Security
Spanish PM’s visit to Lithuanian NATO base interrupted by jet scramble
A press conference involving the prime minister of Spain at a Lithuanian NATO base was suddenly plunged into disarray on Thursday when pilots scrambled two fighter jets to respond to an alert that an unidentified aircraft had carried out an incursion over Baltic skies. EURACTIV’s partner EFE reports.
Lithuania bars airport access to carriers flying over Belarus
Lithuania’s government has banned flights from departing or arriving in the country if they have used, or plan to use, the Belarusian airspace, Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė announced on Monday (24 May).
France, New Zealand review online terror steps since Christchurch Call
French President Emmanuel Macron and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern are set to co-host a summit on Friday (14 May) to review progress made on combatting terrorist content online two years on from the livestreaming of the deadly Christchurch mosque attack. EURACTIV France reports.
Baltic states expel Russian diplomats in solidarity with Prague
Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania will expel several Russian diplomats and embassy employees in solidarity with Prague, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis announced during a joint press conference on Friday (23 April). EURACTIV’s media partner LRT.lt reports.
Five years on, former PM remembers bombings that changed Belgium
It has been five years since Islamist bombers slaughtered 32 people in the Belgian capital Brussels, in an attack then prime minister Charles Michel says changed the country forever.
Erdogan urges cooperation against terrorism in Macron call
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has told French counterpart Emmanuel Macron he wants their countries to cooperate to fight terrorism, as Ankara moves to ease tensions with Paris.
Lawmakers call for tougher EU disinformation laws in wake of US riots
Lawmakers in the European Parliament have raised concerns at the role that social media played in the storming of the US Capitol in Washington, saying the EU's proposed Digital Services Act (DSA) should double down on the spread of conspiratorial material online.
Commission presents security strategy to tackle Europe’s evolving threat landscape
Better cybersecurity standards for critical infrastructure, doubling down on tackling terrorism and organized crime, and preparing the bloc for emerging threats in “real and digital” environments, dominated the European Commission’s new EU Security Union strategy, presented on Friday (24 July)....
‘Sovereignty and solidarity’: Germany’s plans for the EU’s foreign policy
Solidarity and sovereignty is the name of the game for the German presidency, according to Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (SPD). In a speech on Monday, he emphasised the need for greater EU independence from the current geopolitical power struggle between the US and China.
Virus lockdown could fuel radicalisation, Europol warns
Coronavirus lockdowns could radicalise more terror suspects, the EU’s police agency warned Tuesday (23 June), saying both right and leftwing violence were on the rise. The pandemic’s worldwide economic and social impacts could escalate existing discontents, Europol director Catherine De...
SPD leadership reignites German debate on US nuclear weapons
Germany should "exclude the stationing of US nuclear weapons in the future," Rolf Mützenich, the leader of the Social Democrats (SPD) in the Bundestag, has demanded. Foreign minister Heiko Maas has hit back, but other Socialist politicians intend to question Germany's role in NATO's nuclear strategy.
EU under pressure to broker online terrorist content agreement
The European Council and Commission are under pressure to make headway on rules to stamp out online terrorist content, the substance of which could provide a precedent for the upcoming Digital Services Act, an MEP involved with the matter told EURACTIV.
After the pandemic: COVID-19 exposes threat of biological warfare
The global pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, has shaken confidence in governments’ capacity to respond to threats that the scientific and health communities have long have well aware of. From Asia to Europe to North America, health authorities are struggling to cope, writes Ellen Laipson.
Merkel and Putin’s forced ‘rapprochement’
Russia's international influence has led to stronger cooperation between German Chancellor Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin. But what can both leaders achieve? EURACTIV's media partner Der Tagesspiegel does a Q&A.
France, UK say they look beyond Brexit in Mali cooperation
Sharing the cockpit of a helicopter on sizzling tarmac, French and British air force chiefs vowed to pursue the joint fight against jihadists in the heart of the Sahel even as the shadow of Brexit looms over their countries.
EU police deal ‘severe blow’ to Islamic State online propaganda
European police said on Monday (25 November) they had dealt a "severe blow" to the Islamic State group's web propaganda, stopping the spread of thousands of items glorifying terrorism.
US urges Europe to take back Islamic State fighters
The United States on Monday (18 November) stepped up its push for European countries to repatriate and put on trial their citizens who fought for the Islamic State, launching talks with officials in Brussels.
Turkey starts ‘sending home’ detained foreign fighters
Turkey said on Monday (11 November) it had deported two captives from Islamic State, a German and an American, starting a programme to repatriate detainees that has caused friction with its NATO allies since it launched an offensive in northern Syria.
Denmark to strip foreign fighters of Danish citizenship
Denmark will fast-track legislation allowing people with dual citizenship who have gone abroad to fight for militant groups like Islamic State to be stripped of their Danish nationality, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Monday (13 October).
A hair’s breadth from a massacre: a closer look at the Synagogue shooting in Germany
A gunman killed two people and injured several on Wednesday, but his failure to open the Synagogue's door spared the German city of Halle from a massacre. EURACTIV's media partner Der Tagesspiegel reports.
EU launches new counter-terrorism database
Eurojust, the EU’s agency on judicial co-operation, launched a Counter-Terrorism Register on Thursday (5 September), designed to streamline the exchange of information between EU member states for potential terrorist offences.
Trump ready to meet Iranian president in potential breakthrough
US President Donald Trump said Monday (26 August) at the G7 summit that he is prepared to meet his Iranian counterpart within weeks in what would amount to a stunning change of direction in the two countries' smouldering standoff.
Iran’s Zarif makes surprise visit to G7 summit
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif flew into Biarritz in southwestern France for the G7 summit on Sunday (25 August) in a surprise attempt to break a diplomatic deadlock over Tehran's disputed nuclear programme.