Latest news with #ThisisEurope
The Guardian
11-08-2025
- Climate
- The Guardian
Southern Europe swelters under deadly heatwave as temperatures pass 40C
Deadly heat of up to 42C is searing southern Europe, as scientists warn of a 'molotov cocktail' of climatic conditions that is fuelling vast wildfires across the Mediterranean. Météo-France placed more than half the country under heatwave warnings on Monday morning, with 12 out of 96 administrative units on the mainland under the highest red alert, while Spain's Aemet warned of 'extreme danger' in Zaragoza and the Basque Country as it issued yellow and orange warnings for almost all the rest of the country. Both weather agencies forecast temperatures above 40C over the coming days and called for vigilance amid forecasts of 'a very intense, even exceptional' heatwave in parts of the continent. The high temperatures have alarmed experts as firefighters struggle to contain destructive wildfires. In France, which brought its biggest fire since 1949 under control on Sunday, authorities reported that one person had died in the blaze, while 20 firefighters and five civilians had been injured. In Italy, where temperatures of 40C are expected to hit Florence on Wednesday, tourist trails were closed on Mount Vesuvius on Sunday as firefighters fought a blaze on the slopes of the volcano. In Spain, fires that broke out in León and Zamora on Sunday forced more than 1,000 people to flee their homes, while large fires continued to burn in Galicia. Cristina Santín Nuño, a fire scientist at the Spanish National Research Council, said the large number of blazes was 'to be expected' after a wet spring that helped plants grow was followed by extreme heat, strong winds and long periods without rain. 'If we add to this the relatively easy possibility that a spark can ignite a fire somewhere … we have all the ingredients for the 'molotov cocktail' we're seeing right now,' she said. French forecasters said heat records were likely to be broken on Monday and Tuesday as temperatures pass 42C in the south-west. Temperatures hit a record high of 41.4C in the village of Tourbes, near Béziers, at the weekend. In Spain, temperatures on Monday were expected to rise further in the Ebro basin, the southern and eastern thirds of the Iberian peninsula, and the eastern Cantabrian Sea. They were forecast to fall in the north-west, particularly in Galicia. The weather agency said it expected heat of 37-39C across the interior of the Iberian peninsula on Monday, with maximum temperatures above 40C in the interior of the Basque Country and highs that could reach above 42C in the lower Guadalquivir. Jesús Santiago Notario del Pino, a soil scientist at the University of La Laguna, said conditions of 'extreme and prolonged heat' had primed the large number of fires across the country by drying out fuel. He added: 'Areas in the centre and north-west, theoretically less prone to severe fires – compared with the Mediterranean coast, for example – are burning. This is striking to me.' Sign up to This is Europe The most pressing stories and debates for Europeans – from identity to economics to the environment after newsletter promotion The world has warmed by about 1.4C because of fossil fuel pollution, which forms a heat-trapping blanket around the Earth, and the destruction of nature, which sucks carbon dioxide from the air. In Europe, which has warmed nearly twice as fast as the global average, a warm and dry air mass hanging over much of the Iberian peninsula and France has coincided with high levels of summer sunshine that have pushed temperatures even higher. In addition to the risk to humans from flames and smoke, the wildfires in Spain have also threatened Las Médulas world heritage site in El Bierzo. 'Personally, today is a sad day for me,' said Santín Nuño, who is from El Bierzo. 'Las Médulas has burned there, a beautiful spot with centuries-old chestnut trees and a Unesco world heritage site.' She added: 'In Spain, we're facing a new reality of forest fires because our landscapes have changed a lot in recent decades – there's more vegetation susceptible to burning – and now, climate change is creating more opportunities for these landscapes to burn more widely, intensely, and dangerously.'
