Europe

Pope Leo expresses ‘much sadness’ about Russia refusing Christmas ceasefire

Pope Leo said on Tuesday that he feels "much sadness" that Russia did not agree to a Christmas ceasefire in its nearly four-year old war with Ukraine. "Among the things…

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Two men found guilty of UK plot to kill hundreds of Jews as IS fears grow

Two men were found guilty of plotting to kill hundreds in an Islamic State-inspired gun rampage against the Jewish community in England, a planned attack investigators say demonstrates the resurgent…

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Starmer Says Closer EU Trade Ties Are a ‘Strategic Necessity’ for UK Firms

Keir Starmer’s government has been told a closer EU trade deal is a “strategic necessity” for companies in Britain as growing numbers of exporters find it tougher to do business…

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Finland to roll out stricter rules on permanent residence permits from January

The conditions around obtaining a permanent residence permit in Finland will become stricter from 8 January 2026, the interior ministry has said in a press statement. The new rules will…

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Poland scrambles aircraft after Russia strikes Ukraine

Polish and allied aircraft were deployed early on Tuesday to ensure the safety of Polish airspace after Russia launched airstrikes targeting western Ukraine near the border with Poland, the armed…

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Protests Erupt in Albania as Corruption Case Puts Political Leadership Under Pressure

Protesters in Tirana hurled petrol bombs at the government building housing Prime Minister Edi Rama's office on Monday, demanding the government's resignation after prosecutors indicted the deputy prime minister for…

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Netherlands calls for EU ban on powerful fireworks

The EU must introduce a track-and-trace system for powerful fireworks and ban the production of “cobras”, the firework of choice used in a growing number of targeted explosions at private…

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Car bomb kills senior Russian general in Moscow

A Russian general was killed by a car bomb in southern Moscow on Monday, Russian investigators said, adding that they suspected Ukrainian special services could have been behind the attack.…

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Pope Leo Appeals for Renewed Spirit of Joy in Address to Church Hierarchy

Pope Leo indicated on Monday that he plans to follow the reform agenda of his predecessor Francis, praising the late pontiff's attempts to make the global Catholic Church more inclusive…

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E-scooters to be banned in Brussels on New Year’s Eve

Scooters are prohibited in Brussels on New Year's Eve, following a decision by outgoing Brussels Minister-President Rudi Vervoort. The ban applies to both private and shared scooters and will be…

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Germany registers over 1,000 suspicious drone flights

Germany has registered over 1,000 suspicious drone flights so far in 2025, the head of Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) told German newspaper Bild in comments published on Sunday.…

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European nations have no choice but to raise retirement ages – our case study shows why

Group of elderly Italians sitting on a bench in the centre of Scicli, Italy. Eddy Galeotti/Shutterstock Javier Díaz Giménez, IESE Business School (Universidad de Navarra) and Julián Díaz Saavedra, Universidad…

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Russia with submarine in the Mediterranean and Tanker Attack Reflecting a Spreading War

A Russian naval group made up of the Kilo-class submarine Krasnodar and the support tug Altay docked in the Algerian port of Algiers on December 18 for a planned four-day…

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Investigation Advances in Emanuela Orlandi Case as Friend Becomes Subject of Inquiry

A significant development has emerged in the long-running investigation into the disappearance of Vatican citizen Emanuela Orlandi, who vanished in Rome on 22 June 1983 at age 15. Laura Casagrande,…

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Putin vows no more wars if West treats Russia with respect

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said there will be no more wars after Ukraine, if Russia is treated with respect - and dismissed claims that Moscow is planning to attack…

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Ukrainian war spreads to the Mediterranean

Ukraine says it has attacked a Russian “shadow fleet” tanker with aerial drones 1,250 miles (2,000km) from its borders, in the first such strike in the Mediterranean Sea since Moscow’s…

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Ukraine video claims to show long-range attack on oil tanker in Mediterranean

Ukraine says it has carried out a long-range drone strike on a Russian “shadow fleet” tanker in the Mediterranean. The Oman-flagged Qendil was reportedly targeted in neutral waters, with multiple…

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Greece rescues 545 migrants off Gavdos as Libya route sees surge in crossings

Greek authorities rescued 545 migrants from a vessel off Gavdos on Friday in one of the largest recent operations, amid a sharp rise in arrivals from Libya to Greece’s southern…

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Pope Leo replaces New York’s Cardinal Dolan in shake-up of US church

