EUROPE DIPLOMATIC

NATO: Arctic Sentry announcement

12.02.2026 Today at 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…

Telegram restricted in Russia

Brussels 11.02.2026 The Founder, and CEO at the @telegram social media and instant messaging service since 2013 Pavel Durov (pictured) responded to Russia’s phased restrictions imposed on the platform. Russia is restricting access to Telegram to force its citizens onto a state-controlled app built for surveillance and political censorship. This authoritarian move won’t change our…

EU-Russia sanctions XX: Greece & Malta in doubts

10.02.2026 Greece and Malta have spoken out against the European Union’s (EU) proposal to replace the price cap on Russian oil with a ban on services necessary for its transportation, Bloomberg reported, citing sources familiar with the discussions. Greece and Malta hesitate over EU’s Russia oil services ban — Bloomberg https://t.co/G3CNhberAN — The Edge Singapore…

Will U.S. Congress reprimand EU censors?

Brussels 07.02.2026 The EU executive on strongly rejected accusations made in a US congressional report that it had forced social media platforms to censor American content. (Image above: EU Parliament, Strasbourg, France) The House Judiciary Committee released a interim staff report titled “The Foreign Censorship Threat, Part II: Europe’s Decade-Long Campaign to Censor the Global…

Kallas demands more funds for defence

Brussels 28.01.2026 The European Union must improve its defence and make Nato “more European to maintain its strength”, because the U.S. has changed the transatlantic relationship to its foundation, the EU’s top diplomat has said. We want strong trans-Atlantic ties.But Europe needs to adapt to new realities. It is no longer Washington’s primary centre of…

BRAFA 2026: optimistic outlook

Brussels 26.01.2026 As a barometer for the art market, the opening days of the 71st edition of BRAFA indicate an utmost promising start to 2026. The atmosphere among the 147 exhibitors is exceptionally positive and, during the first three days – by invitation only and reserved for the fair’s most loyal collectors – several major…

U.S. fleet in Gulf of Oman

Brussels 26.01.2026 A United States aircraft carrier strike group is heading towards the Gulf while tensions build with Iran. The U.S. military last deployed a major build-up in the Middle East in June last year days before striking three Iranian nuclear sites during Israel’s 12-day war against Ayatollah’s regime. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (#IRGC)…

Belligerent EU doubts Board of Peace?

Brussels 25.01.2026 The EU’s diplomatic service (EEAS) points to legal concerns about the charter underpinning Donald Trump’s new Board of Peace initiative, according to Reuters news agency. Trump has billed his new intergovernmental organisation, signed into existence on January 22 in Davos, Switzerland, as a forum for resolving global conflicts, but there was a lukewarm…

Mark Rutte “Trump whisperer”

Brussels 25.01.2026 This week in Davos Finnish President Alexander Stubb was asked at the World Economic Forum (WEF) who or what can release rising tensions between the U.S. and its NATO allies over President Trump’s intention to take over Greenland, the world’s largest island beloning to the Kingdom of Denmark. NATO chief cements "Trump whisperer"…

Donbass in focus of Abu-Dhabi talks

Brussels 23.01.2026 The diplomatic talks startted today in Abu Dhabi and are scheduled to continue over two days, as part of ongoing efforts to promote dialogue and identify political solutions to the crisis,” the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said territorial disputes would be a central issue…