The Pigeon Express
The European Commission has urged countries across the bloc to cut their gas use by 15% from August to March amid fears Russia could halt supplies. It says the target is voluntary but will become legally binding if Moscow turns off the taps this summer. The key Nord Stream 1 pipeline from Russia to Germany […]
Thousands of firefighters are battling wildfires in Portugal, Spain and southwestern France, in the grip of a heatwave that shows no sign of easing. In northern Portugal, a pilot died when his waterbombing plane crashed in the Foz Coa area, near the Spanish border. Fires are ravaging areas of France’s Gironde region, where more than […]
For the first time in 20 years, the exchange rate between the euro and the US dollar has reached parity, meaning the two currencies are worth the same. The euro hit $1 on Tuesday, down about 12% since the start of the year. Fears of recession on the continent abound, stoked by high inflation and […]
Thousands of leaked files have exposed how Uber courted top politicians, and how far it went to avoid justice. They detail the extensive help Uber got from leaders such as Emmanuel Macron and ex-EU commissioner Neelie Kroes. They also show how the taxi firm’s former boss personally ordered the use of a “kill switch” to […]
The European Union has provisionally agreed new portable electronic devices must, by autumn 2024, use a USB Type-C charger. Apple products such as iPhones and iPads will have to conform to the new regulation, as will, eventually laptop computers. Existing devices will be exempt. The agreement will be brought before the European Parliament and the […]
The European Commission has accused Apple of abusing its market position for contactless smartphone payments. In a preliminary finding, it said the US company may have broken competition law by preventing rivals from accessing its “tap and go” technology. Apple denies the charge and has promised to engage with the Commission. If the charges are […]
About 59 percent of adults in Europe are overweight or obese, according to the 2022 Regional Obesity Report presented by the World Health Organization (WHO). The data gathered in the WHO European region and presented on Tuesday said the problem affects more men than women, with 63 percent of men carrying excessive weight compared with […]
European Union’s top lawmakers have issued a warning to Elon Musk over his takeover of Twitter. Twitter agreed to Elon Musk’s offer to buy it for $44 billion on Monday. The billionaire has publicly stated his interest in buying the social media platform is rooted in his idea of “free speech.” Musk has previously described […]
Ukraine has praised the courage of three European leaders who made a long, hazardous journey by rail from Poland to Kyiv in a show of support as the city came under further Russian attack. The prime ministers of Poland, Slovenia and the Czech Republic met Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday evening as a curfew […]
Russian President Vladimir Putin sent his troops into Ukraine to display his might and most importantly stop Ukraine from taking NATO membership. However, Russia’s assault on it’s neighbor has made more countries think about aligning with NATO. Nearby Finland and Sweden are rethinking their long-standing positions of military neutrality, with a majority of voters now […]
The second round of talks between Russia and Ukraine are scheduled for Wednesday, Russian news agency TASS has reported. The talks follow the first round on Monday, which lasted 5 hours but resulted in no agreements to end fighting. TASS reported Ukrainian media outlet, Glavkom, disclosed the terms proposed by the two countries during the […]
The European Union imposed a blanket flight ban on Russian planes, the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has announced. “We are shutting down EU airspace for Russian-owned, Russian-registered or Russian-controlled aircraft,” she said. All such planes, including the private jets of oligarchs, will now be unable to land in, take off […]