WASHINGTON: NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte sought to calm tensions with President Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday, using a mix ​of flattery and gentle pushback to argue that instances of allies’ reluctance to support the US war with Iran were limited to “isolated cases.” The NATO ch»»»

The efforts to bring the war in Ukraine to an end have stalled in the face of an escalating exchange of drone and missiles and the stalemated EU efforts to mediate. Diplomatically, both sides insist they remain open to negotiations. Militarily, however, they are escalating the conflict with mutual »»»

European leaders met Wednesday in Berlin ahead of next month's NATO summit in Ankarai to discuss European defence and security guarantees for Ukraine, following tensions with the United States and among the main European members. European leaders reaffirmed on Wednesday ⁠their commitment to ​a stro»»»

NEW YORK: “When I’m talking about them, I’m counting those numbers, reciting the numbers in the council. I have images of children in my mind,” Vanessa Frazier, the UN special representative for children and armed conflict, told Arab News, describing how she carries the toll of her own report — 38,»»»

Germany has pulled the plug on its largest naval shipbuilding project since the end of WWII, scrapping plans for a fleet of six F126 frigates first ordered under then-Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen. The plans to axe the project were first reported by Der Spiegel on Tuesday, which said the pr»»»

A framework agreement between Washington and Tehran has already pulled oil prices lower, but Erste Group's quarterly outlook warns the inflationary scar tissue from the conflict will outlast the crisis itself across the eurozone, the US and emerging markets alike. The third quarter of 2026 looks se»»»

Below is the text of an article by Russia’s veteran Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that was originally planned to be published in the Brussels-based Politico-Europe outlet, but according to reports was pulled at the last minute by editors. The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs subsequently publis»»»

DOHA: Curacao and Cote d'Ivoire will battle for a place in the FIFA World Cup 2026 knockout stages when they meet in their final Group E fixture at Philadelphia Stadium on Thursday. The match, scheduled for 11:00pm (Qatar time), could prove decisive in determining which teams advance from a competi»»»

A passenger walks on a railway platform in 2018 in Frankfort, Germany. The country's railway system is recovering after a nationwide outage late Tuesday that left travelers stranded for hours. Photo by Armando Babani/EPA-EFE June 24 (UPI) -- Deutsche Bahn, Germany's government-owned rail system ope»»»

BusinessGermanyGerman rail service resumes after nationwide breakdownWesley Rahn | Roshni Majumdar | Wesley Dockery with Reuters, AFP, AP, dpaGerman rail operator, Deutsche Bahn, said a communications system glitch brought nearly the entire network to a standstill for two hours. https://p.dw.com/p/»»»

A young man jumps from a bridge to cool off in the Canal Saint-Martin, in Paris, France, Saturday. An intense heatwave is gripping Western and Central Europe, breaking records around the continent. Photo by Yoan Valat/EPA June 24 (UPI) -- Massive power outages have put extra strain on France during»»»

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte is set to hold talks with US President Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday, aiming to mollify the volatile US leader two weeks before the annual summit of the military alliance and as the Pentagon reviews the size of the US military footprint in Europe. NA»»»

Vladimir Zelensky will skip a major gathering of Kiev’s key backers in Poland to keep it free of “scandals,” the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has said. His absence is linked to Kiev’s honoring of Nazi-collaborators who murdered over 100,000 Polish men, women, and children during World War II. Tension»»»

Tunis, June 23, 2026 (TAP) – In an exclusive op-ed published on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Arab-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Ghorfa), Minister of Foreign Affairs, Migration and Tunisians Abroad Mohamed Ali Nafti called...»»»

PARIS: Cracked bones, humiliation, sexual assault: Pro-Palestinian activists recounted the abuse they say they suffered from Israeli authorities for taking part in a Gaza-bound aid flotilla last month, which has sparked multiple investigations and international outcry. France, Italy and Australia h»»»

Berlin: French Open champion Mirra Andreeva fell in her first match since her Roland Garros victory, losing 6-3, 6-4 to Ekaterina Alexandrova at Bad Homburg, Germany on Wednesday. World number five Andreeva, playing her first match on grass in 2026, pulled out of last week's Berlin Open on the surf»»»

BERLIN: German police carried out searches Wednesday as part of an investigation into suspicions that Russia’s sale of Gazprom’s Berlin-based subsidiary was intended to sabotage Germany’s gas supply. The probe focuses on the weeks after Russia’s February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, when th»»»

