Browsing: International – UK/Europe
Britain’s government is set to announce legislation next month to move the country closer to the European Union, as the Iran war sours the UK’s so-called special relationship with the US. President Donald Trump’s unpredictability and stream of insults towards America’s historic ally is adding impetus to Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s bid to deepen ties with the 27-nation bloc, a decade after Britons narrowly voted to leave the EU. “We have a government that is already eager to move closer towards the EU, and the events in Iran provide an opportunity to speed up that process,” Evie Aspinall, director of the British Foreign Policy Group think-tank, told AFP. Starmer’s administration is preparing an EU “reset” bill that will give ministers powers to align UK standards with EU single market rules as they evolve — something called “dynamic alignment”.King Charles III will announce the legislation on May 13 when he reads out Starmer’s legislative plans for the coming months, a government official told AFP on condition of anonymity. Starmer has repeatedly called for a deeper economic and security relationship with Europe since his Labour party won the 2024 general election, ousting the Conservatives, who had implemented the 2016 Brexit referendum. He has upped those calls in recent days, telling Dutch leader Rob Jetten on Tuesday that “he believed the partnership between the UK and the bloc needed to be fit for the challenges we were facing today”. The EU is Britain’s biggest trading partner, while the International Monetary Fund warned this week that the UK will be the advanced economy hardest hit by the Iran conflict.“Certainly Iran has made it (the reset) more prescient,” said the UK official. “We need to build economic resilience across the continent,” they added. Starmer refused to involve Britain in the US and Israel’s initial strikes on February 28, angering Trump, although he has since allowed American forces to use UK bases for a “limited defensive purpose”. Under pressure at home for his disastrous decision to appoint former Jeffrey Epstein associate Peter Mandelson as ambassador to Washington, Starmer has received plaudits for standing up to Trump in the face of repeated taunts from the US president. Days ago, Trump threatened in a phone interview with Sky News to scrap a US-UK trade deal that limited the impact on Britain of his tariffs blitz. “There’s no doubt that there is now momentum in the UK-EU relationship partly as a result of Trump’s unreliable behaviour,” David Henig, an expert on UK’s post-Brexit trade policy, told AFP.“Independent UK trade policy looks much harder, the prospects of working with the EU much brighter.” Starmer’s administration hopes to table the EU legislation in the next few months, meaning it could come around the time of the 10th anniversary of the Brexit referendum, held in June 2016. MPs will get to approve whether to provide the government with a mechanism to adopt EU rules — sometimes without a full parliamentary vote — in areas where it has already signed deals with the bloc. They include a trade agreement designed to ease red tape on food and plant exports and plans for an electricity deal that would integrate the UK into the EU’s internal electricity market. Britain and the EU are also aiming to finalise negotiations on a youth mobility scheme in time for a joint summit in Brussels expected in late June or early July.Starmer has ruled out rejoining the single market or returning to free movement. The Liberal Democrats, Britain’s traditional third party, wants him to cross one of his other red lines by negotiating a customs union with the EU. “We need to be doubling down on relations with reliable partners who share our interests and values,” the Liberal Democrats foreign affairs spokesman Calum Miller told AFP. But Brexit remains a toxic issue and the hard-right Reform UK party, leading opinion polls and headed by Eurosceptic firebrand Nigel Farage, have branded the legislation “a betrayal” of the referendum’s narrow result.Surveys regularly now show, however, that most Britons regret the vote to leave the EU, something Starmer hopes to capitalise on.Rising cost-of-living pressures on family households, which UK finance minister Rachel Reeves has blamed on Trump for starting the war “without a clear exit plan”, could also influence minds.“When the relationship with the US is fracturing, it means there’s reduced opposition to a closer relationship with the EU among the public,” said Aspinall. Source link
France and Poland planned increased defence co-operation in a meeting of their leaders Monday held against a background of Russia’s expansionist threat and a waning US commitment to Europe. French President Emmanuel Macron and Polish premier Donald Tusk told a news conference in Gdansk, northern Poland, that the scope of the boosted ties between the two Nato members could cover elements of nuclear deterrence, military satellites, joint drills, defence industry and shared intelligence. “Our co-operation, whether in the nuclear domain or in joint exercises… is a co-operation that knows no bounds,” Tusk said. Macron said work would be done in the next few months allowing “concrete progress”, notably when it came to nuclear deterrence. “There may be deployments” to Poland of French warplanes carrying nuclear warheads, he said. While France has specified it would retain full control over the decision to use force, Polish forces could contribute in areas such as early warning and air defence, both sides say. The public display of closer relations between the countries reflected adaptation by European Union nations of a changed threat environment, and to US President Donald Trump publicly disparaging Nato and toying with the idea of pulling his country out of the alliance. Trump has called Nato allies “cowards” and the alliance itself a “paper tiger” in frustration that its members did not join the US-Israeli war in the Middle East. