Europe News Feeds

Peter Magyar’s opposition Tisza party is pledging to combat corruption in one of the European Union’s poorest countries and reverse Budapest’s pivot towards Russia.

NATO remains a vital security umbrella for Europe, but self-reliance and mutual defense was a recurring theme for the continent’s leaders during the annual Munich Security Conference.

The US Secretary of State is on a two-day trip to Slovakia and Hungary, whose leaders have close ties with Trump. Both countries are being courted to cut their reliance on Russia for energy in favor of US alternatives.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio began on Sunday a two-day visit to eastern Europe aimed at strengthening relations with Slovakia and Hungary, whose conservative governments maintain close ties with US President Donald Trump despite tensions with other EU partners.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas pushed back against what she described as “European bashing” in a speech at the Munich Security Conference on Sunday. Kallas welcomed the message of unity delivered by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the annual gathering but dismissed the Trump administration’s talk of Europe’s “civilizational erasure”. 

A Prague exhibition called "Free National Gallery — Description of a Struggle" details the political dispute over culture in neighboring Slovakia under Robert Fico. It carries an implicit warning for Czech culture, too.

Four astronauts docked at the International Space Station on Saturday for a research mission set to last several months. Among the crew is Sophie Adenot, who joins two American astronauts and one Russian, becoming only the second French woman to travel into space. The new team is replacing a previous crew that was forced to return to Earth early because of a medical issue, as Morgan Ayre reports.

It is the third and final day of the Munich Security Conference, the annual gathering of political leaders, military officials and security experts, after the first two days largely focused outward on Europe’s relationships, notably the European Union’s ties with the United States and Russia’s war against Ukraine, while Sunday’s agenda turns inward to examine the bloc’s own role and influence, as our correspondent Nick Holdsworth reports from the conference.

Following his appearance in Munich, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is travelling to Budapest, a visit that comes just two months ahead of elections in Hungary that could see longtime leader and Trump ally Viktor Orbán lose power after 16 years, after Orbán used his annual state of the nation address on Saturday to argue that the country’s main threat is not Russia but the European Union, while opposition leader Péter Magyar is set to deliver a rival address on Sunday, as Charlotte Lam reports.

The Ukrainian military claimed responsibility on Sunday for a drone attack on a key oil storage facility in Russia’s southern Krasnodar region, which caused a major fire, according to a Russian official. Read about the day’s events as they unfolded on our liveblog.

A team of magistrates will search the so-called "Epstein files" to identify any further possible offences. The case of French modelling agent Jean-Luc Brunel is to be thoroughly re-examined.

There is no innocent explanation for the toxin being found in samples taken from Navalny’s body, Foreign Office says.

Police said they had not identified the perpetrators or established what was stolen. Emergency workers found an unknown liquid on the doors of the bank but said it did not pose a health risk.

Hungarian PM Viktor Orban accused the EU of propping up Peter Magyar’s Tisza opposition party. Hungary’s longest-serving prime minister is facing his biggest electoral challenge in years.

Almost four years after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine, peace is nowhere in sight. At the Munich Security Conference, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiyy said his country needed more weapons — fast.

While European leaders cautiously welcomed a softer tone from the US at the Munich Security Conference, American independence and the "Trumpian narrative" remained top of mind for Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

In an exclusive interview with FRANCE 24, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte discussed the evolving role of Europe in global security, emphasising that the alliance is stronger today than it was a year ago. Reflecting on NATO’s transformation, Rutte highlighted how the leadership of U.S. President Donald Trump, particularly his push for higher defence spending, played a crucial role in reshaping the alliance’s priorities.

The top diplomats of the UK, France, Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands say the analysis of samples from the late Russian opposition leader Alex Navalny conclusively proves a state-ordered killing.

Five European countries accused Russia of “poisoning” opposition leader Alexei Navalny using a rare toxin found in South American dart frogs, according to a joint statement issued Saturday. A leading critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Navalny died in an Arctic penal colony in February 2024.

