POLITICO Europe
@politico.eu
Nobody knows politics and policy like we do.
The United States is dragging its feet on approving President Emmanuel Macron’s pick for French ambassador to Washington amid a spat over human rights at the United Nations, according to three people familiar with the dispute.
Washington holds up approval for France’s US ambassador pick amid human rights spat
Trump and Macron play up their friendship in front of the cameras, but the simmering diplomatic tensions between the two countries aren’t going away.
politico.eu
The surge of migrants into the Spanish exclaves of Ceuta and Melilla has thrown Madrid onto the defensive over the status of its two autonomous cities in northern Africa — and Morocco’s long-standing claim to them. 🔗 www.politico.eu/article/spai...
Left-wing 5Star Movement leader Giuseppe Conte has cast doubt on further military aid for Ukraine ahead of next year's election in Italy. 🔗 www.politico.eu/article/ukra...
The U.K. capital’s transport authority has granted approval for Wayve and Uber to begin giving rides to members of the public in autonomous vehicles.
Self-driving startup approved to take taxi passengers in London
Transport for London has granted licenses for 15 vehicles operated by Wayve and Uber.
politico.eu
Former European Parliament President Klaus Hänsch has died, current Parliament President Roberta Metsola has confirmed.
Former European Parliament President Klaus Hänsch has died
The German Social Democrat served as head of the Parliament from 1994 to 1997.
politico.eu
A new study finds that Palantir, which boasts of high profit margins in the U.S., barely scrapes a margin in Europe. It helps slash the company’s tax bill. 🔗 www.politico.eu/article/pala...
The European Union has collected €1.4 billion in revenue from immobilized Russian central bank assets and will channel the proceeds to Ukraine, the European Commission announced today.
EU to transfer €1.4B in profits from frozen Russian assets to Ukraine
The latest transfer follows another deadly night of missile attacks on Kyiv.
politico.eu
Italy will use extra leeway from the EU to spend billions of euros on energy and defense, Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti told members of the country's parliament today.
Italy to spend billions more on energy and defense, finance minister says
Rome will boost expenditures on green investment and military spending after the EU relaxed its strict spending rules, Giancarlo Giorgetti told parliament.
politico.eu
The surge of migrants into Ceuta last week has heightened Spain’s sense of vulnerability to hybrid attack. That alarm has been amplified by doubts over who will have Madrid’s back if Morocco makes a move on the Spanish exclaves. 🔗 www.politico.eu/article/spai...
Britain’s new PM Andy Burnham is considering holding a public inquiry into the U.K. activities of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Victims Minister Alex Davies-Jones said last night.
UK considering its own Epstein inquiry, says minister
Victims Minister Alex Davies-Jones says she discussed launching an investigation with Britain’s new prime minister last month.
politico.eu
Europe is trying to untangle itself from American data analytics firm Palantir. The problem? The company’s tools are already deeply embedded across critical sectors in the bloc. 🎙️ @zoyashef.bsky.social + Ian Wishart discuss on #BrusselsPlaybookPod 👇
Former Italian PM Giuseppe Conte sparked a political firestorm this week by casting doubt on further military aid to Ukraine. His comments have exposed deep divisions over support for Kyiv on the left as it prepares for a general election next year.
Ukraine becomes fault line in Italy’s next election
Military aid to Kyiv is dividing both the Italian left and right ahead of next year’s election.
politico.eu
Palantir is shifting profits from its European operations to the U.S., allowing the Florida-based data analytics giant to pay minimal taxes in Europe, a new report finds.
Palantir funnels earnings to US to avoid European taxes, report finds
A new study finds that Palantir, which boasts of high profit margins in the U.S., barely scrapes a margin in Europe, which helps slash its tax bill.
politico.eu
In 2024, Daisy Greenwell and Joe Ryrie co-founded a charity advocating for delaying children’s access to smartphones and social media. The group has influenced the direction of online safety policy in the U.K. perhaps more than any other.
Meet the married couple who helped make the UK social media ban a reality
How husband-and-wife team Daisy Greenwell and Joe Ryrie caught Keir Starmer’s attention on banning social media for kids.
politico.eu
The surge of migrants into the Spanish exclaves of Ceuta and Melilla last week has thrown Madrid onto the defensive over the status of its two autonomous cities in northern Africa — and Morocco’s long-standing claim to them.