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — which shares a border with Poland — and growing concern, particularly among Baltic states, that Moscow may use its military and wartime economy to threaten Nato’s eastern rim are also spurring greater focus on defence. Macron’s trip to Gdansk to see Tusk followed their two countries signing a treaty of friendship and enhanced co-operation in May last year. During Monday’s visit, European industry giant Airbus, France’s Thales and Poland’s Radmor group announced an agreement on developing military communications satellites. The accord on the geostationary orbiters, which would serve Poland’s armed forces, was signed in the presence of the French and Polish defence ministers. On the eve of Macron’s arrival, Tusk said Warsaw and Paris “have very similar views on how to build Europe’s strength”. One theme Macron has repeatedly come back to is a “European preference” for military procurement to ensure greater independence and self-reliance on the continent. That has led to some tension with eastern European countries, including Poland, which are strongly attached to their relationship with the US and whose forces rely on US-made weapon systems. Poland, though, has in recent years massively invested in modernising its armed forces. Its military spending is among the highest in Nato, and is expected to exceed 4.8% of GDP in 2026. But the country has placed “colossal orders for American F-35s, Apache attack helicopters, Patriot missiles, and Abrams tanks”, a European diplomat close to the matter told AFP. Poland participates in a new EU programme called SAFE (Security Action For Europe) that came into effect last year and under which countries can get EU loans to buy weapons and expand defence manufacturing. But Tusk faces friction over that from his country’s nationalist president, Karol Nawrocki, who has called SAFE as a threat to Poland’s “independence”. Poland is now led once again by a pro-European government following Tusk’s electoral victory in 2023, but it remains fundamentally attached to its relationship with the US. “Washington’s strategy has indeed changed” toward Europeans, Tusk told a press conference. But “Polish-American and Euro-American relations” remain “very important,” he said. Source link
The head of the International Air Transport Association has warned that parts of Europe could begin canceling flights from late May due to potential jet fuel shortages, raising concerns about disruption during the busy summer travel season. Speaking on Friday, Director General Willie Walsh said efforts were under way to secure alternative supply routes, but stressed the need for authorities to prepare coordinated contingency plans in case fuel rationing becomes necessary. European airlines have already raised concerns that shortages could emerge within weeks, following supply disruptions linked to regional tensions affecting key energy routes.One of the main risks stems from the potential closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical artery for global oil flows, which has impacted the delivery of aviation fuel from the Middle East. According to the International Energy Agency, global demand for jet fuel and kerosene averaged around 7.8 million barrels per day in 2025, underlining the scale of reliance on stable supply chains.Europe remains heavily dependent on imported aviation fuel, with roughly 75% of its supply coming from the Middle East, leaving the sector particularly vulnerable to geopolitical disruptions. Source link
Scotland’s First Minister and Scottish National Party (SNP) leader John Swinney poses for a photo as he takes part in the launch the SNP’s 2026 Scottish…
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer hosts social media industry leaders to discuss child safety online Thursday in London. (Reuters) UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer Thursday hinted at possible measures limiting children’s access to social media, as he met senior tech figures and warned: “Things can’t go on like this.””They must change because right now social media is putting our children at risk,” Starmer told the group who included Wifredo Fernandez of X, Alistair Law of TikTok, Markus Reinisch of Meta, and Ronan Harris of Snap.”In a world in which children are protected, even if that means access is restricted, that is preferable to a world where harm is the price of participation,” he added.Starmer summoned the social media bosses to the Downing Street meeting, also attended by Technology Minister Liz Kendall, amid growing calls for a ban on under-16s using the platforms.He told the industry leaders he looked forward to working with them on new safeguarding measures, but insisted there had to be change.”I do think this can be done. I think the question is not whether it is done, the question is how it is done,” he said.The government is considering restrictions on popular social media apps with ministers under pressure to introduce an Australia-style ban.Australia in December became the first nation to prohibit people under the age of 16 from using immensely popular and profitable social media platforms.Greece has since said it will ban social media for under 15s