22/05/25View in Browser
Today's top stories
Good morning from Brussels.
 
The escalating conflict between Israel and Hamas spilled into the halls of the European Parliament on Wednesday as a physical altercation broke out between a left-wing staffer and a centre-right MEP over the contentious issue, writes Magnus Lund Nielsen.
 
According to two sources with knowledge of the incident, the staffer reportedly followed the MEP inside the Parliament and when the staffer began filming with her mobile phone, the situation turned physical.
 
The MEP in question is Alice Teodorescu Måwe, a first-term Swedish parliamentarian who sits on the civil liberties and defence committees, Euractiv has learned. Her office said in a statement late Wednesday thatshe was the victim of the attack and that suggestions to the contrary were "baseless".
 
Teodorescu Måwe has grabbed headlines recently with her robust support of Israel, saying that recognising the Jewish homeland should be a prerequisite to obtaining Swedish citizenship.
 
The staffer, a Swede of Middle Eastern descent, works for the Left Party in the European Parliament.
 
Both parties filed separate complaints to the police, Swedish media reported.
Two members of staff from the Israeli embassy were killed in a shooting outside an event at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC, last night, according to officials and media reports.
Bubbling in Brussels
Click on the picture to read the story | [EPA-EFE/ERDEM SAHIN]
Donald Trump's demands to take over Greenland shifted the conversation on Arctic security. But Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barthe Eide told Euractiv’s Aurélie Pugnet that areas beyond Greenland deserve serious consideration.
 
Faced with immunity lift. European Parliament President Roberta Metsola has named the five MEPs whose parliamentary immunity the Belgian prosecutor has requested to lift under an ongoing probe into Huawei’s alleged cash-for-influence scheme, writes Nicoletta Ionta.
 
More LNG needed. Faced with unpredictable gas demand over the coming years, Europe needs to strike more supply contracts of liquified natural gas to avoid sudden price changes, the EU energy regulator has warned while urging an acceleration of the transition to clean energy, writes Stefano Porciello. 
 
Negotiating down Trump. Europe and the US could jointly slap tariffs on China if Washington pledges to remove its duties on EU exports, said Bernd Lange, chair of the European Parliament’s international trade committee, writes Thomas Moller-Nielsen. 
 
Backlash. The Commission is facing friendly fire from traditional allies in the European People Party's parliament group on a plan for the EU's next long-term budget covering the 2028-2034 period, known in Brussels as the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), write Nicoletta Ionta and Nikolaus J. Kurmayer.
 
Upping the ante. Mid-sized companies get relief, and EU rulemaking a reboot, in Brussels’ latest attempt to fix its underperforming internal market, writes Magnus Lund Nielsen.
 
To be sidestepped. EU ministers are expected to adopt key connectivity conclusions during a Council meeting in Luxembourg on 6 June, but will dodge talk of a ban on equipment from high-risk vendors in fixed networks such as China's Huawei and ZTE, writes Théophane Hartmann. 
 
The Parliament and Council held political negotiations on the GDPR enforcement rules last night, but no agreement was reached. The co-legislators decided to end the talks relatively early and to schedule another round of negotiations at a later date.  A draft of the negotiators' latest text, seen by Claudie Moreau, showed that deadlines remained a contentious issue. 
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Western Europe
Click on the picture to read the story |[Michael Kappeler/picture alliance via Getty Images]

BERLIN

The second-largest party in the German parliament would typically expect to secure some prime parliamentary posts, including the chairmanship of a few key committees. Read more.

Germany's new economy minister hopes cheaper energy can bring back growth.Germany's energy policy and renewables strategy are heading for a "reality check" under the newly appointed Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, a former lawmaker returning to politics after nearly a decade in the gas industry. Read more.

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PARIS

Paris seeks further EU support for battery producers. France is asking the European Commission to directly fund European battery makers who are struggling to scale up production, a document seen by Euractiv shows. Read more.

UK & Ireland

LONDON

What Brexit betrayal? Brit rejoiners unimpressed by Starmer’s reset. The UK’s ‘reset’ deal with the EU brought cries of “betrayal” from opponents – but that doesn’t mean those still campaigning for Brexit to be reversed were jubilant. Read more.

EU-UK food safety pact hailed as breakthrough, with exceptions ahead. Brussels is claiming a quiet victory after a landmark agreement on Monday secured renewed UK alignment with EU food safety rules – even as the agri-food sector begins eyeing carve-outs. Read more.

Nordics & Baltics

HELSINKI

Finland completes first 35km of border fence with Russia. Finland has completed the first 35 km (22 miles) of a 4.5-metre (15-ft) high fence it is building on its closed eastern border with Russia to stop migrants from crossing via the wilderness, the Finnish Border Guard said on Wednesday. Read more.

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COPENHAGEN

Denmark discovers suspicious components in imported green tech. A Danish renewables industry body says a supplier has discovered unexplained components in circuit boards imported from an 'eastern' supplier. Read more.

Southern Europe
Click on the picture to read the story | [Gabriele Maricchiolo/NurPhoto via Getty Images]

ROME

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is rebranding the long-promised €13 billion Strait of Messina bridge as a strategic NATO corridor to finally get the European Commission on board – and unlock both political and financial support. Read more.

