Latest news with #Hague
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
Wilders threatens to leave Dutch government if no halt to asylum
Dutch right-wing populist Geert Wilders has reiterated his threat to break up the governing coalition in The Hague if his demands for a relentlessly tough stance on asylum seekers are not met. Millions of Dutch people, he said, expected the implementation of a corresponding 10-point plan from his Party for Freedom (PVV), Wilders wrote on X on Sunday. The PVV leader added: "Let me be very clear: If the majority of our proposals from the 10-point asylum plan are not adopted (and thus added to the coalition agreement) and the government does not implement them as quickly as possible, the PVV will exit this coalition." Wilders issued the threat shortly before consultations by the four-party coalition on the PVV's demands, which, according to the ANP news agency, were scheduled for Monday evening. The PVV, the strongest force in parliament since the recent election, is demanding the closure of borders to all asylum seekers. If necessary, the army should be deployed to control the borders, Wilders had stated during the presentation of the plan a week ago. He also demanded that tens of thousands of Syrian refugees should be sent back to their homeland, and asylum centres should be closed. Additionally, Wilders is calling for an end to family reunification for recognized refugees and the expulsion of criminal individuals with dual nationality, with their Dutch nationality then being revoked.
Bloomberg
3 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Sweden on Track Toward 5% NATO Target, Defense Minister Says
Sweden is on track to increase military spending in line with goals that are expected to be agreed at NATO's upcoming summit in the Hague, the Nordic country's defense minister said. 'We have a trajectory going up to 3.5% for pure military expenditures, and then 1.5% for military related defense expenditure. So all in all, 5%, Pal Jonson told Bloomberg on Saturday. 'We stand ready to shoulder the responsibility.'
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
We must ‘get real' about Trump abandoning Ukraine, Europe admits
British and French officials drawing up plans for a peacekeeping force in Ukraine have discussed the need to 'get real' about Donald Trump abandoning the country. Officials agreed to shift the focus from deploying European troops to back up any ceasefire to sustaining Kyiv's long-term defence against Russia's invasion without American support. There is now a genuine concern that the US president will follow through on his threat to walk away from his role as a mediator, having failed to bring Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table. 'Let's get real and admit the US will never be on board,' a Western official told the Telegraph, describing the dire mood at the meeting in the Hague. A European diplomat added: 'It was mostly about how to sustain the necessary support to Ukraine when we assume that the US would only continue providing some specific assets, such as intelligence. 'We also agreed on the need to step up economic pressure on Russia.' The meeting in the Dutch capital, attended by 'political directors' from foreign ministries, marked a stark change in roles of the 'coalition of the willing' devised by Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron to uphold a possible ceasefire being pursued by the Americans. Sir Keir and Mr Macron have been pushing the 'coalition of the willing' proposal under which European allies would use their soldiers to help enforce any peace deal. More than 30 nations have indicated support, although only a handful have publicly offered to put troops on the ground in Ukraine. A central question had been whether Washington is willing to provide what has been described by UK figures as a 'security guarantee' or a 'back-up' for this force. The group still hasn't publicly conceded that its intentions have changed, with the chances of peace dwindling the longer Putin holds out against international pressure for a truce. The European nations also agreed to invite Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine's president, to the Nato summit in The Hague next month. His attendance had previously been in doubt after Mr Trump's vocal opposition to Ukraine joining the Western military alliance. General Keith Kellogg, Mr Trump's Ukraine envoy, said on Friday: 'We've said that, to us, Ukraine coming into Nato is not on the table. 'And we're not the only country that says that. You know, I can probably give you four countries in Nato, and it takes 32 of the 32 to allow you to come into Nato.' It is likely the coalition will continue to support the Trump peace efforts in public at the request of Ukrainian officials, who fear not doing so will result in the US leader ending weapons shipments and intelligence sharing. Although Washington has not signed off on deliveries of new weapons since Mr Trump took office, it continues to ship hardware agreed under Joe Biden's tenure. The US has also signed off on sales of domestically-produced kit, such as spares for F-16 fighter jets, to Ukraine, as well as allowing European nations to deliver American-made equipment. The meeting in the Dutch capital comes ahead of a key week of diplomacy. On Monday, Britain's national security adviser is expected to attend the next round of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul. Gen Kellogg told ABC News: 'We'll have what we call the E3. That is the national security advisers from Germany, France, and Great Britain…When we were in London, they kind of helped us mould a term sheet for Ukraine.' Moscow and Kyiv held their first direct negotiations in more than three years in the Turkish capital earlier this month. On Friday, the Kremlin