BELGRADE - Serbian Defence Minister Bratislav Gasic on Wednesday congratulated Serbian Armed Forces officers who are to assume the duties of Serbian defence attaches in Algeria, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Germany, Romania and the UK, and noted that the responsible and honourable duties required a hig»»»

LONDON: Syria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani met his Dutch counterpart, Tom Berendsen, in Damascus on Wednesday. The ministers discussed ways to boost cooperation between the two countries, the Syrian Arab News Agency reported. The visit was Berendsen’s first»»»

French Resistance fighter and pioneering historian Marc Bloch entered France's Pantheon on Tuesday, becoming the first historian to receive one of the nation's highest honours. The ceremony comes amid renewed political debate over his anti-nationalist legacy less than a year before France's preside»»»

In a bold statement, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly outlined Egypt’s ambitious targets to attract over $20 billion in Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) annually and elevate exports to more than $140 billion by the year 2030. “This is an achievable dream,” Madbouly confidently remarked during a rec»»»

TAIPEI: The de facto ​British, French and German embassies in Taipei issued a joint statement ‌on Wednesday expressing ‌concern ​about ‌recent ⁠Chinese ​activities off ⁠the east coast of Taiwan, where China has mounted ⁠coast guard ‌patrols. “We ‌have ​noted ‌with concern ‌novel Chinese activity in»»»

TAIPEI: The de facto ​British, French and German embassies in Taipei issued a joint statement ‌on Wednesday expressing ‌concern ​about ‌recent ⁠Chinese ​activities off ⁠the east coast of Taiwan, where China has mounted ⁠coast guard ‌patrols. “We ‌have ​noted ‌with concern ‌novel Chinese activity in»»»

Sisak, Croatia: Spring brings flocks of noisy visitors to the sleepy Croatian village of Cigoc, outnumbering the locals, filling prime rooftop real estate and flying off again without spending a single cent. But for the locals, it's a good omen. For decades, villagers have welcomed dozens of white »»»

Doha, Qatar: Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) announced it will invest €432m as a cornerstone investor in RWE’s c. €4bn equity capital raise. RWE is Germany’s largest power generation company and one of the leading renewable and flexible energy companies globally. With this transaction, QIA will in»»»

Villages in northern France have been sweltering this week as temperatures broke through the 40°C in what is already clearly going to be the fourth hottest year in recorded history. At least 18 people reportedly died in France in the last week, including two children left in a hot car, after  »»»

BERLIN: All trains in Germany were “immobilized at stations” on Tuesday evening due to a breakdown in the railway radio communication systems, national rail operator Deutsche Bahn said. After decades of underinvestment which have led to trains often running late, Germany is trying to rapidly modern»»»

BusinessGermanyTrains resume after radio issue resolved, Deutsche Bahn saysRoshni Majumdar | Wesley Dockery with Reuters, AFP, AP, dpaA radio fault at the German rail network has now been solved and trains have resumed. https://p.dw.com/p/5FwpiDB trains frequently run into issues and are often unre»»»

All trains in Germany were "immobilised at stations" on Tuesday evening due to a breakdown in the railway radio communication systems, national state-run rail operator Deutsche Bahn said. After decades of underinvestment which have led to trains often running late, Germany is trying to rapidly mode»»»

BusinessGermanyDeutsche Bahn halts trains nationwide amid IT meltdownWesley Dockery with Reuters, AFP, AP, dpaTrains are being held back across Germany and travelers are staying in their seats amid the disruption. https://p.dw.com/p/5FwpiDB trains frequently run into issues and are often unreliable»»»

Two Afghan women wearing burkas buy gold in a jewelry shop in Herat, Afghanistan, in 2010. The European Commission met with Taliban officials Tuesday about deportation. File Photo by Hossein Fatemi/UPI | License Photo June 23 (UPI) -- The European Union and the Taliban met in Brussels on Tuesday to»»»

DUBAI: Instagram did not exist. Lionel Scaloni was still pulling on the Argentina shirt rather than coaching from the touchline. And Lionel Messi was a teenager scoring his first FIFA World Cup goal. Twenty years since his World Cup debut at the 2006 World Cup in Germany, Messi is still making hist»»»

BusinessEuropeEurope is spending billions to rearm, so why the delays?Srinivas MazumdaruEuropean countries have been trying to scale up their military capabilities, but their current defense production and procurement model is not fit for purpose, say experts. https://p.dw.com/p/5FoZ6Europe's defen»»»