Pope Leo XIV has accepted the resignation of New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan and appointed Bishop Ronald Hicks of Illinois as his successor, the Vatican announced on Thursday. Dolan, a…

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Meloni says Italy will back EU-Mercosur deal, but does not commit to a date

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said Italy is prepared to back the EU-Mercosur trade deal but stopped short of committing to a timeline, as divisions persist among EU leaders over…

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French lawmakers in final attempt to get 2026 budget approved

French lawmakers will make what is likely their final attempt this year to approve the country’s 2026 fiscal plans when members of the National Assembly and Senate meet in a…

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Poland to start producing anti-personnel mines to lay along eastern border – reports

Poland has decided to resume the production of anti-personnel landmines for the first time since the Cold War, with plans to deploy them along its eastern border and potentially export…

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UK to transfer €2.8bn of Abramovich’s Chelsea cash to Ukraine fund, PM Starmer says

The UK has authorised the release of €2.8 billion from Roman Abramovich’s sale of Chelsea FC, but only for humanitarian aid in Ukraine, Prime Minister Keir Starmer told Parliament on…

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Belgium says Russian assets plan ‘going backward’ ahead of EU summit

EU leaders are set to meet in Brussels to discuss funding for Ukraine’s war effort, but Belgium has warned that talks are moving backwards. Belgium’s EU ambassador, Peter Moors, told…

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Turkey wants to extend military presence in Libya by two more years

Turkey has formally requested its parliament to approve a 24-month extension of its military mandate in Libya, according to a motion submitted by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The document highlights…

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Liverpool parade attacker jailed for more than 21 years for ploughing car into fans

A former Royal Marine has been sentenced to more than 21 years in prison for driving into crowds of Liverpool supporters during a victory parade, in an attack described by…

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Russia rejects compromise on occupied Ukraine regions

Ukraine’s president said that, following talks in Berlin, the US delegation is expected to move on to discussions with Russia, though there is uncertainty over whether Washington’s envoys can persuade…

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Spanish PM rejects calls for early election despite scandals

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez rejected calls for snap elections despite mounting sexual harassment allegations and corruption investigations involving members of his Socialist Party. In his end-of-year address on Monday,…

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Europeans vow to assist Ukraine against future Russian attack after Berlin talks

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hailed progress in talks with US negotiators following two days of discussions in Berlin, as European leaders pledged to support Ukraine against future Russian aggression, including…

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Italy’s silence puts EU–Mercosur trade deal on a knife edge

Italy’s reluctance to declare its position on the EU–Mercosur trade agreement is emerging as a decisive factor as the bloc edges closer to a final vote. With France leading opposition…

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Russia’s ‘export of chaos’ creating new security threats, warns MI6 chief

The new head of Britain’s foreign intelligence service, MI6, has warned that Russia’s strategy of spreading instability abroad is reshaping modern conflict and creating complex security challenges for the UK…

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European leaders hail progress on Ukraine peace talks

European leaders welcomed what they described as “significant progress” in talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine, with discussions for the first time outlining how strong security guarantees could…

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Majority of Ukrainians against giving major concessions to secure peace

A recent Kyiv International Institute of Sociology poll shows that three-quarters of Ukrainians reject major concessions in any peace deal with Russia, posing a challenge for President Volodymyr Zelenskiy amid…

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Cyprus seeks to ease EU-Turkey tensions while advancing NATO bid

Cyprus plans to use its upcoming EU Council presidency to lower tensions with Turkey in exchange for progress on joining NATO, President Nikos Christodoulides told POLITICO. The key goal is…

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Blast seen in Russian city as Kyiv and Moscow launch scores of drones overnight

Russia’s air defence systems intercepted dozens of drones overnight in what the Defence Ministry described as a large-scale Ukrainian attack across multiple regions. According to the ministry, 130 fixed-wing drones…

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Europe’s housing costs akin to ‘new pandemic’, warns Barcelona mayor

The spiralling cost of housing is like a “new pandemic” gripping Europe, Barcelona mayor Jaume Collboni has warned, as he and 16 other city leaders called on the EU to…

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France seeks delay to EU-Mercosur vote, exposing deepening divisions over trade deal

France has called for a postponement of a key EU vote on the long-running EU-Mercosur trade agreement, deepening divisions among member states over the deal. Paris wants December deadlines pushed…

