All posts tagged: Baltics

Trump’s rage at NATO allies is binding them together — against him  – POLITICO

Trump’s rage at NATO allies is binding them together — against him  – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Nordic table talk In Helsinki last week, 10 European leaders met for a private dinner without their officials and aides in the intimate surroundings of the Mannerheim Museum, the home of Finland’s World War II leader Gustaf Mannerheim.  Amid the 1940s interiors, decorated with the former president’s hunting trophies, the leaders of countries including the U.K, Sweden, Finland and Norway held a frank discussion about the dire state of the transatlantic alliance. Trump’s stream of invective via social media is bad and getting worse, they all agreed.  But they resolved they couldn’t consent to the U.S. president’s demands to join the fighting against Iran.  Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez speaks with Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni during a working dinner on Oct. 23, 2025. | Pool photo by François Walschaerts via AFP/Getty Images “We all want the war to end but we are not on the same page as the U.S.,” said one official briefed on the discussions. Trump wants NATO to help, but the leaders remain resistant because “most Europeans were not informed beforehand …

Starmer gives green light for UK forces to intercept Putin’s shadow fleet – POLITICO

Starmer gives green light for UK forces to intercept Putin’s shadow fleet – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

British efforts to counter the rogue vessels have so far mostly focused on tracking, monitoring and providing intelligence to allies. But Downing Street announced the U.K. would be able to lead more active operations, as Starmer travels to Finland for a meeting of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) on Thursday. Starmer stressed ahead of the trip that Ukraine’s allies need to be even more vigilant about policing sanctions against Russia in light of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. He said in a statement: “Putin is rubbing his hands at the war in the Middle East because he thinks higher oil prices will let him line his pockets. That’s why we’re going after his shadow fleet even harder, not just keeping Britain safe but starving Putin’s war machine of the dirty profits that fund his barbaric campaign in Ukraine.” Several JEF members – including Finland, Sweden and Estonia – have already conducted actions against suspected shadow fleet ships in the Baltic Sea, targeting what they see as a growing sanctions-evasion network operating on their doorstep. By extending similar powers …

Europe’s plan to keep Ukraine afloat — even if Hungary keeps blocking €90B loan – POLITICO

Europe’s plan to keep Ukraine afloat — even if Hungary keeps blocking €90B loan – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Ukraine has money until May Kyiv’s funding needs have eased after the International Monetary Fund approved an $8.1 billion loan late last month, disbursing $1.5 billion straight away. The country should have enough money to stay solvent until early May, four people familiar with Kyiv’s finances told POLITICO. Previous EU estimates had indicated Kyiv would go broke at the end of March, putting it at a major disadvantage against Russian forces and amid ongoing U.S.-led peace talks, and therefore increasing the urgency of the €90 billion EU lifeline. The loan seemed locked in until late January, when a Russian drone attack damaged the Druzhba pipeline, which transports Russian oil across Ukraine to Hungary and Slovakia. Budapest and Bratislava are exempt from EU sanctions on Russian oil. Orbán accused Ukraine of intentionally delaying repairs to the pipeline for political reasons, and reneged on the commitment he made at the December summit to wave the Ukraine loan through. The Hungarian leader also blocked the EU’s 20th sanctions package against Russia, which requires unanimous support from all 27 …

France to bolster military presence in the Middle East – POLITICO

France to bolster military presence in the Middle East – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

PARIS — France will bolster its military presence in the Middle East after an Iranian counterattack hit a French naval base in the region. French President Emmanuel Macron, speaking ahead of an emergency security and defense council Sunday evening, said France will “strengthen its [military] position and defensive support to stand alongside those with whom we have defense treaties and be able to adapt our stance to the developments of the last few hours.” Paris said Saturday it was not informed about or involved in the American and Israeli strikes on Iran. Macron initially called for diplomacy to resume — but his tone shifted after two Iranian drones hit a French naval base in the United Arab Emirates on Sunday. Source link

Belgium seizes suspected Russian shadow fleet vessel – POLITICO

Belgium seizes suspected Russian shadow fleet vessel – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Prime Minister Bart De Wever congratulated Belgium’s armed forces for “last night’s successful operation” and thanked France for its assistance. “Belgium will uphold international maritime law and the security of its territorial waters,” De Wever added in a post on X. Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot said in a separate post that the operation “was carried out within the International Task Force on the Shadow Fleet, alongside our G7, Nordic and Baltic partners.” The EU has struggled to stop Russia from exporting oil with the shadow fleet. As of December, it had designated about 600 vessels as part of the fleet. Source link

Far-right leader Bardella criticizes Macron’s pan-European nuclear push – POLITICO

