Trump gambles with reindustrializing the US
The agreement unveiled on Sunday, July 27, with the European Union includes an additional $600 billion in investments to be made in the US. A few days earlier, Japan committed to invest $550 billion in the US as part of its agreement signed with Washington. These commitments, however, remain vague – both in terms of the time frame and the sectors involved.
In recent weeks, several major European groups have announced plans to build factories in the US, raising concerns over reduced activities in Europe and even an increase in offshoring to the US. On July 24, Bernard Arnault, the founder and CEO of the luxury group LVMH, announced that Louis Vuitton would open a fourth manufacturing site across the Atlantic. "For our American customers, buying a Louis Vuitton product 'made in USA' poses (…) no problem at all," Arnault argued in the French newspaper Le Figaro on July 24.
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LeMonde
25 minutes ago
- LeMonde
France-UK migrant returns deal takes effect
A "one-in, one-out" deal in which Britain can return some migrants who cross the Channel in small boats back to France came into force on Tuesday, August 5, the UK government announced. The Interior Ministry said that British authorities were "operationally ready" and that migrant detentions were expected to begin "within days" following ratification of the agreement. "Today we send a clear message – if you come here illegally on a small boat you will face being sent back to France," Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a statement after striking the deal with French President Emmanuel Macron last month. The agreement seeks to curb record levels of irregular Channel crossings that are causing discontent in Britain and helping fuel the rise of the hard-right Reform UK party. Under the arrangement, for now a pilot program set to run until June 2026, irregular migrants arriving on UK shores could be detained and returned to France if they are deemed ineligible for asylum. In exchange, the United Kingdom will accept an equal number of migrants from France who can apply for asylum via an online platform, giving priority to nationalities most vulnerable to smugglers and to people with ties in Britain. The two governments signed the final text last week, with the EU Commission giving its "green light on this innovative approach," Britain's Home Office said in a statement late Monday. "The unscrupulous business model of smugglers must be broken," the European Union's Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner wrote on X on Tuesday. But refugee charities have criticized the deal, urging the British government to provide more safe and legal routes for asylum seekers instead. The number of migrants making the dangerous journey in flimsy dinghies this year crossed 25,000 at the end of July, the highest tally ever at this point in the year. The rise, which the government has partly attributed to extended periods of good weather, means Labour leader Starmer is struggling to fulfil one of his main pledges before winning last year's general election. Social media ads In recent weeks, anti-immigration protesters and counter-protesters have clashed outside hotels housing asylum seekers in Britain, with some demonstrations turning violent. Starmer has tried to portray the deal as a diplomatic victory after years of faltering cooperation between France and the UK on the politically sensitive issue. "This is the product of months of grown-up diplomacy delivering real results for British people as we broker deals no government has been able to achieve," he said. While the agreement has also met with criticism in northern France, where some officials say the program is too favorable to the UK, Nigel Farage's anti-immigrant Reform UK party says it does not go far enough to secure Britain's borders. Interior Minister Yvette Cooper said Tuesday that she would not put a number on how many migrants would be deported under the deal. "Of course, it will start with lower numbers and then build, but we want to be able to expand it," she told BBC radio. The Home Office this week pledged £100 million ($132 million) for law enforcement, including additional staff and technology, to "tackle" gangs who organize the crossings. Starmer's government also said it would make it an offence to promote on social media dangerous immigration routes into the UK, including via the Channel. Under the new provision, which will be part of a border security bill making its way through parliament, those found advertising such crossings could be fined and face up to five years in prison. According to a Home Office analysis, 80% of migrants arriving via small boats told officials they used social media during the process.