and the European Union has said an expert group will start work this week on recommendations for action across the EU.Starmer has not ruled out a ban, but previously said he was waiting for the outcome of a public consultation, due to close on May 26.He said last month he was “very keen” to tackle addictive features following a landmark US ruling that found Meta and YouTube liable for harming a young woman.Starmer’s official spokesperson said the premier had been “clear” with the bosses that he wanted “to know what they’re going to be doing, and it has to be done swiftly”.”He’s asked them to provide assurances on action that they’re taking, and it’s been clear that companies must be able to show real world changes that make their platforms safer for children.”The two chambers of Britain’s parliament are currently in a stand-off over whether the government should follow Australia.The unelected upper House of Lords voted in favour of prohibiting social media for under-16s for a second time last month, piling pressure on the government to follow suit.But the House of Commons, where Starmer’s Labour party enjoys a huge majority, has twice rejected the proposal. Related Story Source link
Nato allies said yesterday they would not get involved in US President Donald Trump’s plan to blockade Iranian ports, proposing to intervene only once fighting ends, in a move likely to anger Trump and increase strains in the alliance. Trump said the US military would eliminate any Iranian ships that came near the blockade that began yesterday, after weekend talks failed to reach an agreement to end the six-week conflict with Iran. Trump initially said the US would work with other countries to block ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, but the US military later specified that the blockade would only apply to ships going to or from Iranian ports.Since the war started on February 28, Iran has largely blocked the waterway for all ships but its own. It has been seeking to make its control of the strait permanent and possibly collect levies from ships that use it.“The Blockade will begin shortly. Other Countries will be involved with this Blockade,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Sunday. But Nato allies, including Britain and France, said they would not be drawn into the conflict by taking part in the blockade, saying instead they were working on an initiative to open the strait, through which a fifth of global oil supplies normally passes. Their refusal to participate is another point of friction with Trump, who has threatened to withdraw from the military alliance and is weighing pulling some US troops from Europe after several countries denied US military planes use of their airspace for attacks on Iran. “We’re not supporting the blockade,” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told the BBC. “My decision has been very clearly that whatever the pressure, and there’s been some considerable pressure, we’re not getting dragged into the war,” he said. Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte told European governments that Trump wants concrete commitments in the near future to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, diplomats told Reuters last week. Nato could play a role in the strait if its 32 members could agree on the formation of a mission, Rutte said on Thursday.Several European countries have said they are willing to help in the strait, but only once there is a durable end to hostilities and an agreement with Iran that their ships will not be attacked.France will organise a conference with Britain and other countries to create a multinational mission to restore navigation in the strait, French President Emmanuel Macron said on X yesterday. “This strictly defensive mission, distinct from the belligerents, will be deployed as soon as the situation allows,” Macron said.The initiative aims to establish rules for safe passage and the co-ordination of military vessels to escort tankers, Starmer said in parliament yesterday. “Let me be very clear, this is about safeguarding shipping and supporting freedom of navigation once the conflict ends. Our shared aim here is a co-ordinated, independent, multi-national plan,” he said. A meeting to draw up plans for the mission involving about 30 countries, including Gulf countries, India, Greece, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands and Sweden, could happen as soon as Thursday in Paris or London, a French diplomatic source said. The military ships would provide reassurance without being belligerent, the source said, adding that Iran and the US would be informed of the mission but play no direct part. Another European diplomatic source questioned whether Trump would welcome a mission now that he had ordered the blockade.“Since Trump is now using the strait as his own leverage, does he even want a mission there?” the source said.The Strait of Hormuz should be reopened by diplomacy, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said yesterday, adding that creating an international force to oversee it would be complicated. He called for Nato to reset its ties with Trump at a summit in Ankara in July. Source link
