TAG: Exclusive
Don’t bring a plastic bottle to the Olympics — unless you’re Coca-Cola
The French would call it deux poids, deux mesures — literally, “two weights, two scales” — or a double standard, for us anglophones. At the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games, you won’t be able to bring in plastic bottles. But Coca-Cola, which has exclusi...
2 months ago
Britain’s luxury carmakers fear Chinese trade war
LONDON — Britain’s big political parties all say they're worried about Chinese electric vehicles flooding the U.K. market. But the last thing high-end carmakers say they want is a trade war.One of the country’s leading luxury automakers fears it could bec...
2 months ago
Huge lithium-mining protest triggers crisis meeting in Serbia
A massive protest in Serbia against a lithium-mining project prompted President Aleksandar Vučić to call a government crisis meeting in the early hours of Sunday.Tens of thousands of protesters marched through the capital of Belgrade on Saturday to demons...
2 months ago
Greece targets regional funding post in next European Commission
Greece wants its next European commissioner to take charge of EU regional economic policy ― and is confident of getting it.The job, known in EU jargon as "cohesion" policy, will be one of the most significant in the incoming European Commission because t...
1 month ago
Eurozone ministers’ meeting in doubt over Hungary’s approach to Putin
BRUSSELS ― A meeting of eurozone finance ministers in Budapest next month could be canceled over mounting anger at Hungary's love-in with Russia. The head of the gathering, Irish Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe, will decide by next week whethe...
1 month ago
Draghi to present EU competitiveness report to senior lawmakers next week
BRUSSELS ― Former European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi is to present his landmark report on EU competitiveness in private to European Parliament political groups on Wednesday, several officials told POLITICO.Draghi was asked last year by Commission Pr...
1 month ago
Defense firms need full access to EU cash as Putin haunts Europe, Draghi says
European defense firms must not fear red tape as they ramp up weapons production, according to a new report seen exclusively by POLITICO.As Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine continues with knock-on effects for European security, the Continent's defe...
1 month ago
The secretive €6M EU lobby group paying for lawmakers to stay in fancy hotels
LONDON ― An opaque self-styled "think tank" that offers businesses access to EU politicians and regulators has raked in almost €6 million in fees from the finance industry, POLITICO can reveal, fueling concerns about lack of transparency and cash-for-infl...
1 month ago
Czeching in — Jozef Síkela’s star rises in EU jobs race
BRUSSELS — The frontrunner for the trade portfolio in the next European Commission is now Czech nominee Jozef Síkela, instead of Dutch commissioner Wopke Hoekstra, an EU diplomat and an official told POLITICO. “The Czech Republic has aimed for a strong ec...
1 month ago
European governments criticize IMF trip to Russia as ‘propaganda win’ for Putin
BRUSSELS ― The International Monetary Fund’s upcoming trip to Russia will be used as propaganda by the Kremlin, a group of pro-Ukraine European governments wrote in a letter to the head of the institution.Ukraine’s backers argue that by visiting Russia, t...
1 month ago
West funding Putin’s soldiers with growing Russian fuel purchases, report warns
Western allies bought roughly $2 billion in fuel made from Russian oil in the first half of 2024, using a sanctions loophole that enables Moscow to pay its soldiers in Ukraine, an upcoming report seen by POLITICO has found. The analysis, set to be unveile...
4 weeks ago
EU aims to butter up Keir Starmer with revamp of youth mobility scheme for Brits
LONDON — The EU could modify its plan for a youth mobility scheme with the U.K. to make the idea more politically palatable to Keir Starmer, under an approach being discussed in Brussels.Changes to the original blueprint presented by the European Commissi...
2 weeks ago
The EU’s plan to make housing more affordable
BRUSSELS — The European Commission wants to make housing more affordable by squeezing more cash out of European Union funding programs and revising rules, according to a draft policy document seen by POLITICO.Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has...
1 week ago
Ukraine appeals for EU help, fearing Russian nuclear plant strikes
Ukraine warned the European Union last month it needed imminent help protecting nuclear plants from a potential Russian assault that could strand the country in frigid darkness and cause “catastrophic consequences” across Europe.In a letter sent to EU en...
5 days ago