said it would only discuss the conditions of a ceasefire at the talks in Istanbul after Kyiv demanded to see a peace memorandum prior to negotiations. Ukraine said it wanted to see a document setting out Russia's peace proposal before committing to sending officials to Istanbul. Andrii Sybiha, Ukraine's foreign minister, said: 'In order for the next planned meeting to be substantive and meaningful, it is important to receive a document in advance so that the delegation that will attend has the authority to discuss the relevant positions.' Sergei Lavrov, Russia's foreign minister, announced the second round of talks earlier this week after Donald Trump further criticised Vladimir Putin. The US president had called his Russian counterpart 'crazy' and accused him of 'playing with fire' before appearing to give him a two-week deadline to secure a deal. Next week, Britain and Germany will also host a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group of 50 nations coordinating military aid to Ukraine. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
3 days ago
- Business
- Telegraph
Europe ‘must get real' about Trump abandoning Ukraine
British and French officials drawing up plans for a peacekeeping force in Ukraine have discussed the need to 'get real' about Donald Trump abandoning the country. Officials agreed to shift the focus from deploying European troops to back up any ceasefire to sustaining Kyiv's long-term defence against Russia's invasion without American support. There is now a genuine concern that the US president will follow through on his threat to walk away from his role as a mediator, having failed to bring Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table. 'Let's get real and admit the US will never be on board,' a Western official told the Telegraph, describing the dire mood at the meeting in the Hague. A European diplomat added: 'It was mostly about how to sustain the necessary support to Ukraine when we assume that the US would only continue providing some specific assets, such as intelligence. 'We also agreed on the need to step up economic pressure on Russia.' The meeting in the Dutch capital, attended by 'political directors' from foreign ministries, marked a stark change in roles of the 'coalition of the willing' devised by Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron to uphold a possible ceasefire being pursued by the Americans. Sir Keir and Mr Macron have been pushing the 'coalition of the willing' proposal under which European allies would use their soldiers to help enforce any peace deal. More than 30 nations have indicated support, although only a handful have publicly offered to put troops on the ground in Ukraine. 'Ukraine in Nato not on the table' A central question had been whether Washington is willing to provide what has been described by UK figures as a 'security guarantee' or a 'back-up' for this force. The group still hasn't publicly conceded that its intentions have changed, with the chances of peace dwindling the longer Putin holds out against international pressure for a truce. The European nations also agreed to invite Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine's president, to the Nato summit in The Hague next month. His attendance had previously been in doubt after Mr Trump's vocal opposition to Ukraine joining the Western military alliance. General Keith Kellogg, Mr Trump's Ukraine envoy, said on Friday: 'We've said that, to us, Ukraine coming into Nato is not on the table. 'And we're not the only country that says that. You know, I can probably give you four countries in Nato, and it takes 32 of the 32 to allow you to come into Nato.'
BBC News
3 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Healey sees defence spend rise to 3% of GDP by 2034
There is "no doubt" that UK defence spending will rise to 3% of GDP by 2034 at the latest, Defence Secretary John Healey has said.A source told the BBC this was Healey's opinion, not a new commitment. His comment comes as the government prepares to unveil its strategic defence review which will outline priorities for the military and security spending in the coming this year the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, laid out plans to increase defence spending to 2.5% by April 2027, with a "clear ambition" to reach 3% by 2034, economic conditions allowing. But it is understood that the strategic defence review, to be published on Monday, is based on the assumption that the 3% target is the trajectory spending will follow, with the possibility projects could be delivered faster if the target were brought review will state that the world and the threats the country faces are changing fast. It will recommend the deployment of new "digital" experts alongside troops to protect them from enemy drones and to control the army's own, future, unmanned to the Times newspaper, Healey said the UK defence spending target allowed the UK to "plan for the long term... [and] deal with the pressures".As a result of the review, the Ministry of Defence will spend more than £1bn to develop technology to speed up decisions on the heads of government are set to meet in The Hague, in the Netherlands, next month, where it is expected that its secretary-general will call on allies to increase defence this month, while addressing the alliance's parliamentary assembly, Mark Rutte suggested that the 32 member countries agree on a "high defence spend target of, in total, 5%".New money for defence will be found in part by reducing UK overseas aid from 0.5% of gross national income to 0.3%.The cut in aid prompted International Development Minister Anneliese Dodds to resign in February, telling the prime minister in a letter that the move would "remove food and healthcare from desperate people - deeply harming the UK's reputation".