Business Mayor
24-05-2025
- Business
- Business Mayor
Any trade deal with US must be based on ‘respect not threats', says EU commissioner
The European Union's trade chief has struck a defiant tone after Donald Trump threatened to place a 50% tariff on all goods from the bloc, saying any potential trade deal between Brussels and Washington must be based on 'respect not threats'. The US president made his announcement after voicing frustration with the pace of progress on a trade agreement with the EU. The new rates would come into effect from 1 June. The EU trade commissioner, Maroš Šefčovič, posted on X after a call with the US trade representative Jamieson Greer and the commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick: 'The EU's fully engaged, committed to securing a deal that works for both. 'The European Commission remains ready to work in good faith. EU-US trade is unmatched and must be guided by mutual respect, not threats. We stand ready to defend our interests.' Trump had posted on Truth Social, the social media website he owns: 'The European Union, which was formed for the primary purpose of taking advantage of the United States on trade, has been very difficult to deal with.' He went on to claim there was a $250m annual trade deficit with the EU. 'Our discussions with [the EU] are going nowhere,' he said, before adding there would be no tariffs for products built or manufactured in the US. Trump later told reporters: 'I'm not looking for a deal – we've set the deal,' before immediately adding that a big investment in the US by a European company might make him open to a delay. The EU is one of the US's largest trading partners, sending more than $600bn (€528bn; £443bn) in goods last year and buying $370bn worth, US government figures show. Read More US stock futures fall as Trump trade fizzles ahead of CPI data The US imposed a 20% 'reciprocal' rate on most EU goods from 2 April, but halved them a week later to allow for trade talks. It has kept 25% import taxes on steel, aluminium and vehicle parts in place and has threatened similar moves on pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and other goods. In the same press conference, Trump said he might add a 25% levy on all Apple and Samsung phones bought by US customers. That would be in place at the end of June, he said. His comments triggered falls in leading US stock indexes and European shares, Associated Press reported. skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to This is Europe The most pressing stories and debates for Europeans – from identity to economics to the environment Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion European politicians said they were disappointed by the news of further tariffs from the US. The French trade minister, Laurent Saint-Martin, said Trump's new threats did nothing to help negotiations. 'We are maintaining the same line: de-escalation, but we are ready to respond,' he wrote on X. The Italian foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, told the Ansa news agency that the aim remained 'zero-for-zero tariffs'. Speaking to reporters in The Hague, the Dutch prime minister, Dick Schoof, backed the EU's strategy in trade talks and said the EU was likely to see this latest announcement as part of the negotiations. 'We have seen before that tariffs can go up and down in talks with the US,' he said. Micheál Martin, the Irish taoiseach, said Trump's suggestion was 'extremely disappointing'. He continued: 'I have always been clear in my view that tariffs are damaging to all sides.' In a statement posted on X, he said: 'Tariffs at the level suggested would not only push prices up, they would grievously damage one of the world's most dynamic and significant trading relationships, as well as disrupting wider global trade. 'We do not need to go down this road. Negotiations are the best and only sustainable way forward.' The head of the EU's trade committee, the German MEP Bernd Lange, has threatened to apply counter-tariffs against the US. 'We will not allow ourselves to be pressured and will objectively attempt to begin negotiations next week,' he said in comments reported by the German Die Welt newspaper. 'If the negotiations are unsuccessful, the European Union is strong enough to implement countermeasures, such as counter-tariffs, to offset the economic damage.'