France and Britain will co-host a summit this week to discuss a “co-ordinated, independent, multinational plan” to safeguard shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said yesterday.Britain had convened “more than 40 nations who share our aim to restore freedom of navigation” and the summit will discuss ways to protect shipping “when the conflict ends,” Starmer said. Britain and France will work on a “peaceful multinational mission” that would be “separate from the warring parties,” French President Emmanuel Macron said earlier yesterday.US-Israeli strikes on Iran in late February sparked a region-wide war and brought traffic through the Strait of Hormuz to a near standstill, blocking a key route for global oil and gas shipments. Iran and the US last week agreed to a two-week cessation of hostilities, but ceasefire talks between the warring sides in Pakistan on the weekend ended in failure.US President Donald Trump responded by ordering his navy to carry out a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz starting yesterday. Trump also said, on his Truth Social platform, that “Other Countries will be involved with this Blockade” but did not specify which ones.The UK-French initiative, which Macron and Starmer announced on X, appeared to be separate from Trump’s announced blockade. On April 2, a UK-led diplomatic meeting of some 40 countries demanded “the immediate and unconditional reopening” of the vital shipping route.Macron said the conference would involve “countries prepared to contribute alongside us to a peaceful multinational mission aimed at restoring freedom of navigation in the strait”. “This strictly defensive mission, separate from the warring parties to the conflict, is intended to be deployed as soon as circumstances permit,” he said. The US military said the blockade of the Strait ordered by Trump would begin at 1400 GMT, and apply to all ships leaving or seeking to dock at Iranian ports on either side of the key waterway.Starmer said yesterday that Britain will not join the naval blockade announced by Trump. Source link
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Thursday pledged to work with her partners to restore freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, stressing that this is a vital interest for her country and the entire European Union.In a speech before the Italian Chamber of Deputies, Meloni said that if Iran succeeds in gaining the authority to impose additional fees on ships transiting the Strait, this could lead to economic repercussions and changes in trade flows. She revealed that Italy is working with the British-led coalition on the Strait of Hormuz, which includes more than 30 countries, in an effort to create the security conditions that would allow for the full restoration of freedom of navigation and supplies. She condemned all violations of the ceasefire agreement reached between the United States and Iran, which is in effect for two weeks, stating that the world now faces “a fragile horizon for peace that must be pursued with determination and resolve.” In her address, Meloni also called on the Israeli occupation to end its military operations in Lebanon, stressing the importance of reaching a comprehensive ceasefire in the Middle East. Regarding domestic affairs, the Italian Prime Minister ruled out a major cabinet reshuffle and pledged to remain in office until the end of her term, which is scheduled to last until the second half of next year.It is worth noting that this was Meloni’s first address to Parliament since her crushing defeat in a referendum on judicial reforms held two weeks prior, which led to the resignation of some members of her government Source link
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam received a phone call today from French President Emmanuel Macron. According to a statement issued by the Lebanese government, President Macron confirmed that he is undertaking intensive diplomatic efforts to secure a ceasefire in Lebanon. ( Source link
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. (Reuters/File Photo) Spain’s ruling Socialist Party has gained voter support amid Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s staunch opposition to the US-Israeli war on Iran, while far-right Vox, which supports the offensive, has seen a decline, two surveys published yesterday showed. Sanchez has emerged as one of the most vocal Western leaders criticising what he calls an illegal and reckless war, closing Spanish airspace to US planes involved in the strikes and banning them from using jointly operated military bases in southern Spain.Vox — closely allied with US President Donald Trump’s MAGA movement — has harshly criticised Sanchez’s stance.A survey by state pollster CIS showed last month that 85% of respondents rejected the war. Monday’s new poll by Sigma Dos for newspaper El Mundo showed support for Sanchez’s Socialists rising to 27.7% from 26.4% last month, reducing the lead of the conservative People’s Party (PP). Another survey, by 40dB for El Pais, put them at 28.6%, up from 27.7%. Meanwhile, Vox dropped to 17.1% in April from 18.3% according to Sigma Dos, and slipped by 0.1 percentage point to 18.7% in the 40dB survey. The PP topped both polls, securing 32.5% and 31.1% of voting intentions, respectively, up by less than one percentage point in both polls. The party accuses Sanchez of damaging transatlantic relations and has refrained from publicly denouncing Trump and Israel, though its leader has also echoed the “no to war” slogan. A common trend is the transfer of voting intention from the extremes of the spectrum to the two mainstream outfits. The PP appears to be stemming the flow of votes to Vox and the Socialists are picking up former voters of its hard-left junior coalition partner Sumar, the polls showed.A fragmented electorate still means coalitions are required to secure a government and both polls point to a right-wing majority if elections were held now.The next general election is due in August 2027. Source link