
Romanian presidential election ‘volatile and emotional', expert says
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A silent majority in Romania was mobilised to ensure the win of pro-European candidate Nicusor Dan in Sunday's presidential election, according to Sorin Ionita, president of Bucharest-based think tank Expert Forum. Ionita, who spoke to FRANCE 24, said the uptick in votes from the first to the second round went to show 'how volatile and how emotional the elections were', adding, 'it's something that doesn't happen every day in politics.'

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Euronews
9 hours ago
- Euronews
Should the European Union hold talks with Khalifa Haftar?
European Commissioner for Migration Magnus Brunner and three ministers from EU countries were expelled from Libya on Tuesday due to a "protocol problem", according to Brussels. Sources told Euronews the issue arose after they wanted to meet General Khalifa Haftar, who controls large parts of eastern Libya. Following a meeting with the Libyan government of national unity (GNU) in Tripoli, the European delegation was scheduled to meet with Haftar in Benghazi to discuss migration. However, Haftar apparently tried to force the EU's hand by imposing the presence of his ministers, which then led to the expulsion of European officials as "personae no gratae". "It was simply a ruse on Haftar's part to try and legitimise his government and the civilian face of his military dictatorship", says Tarek Megerisi, senior researcher at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR). "He declared European diplomats personae non gratae and essentially sent them back to Europe because he was unable to use them for this political charade he was trying to pull off," he believes. A divided country After the civil war and the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, Libya eventually became divided into two. In the west of the country, the UN-recognised government of national unity is led by Prime Minister Abdel Hamid Dbeibah. The east is controlled by Haftar, head of the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army. And Brussels formally recognises only the government in Tripoli. "The European Union is working with the government of national unity, which emerged from the United Nations mediation process as an internationally recognised national executive. The UN is engaging with the authorities throughout the country in line with our One Libya policy", said Anouar El Anouni, European Commission spokesman for foreign affairs. However, faced with the absence of centralised governance, territorial division and the challenge of migration, the EU is also engaging with non-state actors. "At a lower level, the EU is also interacting with militia leaders and groups running detention centres. At the level of member states and some EU representation, they engage with the Haftar family as the de facto rulers of eastern Libya, for what they claim is political realism," says Tarek Megerisi. The European Union is cooperating with Libya to combat illegal immigration and smuggling networks. "The EU has been working, both the EU and the member states, particularly Italy, with the Libyan coastguard in the west to try and reduce migratory flows in one way or another," James Moran, former EU ambassador to Libya and associate researcher at the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS), told Euronews. "The EU has also supported Libyan efforts to take back migrants once they are back on Libyan soil. This, of course, has been controversial because there have been a lot of questions about human rights, about the treatment they receive when they are in Libya," he adds. The NGO Amnesty International has accused Brussels of complicity in human rights violations against migrants in Libya. A Russian proxy In recent years, crossings to Europe from eastern Libya have been on the increase. "Migration concerns are well known throughout Europe. And since (Haftar) controls such a large part of Libya's coastline, I think it was logical to talk to him," Moran said. "What wouldn't have made sense would have been to give him any kind of recognition, de facto or otherwise," he explained. However, questions remain about the EU's need to meet Haftar, whose links to Moscow and President Vladimir Putin are well-established. "We are in the process of strengthening a Russian proxy that is antagonistic to European interests. And so, once all the mess of the current crisis is sorted out, it's pretty clear that what Europe really needs in Libya is a stable and sovereign government," Megerisi told Euronews. In fact, the Haftar family is exploiting migration to try to obtain concessions from the EU, according to Megerisi. In recent days, the Greek islands have seen a large influx of migrants from Libya, prompting the EU member state to suspend asylum applications from the North African country.


