Europe

The European Parliament’s approval on December 16, 2025, of final amendments watering down the European Union’s flagship corporate accountability law severely undermines the EU’s ability to hold businesses accountable for human rights and environmental harms, Human Rights Watch said today.

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cross-posted from : https://lemmy.zip/post/55112131

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/55112019

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Washington pushes for concessions from London on the broader trade relationship.

European producers of inverters, crucial components for connecting solar panels to the grid, are teaming up outside established European industry lobbying structures in a new challenge to China’s tightening grip on the supply chain.

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Just as Russian President Vladimir Putin was clear about his intentions toward Ukraine, Chinese President Xi Jinping has left no doubt about his plans for Taiwan. The only way to deter him from pursuing “reunification” with the island is to make clear that the costs of doing so will be punishing.

The EU executive appears to have yielded to the call from carmakers to be allowed to keep selling plug-in hybrids and range extenders with CO2-neutral biofuel or synthetic fuel

“The UK government wants technology companies to block explicit images on phones and computers by default to protect children, with adults having to verify their age to create and access such content,” the FT report said. “Ministers want the likes of Apple and Google to incorporate nudity-detection algorithms into their device operating systems to prevent users taking photos or sharing images of genitalia unless they are verified as adults.”

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For our users in Europe, we’d like to remind you that you always have the ability to delete your Google account, which will terminate your contract with us. Please be aware that deleting your Google account will result in deletion of all data and content in that account, like emails, files and photos. You also won’t be able to use Google services where you sign in with that account, like Gmail, Drive, Calendar, or Play.

Carmakers will be allowed to make a limited number of petrol and diesel-fuelled cars after deadline

There is more than a little irony in the fact that Ukrainians are bleeding and dying for Western democracy and the European Union at a time when so many are losing faith in both. But they are – and they have shown that they can win.

Americans seem determined to bring our old ways back 🤔

Bloc’s justice commissioner says action needed to protect consumers from products sold on platforms such as Shein.

Once a model for the world, the EU’s rulemaking machine has faltered under the weight of its own ambition.

International human rights groups have condemned the re-arrest of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi in Iran, with the Nobel committee calling on Iranian authorities to immediately clarify her whereabouts.

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“Almost 6,700 American nationals had applied for a visa to work, be with family or study in the Netherlands by the end of November this year, according to immigration service figures, and that is by far the highest number in the past 10 years.

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A demonstration in the Hungarian capital Budapest Saturday drew tens of thousands of protesters demanding that Prime Minister Viktor Orban resign due to perceived inaction over allegations of child abuse in state-run institutions.

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Automakers, including Mercedes-Benz and BMW, have urged the EU to weaken the policy, amid slower-than-expected electric car sales. Sweden’s Volvo Cars and others say they have already heavily invested in the transition to electric, and any reversal on the ban would be a betrayal.

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"Switzerland must be able to defend itself as effectively as possible against an armed attack. In the event of an attack, it should be prepared to defend itself, if necessary in collaboration with its partners"

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An interpreter broke down in tears at the European Parliament in Brussels while translating for an 11-year-old Ukrainian boy who was injured in a Russian missile strike on a hospital in central Ukraine in 2022.

Farmers in southwest France blocked major roads overnight from Friday to Saturday, setting fire to hay bales and clashing with police in protest at government‑ordered cattle culls linked to an outbreak of lumpy skin disease.

the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) has warned that plans to grant a ten-year exemption from updating essential safety regulations for a new class of “Made in Europe” small electric cars will put pedestrians, cyclists, and vehicle occupants at risk.

The Hungarian government has launched a residential energy storage program with a budget of HUF 100 billion. Under the initiative, households can install 10 kW battery energy storage systems, with a non-refundable subsidy of HUF 2.5 million to support the purchase.

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The British government threatened to defund the international criminal court and leave the Rome statute that set it up if it pressed ahead with plans to issue an arrest warrant against Benjamin Netanyahu, the ICC’s prosecutor, has claimed.

“Only a more federal Europe can cope with these challenges, ensuring the respect of our fundamental values and rights.(..) To this end, we support the creation of a renewed cross-partisan and inter-institutional pro-European coalition encompassing the most committed Member States in the European Council, the pro-European majority in the European and National Parliaments, the European Commission, and regional and local institutions, over and above the particular inertias of each institution, and the pro-European organized civil society. We call on them all to mobilize locally, nationally, and transnationally to support these requests for a more sovereign and democratic Union.”

Romania is on NATO’s eastern flank, and it is feeling the heat from drone incursions attributed to Russia, and from the Trump administration’s strategic shift away from Europe. We speak to Romanian President Nicușor Dan about how his country is faring with these headwinds, and also about tough economic reforms that have put pressure on his fragile coalition government.

The premier of Bavaria, who is also the leader of the conservative Christian Social Union (CSU), has called on his party and democratic parties as a whole to unite in a common fight against threats from both domestic and foreign sources.

European Union finance ministers agreed on Friday to set a 3 euro ($3.52) customs duty on low-value parcels arriving in the bloc, part of efforts to crack down on cheap Chinese e-commerce imports such as from online retailers Shein and Temu.

The German Foreign Office said Friday it summoned the Russian ambassador, Sergei Nechayev, over allegations of repeated hybrid attacks on Germany.

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The Koralm railway connects the Austrian cities of Graz and Klagenfurt. It is 126 km long and designed for a maximum speed of 250 km/h. Centerpiece is the 33 km long Koralmtunnel. It has two tunnels, which are covered by the Koralpe mountain range at a height of up to 1,200 meters. Construction started in 1999 and the line will open on 14. December 2025.

The cargo ships involved are the “Lauga”, “HAV Dolphin” and “HAV Snapper”. The vessels were caught with drones circling over them and showing most unusual movements.

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The winner of last year’s Eurovision Song Contest, Nemo, has said they are returning their trophy in protest over Israel’s continued participation in the event.

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Belgium already confirmed their participation