Will the EU be able to save Radio Free Europe after Trump's funding cu
Now that Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) has fallen victim to sweeping funding cuts by US President Donald Trump's administration, the future of the pro-democracy media outlet is unclear.
RFE/RL started broadcasting during the Cold War, and has played an important role reporting across Eastern Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East eve since. Its programmes are aired in 27 languages in 23 countries.
The outlet has also provided critical coverage in Ukraine, especially after Russia labelled Voice of America and Radio Free Europe "foreign agents", adding RFE/RL to the list of "undesirable organisations" in 2024.
Two trademark projects of RFE/RL in Ukraine — Crimea Realities and Donbas Realities — have also provided key sources of information about the Russian-occupied territories.
Yet on Friday night, shortly after Congress passed its latest government funding bill, Trump instructed his administration to reduce the functions of several agencies to the minimum required by law.
These included the US Global Media Agency, a budget-funded government organisation that oversees outlets including Voice of America, Radio Free Europe and Asia, and Radio Marti, which broadcasts Spanish-language news to Cuba.
'The cancellation of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's grant agreement would be a massive gift to America's enemies,' the network's President and CEO, Stephen Capus, said in a statement in reaction to the move.
The Czech Republic, which has hosted Radio Free Europe for 25 years, although its corporate headquarters is in Washington, is leading the push to keep the network alive.
Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský has urged the EU to step up and support RFE/RL itself. After he raised the issue during Monday's gathering of foreign ministers in Brussels, EU government ministers debated ways to keep RFE/RL afloat on Tuesday.
Sweden's European Affairs Minister Jessica Rozencrantz insisted on the need to ensure that 'Radio Free Europe really continues to be an important voice for freedom and democracy, especially in those places where it is most needed'.
'Sweden encourages all countries and the (European) Commission to really look into what we can do in terms of financing, to make sure that we continue to have a strong Radio Free Europe,' she told reporters in Brussels ahead of the meeting.
On Monday, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas recalled the influence the network had on her as she was growing up in Estonia, which was part of the Soviet Union when she was a child.
'It is sad to hear that US is withdrawing its funding,' Kallas told reporters, after chairing a meeting of EU foreign ministers.
'Coming from the other side of the Iron Curtain, actually it was (from) the radio that we got a lot of information,' she said. 'So, it has been a beacon of democracy, very valuable in this regard.'
But coming up with funding may prove difficult.
On whether the EU can "fill the void the US is leaving", Kallas said that 'the answer to that question is not automatically, because we have a lot of organisations who are coming with the same request".
Still, Kallas added that 'there was really a push from the foreign ministers to discuss this and find the way'.
States should invest in Syria's transition following the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime or could face future waves of migration, the director-general of the International Organization of Migration (IOM) has said in an interview with Euronews.
'What we're encouraging states to do is to really invest in this peacebuilding process, invest in the revitalisation of Syria, invest in humanitarian assistance,' director-general Amy Pope told Euronews on Monday, as EU foreign ministers met their Syrian counterpart in the ninth edition of a EU donor conference for Syria.
The European Union unveiled almost €2.5 billion in additional support for Syrians during that conference, with the total donations by EU and partner donors reaching €5.8 billion.
'If people go home and they're subjected to violence or they don't feel safe, or they don't have a future, then they'll migrate out again," Pope added.
'Our goal is to make sure that the conversation that states are having around the return of Syrians is not being had in isolation,' she explained. 'That is, that they're being had in the context of the investment that is needed at this moment, not just in terms of financial investment, but also in terms of political investment in the way forward.'
In the wake of al-Assad's fall, at least 14 EU member states - including Germany, France and Italy - moved to suspend the processing of asylum applications by Syrians.
Some of these governments have also indicated they are drawing up plans to facilitate the voluntary returns of refugees, with the Austrian Interior Minister instructing his ministry to prepare for their "orderly repatriation and deportation to Syria".
The idea of increasing voluntary returns to Syria had even gained traction before al-Assad's regime fell, as governments across the bloc looked to harden their migration policies.
An increasing number of EU member states are now mulling so-called 'go-and-see' visits, which would allow Syrians to return to assess the conditions in their country while maintaining their protection status in their host country.
It's an idea the UN is backing.
'It is helpful for people to go back and see what challenges they might have or what the situation on the ground looks like,' Pope said. 'So we are supporting Syrians who wish to do that, but at the same time.'
'This is why the investment is so critical (...) If people go home and see that there's nothing left for them and there is no humanitarian assistance, or there is no investment in the rebuilding of their communities, then it's very likely that that news will go back to Syrian communities who are outside of Syria and have the effect of discouraging people from going back home.'
The French Interior Ministry said in February Syrian refugees in France could soon receive special permits, valid for up to three months, to return for so-called 'exploratory visits' without losing their legal status.
The UN's refugee agency has found that 80% of Syrian refugees have expressed a desire to return home one day, while 27% have an 'immediate intention' to return in the next 12 months.
Some 60% say they would be interested in short-term visits to assess the situation on the ground.
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