Oliver Grimm
@grimmse.bsky.social
Recidivist Brussels correspondent for Viennese daily 'Die Presse'. In Washington '13 - '17. Contributor to La Matinale Européenne. Le bonheur, c'est de le chercher. (J. Renard)
Spain is urging its European allies not to point the finger at Morocco. Instead, the EU is focusing on fighting disinformation and people smugglers.
Euractiv@euractiv.com · 16h agoDon’t blame Morocco for Ceuta crisis, Spain urges allies
Rund 30 ballistische Raketen auf Kyjiw innerhalb von weniger als 15 Minuten. Noch ein kleines Stück krasser als sonst (den ganzen Scheiß vor Ort zu erleben wünsche ich sowieso kaum jemandem).
Latest about Ceuta: - Irregular arrivals updated to 72,000 people, of whom 70,000 have already returned to Morocco - At least 141 people have died: 78 bodies recovered from Spanish waters and 63 from Moroccan waters - Largest migration crisis in Spain's modern history
Coincidentally, today's extraordinary meeting of EU interior ministers "stressed the need to improve shared situational awareness, which could be achieved by further developing early-warning systems such as pre-frontier intelligence and social media monitoring".
Jorge Liboreiro@jorgeliboreiro.bsky.social · 20h agoMoroccan youth are debating on Facebook and WhatsApp whether to attempt a new border crossing into Ceuta on 15 August, @elpais.com reports after examining group chats. "See you there on the 15th. Be there on time."
"Papa, c’est à quel âge qu’on peut utiliser des gros mots?" 🥰
🇧🇬 Dans le village bulgare de Skrat, un médecin de 90 ans continue de soigner ses patients, dans son cabinet et à domicile dans les villages alentour, faute de remplaçants. Un cas loin d’être unique en Bulgarie, qui souffre du manque de médecins généralistes #geneu_afp ⤵️
Yes. Forget the silly media coverage of Meloni as the “disciplined centrist”. When someone shows you who they are believe them
Anthony Zacharzewski@anthonyzach.be · 2d agoMany EU leaders are collapsing under a moment’s pressure on Ceuta but the hypocrisy of Meloni is particularly sickening. All those demands that Europe help Italy out on Lampedusa, and no-one asked for Italy to be excluded from Schengen. But as soon as a Social Democrat faces problems….
A drone crashed near the estate dubbed “Putin’s Palace,” killing four people on Russia’s Black Sea coast. A Ukrainian Telegram channel reported the drone was intercepted just 300 meters from a facility linked to a Russian missile manufacturer. www.kyivpost.com/post/81633
Was ich bzgl Ceuta gern verstehen würde: Was wollen (rechts/“mitte”) Politiker:innen von Spanien? Was is ihr Problem? Wozu Krisentreffen? *Niemand* kann weiter in andere EU-Länder, das Ganze tangiert Schengen buchstäblich nicht. Restriktiver als die spanische Regierung kann man nicht agieren, …
They are fighting fantasy wars in their heads and all the while they are losing badly to a country without a Navy and and Air Force.
It's notable that when Belarus/Russia did this to Poland, other EU countries didn't respond by blaming Poland. They blamed Belarus/Russia. No mystery why Europe's governing conservatives are blaming the EU's only leftist prime minister.
Seeing lots of hysterical takes regarding Ceuta. Yes, the EU response has clearly been wanting. But the incentives for unity if Trump engineers a Greenland crisis would be much stronger. Defence threats tend to pull member states together, whereas migration has repeatedly divided them
I absolutely hated the world in 2020 where schools and nurseries were closed (christ, i was stuck at home with postpartum depression, a newborn and a 2yo) but I dont accept to be told by antivaxxers that experts that made those decisions did it with a light heart or for any reason but public safety.
I'll never understand why so many people on both sides of the argument seem to find it impossible to support this reasonable perspective.