BRUSSELS: The owner of ‌the Gazprom-controlled Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline is suing the European Union in the bloc's second-highest court, seeking to annul the EU's binding phase-out of gas imports from Russia, a public document showed. The EU approved a law this year to halt all Russian gas imports»»»

LONDON: Britain and six European allies Tuesday called for an immediate halt to violence targeting the Muslim-majority Sudanese city of El-Obeid encircled by paramilitary forces, a statement issued by the UK Foreign Office said. “There are now credible signs of an imminent offensive. This is a crit»»»

GUADALAJARA, Mexico: It’s been goals galore so far at the World Cup. The tournament has been one of the highest-scoring in history so far and produced nearly 25% more scoring than the same span of games in the previous World Cup. One reason for the increase in scoring might be the ball that FIFA is»»»

Germany and France are preparing an unprecedented joint state takeover of the EU’s largest tank maker, as the two countries continue their militarization drive. The two governments announced the deal involving Amsterdam-headquartered KNDS on Monday, saying they have finalized the framework governin»»»

Paris: Workers sweated in choking heat and pupils stayed home on Tuesday as an early-summer heatwave smothered much of Europe, sparking health warnings. Schools and tourist sites closed early and railways cancelled journeys as several countries issued red alerts for much of their territory in the r»»»

Share: A man accused by Lebanese officials of being part of an Israeli intelligence plot took refuge in the Ukrainian Embassy in Beirut over two months ago BEIRUT — As Israeli warplanes pounded Beirut’s southern suburbs last March and residents fled in panic, one man found his opportunity. Amid the»»»

Dubai: Saudi Arabia has approved plans to design and build its first jointly developed satellite with Egypt, ushering in a new era in space cooperation between the two Arab nations as the Kingdom expands its ambitions in advanced technologies and strategic industries. The initiative was approved by»»»

Eighty-two years after he was executed by Nazis, Resistance fighter and historian Marc Bloch will be inducted into the Panthéon on Tuesday to repose alongside such luminaries as Voltaire and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. A professor in medieval history, Bloch fought for France in World War I and joined th»»»

LONDON: US President Donald Trump accused the New York Times of treason on Sunday over its coverage of the war in Iran, threatening to add what he called the paper’s false reporting to his multi-billion-dollar lawsuit against the outlet. “The way the Corrupt and Failing New York Times is covering s»»»

Brussels, June 23 (SANA) The European Commission said on Tuesday it would invest €5.8 million to establish two regional centers aimed at strengthening the security and resilience of subsea cable networks in the Baltic and Mediterranean seas. The initiative is part of broader European efforts to pro»»»

Berlin: Germany will raise its retirement age gradually beyond 67, abolish early retirement and expand compulsory pension contributions under a set of new recommendations backed by Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Tuesday. Germany, like many industrialised economies, is struggling with an ageing popula»»»

At least five people died in France on Sunday and Monday as temperatures topped 42°C (107.6°F) in parts of the country in the midst of a severe heatwave gripping much of Europe. Among the victims were two children, aged two and four, who were found dead in their family car in the southern town of C»»»

A boy cools off outside the Guggenheim Bilbao Museum in Spain's Basque Country on Tuesday as temperatures soared to 104 degrees Farenheit. Average highs for June in the Bilboa metro area are normally in the low 70s Fahrenheit. Photo by Miguel Tona/EPA June 23 (UPI) -- Europe was bracing Tuesday for»»»

DUBAI: Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron have discussed post-UNIFIL peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon after some European countries have expressed support for an international force to replace the UN peacekeepers. Deployed in 1978 and significantly re»»»

BusinessEuropeEurope's defense ambitions get reality check Srinivas MazumdaruEuropean countries have been trying to scale up and integrate their military capabilities, but their current defense production and procurement model is not fit for purpose, say experts. https://p.dw.com/p/5FoZ6Europe's de»»»

Germany is making one of its most visible business pushes into Uzbekistan in years as Berlin looks beyond its traditional European and Asian markets for new sources of growth, raw materials, industrial partnerships and skilled labour. At the fifth annual Tashkent International Investment Forum (TII»»»

First published in Respekt. Irregular migration and climate change are receding into the background. Decades after the financial crisis, developments in the European Union were dominated first by the issue of uncontrolled migration and later by climate change. Both dominant topics substantially res»»»