The European Union has delayed retaliatory tariffs on exports from the United States as officials scramble to reach a trade deal with Washington ahead of US President Donald Trump’s August 1 deadline. Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said on Sunday that the bloc would extend its suspension of countermeasures as … Read moreEU delays retaliatory tariffs against US amid hopes for trade deal
The European Union has promised to take countermeasures against the United States if the administration of US President Donald Trump introduces 30 percent tariffs on imports from the bloc next month. After ministers met in Brussels on Monday to discuss the tariff threat Trump issued over the weekend, the EU’s trade representative Maros Sefcovic said … Read moreEU warns of countermeasures after Trump threatens 30 percent tariffs
The United States buys $235.6bn more in goods than it sells to the 27 countries that make up the European Union (EU). That $236bn gap, known as the trade deficit, is something US President Donald Trump wants to reduce. In an effort to close the gap, on April 2 the US imposed a 20 percent … Read moreTrump Tariffs: What products do the EU and US buy from each other?
European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen has proposed a five-part plan to mobilise some 800bn euros ($842bn) to beef up Europe’s defence and provide “immediate” military support to Ukraine after the United States suspended aid. “A new era is upon us,” the president said in a letter presenting the plan to 27 European … Read moreEU weighs $841bn ‘rearm’ Europe plan to counter possible US disengagement
The number of people entering the European Union by irregular crossings dropped almost 40 percent in 2024, according to the bloc’s border agency Frontex. Preliminary data reveal a significant 38 percent drop in irregular border crossings into the EU in 2024, “reaching the lowest level since 2021, when migration was still affected by the COVID … Read moreIrregular migration into EU dropped sharply in 2024: Border agency
Japan and the European Union have announced a security and defence partnership, as they seek to step up military ties amid growing tensions with China, North Korea and Russia. “We live in a very dangerous world,” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told reporters in Tokyo on Friday, alongside Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya. “We live … Read moreJapan and EU announce security partnership amid growing regional tensions
European Union trade ministers have agreed to impose prohibitive tariffs on grain and other agricultural products from Russia and Belarus from July 1. The tariffs will be 95 euros ($102.76) per tonne for cereals and 50 percent of their value for oilseeds. Tariffs will also apply to beet-pulp pellets and dried peas. The ministers’ decision … Read moreEU agrees tariffs on Russian, Belarusian grain imports from July
The European Commission says it will end a years-long dispute with Poland over the rule of law. The commission said in a statement on Monday that it intends to withdraw the procedure launched in December 2017 under Article 7 of the Treaty on European Union after Warsaw’s new centrist government took steps to restore judicial … Read moreEU to drop rule-of-law dispute with Poland
The European Union has launched a probe into TikTok’s spinoff Lite app and threatened to suspend an “addictive” feature on it that rewards users for watching and liking videos, amid child-safety concerns. TikTok Lite arrived in France and Spain in March allowing users aged 18 and more to earn points that can be exchanged for … Read moreEU threatens to suspend TikTok Lite app’s rewards feature
In January, Greek Prime Minister Kiriakos Mitsotakis featured prominently at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Among the various topics, he was asked to comment on was migration. “Greece has probably managed the migration problem better than most other European countries,” he said confidently in an interview with CNN’s Richard Quest on the sidelines of … Read moreThe EU’s migration policies and the end of human rights in Europe