In February 2025, the newly elected US vice president JD Vance attended the Munich Security Conference and declared a culture war on Europe. In his speech, he accused European leaders of being afraid of their voters and claimed that the biggest threat to Europe is not Russia or China but internal at…

In a quiet but revolutionary legal shift, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) opened the door last month for countries to sue each other over climate change. For the first time, any government can be held legally responsible not just for their emissions, but also for failing to prevent climate …

In some parts of Europe's capital, the EU feels very far away. That's especially true in August, when the so-called Brussels bubble of eurocrats, their entourage and the usual white collars disappear almost overnight. EU officials return to their home countries, political advisers and lobbyists take…

Every year, around 8 million people die prematurely due to tobacco use. Serbia, Bulgaria, and Latvia have the highest tobacco usage rates in Europe, with 39.8%, 39% and 37% of the population currently using it, respectively. Meanwhile, Iceland has the lowest rate, with just 12% of the population, ma…

Jeden Tag stellen Tausende von Frauen in Malta solche Fragen in der Facebook-Gruppe Women for Women (Malta). In einem Land mit nur 560.000 Einwohnern haben sich in dieser Gruppe über 60.000 Mitglieder versammelt – das sind beeindruckende 26% aller maltesischen Frauen, die ein Facebook-Konto haben kö…

Allein im Mai wurden in Russland sieben neue Stalin-Monumente enthüllt – mehr als je zuvor seit der Personenkult um den Sowjetdiktator 1956 abgeschafft wurde. Seit Wladimir Putins Machtantritt im Jahr 2000 wächst ihre Zahl stetig. Nach dem Überfall auf die Ukraine explodierte sie förmlich: Mittlerwe…

Wo sind Europas erneuerbare Energien? Wasserkraftwerke dominieren als größte Erzeuger erneuerbarer Energie die Bergregionen Europas – von den Alpen bis zu den skandinavischen Gebirgszügen. An den Küsten Nordeuropas reihen sich Windparks aneinander, während Solaranlagen die sonnenverwöhnten Landschaf…

Gehört Ihnen Ihr Gesicht wirklich? Im Internet längst nicht mehr. Seit dem Siegeszug der Künstlichen Intelligenz noch weniger – denn sie bescherte uns Deepfakes: täuschend echte Videos, Bilder oder Tonaufnahmen, die Menschen Dinge tun oder sagen lassen, die nie geschehen sind. Die Technologie wird o…

Schalten Sie im Balkan den Fernseher ein, landen Sie garantiert binnen Sekunden bei einer türkischen Seifenoper. Die dizis, wie Seifenopern auf Türkisch heißen, eroberten 2010 mit Tausendundeine Nacht unsere Bildschirme – eine moderne Adaption des Märchens über eine verwitwete Mutter und ihre aufopf…

If your job gets hit by tariffs, it might just come down to luck. Two weeks ago, EU negotiators wrapped up a deal with the US that will reshape transatlantic trade for years to come. On Thursday, tariffs are set to rise tenfold, up to 15%. That’s massive, but the important story isn’t the rate itsel…

On Sunday, French cyclist Pauline Ferrand-Prévot won the Tour de France Femmes. Yes, women do have their own Tour, and this year’s edition was arguably more fun to watch than the men’s, which turned into a one-man show with little suspense. Despite unprecedented enthusiasm, there's still a striking …

The city of Nîmes in southern France is internationally known for its arenas, but nationally, it's infamous for its gun violence. Seven shootings took place in several neighbourhoods riddled with drug trafficking over the course of just one month – 2 people died, at least 6 got seriously injured, in…

After cracking down on critics, media, and so-called foreign influence, Russian authorities are now going after the ultimate evil: satan himself. On 23 July, the country’s supreme court declared the so-called ”International Satanist Movement” an extremist organisation. Say what? Authorities didn’t e…

With the summer holidays in full swing, crowds of tourists are once again filling popular cities like Paris. Increasingly, travellers are documenting their journeys on platforms like Instagram, leaving behind a digital footprint that shows how cities are shared.…

It's official! The Swedish speciality ”kaffeost” (coffee cheese) has been granted EU protected status. Kaffeost is a fresh cheese made from reindeer, goat, or cow's milk, which is only produced in the northernmost parts of Sweden. It’s traditionally consumed with coffee: you cut the cheese into smal…

Imagine you're a centre-right minister in office, and learn from the media that your son is active in violent far-right extremist groups. Embarrassing, to say the least, right? That's exactly what just happened to Johan Forssell, the Swedish migration minister, who has otherwise been keen to lecture…

Finland’s famous social welfare model is crumbling. Since taking office in 2023, the right-wing government has imposed strict cuts on social security spending – to the point where an image of our far-right finance minister mockingly holding up a pair of scissors to symbolise the budget cuts has come…

