Ursula von der Leyen

Peace plan fine-tuned, will send envoys to Kyiv & Moscow: Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump said Tuesday his plan to end the war in Ukraine has been “fine-tuned” and he’s sending envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and army secretary Dan Driscoll to meet with Ukrainian officials. He suggested he could eventually meet with Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, but not […]

EU chief urges bloc members to sanction Russia’s LNG exports

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen BRUSSELS: The European Union should slap new sanctions on Russia’s exports of liquefied natural gas, its shadow fleet of aging oil tankers and major energy companies over its war on Ukraine, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Friday. “It is time to turn off the […]

‘Blatant interference by Russia’: EU chief’s plane hit by GPS jamming; lands safely in Bulgaria

The European Union on Monday said that a plane carrying EU chief Ursula von der Leyen was hit by suspected Russian GPS jamming while preparing to land in Bulgaria on Sunday.The Bulgarian authorities suspected that the disruption “was due to blatant interference” from Moscow but it was unclear if the chartered flight was deliberately targeted.Speaking […]

EU-US trade talks: European bloc halts tariff retaliation after Trump deal; pause expected to last six months

US President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (Photo: AP) In a major step towards easing trade tensions, the European Union announced on Tuesday that it will suspend its planned retaliatory tariffs on US goods worth 93 billion euros ($107 billion).The move follows a deal struck last month between US President […]

‘Only got 99.9% of what he asked’: Vance hails Trump for EU-US deal; slams American media for downplaying it

US vice president JD Vance praised Donald Trump for securing a major trade agreement with the European Union, saying European media outlets are applauding the deal. “The entire European press is singing the president’s praises right now, amazed at the deal he negotiated on behalf of Americans,” Vance said wrote on Sunday (local time) on […]

Trump’s 50% tariff threat looms: EU considers temporary trade deal with US; Von der Leyen pushes for ‘agreement in principle’

Donald Trump (left), Ursula von der Leyen (AP) The European Union is considering a temporary trade agreement with the United States that would maintain a 10 percent tariff on most exports, according to a briefing by the European Commission to EU ambassadors on Friday, reported news portal Politico.The update came after a key round of […]

EU chief pushes for diplomatic solution to Israel-Iran crisis in call with Netanyahu

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called for a diplomatic solution to address Iran’s nuclear threat during a telephone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, while supporting Israel’s right to self-defense.Speaking at a G7 summit in Kananaskis, Canada, von der Leyen emphasised that a negotiated solution would be “the best […]

‘Privileged to do so’: Donald Trump delays 50% tariff on EU goods to make room for talks

US President Donald Trump (Pic credit: AP) US President Donald Trump on Sunday announced a delay in implementing a proposed 50 per cent tariff on goods from the European Union, pushing the deadline from June 1 to July 9 in a bid to give trade negotiations with the bloc more time.The decision followed a phone […]

EU and UK wrangle to last in push for defence pact reset | World News

BRUSSELS: The EU and Britain look will haggle to the wire over fishing rights and food checks as they seek a deal on closer defence ties at a landmark post-Brexit summit next week. The meeting in London on Monday between UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and the EU’s top officials was planned to bring the […]

Hungary’s Viktor Orban targets Ukraine, as opposition grows

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban (AP) The video clip shows investigators, fingerprints, crime scene photos, a drug lab and bullet casings, then the head of a black wolf looking maliciously into the camera. A man speaks in a deep, menacing voice: “Drug and arms trafficking is the specialty of the Ukrainian mafia.Their mercilessness is notorious […]