France's migration breakaway
Donald Trump told NBC on Thursday that the EU and Canada would receive letters with their new tariff rates 'today or tomorrow'. Overnight, the US president posted Canada's letter on social media, announcing a general 35% tariff. No sign of the letter to the EU, for now.
In today's edition: Macron and Starmer's migration deal
EU's Israel options
Farmers will be back
DG CNECT chief stays on
Today's edition is powered by CEN and CENELEC
Standards support European competitiveness
CEN and CENELEC welcome Denmark's Presidency of the EU Council. We are ready to leverage the strength of standards to help Europe complete the Single Market, drive innovation, strengthen competitiveness and ensure effective regulation across strategic sectors.
Read more. À la carte
Emmanuel Macron and Keir Starmer unveiled a long-awaited 'one in, one out' migration deal on Thursday, and put the European Commission in a bind.
Southern member states, including Italy, Spain, Malta, Cyprus, and Greece, had written to the EU executive, warning against bilateral migration pacts with the UK. They fear being left to deal with the human consequences as Britain ships asylum-seekers back to France, only for them to ricochet south under EU asylum rules.
But now migrants arriving in the UK via small boat will be 'detained and returned to France in short order', Starmer said. And for every person who is deported or sent back, another person "with ties to the UK" will be allowed to come into the country from France.
The scheme will launch in the coming weeks as a pilot, though full details remain under wraps. Macron said it will be signed 'as soon as legal verification procedures have been completed, including those involving the European Union'.
The Commission has maintained strategic ambiguity in recent weeks, trying to avoid direct comment on the UK-France rapprochement. But it's not clear how long the Berlaymont can go on ignoring the bloc's north-side divide.
Last year, France's interior minister and his German counterpart drafted a letter urging Brussels to pursue an EU-UK migration pact. The missive was never sent, though both ministers have been vocal about deepening migration cooperation with London. Meanwhile, Mediterranean countries maintain their long-standing scepticism.
On Thursday, as the long-rumoured deal became a reality, a Commission spokesperson was still repeating the executive's usual line – that it is 'working with France and the UK' as well as other EU member states, to support solutions 'compatible with the spirit and the letter of EU law'. Is the Macron-Starmer plan one of those solutions? The Commission did not say.
The farmers are coming
Angry farmers are gearing up for another showdown in Brussels on 16 July, targeting proposed cuts to EU farm subsidies and the Commission's plan to roll agriculture and cohesion funding into national 'partnerships' run by member states.
The protests, organised by European farmers' groups, will coincide with the Commission's unveiling of its first set of proposals for the EU's next long-term budget. A second batch of proposals is expected in September. Here are five key things we know so far about the Commission's budget overhaul.
The EU's Israel options
EU ambassadors are set to discuss today an options paper outlining possible measures against Israel, drafted by the bloc's diplomatic service and reported by Euractiv's Alex Brzozowski last weekend.
The paper – seen by Euractiv – now lists up to ten options, including a full or partial suspension of the EU-Israel trade pact, sanctions on Israeli ministers, military personnel or extremist settlers, trade restrictions, an arms embargo, and a suspension of scientific and other cooperation. Most of the proposed steps require unanimity and are unlikely to advance as member states remain deeply divided.
Brussels had initially said it hoped the pressure of the process would help improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza. With a Gaza aid deal struck by the EU's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, and Israel on Wednesday, some EU diplomats now say this could temporarily diffuse the discussion over whether Brussels should follow through with measures when EU foreign ministers meet next Tuesday.
Meanwhile, 27 former EU ambassadors have written an open letter to pressure the heads of the European institutions to pause the bloc's trade preferences and Horizon research cooperation with Israel, whether or not a cease-fire in Gaza is soon reached.
The aid business
After long touting plans to use foreign aid in service of its own interests – rather than merely fighting poverty – the Commission is putting its money where its tweets are.
As Brussels' foreign aid bubble-within-the-bubble dissects the 2028-2034 Global Europe regulation, obtained by Euractiv, one section raising eyebrows is a plan to provide grants to European companies (without a competitive tender) to spur investments abroad that serve 'the strategic interest of the Union'.
A 'direct award' could be handed over, the draft regulation states, 'to enable investments or finance feasibility studies in strategic areas such as critical raw materials or digital and other infrastructure, in particular as part of integrated packages, to enhance the Union's strategic autonomy'.
The Commission has not made any secret of its shift away from helping the world's poorest countries to instead try and curry favour elsewhere and open markets for its own firms. But still, handing out cash to private companies (who presumably would be able to find a few million for their own feasibility studies) from the same pot which now contains the EU's humanitarian assistance budget, is unlikely to go unopposed by foreign aid advocates.