Norwegian police have a long tradition of being unarmed on ordinary duty, just one of four European countries that practice this. Since 1 July, those days are over. Following the country’s security services’ evaluations, which raised concerns over terrorism and general crime, the police themselves a…

Construction costs in these major European cities are rising as the continent faces shortages in construction labour, raising concerns in economic and urban development spheres. Cities like London and Dublin currently grapple with major housing shortages. In Zurich, thousands demonstrated against th…

From Moldova to Japan, many countries worldwide are grappling with shrinking populations. Low birth rates are a common reason, and for some, like the Baltics, the trend is also fuelled by high living costs and continued emigration. The fallout is familiar: fewer workers, slower economic growth, and …

”I love Paris”, ”I love Pizza”. And apparently, so does everyone else. That's why the EU Court of Justice blocked a German company's attempt to trademark the classic ”I ♥” logo for clothing last Wednesday. The firm, sprd.net, wanted exclusive rights by placing the symbol on shirts, labels, and neckl…

Every year, Catholics and certain Protestants go on vacation on 11 and 12 July to avoid the Orange Order's holiday: the conservative Northern Irish Protestant organisation commemorates the start of Protestant rule in Ireland with huge bonfires and parades. It sounds festive, but some practices keep …

Soaring rents, record homelessness, and overcrowding: from the UK to Spain, housing crises have led to an increase in squatting. Occupying empty buildings has become a form of survival, as migrants and low-income families are priced out of the formal housing market in cities like Amsterdam, Barcelon…

Torre Pacheco is a typical rural community in Spain's southeast: A modest agricultural hub in the vicinity of fertile land irrigated by a 1960's water transfer project. Nothing to write home about. This week, however, it became the epicentre of the country's worst racist riots in decades. Last Wedne…

Another week, another migration gimmick. Under a ”one in, one out” deal, the UK is set to forcibly return a small number of asylum seekers back to France in exchange for admitting the same number of people wanting to come to Britain. The deal aims to deter deadly journeys across the English Channel,…

”The priest asked me upstairs. (...) He said that I'm special,” says a Polish survivor in the documentary ”Tell No One”. Her priest would kiss her and masturbate using her hands. She was seven years old. She is one of at least half a million survivors of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church in Wester…

The euro should play a bigger role on the world stage. That's what European Central Bank president Christine Lagarde recently argued. As protectionism rises and confidence in the US economy wanes, she claims the dominance of the dollar is ”no longer certain”. What she means: the euro should replace …

Each summer, wildfires ravage across Türkiye's Aegean and Mediterranean coasts. While the flames dominate headlines, another story is unfolding in the ashes: the quiet transformation of burned forests into profitable construction zones. This summer is no different, with new wildfires adding to the m…

In June, US President Donald Trump proudly claimed that he managed to stop a ”big war” between Serbia and Kosovo because of trade. Serbia's response was collective surprise: ”What is bro talking about?” was the dominant comment on social media. Lately, the country has been facing mass protests again…

”Praise be to Jesus and Mary, my dear people,” Croatian singer Marko Perković, known as Thompson, told a crowd at Zagreb's Hippodrome. He called on ”all of Europe” to return to its traditions and Christian roots. Only then, he declared, can Croatia be strong again. Thompson is a nationalist icon in …

TV licence fees remain a highly debated issue in countries that still use them. In recent years, some European countries made changes to their financing models: Denmark, France and Türkiye dropped the fee in 2022, followed by Slovakia in 2023. In countries where the licence fee still exists, it is u…

How can the state promote integration? If you ask Burgenland, the easternmost of Austria's nine states, the answer is forced labour. Yes, you read that right. Since 1 July, asylum seekers have been obliged to work without remuneration for the community they live in, for example, in winter road clear…

In a world of smartphones and 5G, phone booths feel like relics from another era; more nostalgic postcards than practical infrastructure. While most European countries have quietly phased them out, Austria is holding on. More than 6,500 public phone booths remain, with 1,600 in Vienna alone. Unsurpr…

Ursula von der Leyen comfortably defeated a far-right-led motion of censure in the European Parliament last week, with 360 MEPs voting against and only 175 in favour. If successful, the vote would have caused the fall of the European Commission and triggered a political crisis at the heart of the EU…

Less religion, more health education: Poland is trying to modernise its curriculum to match the needs of today's children. The educational reform, set to start this autumn, includes separate classes for health and civic education, a ban on homework for the youngest, themed blocks covered from the pe…

In an attempt to present themselves as a credible governing party, Germany's far-right nationalists, the AfD, have imposed a code of conduct on themselves. If they want to enter a coalition with the conservative CDU in the next federal elections, scheduled to take place in 2029, the party has to ado…