The US Secretary of State sounds a conciliatory tone as he addresses European leaders in Munich.

Russia is suffering “crazy losses” in Ukraine, tallying around 65,000 soldiers over the last two months, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said ‌on Saturday at the Munich Security Conference. He also said ‌NATO’s alliance was, for now, strong enough to deter Russia from attacking it. 

Ms Pelicot reveals it is “inconceivable” that the man she shared her life with “could have committed these horrors”.

In an extensive interview with Newsnight, the woman at the heart of France’s biggest rape trial speaks about betrayal, healing and choosing the right path.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio sought to assuage European leaders’ worries about fraying ties with Washington as he addressed the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, telling the annual gathering that Europe and the US “belong together” and that Washington wants to “revitalise” the transatlantic alliance.

The Britons had been part of a group of five people accompanied by an instructor, skiing off-piste in Val d’Isère.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday told the Munich Security Conference that it is time for Europe to become a geopolitical power that can provide its own security by rearticulating its nuclear deterrent in the face of an aggressive Russia. “Everyone should take their cue from us,” he said.

A man was shot and injured after attacking police during a ceremonial lighting of an eternal flame under the Paris landmark.

This Friday in The World This Week, we talk about the unravelling of the Epstein Files, the end of the Old World Order and the Olympic Helmet Dilemma.

“Our freedom is not guaranteed” in an era of big powers, the German chancellor tells Munich’s security summit.

Gavin Lee is pleased to welcome, live from Munich, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Former Ukrainian Prime Minister, who served in the critical time in the recent history of Ukraine, 2014 to 2016.

In an interview with FRANCE 24, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev declared that “peace is achieved” with Armenia following an August White House summit. “For me, it is done,” he said. Aliyev however firmly refused to grant clemency to imprisoned Nagorno-Karabakh separatist leaders, an issue that was raised during a meeting he had this week with US Vice President JD Vance.

The group was swept away by an avalanche after venturing off piste in the Val d’Isere area. Heavy snowfall brought by storm Nils has increased the avalanche risk in some French ski resorts.

Friedrich Merz urged the United States and Europe to rebuild trust as global tensions grow, arguing that neither side can face today’s challenges alone. Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, alongside Marco Rubio, he called for a renewed transatlantic partnership after a year of strained relations. Those tensions were fuelled by moves from Donald Trump, including tariff threats linked to Greenland. Merz stressed that cooperation through NATO remains essential as great-power rivalry intensifies. FRANCE 24’s Nick Holdsworth has the latest from Munich.

Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych will not compete at the Winter Olympics after the Court of Arbitration for Sport dismissed his appeal to wear a helmet depicting images of athletes killed during Russia’s invasion of his home country.

Peter Magyar suspects there are plans to release a sex tape of him from August 2024.

Europe’s regions are in danger of being squeezed as the EU considers sweeping changes to the way its 27 member states spend their money, warns the European official tasked with reducing inequalities among the bloc’s hundreds of towns and regions.

Worries that too much time on social media may be hurting children’s mental health, and creating addictions as harmful as alcohol or cigarettes, are sparking growing calls across Europe to block minors under the age of 15 or 16 from access to platforms.

Abuse in a juvenile facility, hazardous dust from a battery factory and an alleged sex video involving the opposition leader — the run-up to Hungary’s election has so far been dominated by one scandal after another.

Leaders are gathering at the Munich Security Conference as transatlantic relations remain under close scrutiny. This year, the United States is represented by Marco Rubio, whose early remarks suggest a more conciliatory and cooperative tone toward European allies. That contrasts with the impact of last year’s speech by JD Vance, which strongly criticised EU policies and unsettled European leaders. In their statements, European leaders are showing a willingness to rebuild transatlantic relations, as analysed by our journalist Kethevane Gorjestani.

Visitors have begun entering the restored Villa Poppaea, a luxury Roman residence near Pompeii, where new frescoes and artworks are being uncovered after centuries buried by the 79 AD eruption of Mount Vesuvius. The villa, once home to Poppaea Sabina, wife of Nero, is revealing vivid decorations, including a peacock fresco linked to the Roman goddess Juno, as conservation work nears completion.

