News Digest

Europe’s big week of crisis diplomacy

Glenn Micallef said Russia poses ‘real security risks’ in a statement blasting FIFA. Ukraine’s foreign minister dismissed Gianni Infantino as a ‘moral degenerate’ over the suggestion.

Macron sells a vision of ‘Made in Europe’ that Merz and Meloni aren’t buying

Russian authorities said they arrested the alleged perpetrator of the assassination attempt in Dubai and brought him to Moscow. French prime minister will publish France’s multi-annual energy strategy by the end of the week. Protesters took to the streets in Milan on Saturday, while railway infrastructure was damaged.

Center left beats far right to Portugal’s presidency

Former Socialist Party leader António José Seguro defeated far-right leader André Ventura to become the country’s next head of state. Turnout will be decisive in an election marred by devastating storms. Court of Justice of the EU rules process to waive lawmakers’ protection was not impartial.

Nigel Farage tries to fix his Russia problem

U.K. officials say the former ambassador to Washington Peter Mandelson downloaded his thoughts in “real time,” and they fear “damaging” messages will be made public. Reform UK is making efforts to shake off its foreign policy headahces, from Putin to Trump.

The EU has a plan to challenge the dollar. It’ll be hard.

The European Commission has said the EU needs to act against the potential weaponization of the international financial system. The move will oblige financial institutions to strengthen due diligence on all transactions. Early private hearings will give lawmakers a chance to press key demands like gender balance.

Sánchez’s Socialists suffer heavy loss in regional Spanish election

First up on Sunday is Aragón, nicknamed the ‘Spanish Ohio’ as it tends to predict which way national politics are heading. The far-right Vox performed well, putting it in the driver’s seat to secure concessions for backing the conservatives.

Russia accuses Ukraine of role in failed assassination of general in Moscow

The French prime minister will publish France’s multi-annual energy strategy by the end of the week. Russian authorities said they arrested the alleged perpetrator of the assassination attempt in Dubai and brought him to Moscow.

Slash regulation if you want Single Market, Germany tells EU

“I did not authorize, request or agree to anyone mentioning my name to Jeffrey Epstein,” Maroš Šefčovič says. EU leaders are set this week to discuss how to better link up their economies.

France’s Lecornu outlines end-of-mandate agenda, rules out running for president

Russian authorities said they arrested the alleged perpetrator of the assassination attempt in Dubai and brought him to Moscow thanks to the help of the United Arab Emirates. The French prime minister will publish France’s multi-annual energy strategy by the end of the week.

Time for a Brexit reckoning

Despite its rhetoric, Washington’s busy organizing a historically unprecedented retrenchment of American power. Britain must face the abysmal failure this project has been. If the bloc were to crumble, rest assured Americans would come to regret it very quickly.

Top Starmer aide McSweeney resigns over Mandelson scandal

Cameron has been under pressure since revelations about Mandelson’s relationship with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The Investigatory Powers Commissioner revealed that David Cameron refused access to documents relating to spying licenses while Foreign Secretary.

Former French minister Lang quits plum job over Epstein ties

Jack Lang, whose financial ties to convicted sex offender Epstein were first reported by POLITICO, was under mounting pressure after new revelations. Paris is rolling out a confrontational online strategy to counter disinformation from the United States and beyond.

Meloni slams ‘enemies of Italy’ for railway sabotage and anti-Olympics protests

Russian authorities said they arrested the alleged perpetrator of the assassination attempt in Dubai and brought him to Moscow. Protesters took to the streets in Milan on Saturday, while railway infrastructure was damaged. The French prime minister will publish France’s multi-annual energy strategy by the end of the week.

Belgium’s De Wever pans AI ‘overregulation’ in new book

The coalition agreement lays out a series of ambitious goals. But those hoping for a dramatic shift after years of right-wing politics could be disappointed. The minority coalition’s program also envisions a crackdown on screen time and stricter smartphone rules in schools.

Steady turnout for presidential runoff in Portugal marred by storms, floods

Center-left candidate António José Seguro defeated far-right leader André Ventura to become the country’s next head of state. Turnout will be decisive in an election marred by devastating storms. Court of Justice of the EU rules process to waive lawmakers’ protection was not impartial.

Quiet solidarity: how Lithuania practices hospitality – opinion

Lithuanian response to the arrival of Ukrainians can be understood as an expression of its moral structure. Hospitality here operates not as a spontaneous gesture of closeness, but as an institutionalized duty grounded in reliability and self-discipline.

Lithuanian šakotis finds a cousin in France’s gâteau à la broche

In France, the cake is called gâteau à la broche, which translates as ‘cake on a spit’ It is made by layering batter onto a rotating spit over an open flame. The French version of the cake has become a source of regional pride.

At the last open crossing, Ukrainians flee Russia’s annexation

How Japan’s prime minister will use her massive new mandate

How to hedge a bubble, AI edition

From AI investment to GDP growth: An ecosystem view

This column assesses how the current AI wave is contributing to US GDP. Technology investment contributes positively to GDP growth, but a sizeable portion leaks abroad. The largest economic effects of AI are still likely to come from productivity gains and organisational change.

Regulator seeks to tackle ‘drastic under-reporting’ of market liquidity

European alternatives to Visa and Mastercard ‘urgently’ needed, says banking chief

Bash All Day, Buy All Night

Japan LLC has been trading its way out of a fiscal hole

Japanese stocks soar to record after Takaichi landslide election win

Big Tech groups race to fund unprecedented $660bn AI spending spree

Retail traders double down on silver even as price plunges

Italian olive oil farmers say flood of imports is causing price collapse

Bitcoin is still about $70,000 too high

‘What do you do with all that money?’ Tether plots its global expansion

Banks push for speedy European IPOs to cut market risk

Almost a fifth of FTSE 100 CEOs live outside the UK