The Guardian
04-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Need to use nuclear weapons has not arisen in Ukraine, says Putin
The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, said in comments broadcast on Sunday said that the need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine had not arisen, and that he hoped it would not. Speaking in a film by Russian state television about his 25 years in power, Putin said that Russia has the strength and the means to bring the conflict in Ukraine to what he called a 'logical conclusion'. Responding to a question from a state television reporter about Ukrainian strikes on Russia, Putin said: 'There has been no need to use those [nuclear] weapons … and I hope they will not be required.' Fear of nuclear escalation has been a factor in US officials' thinking since Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022. The former CIA director William Burns has said there was a real risk in late 2022 that Russia could use nuclear weapons against Ukraine. In autumn 2022, the US was so concerned about the possible use of tactical nuclear weapons by Russia that it warned Putin over the consequences of using such weapons, Burns has said. At the same time, the Chinese leader Xi Jinping also warned Putin not to resort to nuclear weapons. Putin signed a revamped version of Russia's nuclear doctrine in November 2024, spelling out the circumstances that allow him to use Moscow's atomic arsenal, the world's largest. That version lowered the bar, giving him the option of using nuclear weapons in response to even a conventional attack backed by a nuclear power. The US president, Donald Trump, has said he wants to end the conflict via diplomatic means, raising the question of whether Putin was willing to negotiate a peace settlement. But the Kremlin has rejected calls by Kyiv and Washington for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire. Putin, in February 2022, ordered tens of thousands of Russian troops to invade Ukraine. Moscow's forces now control about 20% of Ukraine, including parts of the south and east. In the carefully choreographed state television film, Putin was shown in his private Kremlin kitchen offering chocolates and a fermented Russian milk drink to the Kremlin correspondent, Pavel Zarubin. Sign up to This is Europe The most pressing stories and debates for Europeans – from identity to economics to the environment after newsletter promotion Putin, a former KGB lieutenant colonel who was handed the presidency on the last day of 1999 by an ailing Boris Yeltsin, is the longest serving Kremlin leader since Joseph Stalin, who ruled for 29 years until his death in 1953. Reuters and Associated Press contributed to this report
The Guardian
29-04-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Malta's ‘golden passport' scheme ruled to be illegal by EU's top court
The European court of justice has ruled that Malta's 'golden passport' scheme is illegal, meaning its cash-for-citizenship programme must be scrapped. In a long-awaited ruling on Tuesday, the EU's top court concluded that Malta's investor citizenship scheme was contrary to EU law. Judges said the scheme represented a 'commercialisation of the grant of the nationality of a member state' and by extension EU citizenship, which was at odds with European law. Malta had jeopardised the mutual trust between EU member states necessary to create an area without internal borders, the court argued. The judges examined a 2020 scheme that allowed people who had given up to €750,000 to Malta and – in theory – spent 12 months in the country to gain citizenship. With a Maltese passport, the person gained EU citizenship and the freedom to live and work anywhere in the union. The scheme, which had its origins in a 2013 law, has long been criticised by transparency campaigners, who said it opened the door to money laundering, corruption and security risks. In 2021 a Guardian investigation found that multimillionaires with minimal genuine links to Malta were being granted citizenship, sometimes spending only three weeks in the country. A cache of emails from the Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation shared with international media revealed that many people claiming to be residents left their Maltese rental properties empty. The European Commission launched legal proceedings against Malta and Cyprus in October 2020 for selling 'EU citizenship'. Cyprus announced it was closing its scheme shortly before the case was launched, but Malta's government was defiant. In submissions to the court it argued it had exclusive competence to grant nationality, so was entitled to run the scheme. Responding to the ruling, Malta's government said it was studying the legal implications, 'so that the regulatory framework on citizenship can then be brought in line with the principles outlined in the judgment'. But it also touted the benefits of the scheme, saying it had generated more than €1.4bn in revenues for the government since 2015. In a Facebook post, the former prime minister Joseph Muscat claimed the verdict was a political judgment. Muscat was the prime minister when the golden passport scheme was introduced. He resigned in 2020 in response to widespread anger over his perceived attempts – which he denies – to protect allies from an investigation into the 2017 murder of the journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia. Golden passport schemes sprang up across Europe as cash-strapped governments looked to raise money after the financial crisis. The British government announced in February 2022 that it was scrapping the UK's 'tier 1 investor visa' amid corruption and national security concerns and worsening relations with Russia. In contrast, Donald Trump announced in February he planned to launch a 'gold card' visa, a $5m residency permit for wealthy foreigners. Sign up to This is Europe The most pressing stories and debates for Europeans – from identity to economics to the environment after newsletter promotion Matthew Caruana Galizia, the director of the foundation that works to secure his mother's public interest legacy, described the court judgment as 'a win for the people of Malta and for all EU residents who have been unfairly exposed to the whims of money launderers and corrupt criminals buying their way into the EU'. He urged the government 'to abolish its citizenship-by-investment programme without delay'. A European Commission spokesperson welcomed the court decision and called on Malta to implement the judgment: 'European citizenship is not for sale,' the spokesperson said. 'Investor citizenship schemes breach EU law and as such should be abolished by all member states.'