Far-right leader Bardella criticizes Macron’s pan-European nuclear push – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Bardella acknowledged that France’s nuclear doctrine has always foreseen that the country’s vital interests do not stop at the French borders. “When it comes to nuclear power, I defend principles, and those principles are that there can be no sharing, no co-financing, and no co-decision-making on the nuclear button,” Bardella also said. The Elysée Palace has always stressed that any decision to launch a nuclear weapon would remain with the French president. The National Rally, historically skeptical of engagement with both NATO and the EU, is leading early polls for next year’s pivotal presidential election. If longtime leader Marine Le Pen’s appeal to shorten or overturn her five-year election ban related to embezzlement charges is unsuccessful, the 30-year-old Bardella will likely run in her place. Bardella’s remarks come a few days ahead of a landmark speech Macron is set to deliver on how France’s nuclear weapons can contribute to Europe’s security. Paris has been in talks with European capitals such as Berlin, Stockholm and Warsaw over how French nukes could help the continent deter Russian …

The conversation on European nukes is heating up in Munich – POLITICO

The conversation on European nukes is heating up in Munich – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Estonia isn’t ruling out joining early-stage talks on a common nuclear deterrent in Europe, Deputy Defense Minister Tuuli Duneton said in an interview. “We are always open to discuss” with partners, she said, while emphasizing the U.S. was still “committed to providing nuclear deterrence for allied nations.” Latvia’s Prime Minister Evika Siliņa echoed that. “Nuclear deterrence can give us new opportunities. Why not?” she said, while cautioning that any steps would have to be in compliance with “our international commitments.” Trump has questioned NATO’s common defense Article 5 provision, ridiculed allied contributions to the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan and repeatedly called for annexing Greenland, part of NATO-member Denmark. That’s leading Europe to hunt for what officials call another layer of “insurance” against Moscow. Evika Silina, Prime Minister of Latvia, at the Munich Security Conference. | Felix Hörhager/Picture Alliance via Getty Images In practice, that means turning to France and the U.K. — Europe’s only nuclear powers. Unlike London, Paris is not part of NATO’s Nuclear Planning Group, which discusses the use of nuclear force through …

After years of resistance, leaders finally say EU should go at different speeds  – POLITICO

After years of resistance, leaders finally say EU should go at different speeds  – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

With the bloc buffeted by multiple geopolitical crises, it’s starting to realize that it can’t come to grips with them if it only acts when all 27 member countries agree. From defense to energy to investment, the European Commission, which makes the rules, and national governments, which are supposed to implement them, are finding themselves hamstrung. Meanwhile, businesses talk of being strangled by red tape and high energy costs.  Donald Trump’s threats to seize Greenland and his wavering on helping Ukraine fend off Russia, combined with China’s strategy of flooding Europe with artificially cheap goods, have provided an impetus to the EU’s most senior decision-makers to finally get moving. Thursday’s summit of EU leaders — only 15 kilometers from the Dutch city of Maastricht, where one of the most significant treaties underpinning the bloc was signed in 1992 — occasioned some “strategic brainstorming” on how to “promote our prosperity, create high quality jobs and ensure affordability,” European Council President António Costa said. “Today’s discussion brought a new energy and shared sense of urgency around that objective,” he …

Swedish deputy PM: European leaders must ‘toughen up,’ stop waiting for Brussels, US

Swedish deputy PM: European leaders must ‘toughen up,’ stop waiting for Brussels, US

Published by Sam Flores

European leaders must “toughen up” and lead the continent, rather than wait for direction from the U.S. or even the EU institutions, Sweden’s Deputy Prime Minister Ebba Busch said. In an interview with the EU Confidential podcast on the eve of the Munich Security Conference, Busch, who leads the Christian Democrats in Sweden’s center-right coalition government, added: “Europe has to be saved from itself” by becoming more agile and not being slowed down by an increasingly powerful bureaucracy. She said that instead, European leaders need to “toughen up and need to stop waiting for the Commission to take a lead” on deregulation, competitiveness and promoting energy security through new nuclear energy. Despite expressing her admiration for European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Busch had strong words of criticism for the EU institutions. “The European Union was built for stability, not for speed,” she said. “We need to make sure that we are building strong democracies and not very large bureaucracies,” she added, because the latter are eroding the bloc’s public legitimacy. “That’s why we …

This was the moment EU leaders agreed Europe must go it alone

This was the moment EU leaders agreed Europe must go it alone

Published by Sam Flores

BRUSSELS ― There’s no turning back now. That was the message from European leaders who gathered in Brussels on Thursday. And even though this emergency summit, called in response to Donald Trump’s threats to seize Greenland, turned into something far less dramatic because the U.S. president backed down 24 hours earlier, the quiet realization that Europe’s post-1945 rubicon had been crossed was, if anything, all the more striking for it. French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, the EU’s two most powerful leaders, who haven’t seen eye-to-eye of late, were united in warning that the transatlantic crisis had catapulted the bloc into a harsh new reality — one in which it must embrace independence. “We know we have to work as an independent Europe,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters at the end of the five-hour gathering. And while, in contrast to recent EU summits, there was no tub-thumping or quarrels or even any decisions to be made, the gathering quietly signaled a tacit understanding, according to four EU diplomats …