Spain sweats over its isolated territories in Africa
There are increasing doubts over who will have Madrid’s back if Morocco makes a move on the Spanish exclaves of Ceuta and Melilla.
politico.eu
British PM Andy Burnham is on holiday. In his absence, the other parties will make valiant efforts to grab the public’s attention and stop Labour’s rebound in the polls in its tracks. London Playbook knows more 👇
While Andy’s away
Presented by Rolls-Royce By ANDREW MCDONALD with MEGAN MCELROY PRESENTED BY Send tips here | Subscribe for free | Politics at Sam and Anne’s podcast | Listen to Playbook and view in your brow…
politico.eu
When Dubravka Šuica became the EU’s Mediterranean commissioner in 2024, the gig sounded uncontroversial. But it has turned into a geopolitically heavy portfolio, transforming her into Ursula von der Leyen’s key lieutenant. More in Brussels Playbook 👇
The EU’s other top diplomat
POLITICO’s must-read briefing on what’s driving the day in Brussels, by Gerardo Fortuna, Nicholas Vinocur and Gabriel Gavin. By SEBASTIAN STARCEVIC Send tips here | Follow us @gerardofortuna …
politico.eu
Macron et Lecornu soignent leur bilan. Avec une idée derrière la tête pour 2027? Playbook Paris pose la question ce matin, sous la plume de @sarah-paillou.bsky.social 👇
Dans l’ombre d’un août
Le briefing politique essentiel du matin, par Élisa Bertholomey, Anthony Lattier et Sarah Paillou. Par SARAH PAILLOU Avec MATTHIEU VERRIER Envoyez vos infos | Abonnez-vous gratuitement | Voir dans …
politico.eu
OPINION: Recognizing that migration can be weaponized is not alarmism — it is realism. The EU must now equip itself with the legal and operational tools it needs to defend its external borders, writes Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis. 🔗 www.politico.eu/article/gree...
EXCLUSIVE: Ukraine and Russia are locked in a battle to smash each other's energy systems, Ukrainian Deputy PM and Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal has told POLITICO. It's a campaign that will define any future peace talks, he said. 🔗 www.politico.eu/article/ukra...
When French and German security chiefs announced plans last month to develop a “European sovereign digital backbone,” tech and defense industry insiders on both sides of the Atlantic knew what they really meant: Adieu Palantir. 🔗 www.politico.eu/article/euro...
French and British authorities have rescued more than 150 migrants from a distressed boat crossing the English Channel after the vessel’s engine caught fire.
Channel rescue brings Burnham’s border pledge into focus
Many aboard initially refused assistance from French rescuers.
politico.eu
You can take Andy Burnham out of Manchester, but you can’t take Manchester out of Andy Burnham. We highlight six times Britain’s PM has awkwardly shoe-horned the city into his premiership. 🔗 www.politico.eu/article/andy...
NATO's reliance on the "doctrines of World War II" and its slow adaptation to new forms of warfare make it unlikely Ukraine will ever join the alliance, said Kyiv's Ambassador to the U.K. and former Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi.
Kyiv’s former top commander says NATO is too outdated for Ukraine
The unusual rebuke reflects a growing shift in the country’s relationship with NATO, with Kyiv increasingly seen as a vital European security provider.
politico.eu
EU interior ministers sought to draw a line under five days of bitter recriminations over the arrival of 72,000 migrants in Ceuta, closing ranks behind Spain and accusing smugglers and foreign actors of exploiting the crisis to divide the bloc.
EU ministers close ranks behind Spain after Ceuta migration crisis
Madrid emerged vindicated as governments shifted from assigning blame to preventing a repeat.
politico.eu
Two of Britain’s leading right-wing politicians, Nigel Farage and Rupert Lowe, are stuck in a will-they-won’t-they tussle — and it could have big implications for the next general election.
The Farage and Lowe drama that’s consuming the British right
The Reform UK and Restore Britain leaders have flirted with a rapprochement — but it’s complicated.
politico.eu
EXCLUSIVE: Ukraine hopes its campaign to destroy Russia’s refineries will end the war this fall, Ukrainian Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal told POLITICO. But Kyiv is preparing for Russian attacks on its energy infrastructure this winter, he added. 🔗 www.politico.eu/article/ukra...
OPINION: The events in Ceuta are the latest reminder that migration is no longer just a humanitarian issue or a management challenge. In some cases, it has become a tool of geopolitical coercion. The EU needs new ways to fight back. 🔗 www.politico.eu/article/gree...
A group affiliated with Russia's intelligence agency launched a disinformation campaign against center-left MEP and likely presidential candidate in next year's French election, Raphaël Glucksmann, he claimed in a post on X today.
Likely French presidential candidate says he was targeted by Russian smear campaign
Raphaël Glucksmann said French authorities attributed a disinformation campaign against him to Russia’s military intelligence agency, the GRU.
politico.eu
Across Europe, the hunt is on for alternatives to U.S.-based data analytics company Palantir. But its crucial functions in daily workflows and largely unmatched data expertise will make it extremely hard for the continent to cut it off. 🔗 politico.eu/article/euro...