Thousands of people stuck in lifts, crossroads with no working traffic lights, disrupted public transportation, hours-long delays on the railways, and chaos in offices: These are just a couple of examples of the consequences of a blackout that occurred in Czechia in the first week of July. If you fe…

The ongoing Women's Euro 2025 still receives far less media attention than the Men's Euro 2024 – a gap reflected in their prize pools. While the women's prize fund rose from €16 million in 2022 to €41 million, it still falls well short of the men's €331 million. Adjusting for the number of teams (16…

What happens to your soul after you die? That's a tough one, depending on what you believe. But what you have some say in is what happens to your body once you move… on. Organ donation can happen during life and after death. Naturally,  in the latter case, if you've missed the deadline (pun absolute…

Have you ever wandered through a cemetery, reading names and dates, wondering about the lives behind those gravestones? In Trondheim, starting autumn 2026, visitors will be able to breathe life into some of those stories – by using their phones (no, not by Googling; that would be too easy). Under th…

Russia's intelligence agency GRU ordered an arson attack on a Ukrainian restaurant in Tallinn in January, an Estonian court revealed last week. This is not an isolated incident. Since the start of Russia’s war in Ukraine in 2022, we have reported on numerous hybrid attacks ordered by the Russian gov…

Finland had the highest alcohol prices in the EU last year – 110% above the average. That's no accident. The high prices are the result of deliberate government policy, with steep taxes aimed at reducing consumption and improving public health. And the strategy appears to have helped: alcohol use ha…

Each year, nearly every second Dane travels to Germany to exploit the favourable prices – easy and simple, thanks to the EU’s Schengen agreement. But when Denmark closed its borders in 2016 amid the refugee crisis, queues at the southern crossings became the status quo – a minor concern for most Dan…

Nowadays, grocery products come from all over the world, prices fluctuate, labels change, and somehow we're expected just to know why our groceries cost more this week. Sometimes, it's foreign policy. The EU-Mercosur trade deal probably sounds distant, but the consequences land right in your shoppin…

The next time you plan a trip to Paris, don't forget your swimsuit:  the Seine is now open for swimming! After €1.4 billion worth of cleaning the river, Paris authorities declared the water quality as good enough for people to take a bath in Paris' fresh waters. The first swim ban for health reasons…

Last weekend, 158,000 visitors from 90 countries visited one of Belgium's biggest festivals, Rock Werchter. International and national artists, such as Fontaines D.C. and Sylvie Kreusch, voiced their support for Palestine with a watermelon umbrella and concert visuals stating ”free Palestine”. As se…

More focus, fewer distractions, and actual face-to-face conversation: Dutch schools are reporting early success after banning smartphones from classrooms. A year after national guidelines encouraged the move, nearly all schools have complied, with two-thirds asking pupils to leave phones at home or …

The split between the Netherlands and Belgium in the 16th century was ”the greatest disaster that ever happened to us.” Those are the words of Belgium’s prime minister, Bart de Wever. During a recent radio interview, the Belgian politician reiterated his long-cherished wish for Belgium and the Nethe…

Ever heard of vaporwave? How about fashwave? The former is a music genre and aesthetic from the 2010s, while the latter is its appropriation by the alt-right a few years later. Most research on the far-right focuses on voting, parties, and policies. In reality, though, the far-right spreads through …

Did you know that one of the most trendy empires right now (particularly dear to Gen Z, seemingly according to online trends) is the baklava empire? This culinary kingdom stretches from the Balkans to Central Asia, and comprises every country listed in the Wikipedia article on “baklava”. But even th…

Migration is shaping the future of Europe, particularly among younger generations. One interesting statistic to look at is that of foreign-born young adults: high shares of those show a mix of migration stories – students who stayed, workers who settled, children of immigrants coming of age, or peop…

In a cell inside Belarus' Zhodzina prison, Dzyanis Ivashyn is reading the Pulitzer Prize-winning book, Gulag: A History (2003) by Anne Applebaum. A bitter irony, as the book is banned, like many works that speak honestly about the past or the present of Belarusian and Russian regimes. But thanks to …

Where do soldiers first go when they are wounded in battle? To be stabilised. In Ukraine, the so-called stabilisation points are well-known facilities on the frontline, where medics treat life-threatening injuries and prepare wounded soldiers for further medical care and transportation. Such points …

Last week, the European Commission proposed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2040, compared to 1990 levels. But there's a catch: the EU now wants to let member states use international carbon credits to meet their targets. What are they? A carbon credit represents one tonne of CO₂ that h…

In 1993, the town of Srebrenica, in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina, was declared a ”safe zone” under the protection of the United Nations. Bosniaks – Bosnian Muslims – had fled there to escape ethnic cleansing by Bosnian Serbs during the war. Yet two years later, Srebrenica saw over 8,000 people kil…