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Ukraine willing to drop ambitions to join Nato, Zelenskyy says

krainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signalled a willingness to abandon Ukraine’s long-standing ambition to join the Nato military alliance, as part of intensive talks with US representatives aimed at ending…

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Meloni urges Europe to build its own defence as US signals disengagement

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni used the closing address of her party’s annual Atreju rally in Rome to call on Europe to take greater responsibility for its own defence, citing…

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Sea urchin species on brink of extinction after marine pandemic

A marine pandemic is bringing some species of sea urchin to the brink of extinction, and some populations have disappeared altogether, a study has found. Since 2021, Diadema africanum urchins…

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Europe cracks down on badly behaved tourists

While cost-hiking measures serve a dual purpose of cutting visitor numbers and raising funds, other new rules are aimed more squarely at curbing undesirable tourist behaviour. San Sebastián is the…

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NATO’s Rutte says Europe must prepare for ‘scale of war our grandparents’ endured

NATO Chief Mark Rutte urged member countries to do more to prepare for the possibility of large-scale war, warning that Russia may be ready to attack the alliance within five…

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UK hospitals facing ‘worst case scenario’ from super flu, doctors warn

Hospitals in Britain are facing a "worst case scenario" from a wave of super flu, healthcare bosses warned on Thursday, as flu hospitalisations jumped 55% in a week. Health leaders…

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Bulgaria faces turmoil after protests topple government on eve of euro entry

The resignation of Bulgaria's government on Thursday puts an end to an increasingly unpopular coalition but is likely to usher in a period of prolonged political instability on the eve…

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Estonia plans to extend military service to 12 months

Estonia plans to extend compulsory military service to 12 months for all conscripts starting in 2027, under reforms proposed by the government. A draft bill submitted by Defense Minister Hanno…

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Russia says there are no misunderstandings with the U.S. over Ukraine any more

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday that all "misunderstandings" with the United States over Ukraine had been resolved following a meeting earlier this month between President Vladimir Putin…

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British and Danish PM urge European leaders to reform human rights laws to tackle illegal migration

Sir Keir Starmer has urged European leaders to reform human rights laws to make it easier to deport illegal migrants ahead of crucial talks on a potential shake-up of the…

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Poland could give Ukraine MiG jets in swap for drone tech

Poland is in talks to transfer MiG-29 jets to Ukraine in exchange for access to Ukrainian drone technology, Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said on public radio on Wednesday. "In some…

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Lithuania weighs suspending passenger routes to Russia and Belarus

As Latvia moves to suspend regular passenger services to Russia and Belarus, Lithuania’s interior minister said that adopting a similar measure is worth considering in response to growing security threats…

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Danish Fertility Clinic Under Scrutiny After Cancer-Linked Donor Sperm Used in Dozens of Pregnancies

A sperm donor who unknowingly harboured a genetic mutation that dramatically raises the risk of cancer has fathered at least 197 children across Europe, a major investigation has revealed. Some…

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Zelenskiy says he is open to elections if US ensures security

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he was prepared to hold elections within three months if the U.S. and Kyiv's other allies could ensure the security of the vote. Wartime elections…

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Suspected drones seen over French military intelligence base

Suspected drones were seen flying above a French military intelligence base on three separate nights last month, the French Air and Space Force said on Tuesday, in the latest possible…

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Pope Urges Continued Dialogue in Meeting With Zelensky

Pope Leo XIV underscored the need to press ahead with dialogue aimed at ending the war in Ukraine during talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday at the papal…

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Shield protecting Chernobyl nuclear power plant no longer blocks radiation, IAEA says

The protective shield that covers the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine has "lost safety function" following a drone strike in February, the UN nuclear watchdog has said. The shield,…

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Veteran Italian Journalist Giletti Struck While Probing Sensitive Lead in Orlandi Disappearance

Veteran TV journalist and presenter Massimo Giletti was reportedly assaulted on the streets of Rome last Thursday while preparing a segment for the programme Lo Stato delle Cose on Rai…

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Growing Inequality and Digital Dependence Reshape Italian Life

A newly released national survey this week by Censis paints a stark picture of contemporary Italy: a middle class under pressure, a generation growing older, and a collective “dream” increasingly…

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France investigates reports of drones over nuclear sub base

French prosecutors are investigating after drones were suspected to have flown over a nuclear submarine base on the Atlantic coast late on Thursday, a prosecutor in charge of military affairs…

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