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MADRID

Spanish government defends arms deal with Israeli company despite pledge
. Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska defended a multi-million-euro Israeli ammunition deal before lawmakers on Wednesday, despite Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s earlier pledge to halt arms sales to Israel.

“We have a very clear commitment to not acquire armament from Israeli companies”, Marlaska said before Congress. “But mistakes happen.”

In October 2024, Marlaska announced the cancellation of a €6.8 million bullet deal with Israeli weapons manufacturer IMI Solutions LDT, in line with the government’s stance on halting arms trade with Israel. But in April, it emerged that the contract had never been formally terminated.

Under pressure from left-wing coalition partner Sumar, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said he would rescind the deal, as tensions threatened to fracture the government.

But before lawmakers on Wednesday, Grande-Marlaska said his ministry had decided to continue with the deal despite its “official termination”, arguing his ministry had found no alternatives “that would not be economically detrimental to the state.”

Marlaska promised steps would be taken “to ensure this does not happen again.”

The debate comes after parliament approved a non-binding motion on Tuesday, urging the government to impose an arms embargo on Israel.

(Ines Fernandez-Pontes | Euractiv.es)

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LISBON

Portugal’s new government prioritises railway plans and airline privatisation, says minister
. Portugal's minister of infrastructure stated on Wednesday that the investments planned in the National Railway Plan (PFN) are to be implemented "now without delay", pointing to the privatisation of flag carrier TAP and the high-speed rail line as "priorities" for the new government.

"The privatisation of TAP is to continue, this is the priority that was already set by the 24th Government and will continue, (...) the construction of the new airport (...), the continuity of the PFN, now meeting deadlines and putting the seven years of delay of Ferrovia 2020 behind us. We have to finish Ferrovia 2020 and start meeting deadlines," Miguel Pinto Luz told journalists on the sidelines of the Portugal Railway Summit.

The minister  highlighted the importance of railways in ‘structural’ investments for the country. "The railway is essential for ports, (...) for logistics, to ensure that our fellow citizens have mobility and (...) this Government's commitment is clear. The green rail pass has sold more than 300,000 passes and more than 55,000 passengers use the green rail pass every month," he said.

In this sense, with "more demand and more passes’ sold, ‘passenger train operator CP has more passengers travelling on regional and intercity trains, and has more revenue, which means that we are not decapitalising CP as some predicted, but rather putting CP at the service of the Portuguese people," said Pinto Luz, who pointed to "more priorities" for the railway.

(Mário Rui Fonseca, edited by Cristina Cardoso | Lusa.pt)

Eastern Europe
Click on the picture to read the story | [Tomas Tkacik/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images]

PRAGUE

Brussels has approved an emergency €5.5 million injection for Radio Free Europe after the Prague-based broadcaster was pushed to the brink by Trump's funding cuts. Read more.

Czechia signals backing for NATO’s 5% defence spending push. Czechia is ready to support a potential 5% of GDP defence spending goal at this June’s NATO summit in The Hague, Czech President Petr Pavel said. Read more.

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WARSAW

Poland intercepts sanctioned Russian shadow fleet ship. A sanctioned Russian vessel from the so-called "shadow fleet" was spotted performing suspicious maneuvers near the Poland-Sweden power cable, Prime Minister Donald Tusk (PO, EPP) said Wednesday, adding that the ship withdrew to a Russian port following a Polish military intervention.

“A Russian ship from the so-called ‘shadow fleet,’ under sanctions, was carrying out suspicious maneuvers near the power cable connecting Poland and Sweden. After a successful intervention by our military, the vessel sailed to one of the Russian ports,” Tusk wrote on X.

The prime minister will participate in a special emergency meeting that will be held tomorrow at the Naval Operations Center in Gdynia port city, Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz (PSL, EPP) announced.

“Upon identification, we spotted a tanker from the so-called shadow fleet list. The operational commander immediately ordered specific procedures to be applied, resulting in a successful deterrence,” Kosiniak-Kamysz said.

He added that Poland is in contact with its NATO allies and that all necessary forces would be assigned to this operation.

“It shows how dangerous the times we live in are. (...) Any such attack or attempt will be met with a NATO response,” the minister stressed.

(Aleksandra Krzysztoszek | Euractiv.pl)

The Balkans

BUCHAREST

George Simion finds ally in French far right after election defeat. Defeated in the second round of Romania's presidential election, nationalist candidate George Simion is now alleging "French interference", a claim that has already earned him a vocal ally in France's far right. Read more.

Agenda
  • EU: Competitiveness Council Internal market and industry composition convenes to discuss tailor made policies for traditionally strong industries, business friendly regulations, and more;
  • Fifth Accession Conference with Albania expected to focus on economic and monetary policy, digital transformation and media, customs union, and more;
  • Commission Vice President Henna Virkkunen delivers speech at Brussels Economic Forum 2025; Delivers keynote speech European Movement International 2025 Democracy Alive Summit;
  • Vice President Raffaele Fitto holds meetings with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, Minister for European Union Affairs Jessica Rosencrantz, Minister for Rural Affairs Peter Kullgren, in Stockholm, Sweden;
  • Parliament’s plenary votes on granting equivalence to Moldova and Ukraine for field inspections and seed production, and more; Debates on Choose Europe for Science, and more.

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[Edited by Vas Panagiotopoulos, Charles Szumski, Daniel Eck, Sofia Mandilara]

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