As one EU member state official told us, 'state aid disguised as development is a bit tricky'. Around the bloc
GERMANY | Germany's parliament has launched a review of the country's COVID-19 response. It received cross-party support – except the far-right AfD, which demanded a tougher inquiry. The topic gained traction after a government review accused then-Health Minister Jens Spahn, an ally of Chancellor Merz, of grave errors in the pandemic response.
FRANCE | A new permanent headquarters in Paris will serve as the base for the Western-led 'Coalition of the Willing' for Ukraine for one year, coordinating a future multinational 'reassurance force' ready to support Kyiv after a potential ceasefire. Read more.
ROME | Italy pledged Thursday to increase its defence cooperation with Ukraine and encourage private investment to support Kyiv's post-war reconstruction. Read more.
PORTUGAL | Portugal's government approved the reprivatisation of airline TAP on Thursday, with the prime minister announcing plans to sell an initial 49.9% stake.
CZECHIA | Russia has intensified covert operations in Czechia, but its efforts have resulted in only 'minor security incidents,' according to an annual report from Czechia's domestic intelligence agency (BIS). Read more.
POLAND | The European Commission wrongly deducted over €68 million from Poland's EU funds for failing to halt operations at the Turów coal mine, according to an EU Court of Justice preliminary opinion on Thursday. Read more.
SWEDEN | Swedish Migration Minister Johan Forssell is facing mounting political pressure following revelations that his teenage son was involved with far-right extremist circles. Read more.
SLOVAKIA | The Slovak PM and the German chancellor have traded jabs over Slovakia's veto of the EU's 18th sanctions package against Russia. "Only one member state is still needed to agree to this,' Merz said at a conference in Rome. 'I therefore urge Slovakia and its prime minister to stop blocking the approval." Fico fired back on social media, saying he refuses to negotiate "under pressure from strong words". Also on Euractiv
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Euractiv
2 hours ago
- Euractiv
German centre-right MP faces backlash over meeting with far-right leader in Hungary
BERLIN – Saskia Ludwig, a Christian Democrat MP, has been rebuked by her party after she was pictured in a friendly conversation with far-right leader Alice Weidel during an event affiliated with Hungary's Viktor Orbán. The incident cast doubt on the commitment to the so-called 'firewall' among parts of the Christian Democrats (CDU) – a long-standing policy of non-cooperation with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD). The pictures that emerged on Saturday showed Ludwig talking to and shaking hands with the AfD's co-chair, Weidel, when both attended MCC Feszt in Hungary. A mix of a music festival and a conference, the annual event is hosted by the Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC), an educational institution close to Hungary's authoritarian right and spearheaded by Balazs Orbán, a key Orbán ally. 'Ludwig did not participate in the event on behalf of the parliamentary party and without the knowledge of the leadership,' a spokeswoman of the CDU parliamentary party told German newspaper Tagesspiegel on Monday. She noted that the CDU had officially passed an 'incompatibility resolution', which prohibits any cooperation with the AfD and binds 'every CDU member." Ludwig had defended her conversation with Weidel over the weekend, saying she naturally "engaged in dialogue with a wide variety of visitors." 'Free exchange of opinions is a central element of a democratic society,' she told the right-wing news outlet Nius . The incident taps into a wider conversation about the future of the firewall among the CDU, however. The party's parliamentary leader, Jens Spahn, made headlines earlier this year when he suggested that AfD MPs should be elected to parliamentary positions that they have been conventionally excluded from, even though they are normally distributed evenly among all parties. He retracted the comments after the far right was classified as "extremist" by Germany's domestic secret service, a designation that remains caught up in legal proceedings. Ludwig had also criticised the firewall as 'deeply undemocratic' ahead of the German elections in February. She discussed the matter at a panel at MCC Feszt, according to German newspaper FAZ . Hailing from the AfD stronghold of Brandenburg in former East Germany, Ludwig has long been known for rubbing shoulders with the right. She was, notably, among the most outspoken critics of Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf, a jurist with liberal views on abortion, whom the CDU-led coalition government had picked to fill an empty slot at the country's constitutional court. Brosius-Gersdorf's nomination remains in limbo, after several CDU MPs petitioned the leadership to drop her, following a broad right-wing campaign against her.