Banjon@beardybanjo.bsky.social · 4d agoYeah. The moderate position that gets drowned out is: Lockdowns were necessary. Lockdowns were *hard* (and probably did lasting damage). Some lockdown rules and enforcement was absurd and counterproductive
Pedro Sánchez has sent a letter to the EU institutions complaining about the political reaction of some member states to the migratory crisis in Ceuta. “In the current international context, the European Union cannot afford this kind of selfish, polarising and unlawful reaction.” 🧵
America is now a joke country where citizens are arrested to cover up for the president’s lies on social media. We’ve replaced DEI with incompetence and protecting the egos of mediocre white men.
If you read French, this is the best analysis of what happened in Ceuta I've read so far. Invalidated some of my hastily stitched-together takes.
Grand Continent@grandcontinent.bsky.social · 5d agoLes images spectaculaires venues de Ceuta semblent alimenter l’imaginaire d'une submersion migratoire. Pour Patrick Weil, il s'agit pourtant d'une erreur de diagnostic. Un entretien à lire absolument.
Plus de 40 000 arrivées illégales de migrants et 19 morts : que se passe-t-il à Ceuta, l’exclave espagnole frontalière avec le Maroc ?
Plus de 40 000 arrivées de migrants : que se passe-t-il à Ceuta ?
L’afflux massif de migrants à Ceuta semble moins relever d’une faille de sécurité que d’une instrumentalisation par Rabat de sa population contre Madrid.
legrandcontinent.eu
Very perspicacious analysis by @nkurmayer.bsky.social, who knows a thing or two about the nexus of energy and climate policy.
Euractiv@euractiv.com · 5d agoMove over climate action, adaptation is all the rage now
I lost my job, my kids have measles, my electric bill has doubled, and I have explosive diarrhea from a parasite the CDC no longer monitors. But at least now Black kids won't be getting free breakfasts from Head Start anymore.
Die größte Pandemie seit 1919, die größte Finanzkrise seit 1929, der größte Krieg seit 1939, die größte Energiekrise seit 1973: Die Dramen, mit denen Europa zuletzt fertigwerden musste, zeigen auf, dass wir heute nicht weniger widerstandsfähig sind als vor 50 Jahren.
Wenn der Boden unter den Füßen wegbricht
diepresse.com
"Youssef Alaoui, 26, said that as his group approached the border on Thursday, Moroccan police officers pointed them in right direction. “They just kept saying, ‘Go that way, go that way,’”" www.nytimes.com/live/2026/07...
Update from Carlos Barragán and Jason Horowitz
nytimes.com
Abgründig, was sich an den französischen Stränden entlang des Ärmelkanals abspielt. www.liberation.fr/societe/immi...
EN IMAGES - Le «taxi-boat», cette dangereuse méthode de traversée de la Manche
Tandis qu’un nouvel accord franco-britannique sur l’immigration a été conclu le 23 avril et que les autorités françaises expérimentent une doctrine d’interceptions des «taxi-boats», regard sur ces pér...
liberation.fr
If you ever feel unqualified, remember that a gang of billionaires spent $900 million for 60,000 acres with no water, no infrastructure, a roster of endangered species, and a voter-approved ordinance that specifically bans building a city there. Now they’re begging politicians to bail them out.
Gil Durán@gilduran.com · 6d agoLooks like Gavin Newsom is going to bat for California Forever, the Network State "tech utopia" project backed by Marc Andreessen and other tech billionaires. 70% of local residents oppose it. But the billionaires hired Newsom's favorite lobbyist. Welcome to Sacramento. nypost.com/2026/07/29/u...
The Ceuta border chaos isn't just a random meltdown. It involves policy decisions made in Morocco - courted by Spain, the EU generally, AND the Trump administration - following a visit by Spanish PM Sánchez to its rival Algeria. This is about diplomacy more than border security.
Imagine you are in Cuba under energy siege, in the midst of another deadly heatwave. China comes and says they will build 92 solar farms for you at competitive prices to get you out of the trap of blackouts. What would you do?