The Guardian
28-04-2025
- Automotive
- The Guardian
EU microchip strategy ‘deeply disconnected from reality' say official auditors
The EU's strategy to secure its own supply of microchips is 'deeply disconnected from reality', a damning report by the official European court of auditors (ECA) has found. The ECA found the bloc was 'very unlikely' to meet its target of supplying 20% of the world's microchips at a time when global demand for semiconductors is booming to meet the growing needs of defence, green tech and artificial intelligence. With Donald Trump threatening to impose tariffs on chips imported to the US, there is also potential for 'collapse of supply chains', the ECA said, making the EU more vulnerable, despite tech multinationals such as California's Intel and South Korea's Samsung having bases in Europe. 'The EU urgently needs a reality check in its strategy for the microchips sector,' said Annemie Turtelboom, who was in charge of the ECA audit. A European Commission paper in 2022 set out the bloc's ambition to take a 20% share of the chip market, a share reflecting the percentage of global end users located in Europe. However, the ECA's report found that target was 'essentially aspirational' with investment goals hindered by the bloc's 'financial muscle' being too fragmented across different schemes and tax regimes. 'We are making promises that are deeply disconnected from reality,' Turtelboom told reporters at the launch of the report. 'We are competing in a global race, but from the back of the field, and it is unclear whether we have the means to be successful in this race[or the] competencies to support the industry, and the funding we have available is fragmented and scattered.' Microchip shortages can cause huge problems for industry. The report noted that in the pandemic's wake, a lack of microchips for German carmakers caused production to collapse to 1975 levels. 'They are present in everything, and are becoming only more so with time,' Turtelboom said. 'In a modern car, there are around 1,500 microchips. By 2030, this number is expected to rise to 3,000.' Brussels announced a Chips Act in 2022 to reduce the EU's reliance on foreign states for supplies of critical components. The resulting regulation came into force in 2023. 'Is it worrying? We know that other continents, China, the US, Taiwan and South Korea, they are not sitting still,' Turtelboom added. China is expected to overtake Taiwan as the world's biggest manufacturer of chips in 2030 with 22% of the market, according to the ECA. The EU is forecast to to manufacture just 8% on its own soil by then, and would have to quadruple its production capacity to meet a 20% target. The ECA found that the Chips Act did provide 'new impetus' to manufacturing, and that the funding provided by the European Commission was aligned to the bloc's strategy. Sign up to This is Europe The most pressing stories and debates for Europeans – from identity to economics to the environment after newsletter promotion However, it said that the Act was 'prepared in urgency' and the Commission had no mandate to coordinate national investments and all funding streams. It added that tax breaks needed to be closely monitored with a view to increasing investment. The EU's ambition when the Chips Act came into force was to mobilise €86bn (£73bn) in investment by 2030, but this is eclipsed by the sums being spent by the likes of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), Samsung and Intel. These top players budgeted $425bn (£361) for investment in just three years between 2020 and 2023 and only one, TSMC, had significant plans to invest in the EU. Intel, which already has manufacturing facilities in Ireland, had planned to pour €30bn into a mega plant in Magdeburg, Germany, with backing of almost €10bn from the German government, but postponed construction last September. The postponement was a major blow to the EU that highlighted the effects of the sector being concentrated in so few hands. 'There are a limited amount of players who receive a lot of funding, which means if one project drops, it has a huge impact on the 20% targets,' Turtleboom said. A European Commission spokesperson said the Chips Act had catalysed funding of €80bn and 'laid a strong foundation in consolidating Europe's position in the global semiconductor market after two decades of decline, and put Europe back on the path of growth'.