Euractiv
7 hours ago
- Euractiv
Why the EU is ‘absent' in Gaza
Welcome to the Capitals by Eddy Wax. Get in touch. Were you forwarded this newsletter by a friend? Sign up here. In today's edition: Inside Europe's Gaza paralysis EU crumbles further on trade threats Spy trial could spill AfD secrets Global plastic treaty talks in Geneva 'Fake' rice threatens Valencian tradition In the Capital Nicolas Schmit, who sat in the European Commission in the aftermath of the 7 October attacks by Hamas, says the bloc's muddled stance on the Gaza war stems from something deeper than disagreement: institutional inertia and presidential control. In an exclusive interview with The Capitals, the Luxembourg socialist said the Commission did not hold proper debate about Europe's relationship with Israel during the 13 months that he was in office after the war was triggered. 'We never had a real strategic discussion on the Middle East issue from the different points of view,' he said. 'We should have debated the relationship with Israel [but] we did not." That omission, Schmit argued, was partly because President Ursula von der Leyen was aligned with Berlin and Washington, leaving little space for divergent views among the other commissioners. 'If you cannot identify and formulate collectively as a Commission,' Schmit said, 'you're just muddling through, and just crying big tears on what happens to the poor people of Gaza.' Schmit's term as commissioner for jobs and social rights ended late last year. His remarks come after his 'very good friend' and former colleague Josep Borrell, the bloc's former top diplomat, accused EU leadership of being 'complicit' in war crimes by Israel in an eyebrow-raising op-ed, published across British, French, Italian, Spanish and Belgian media. Reached for a response by Euractiv, the Commission declined to comment, saying it does not comment on comments. That Borrell, a Spaniard, would take such a position is perhaps unsurprising – Spain has emerged as one of the bloc's most vocal critics of Israel in recent months. Just last week, in a rare public rebuke of her colleagues, Teresa Ribera, one of the Commission's top-ranking vice presidents, said on Spanish national radio that she's been pushing von der Leyen to respond more forcefully. Schmit previously served as labour minister in Luxembourg – another European nation that has been loud in its criticisms of Israel. Still, he distanced himself from Borrell's words – 'it's not complicity, it's just weakness,' adding, 'there are divisions in the European Union, obviously, and Borrell must know them better than I do." Last week, member states debated the Commission's proposal to partially suspend Israel from the EU's flagship research programme, Horizon Europe, in what could become the bloc's first formal sanctions against Israel since 7 October. But no qualified majority emerged. Around 10 countries, including France, Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands and Belgium, supported the move, but Hungary, Austria, and the Czech Republic firmly opposed it. Germany and Italy, two of the largest nations which could tip the scales, said they needed more time for analysis. As the humanitarian crisis in Gaza worsens, Schmit believes the destruction is nearing a threshold the EU cannot ignore. 'What is done now to the Gaza people is just unacceptable. I do not want to enter into this legal debate if it's a genocide or not, but if it's not it's very close to [it],' he said. In Schmit's view, measures such as suspending Israel from Horizon Europe will likely have little impact on PM Benjamin Netanyahu. Instead, he suggested suspending the EU-Israel Association Agreement, describing the move as Europe's 'only weapon.' His critique that von der Leyen has mismanaged the Commission by not allowing more space for political debates on contentious subjects is not new; he also criticised his former boss on the campaign trail when he ran against her in an ill-fated bid to become Commission president last year. It is not unusual for politicians to discover their convictions once the burdens of office are behind them. Schmit and Borrell, like many before them, now seem intent on aligning themselves with what they hope will be the right side of history. But the war has also evolved drastically since they left the Commission, which could also explain why it took until July 2025 for the executive body to propose formal sanctions against Israel. As the death toll rises, von der Leyen has belatedly sharpened her rhetoric in recent months, calling for Israel to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza and denouncing the images circulating online of civilian casualties as 'unbearable.' Schmit's criticism of the Commission's chief extends beyond the war. He warned that under her leadership, commissioners 'very rarely' debated in meetings of the College. 'If you have this vertical organisation of power,' he said, 'commissioners are but the secretaries of the president. They are high civil servants.' Keep your eyes peeled for the full Q&A out later today. EU crumbles further on trade threats Amid rumours that the Commission is poised to unveil a joint statement to formalise its trade deal with the US, EU countries are expected today to delay their never used retaliation package by a whopping six months, my colleague Thomas Møller-Nielsen reports. The EU is essentially canning its €93 billion countermeasure package even though its flagship win from the much-criticised deal has yet to materialise: EU car exporters are still facing a 27.5% tariff even though the deal – such as it is – would lower the tariff to 15%. That reduced tariff is set to take effect on Friday. The timing couldn't be better – not. The EU Parliament's top trade lawmaker, Bernd Lange, told Thomas there's a risk the EU's digital rulebook could be scrapped to appease Washington, citing the 'big difference' between US and EU interpretations of the deal published last week. Read the full interview. Counterpoint : Humiliation is part of the strategy, argues SWP's Nicolai von Ondarza in this op-ed – though that's the problem. Spy trial could expose AfD secrets A