Euronews
27 minutes ago
- Euronews
Trial of German ex-MEP's aide thrusts spy scandal back into spotlight
Shortly before last year's European elections, the parliamentary assistant of Maximilian Krah was arrested in Germany on suspicion of spying for China. The news rocked Berlin and Brussels alike, as the German MEP was the lead candidate of the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AFD) party. His assistant, Jian Guo, who was dismissed shortly after his arrest, was accused of being employed by the Chinese secret services. German prosecutors allege he handed over around 500 sensitive files to China and provided information about the inner machinations of European lawmaking. Guo's trial began in the eastern city of Dresden on Tuesday. Who is Maximilian Krah? Krah is a German lawyer and politician, and an influential figure within Germany's AFD party. Elected MEP in 2019, he was the lead candidate of the party at the 2024 European elections, where AFD reached a record result and came second after the Christian Democrats. In 2024, Krah said in an interview that not all Waffen SS members should be considered criminals. His controversial comments on the Nazi era, together with the allegations against his assistant, led to his party's expulsion from the European Parliament's Identity & Democracy Group. Krah's name also surfaced in the so-called Russia Gate scandal, where European opinion leaders around the site Voice of Europe promoted far-right and pro-Russian narratives. Krah denied receiving any funding from Russia, but he admitted he was interrogated by the FBI for his Russian ties. He also voted against different resolutions at the European Parliament criticising China's human rights record and warned against cutting economic ties with Beijing. Krah left his mandate at the European Parliament in 2025 after he was elected as a deputy to the Bundestag. Who is Jian Guo? Jian Guo, whose trial starts now and is the prime suspect of the Chinagate scandal, is a 44-year-old Chinese national with German citizenship. He met Krah when he worked as a businessman in Germany. After becoming an MEP. Krah employed him in Brussels at the European Parliament as his accredited assistant. According to German authorities, he repeatedly passed information about European Parliament debates and decisions on to his client. After his arrest, Krah said he was not aware of the spying activities of his employee and terminated his contract. What was the spying about? According to German prosecutors, Guo possessed around 500 sensitive documents from the European Parliament and passed them over to China. He allegedly collected personal information from the AfD leadership, including party leaders Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla. And he might have spied on Chinese opposition dissidents living in Germany. In his capacity as MEP, his former employer Krah was a member of the Parliament's committees on human rights, security and defence, and international trade. Shortly after his arrest, the Brussels offices of Jian Guo and Maximilian Krah were searched in the European Parliament. China denied any involvement in the spying activities and said it was part of a smear campaign against Beijing. The court case against Guo might reveal further details about his activities and the nature of information he provided. Why does it matter in Brussels? In recent years, the European institutions, and particularly the Parliament, have been hit with scandals related to influence peddling, particularly allegations of unlawful attempts by foreign powers to collect intelligence or influence decision-making. In February 2024, the European Parliament opened a formal probe into Latvian lawmaker Tatjana Ždanoka. She was, according to a Russian investigative newspaper, working as an agent for the Russian secret services. Ždanoka was alleged to be employed from 2004 to 2017 by the Federal Security Service (FSB). It was claimed that her job was to create pro-Kremlin sentiment in the Baltic region and to provide details about her work at the European Parliament. Qatar and Morocco were also accused of attempting to influence European Parliament officials and lobbyists in exchange for money in an investigation launched by the Belgian authorities in 2022 for corruption and money laundering, and several arrests have been made. Both countries, former MEPs and assistants in the spotlight, denied allegations. The European Parliament, in response, stepped up its fight against foreign interference and introduced fresh ethical rules.
Euronews
27 minutes ago
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Pfizer earnings strong despite Trump's new 'up to 250%' tariff threat
Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer reported better-than-expected quarterly results on Tuesday and improved its predictions for full-year profits, beating Wall Street expectations. The New York-based company reported second-quarter sales of $14.7 billion (€12.74bn) and earnings per share of $0.51 (€0.44). As of around 16.00 CEST, Pfizer shares were up over 4% at $24.58. "Our business is performing well and I'm pleased with the progress we achieved in the second quarter," chairman and CEO Albert Bourla said in a statement. "We continue to be actively engaged with policymakers as we navigate a complicated and rapidly evolving geopolitical environment while also remaining focused on advancing our business," Bourla continued. This despite several policies announced by the current US administration that could hurt drugmakers. In May, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order whereby pharmaceutical companies would be compelled to lower prices based on a "Most Favored Nation" policy. The price-slashing scheme seeks to ban drug companies from selling products in the US at prices above those in other developed countries. In Europe, the comparison becomes complex, as a significant portion pharmaceutical costs are covered by national healthcare or insurance systems, lowering prices for consumers. Experts warned at the time that this could slash their US revenues and affect availability. Even so, the president doubled down on his plans, sending letters last week to 17 drugmakers, calling for concrete steps to cut prices by 29 September. That includes agreeing to provide their full portfolio of existing medicines at no higher than European prices to every single Medicaid patient. On Tuesday, in an interview with CNBC, he announced that tariffs for pharmaceuticals and semiconductors would be coming in "next week". 'We'll be putting an initially small tariff on pharmaceuticals, but in one year, one-and-a-half years, maximum, it's going to go to 150% and then it's going to go to 250% because we want pharmaceuticals made in our country," he told CNBC.
