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Foreign Policy

  • Will Britain’s Labour Party Survive the Epstein Files?

    2026-02-10

    U.S. forces targeted an alleged drug-trafficking boat in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Monday, killing two people. China is criticizing the United Kingdom’s expanded visa program for Hong Kongers. Pressure is mounting for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to resign over his decision to appoint Peter Mandelson.

  • The Year of the Fire Horse Finds Xi on Edge

    2026-02-10

    Former Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai sentenced to 20 years in prison. Panamanian court voids Chinese-linked port deals. There has been no new foreign minister since Qin Gang’s fall nearly three years ago.

  • Will the United States Attack Iran?

    2026-02-10

    Iran is weaker than it’s ever been, because it doesn’t control its own skies or own its own airspace. The last nuclear deal took years to negotiate and involved real domain experts on the U.S. side. Things feel very different right now: more rushed, fewer experts in the room, a gun to the head of Tehran. The nature of the Iranian regime, from 1979 to the present, has been this ethos of death to America and death to Israel

  • Trump’s Trade Policy Is Teaching Partners Washington Can’t Be Trusted

    2026-02-10

    U.S. President Donald Trump has again made aggressive tariff threats to a long-standing ally. He announced on social media that he would raise tariffs on a wide range of South Korean products. Lost among Trump’s bluster is a simple fact: The United States and South Korea already have a comprehensive, legally binding free trade agreement.

  • Challenges Overshadow Hope in Gaza

    2026-02-10

    Most Gazans are living in tents and makeshift homes as 92 percent of all residential buildings in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed. Health care and basic public services are in shambles, causing outbreaks of disease. The White House is reportedly planning a Board of Peace meeting on Feb. 19.

  • Why Keir Starmer Is on the Brink

    2026-02-10

    Peter Mandelson oversaw a double rebranding of the UK's Labour Party in the 1990s. He was known as the ‘Prince of Darkness’ or ‘Svengali’ Mandelson’s demise of the past few weeks has turned over in his head our various interactions.

Politico

  • Europe’s autonomy push exposes old fault lines

    2026-02-11

    The renewed drive to reduce reliance on Washington is bringing up familiar disagreements ahead of an EU leaders’ summit on Thursday. EU leaders will meet in Brussels on Thursday to discuss how to reduce their reliance on the U.S.

  • France’s 2027 presidential election race is already in full swing

    2026-02-11

    The French president told six European news outlets that he wants Europe to raise joint debt. An official familiar with French President Emmanuel Macron’s thinking said a failure is more likely than a relaunch.

  • 5 reasons Keir Starmer is clinging to power … for now

    2026-02-11

    Anas Sarwar was once a close ally of the PM. His intervention Monday was followed by a show of support from Starmer’s allies. Former U.K. ambassador to Washington said he had no record of receiving $75,000 from Epstein.

  • European chemical giants plot to weaken EU’s flagship climate policy

    2026-02-10

    The ultra-polluting sector says the EU’s carbon price is putting it out of business. New proposals will offer the chance to become a member of the EU while limiting some decision-making rights.

  • Germany prepares to attack cyber enemies

    2026-02-09

    Next trilateral meeting will take place on Wednesday and Thursday in Abu Dhabi, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. Israel announced it was terminating the operations of Doctors Without Borders in Gaza, accusing the humanitarian group of failing to submit lists of its Palestinian staff.

  • Ireland pushing to free citizen held by ICE in Texas

    2026-02-10

    Irish PM Micheál Martin is wary of provoking the U.S. administration. Behind-the-scenes efforts to free Seamus Culleton from ICE custody have proven fruitless. The non-NATO member wants to erect drone defenses in time for next year’s EU presidency.

  • EU Parliament reaches deal on US trade pact

    2026-02-10

    European People’s Party boss Manfred Weber suggests EU mega-job. Lawmakers want agreement to be voided if U.S. president threatens Greenland president. Changes worked into the Parliament's position set the stage for difficult talks with EU capitals.