Chinese espionage trial opening today reportedly threatens to spill internal secrets about the far-right Alternative for Germany. Prosecutors allege that Jian G – a former aide to Maximilian Krah, an ex-AfD MEP now sitting in the Bundestag – spied for China. G, who was arrested shortly before the 2024 European elections, allegedly compiled memos detailing attempted party coups, questionable business deals, and private details about co-leader Alice Weidel. According to German magazine Der Spiegel , these memos are part of the evidence in the case. Read more. The Capitals PARIS – LONDON | A Franco-British migration deal to limit Channel crossings comes into force today. The scheme, agreed in June, aims to send up to 2,600 rejected asylum seekers a year from Britain to France – which at current rates covers around three weeks' worth of small boats crossing the Channel. The European Commission will be part of a monitoring group to ensure the pilot project complies with EU law, and expects it will only last until the EU's new migration pact comes into force in June 2026. ROME | Italy is expanding its special economic zone to include the central regions of Umbria and Marche, extending benefits such as tax breaks and reduced red tape previously reserved for the south. PM Giorgia Meloni announced the move during a state visit to Marche, calling it a boost for entrepreneurship and investment. But with regional elections looming, critics suggest the timing appears politically motivated. Read more. BERLIN | The city of Bonn has joined several others, including Düsseldorf and Hanover, in offering to take in children from Gaza and Israel, following similar moves by France and Spain. While national support is key for entry and medical coordination, Berlin remains cautious, saying the priority is broader local aid. Chancellery Minister Thorsten Frei said Monday that transfers would help only 'individual cases.' MADRID | Spain's conservative Popular Party has demanded answers over multimillion-euro contracts awarded to Huawai for storing judicial wiretaps, calling top ministers to testify before Congress after the summer break. Party heavyweight Juan Bravo accused the government of ignoring EU and US warnings about security risks tied to the Chinese tech giant. THE HAGUE | The Netherlands will be the first NATO ally to send a €500 million package of US-made weapons, including Patriot missile systems, to Ukraine under a new European-funded deal praised by NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. The move is part of a broader NATO-backed push in which European countries provide US weapons from their stockpiles. Read more. WARSAW | In an official visit to Warsaw, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha announced that Kyiv has requested a €120 million loan from Poland to buy Polish-made military equipment, including Piorun missile launchers and Krab self-propelled howitzers. Also on Euractiv
Euractiv
8 hours ago
- Euractiv
Ex-Krah aide's memos could expose German far right in China spy trial
The espionage trial against former Krah aide Jian G starts Tuesday, featuring sensitive memos on internal AfD coups and the private life of the party's co-leader Euractiv is part of the Trust Project Nick Alipour Euractiv Aug 5, 2025 06:00 3 min. read News Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. BERLIN – The espionage trial against Maximilian Krah's former parliamentary assistant starts on Tuesday, amid reports that it could reveal sensit ive memos about the far-right Alternative for Germany. The staffer, identified as Jian G, was arrested shortly before the 2024 European elections on charges of spying for China. Prosecutors allege he collected some 500 sensitive parliamentary documents in Brussels between 2019 and 2024, while working for Krah, a former AfD MEP, who is now a German MP. Tuesday's hearings could bring delicate AfD matters to light, which G allegedly recorded in several memos, some of which were revealed by German media last week. According to German magazine Der Spiegel, the memos are part of the evidence in the case and contain information on planned internal coups, business plans of AfD MPs, as well as on the personal life of Alice Weidel, the AfD's co-chair. Krah told G during a breakfast meeting in Prague in January 2024 that the AfD's second co-chair, Tino Chrupalla, was looking to topple Weidel, Der Spiegel reported. Chrupalla had let Weidel take the spotlight as lead candidate in the 2025 German elections, Krah reportedly said, in the hope of becoming the sole leader of the AfD if Weidel stumbled due to 'her weakness and lack of leadership qualities." The AfD MP also allegedly disclosed the identity of the sperm donor for one of Weidel's children with her female partner. Der Spiegel reported that Weidel's love life was likewise discussed during a meeting of G and Jan Wenzel Schmidt, another AfD MP, at a restaurant in Magdeburg, Germany. The MP reportedly claimed that the AfD leader was 'not as tough and determined' as she appears in public but still too popular to be replaced by Krah, for example. Schmidt also pitched a business idea to G on selling synthetic diamonds, one of which was reportedly handed to G as a demonstrator. Both Krah and Schmidt have largely denied the claims made by the reports. Krah told Der Spiegel that he didn't recall a meeting in Prague and denied conversations about internal and private matters, presuming that G simply took note of general rumours. Schmidt acknowledged the Magdeburg meeting, but denied that he discussed business or Weidel's private life. Thirteen days have been earmarked for the trial, with Krah himself expected to testify on 3 September. The MP, who was elected to the Bundestag in this year's German elections, had his own immunity lifted by the German parliament in May in relation to the trial as p rosecutors are investigating charges of money laundering and bribery. Der Spiegel reported that businesses affiliated with G allegedly paid some €50,000 to law firms that Krah worked for. Neither Krah nor Schmidt responded to requests for comment by the time of publication. (mm) Euractiv is part of the Trust Project
