‘Completely unacceptable’ for Israel to attack Rafah – POLITICO

The Commission president, who is running for a second term, made the remarks at a debate co-hosted by POLITICO in Maastricht. In response to a question about how she proposes to end the war in Gaza, von der Leyen said she has always defended Israel’s right to defend itself, while calling on Israel’s leaders to … Read more

Italy can do without Russian gas, says energy minister – POLITICO

This G7 will need to look for innovative models to accelerate investments, including private-public partnerships, Pichetto Fratin said. “We certainly need to revise the financial system, to find mechanisms that overcome the current voluntary system,” he said.   While Italy, which currently holds the rotating G7 presidency, is in a leadership position at this weekend’s … Read more

COP29 won’t stop us investing in ‘god-given’ gas – POLITICO

“As a head of the country, which is rich with fossil fuels, of course, we will defend the right of these countries to continue investments and to continue production,” he said. “Petrostates are perfecting a sinister COP playbook,” said Patrick Galey, a fossil fuel investigator with Global Witness. “Just like the UAE, Azerbaijan is planning … Read more

European Parliament in review — MEP unAwards 2024 – POLITICO

Since the 2019 election this European Parliament has had to deal with various challenges, from Brexit and Covid-19 to the war in Ukraine and scandals such as Qatargate. At the same time it has managed to legislate on key issues such as climate change, AI and migration. In this episode we look back at the … Read more

competitiveness and Bolshewokism – POLITICO

In this episode we unpack the EU’s new buzzword and the main point of discussion at this week’s European Council summit: competitiveness. We also bring you another new buzzword from Brussels this week: Bolshewokism. Host Sarah Wheaton is joined by POLITICO’s chief Brussels correspondent, Barbara Moens, to recap the leaders’ summit and their attempt to … Read more

EU leaders meet as Israel weighs response to Iran attack — live updates – POLITICO

EU leaders are in Brussels on Wednesday and Thursday for a Special European Council. What’s so special about it? Well, the leaders will (after a trip to see the king of the Belgians) spend Wednesday evening talking about developments in Ukraine and EU-Turkey relations. In the wake of Iran’s drone and missile attacks against Israel, … Read more

Don’t assume von der Leyen is coming back – POLITICO

“A big part of it is the arrogance of power,” the EU official continued. “She mistakenly thought she could get away with everything. So some smaller mistakes are now being used against her.” Like other officials quoted in this article, the EU official was granted anonymity to speak freely about the powerful German politician within the … Read more

Von der Leyen castigates far-right AfD over Russiagate scandal – POLITICO

Czech authorities in March sanctioned the Prague-based Voice of Europe website over claims that European politicians had engaged with the outlet, using their influence to discourage support for Ukraine in its war against Russia. Two of the channel’s executives — including Viktor Medvedchuk, a longtime ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin — were hit with sanctions. … Read more

Von der Leyen struggles to quell revolt over controversial business envoy pick – POLITICO

The European Parliament is planning to vote on a an amendment to rescind Markus Pieper’ s appointment on Thursday | European Parliament 99 problems The so-called “Piepergate” affair adds to a growing list of potential problems for von der Leyen as she seeks a second term. It comes just days after POLITICO revealed that the … Read more

Clashes reported on Armenia-Azerbaijan border hours after EU support announced – POLITICO

Azerbaijan has reported Armenia is building up military equipment along the border, publishing footage that purports to show unarmored transport vehicles lining up close to the frontier. The claims have been denied by Armenia but shared widely in Russian state media, while Moscow has accused the West of attempting to “drag the South Caucasus into … Read more