Witness History’s Rachel Naylor explains.

A catalogue of incidents at the world’s most visited museum have placed museum bosses come under increasing scrutiny.

The UK government’s decision last July to ban the protest group Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation was unlawful, Britain’s High Court ruled Friday. British police have arrested more than 2,000 peaceful protesters for holding signs declaring their support for the proscribed group.

A major security forum is underway at the Munich Security Conference, at a time of high stakes as the European Union seeks to take a more assertive role amid shifting global alliances and tensions with the United States. Marco Rubio is leading a large US delegation to the gathering, signalling Washington’s continued engagement while debates grow over the future of transatlantic relations and global security, as FRANCE 24’s Rochelle Ferguson Bouyahi explains.

Sophie Adenot is preparing for a nine-month mission aboard the International Space Station, aiming to set a new record for a French astronaut in orbit. She will carry out more than 200 scientific and medical experiments in microgravity while completing intensive training and maintenance work in space.

In southern France and northern Spain, the "unusually strong" storm Nils uprooted trees, flooded roads, and left thousands without power.

Can Europe man the ramparts on its own? As the US war secretary snubbed a NATO defence ministers’ meeting in Brussels, EU leaders converged on the 16th-century Alden Biesen castle in Belgium’s Limburg province to answer former Italian prime minister Mario Draghi’s call for a “big bazooka” approach to reform and competitiveness. 

Ian Deveney made his find on land between Inverness and the 280-year-old battlefield.

Jozef Domanski’s family spent decades wondering what had happened to him in Wolverhampton.

France’s President Emmanuel Macron on Friday addressed the Munich Security Conference, hitting back at US Vice President JD Vance’s scathing comments about Europe from last year’s summit, saying “everyone should take their cue from us, instead of criticising us”. Read our blog to see how the day’s events unfolded. 

A Slovak national wanted by Italian police for 16 years for a series of thefts was arrested before he got to see his national ice hockey team perform at the Winter Olympics.

European Union leaders on Thursday agreed on an action plan to overhaul the bloc’s economy and boost competitiveness amid pressure from US President Donald Trump, China and Russia. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the March plan would upgrade energy grids, deepen financial integration and ease merger rules.

A proposal by anti-immigration Swiss People’s Party has gained enough signatures to head to a referendum this June. But lawmakers and business groups argue the move could cause economic chaos.

Jessica and Jacques Moretti are under criminal investigation for involuntary manslaughter, as well as bodily harm and arson through negligence.

More websites and messenger apps are becoming inaccessible in Russia. While users look for ways around government bans, others wonder what will ultimately remain of the internet.

Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz greeted the press together on arrival at the Alden Biesen Castle, with Macron saying they shared a "sense of urgency" on economic reform. But the two may clash on the way forward.

At Thursday’s NATO meeting in Brussels, US Secretary of State Pete Hegseth was absent, highlighting concerns about America stepping back from the alliance. European allies announced Arctic Sentry, a new mission to strengthen Arctic security amid Russian and Chinese activity. While analysts see it largely as a rebranding of existing drills, NATO hopes it will reassure Donald Trump and let Europe take a bigger role in defence.

The charge was brought after the Council of Europe lifted his immunity, which he had as its former secretary general.

Investigators have searched premises belonging to the European Commission in Brussels, with the operation reportedly tied to the sale of over 20 Commission buildings.

NATO defence ministers are meeting in Brussels to discuss Ukraine’s defence amid almost four years of war with Russia and to strengthen security in Greenland and the Arctic. Dafyyd Townley, Teaching Fellow in US politics and international security at the University of Portsmouth, notes Russia’s long-term strategy aims to demoralise Ukraine through strikes on energy infrastructure, while the US is pressuring Ukraine on potential deals, exposing fractures within NATO. Still, the “coalition of the willing” is helping fill gaps left by the US, and the alliance is showing a tangible commitment to strategic regions like the Arctic.