Hungary’s parliament has given Viktor Orbán the tools to do what he has long threatened: ban Pride, silence dissent and strip political critics of their citizenship. A constitutional amendment passed on 14 April allows the government to label LGBTQ+ gatherings a threat to children and to revoke the citizenship of dual nationals deemed a risk … Read more
A defence industry report claiming that Russia requested a permanent base for its warplanes in Indonesia’s remote Papua region, right on Australia’s northern doorstep, sent Canberra into a tailspin. But in Indonesia, it was the frenzy whipped up in Australia’s tight election campaign that came as the real surprise. Foreign policy and defence experts are … Read more
Even when the transatlantic alliance was more functional than it is now, there was not a united view of China. There has always been common wariness of Beijing as a commercial rival and potential security threat. But for hawks in Washington the idea of an alternative superpower closing in on economic and technological parity feels … Read more
Sitting alone at the end of a dinner party, under chandeliers, next to a table with white roses and leftover wine, Giorgia Meloni and Donald Trump are locked in conversation. It is early December and they are pictured in an opulent dining room of the Élysée Palace, where the French president, Emmanuel Macron, hosted guests … Read more
Between environmental breakdown, economic crisis and Donald Trump, it often feels like there’s precious little reason to feel hopeful these days. So how’s this for a reason to cheer up: Italian state railway company, Trenitalia, is planning to run trains through the Channel tunnel before the decade is out. It’s studying the option of direct … Read more
The dismantling of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) has captured headlines, but “very regrettable” reductions in European aid budgets are also contributing to a void in support for some of the poorest people in the world’s most fragile states, according to MEPs and NGOs. Isabella Lövin, a deputy chair of the European parliament’s … Read more
Europe is scrambling to remilitarise. The European Commission is raising a €150bn (£129bn) defence fund and is calling on EU countries to invest €650bn (£561bn) more. Germany has cast aside its government debt limit to invest hundreds of billions of euros in defence. Poland will train every male of fighting age for battle, and envisages … Read more
Some years ago, hundreds of German finance ministry staff dressed in black and formed a giant zero to salute their boss, Wolfgang Schäuble, as he left office. It was a tribute to Mr Schäuble’s extreme fiscal conservatism, which had delivered Germany’s first balanced budget in the postwar period. Amid resurgent prosperity in the Angela Merkel … Read more
The war between Russia and Ukraine is approaching a historic turning point: unless the Trump administration adjusts course, US military aid for Ukraine is about to cease. In the months before leaving office, Joe Biden made a series of decisions to augment Ukraine’s stockpiles of vital munitions. Toward the end of 2024, the Department of … Read more
North-west Italy is braced for heavy rainfall and thunderstorms across the southern side of the Alps, particularly in Piedmont and Liguria. Turin and Genoa are expected to be among the worst affected, with snowfall also likely on higher ground. The region has been forecast to receive 140-160mm of rainfall between Sunday and Friday this week. … Read more