Euronews
10 hours ago
- Euronews
Ukraine and EU launch €100 million military innovation partnership
Ukraine and the EU announced a €100 million fund on Friday to accelerate defence innovation by building on battlefield-tested innovations from Ukraine. The BraveTech EU initiative, unveiled at the fourth annual Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC) in Rome, was announced by Ukraine's Digital Transformation Minister Mykhailo Fedorov and the EU's Defence Commissioner, Andrius Kubilius. BraveTech EU is the first major tech alliance between Ukraine and Europe on equal terms, with each side set to invest €50 million in the programme. The initiative will focus on small and medium-sized businesses and start-ups in both Ukraine and Europe. The alliance will see both sides exchange regulatory experience, develop innovations and procure new defence technologies. "European colleagues will receive results from the battlefield," Fedorov said at a press conference in Rome. Other European countries may also join in to fund the initiative, he added. "The EU and its member states have an industrial capacity that can help Ukraine develop new defence systems and increase European resilience," Kubilius said in a statement. The programme is set to be rolled out in two phases, starting with hackathons for Ukrainian and European defence companies in autumn, Fedorov said in a post on his Telegram page. In 2026, the plan is to expand the programme with larger grants and investment in the most promising projects. The BraveTech EU initiative will integrate Ukraine's defence industry into European mechanisms, connecting Ukraine's BRAVE1 defence technology platform with EU platforms such as the European Defence Fund (EDF) and the EU Defence Innovation Scheme (EUDIS). Zelenskyy has long called on Ukraine's western allies to provide more military support as the country's forces continue to battle Russia's forces since the 2022 full-scale invasion. Patriots for Ukraine The BraveTech EU programme was announced on the same day that US President Donald Trump said that Washington will send weapons, including Patriot air defence systems, to Ukraine via NATO. "We're going to be sending Patriots to NATO and then NATO will distribute that," Trump told US TV channel CBS News, adding that the alliance would pay for the systems. The Patriot missile system can detect and intercept a wide range of oncoming air targets, high-end ballistic missiles in particular, and is regarded as one of the world's best, at a time when Moscow is increasing its nightly missile and drone attacks amid its all-out war against Ukraine, now well into its fourth year. Speaking at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Rome on Thursday, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Germany would pay for two of the systems, while Norway has agreed to supply one. After repeated Russian drone and missile onslaughts on Kyiv, authorities also announced on Friday that they are establishing a comprehensive drone interception system under a project called Clear Sky. The project includes a 260-million-hryvnia (approximately €5.3 million) investment in interceptor drones, operator training, and new mobile response units, according to Tymur Tkachenko, the head of the Kyiv military administration. Zelenskyy appealed to foreign partners to help Ukraine accelerate the production of the newly developed interceptor drones, which have proven successful against Iranian-made Shahed drones and their Russian variant, the Geran-2. "We found a solution, as a country, scientists and engineers found a solution. That's the key," he said. "We need financing. And then, we will intercept."

LeMonde
11 hours ago
- LeMonde
Thirty PKK fighters surrender arms in symbolic step toward peace with Turkey
Thirty PKK fighters destroyed their weapons at a symbolic ceremony in Iraqi Kurdistan on Friday, July 11, two months after the Kurdish rebels ended their decades-long armed struggle against the Turkish state. The ceremony marked a major step in the transition of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) from armed insurgency to democratic politics, as part of a broader effort to bring an end to one of the region's longest-running conflicts. The PKK's disarmament also grants President Recep Tayyip Erdogan the distinction of being the Turkish leader who managed to draw a line under a bloody conflict that cost more than 40,000 lives and wrought havoc in Turkey and beyond. Outside the ancient cave of Casene, a group of 30 PKK fighters, men and women, gathered on a stage in khaki fatigues, their faces uncovered, in front of an audience of around 300 people, an Agence France-Presse (AFP) correspondent at the scene said. One by one, they walked down to lay their weapons in a cauldron in which a fire was lit. Most were rifles, but there was one machine gun and a rocket-propelled grenade launcher. As they looked on, people in the crowd started cheering while others could be heard weeping. After the ceremony, the fighters returned to the mountains, a PKK commander said. 'Öcalan's freedom essential' Speaking to AFP after the ceremony, the PKK's top female commander Bese Hozat said that for the process to succeed, it was essential to release Abdullah Öcalan – known to his followers as "Apo" – who has been serving life in solitary confinement since 1999. "Ensuring Leader Apo's physical freedom via legal guarantees, is essential... he should be able to freely lead and manage this process. This is our primary condition and demand," she said. "Without this development, it is highly unlikely that the process will continue successfully." Erdogan hailed the ceremony as an "important step" on the path to a "terror-free Turkey," expressing hope it would lead to "the establishment of lasting peace in our region." And a senior Turkish official source described it as a "concrete and welcome step." The following steps would involve the legal reintegration of former fighters into society, the establishment of mechanisms for their lawful return and for justice, ensuring accountability and stability. PKK militants have insisted on the need for legal reform in Turkey to allow them to return home freely and engage in democratic politics, Commander Hozat told AFP. "If Turkey… enacts laws and implements radical legal reforms… we will go to Turkey and engage in politics," she said. "If there is no legal constitutional arrangements, we will either end up in prison or being killed." The ceremony followed months of indirect negotiations between Öcalan and Ankara that began in October with Erdogan's blessing, and were facilitated by Turkey's pro-Kurdish DEM party. The PKK took up arms in 1984, beginning a string of bloody attacks on Turkish soil that sparked a conflict that cost more than 40,000 lives. But more than four decades on, the PKK in May announced its dissolution, saying it would pursue a democratic struggle to defend the rights of the Kurdish minority in line with a historic call by Öcalan, who, at 76, has spent the past 26 years behind bars.