  • EU must urgently bring down energy prices, says Austrian chancellor

    2026-02-10

    Austrian Chancellor said lowering energy prices should be the top priority at an upcoming leaders’ summit in Belgium. EU leaders are set this week to discuss how to better link up their economies to weather growing geopolitical uncertainty.

  • Germany shoots down Macron’s Eurobonds proposal

    2026-02-10

    The German chancellor’s government strongly rejected a call by the French president for joint EU debt, marking the latest in a series of clashes between Berlin and Paris. A Russian pacifist who fled the Ukraine front now faces deportation under tougher asylum rules. A planned meeting collapsed after State Department officials told the German embassy it refused to meet with center-left German lawmakers.

  • EU must implement competitiveness reforms by end-2026, says Berlin

    2026-02-10

    Austrian Chancellor Kaja Kallas says lowering energy prices should be the top priority at an upcoming leaders’ summit in Belgium. EU leaders are set to discuss how to better link up their economies to weather growing geopolitical uncertainty.

  • Rubio to visit Hungary as it speeds toward closely fought election

    2026-02-10

    The Hungarian prime minister is lagging behind former ally Péter Magyar in election polls ahead of the April vote. Miroslav Lajčák communicated with Jeffrey Epstein when he served as a foreign minister in Slovakia.

  • Macron’s pick to audit the French budget is the person who wrote it

    2026-02-10

    News of Amélie de Montchalin’s appointment has sparked an uproar in Paris. Lawmakers unlikely to have enough time to work through more than 2,400 amendments. Former EU commissioner is said to be making a switch to Luxembourg to sit on the European Court of Auditors.

  • Top UK civil servant due to quit crisis-hit Downing Street

    2026-02-10

    The PM’s chief of staff is leaving to allow a ‘new No 10 team to be built’ The PM is in a perilous position, but his opponents haven’t ousted him yet.

  • Macron calls for Eurobonds ahead of informal summit

    2026-02-10

    The contest to succeed Emmanuel Macron is more than a year away, but politicians are already in campaign mode. The French president told six European news outlets that he wants Europe to raise joint debt, but getting allies on board will be tricky.

  • EU top court unblocks WhatsApp’s fight against millions in privacy fines

    2026-02-10

    Tuesday decision paves the way for WhatsApp’s owner Meta to challenge billions in fines. 84 percent of voters said no to a proposal to extend mandatory civic or military service to women. Around 79 percent voted against the inheritance tax.

  • Europe is chasing the wrong fix for its growth crisis

    2026-02-11

    EU leaders need a plan that matches the scale of this shift. The continent’s old growth model no longer works in today's world. EU leaders need to find a way to make the continent more competitive.

  • Even some of Mercosur’s biggest fans are nervous about moving too fast

    2026-02-09

    MEPs meet in Ljubljana to discuss new trade deal with the US and Canada. Talks are expected to continue until the end of the year. The EU wants the deal in place before Russia’s war on Ukraine begins in March.

  • European far-right parties push for ICE-style police

    2026-02-10

    The Hungarian prime minister is lagging behind former ally Péter Magyar in election polls ahead of the April vote. Miroslav Lajčák communicated with Jeffrey Epstein when he served as a foreign minister in Slovakia.

  • What digital sovereignty really means in a fragmented world

    2026-02-10

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LRT

  • Lithuanians shocked as they receive January heating bills

    2026-02-10

    Residents across Lithuania are beginning to receive January heating bills. Many report sharp increases compared with last year as colder weather and the removal of a value-added tax break push costs higher. In Kaunas, bills are about twice as high as in January last year, according to residents and district heating providers. Lithuania is expected to spend about 80 million euros this year on compensation for housing heating and hot water costs. Social organisations say rising heating bills are increasing demand for assistance. Milita Žičkutė-Lindžienė, secretary general of Caritas Lithuania, said more people are seeking help.

