over brutal attack on Navalny ally in Lithuania
“Do not try to repeat it,โ Lithuanian president warned perpetrators.
Friendly Arab nations urge restraint, but will Netanyahu listen?
World is waiting to see how Israel will retaliate after Iranโs attack, and if Bibi will match the forbearance of a legendary predecessor.
Orbรกn faces new enemy brandishing a leaked tape
Pรฉter Magyar, ex-husband of former Justice Minister Judit Varga, has released a recording alleging high-level corruption.
Slovakia, the EUโs next rule of law headache
Prime Minister Robert Ficoโs first steps since returning to power have set off familiar alarm bells in Brussels.
Theresa May: The Brexit prime minister who should have been great
Westminster says farewell to Britainโs second female premier brought down by her partyโs civil war over Europe.
Make Rochdale great again: Britainโs new pro-Gaza MP George Galloway channels Trump
Galloway’s return to the House of Commons comes after his victory in the Rochdale by-election.
George Galloway: Britainโs newest MP is a pro-Gaza, anti-NATO firebrand
Galloway was kicked out of Tony Blair’s Labour in the 2000s โ but he’s heading back to the UK parliament on a pro-Palestinian ticket.
Is Brexit king Nigel Farage the answer to Tory woes?
Conservatives continue to look to the man who led the UK out of the EU as their poll ratings tank.
Europe between Putin and Trump
Even if Biden is reelected, Europeans are aware that the era of strong transatlantic presidents may be coming to an end.
With Navalnyโs death, Russians lose their last hope
Without him, Putin’s transition to total political invulnerability seems complete.
Czech ANO party a thorn in Renew Europeโs side โ still
The liberal centrists in the European Parliament, already torn by internal rifts, have a new dilemma: the presence of Czech business mogul Andrej Babiลกโs increasingly conservative ANO party, which counters their core values but may bring valuable seats…
Toilet diplomacy: How many bathroom breaks can the EU force Viktor Orbรกn to take?
To get approval for its budget, EU leaders could ask the Hungarian leader to once again leave the room.
The EUโs Viktor Orbรกn problem: 9 times Hungarian leader has been a thorn in Brusselsโ side
Ahead of a crucial European summit at which the Hungarian PM could wreak havoc, POLITICO looks back at the biggest issues in his relationship with the EU.
What happened in the Russia-Ukraine war this week? Catch up with the must-read news and analysis
Accusations abound after Russian military plane carrying Ukrainian PoWs crashes; Lenin 100 years dead but a thorn in Putinโs sideEvery week we wrap up essential coverage of the war in Ukraine, from news and features to analysis, opinion and more. Conti…
Tory MPs are too busy saving their skin to save Rishi Sunakโs
LONDON โ Britainโs Conservative Party is famed for its survival instinct. But with electoral defeat on the horizon, Rishi Sunakโs MPs are out for themselves. While the party languishes in the polls, the coming election could yet be some nine months away โ a form of slow torture if youโre a Tory MP.ย And in [โฆ]
EU Ombudsman launches probe into Europol officialsโ alleged conflict of interest
The EU Ombudsman launched an investigation into the transfer of two former Europol officials to child protection organisation Thorn on Wednesday (4 January).
7 tripwires for Rishi Sunak as 2024 fires up
With an election looming, the UK prime minister is facing his toughest year yet.
POLITICO London Playbook awards 2023: all the winners from a wild year in UK politics
From minister of the year to the wildest social media storms, POLITICO’s essential Westminster newsletter picks the big hitters.
Hungaryโs rule of law disputes with Brussels explained
Canโt keep track of Budapestโs rule-of-law beef with the EU? Fear not, POLITICO’s got you covered.
United opposition poses stern test for Vuฤiฤ in Serbiaโs election
After two mass shootings in Serbia last May, opposition parties have united against what they see as a government culture of brutality.
Alexei Navalny
Dreamer No. 2 โ Russia
Polandโs Duda nominates Morawiecki in no-hope bid to form a new government
Move shows that president is set to be thorn in flank of likely next PM Donald Tusk.
Welcome back, Donald: EU sighs in relief over Poland election results
With Donald Tusk’s party looking set to lead Poland, EU leaders are happy to have them back in the fold.
NGOs, Commission, and money: What is going on with child sexual abuse regulation?
A recent article by the Balkan Insight revealed close links, including possible financial interests, between the European Commission and child protection organisationsย in connection to a draft EU law to prevent online child sexual abuse material,
Jourovรก: New media law will be โmajor warning signalโ for EU countries
Both ‘arrogant’ France and Viktor Orbรกn’s Hungary could learn a thing or two from the upcoming new set of rules for media, the Commission vice president says.