  • Revolut names JPMorgan executive to lead operations in Lithuania and Europe

    2026-02-10

    Kuba Fast will also become Revolut’s chief executive for Europe. He will replace Joe Heneghan, who has held the role since 2021. The appointment is expected to take effect in the middle of this year.

  • Taiwan says no talks with Lithuania on renaming representative office amid China tensions

    2026-02-10

    Vilnius and Beijing have been at odds for several years over how to restore diplomatic representation following a dispute over the Taiwanese office’s name. Since mid-May 2025, no Chinese diplomats or other staff have been accredited in Lithuania. Bilateral trade also fell sharply after the Taiwan office opened in 2021.

  • Lithuanian Seimas speaker says not backing Trump for Nobel prize was ‘regional position’

    2026-02-10

    Lithuanian Parliament Speaker Juozas Olekas says his decision not to sign a letter supporting US President Donald Trump’s nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize was based on a shared regional approach. The initiative was launched by US House Speaker Mike Johnson and Israeli Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana.

  • Kapčiamiestis community rejects claims residents back land sales for military range

    2026-02-10

    The Kapčiamiestis community says owners of homesteads that would fall within a planned military training range do not agree to sell their property. Defence Minister Robertas Kaunas said Monday that owners of property located in the proposed military area view selling their land positively. The community responded in a written statement addressed to the minister.

  • ‘Do look up’: building managers warn about dangerous icicles forming across Lithuania

    2026-02-10

    Administrators say warmer weather will increase the risk of falling icicles. Heavy snowfall has left large accumulations of snow on roofs. Residents are being urged to exercise caution near buildings. Insurance company Lietuvos Draudimas has received 18 reports.

  • Lithuania improves its ranking in corruption perception index

    2026-02-10

    Lithuania rose four spots in the Corruption Perceptions Index last year, placing 28th. Among European Union member states, it remained 12th, unchanged from a year earlier. Denmark topped the ranking with 89 points, followed by Finland with 88.

  • LSDP leader stays mum on Taiwan office name, pledges ‘dignity’ in dealign with Beijing

    2026-02-10

    Mindaugas Sinkevičius, chairman of the LSDP, said Lithuania wants to improve relations with China but will not take submissive steps to do so. He declined to say whether the government would consider changing the name of the Taiwanese Representative Office in Vilnius.

  • Lithuania reported strong GDP growth – but is it a smokescreen over structural cracks?

    2026-02-10

    Budget revenues rose nearly 10% year-on-year to about 20 billion euros. However, revenue from corporate income tax and fuel excise duties fell short of projections. Diesel fuel sales declined as transport companies increasingly purchased fuel in neighbouring Latvia, Poland and Estonia. Despite mixed signals in the broader economy, some small businesses remain optimistic. In the town of Panevėžys, sushi restaurant owner Justina Kreivė recently relocated to a larger space after outgrowing her original location.

📊 VoxEU

  • Trade risk and optimal trade policy: Lessons from food security

    2026-02-11

    Trade costs are stochastic, creating a trade-off between efficient but risky imports and secure but costly domestic supply. Agriculture provides a paradigmatic example for this shift. The insurance motive driving agricultural policy may offer a preview of how the broader global trading system may evolve.

✍ Blogs

Paul Krugman

  • No, AI Doesn’t Justify Lower Interest Rates

    2026-02-10

    Donald Trump repeatedly promised not just to end inflation but to reduce prices. He has utterly failed to deliver, and his response to this failure has been an attempt to gaslight the public. Trump’s economy-policy minions have converged on a different, ostensibly more economically rational reason to cut interest rates: AI. Technology led to a burst of productivity growth in the 1990s and 2000s, but it didn't stop after 2007. The economy is huge and diverse, and flashy, attention-grabbing technologies often don't matter as much as one might expect.

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Buliaus anatomija

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