Author: Euronews

Serifos is one of the most beautiful islands in the Cyclades. Behind its major tourism development lies a history that most people know nothing about. The island was an important mining centre as far back as antiquity. Its subsoil is rich mainly in haematite and magnetite, with the result that to this day half of Serifos is perforated with galleries and shafts after many years of mining. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT In the south-west, mainly at Mega Livadi and Koutalas, visitors can still see rusted rails, machinery, tools, wagons and loading piers. These are the visible traces of the intensive mining activity…

Published on 24/09/2026 – 16:28 GMT+2 Austria, Czechia, Hungary, Slovakia and Poland are pushing for changes to the EU’s carbon market to give European industry more time and flexibility to cut emissions without losing competitiveness, according to a document seen by Euronews. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The five countries argue that companies face enormous costs to decarbonise factories while competing with producers outside Europe that are not subject to the same carbon price. “We need something like an ‘export discount’ because we have a huge problem when we start doing business outside,” Austrian Industry and Energy Minister Wolfgang Hattmannsdorfer told reporters on…

The European Union has agreed to remove Uzbek-Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov from its sanctions list after fraught negotiations that saw France link his delisting to a prisoner release with Azerbaijan, unsettling Brussels. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT A second Russian oligarch, Mikhail Fridman, was also removed after Slovakia vetoed his continued listing, several diplomats told Euronews. Luxembourg had argued that if Usmanov was removed, Fridman should be too. Fridman has filed a $16 billion claim against Luxembourg over his frozen assets. As a result of the changes, the asset freeze and the travel ban will be lifted. Ambassadors sealed the compromise on Tuesday…

The European Union and Canada last week unveiled plans for an ambitious new partnership that could eventually give Canada a form of associate EU membership. Yet their existing landmark agreement remains unfinished business. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) was signed in 2016 and has applied provisionally since 2017, removing almost all tariffs and helping drive a sharp increase in transatlantic trade. But ten EU countries – Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Poland and Slovenia – have still not ratified it. The contrast was underlined last week when European Commission President Ursula von der…

Published on 20/09/2026 – 13:43 GMT+2 Germans are heading to the polls on Sunday in two state elections that could prove decisive for Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s future. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT In Berlin, Merz’s ruling Christian Democratic Union (CDU) is facing a close fight against Die Linke, which has strong support among young people and has pledged measures to tackle the housing crisis. In the coastal state of Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania in northeastern Germany, the main race is between the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the hard-right, anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD). The AfD comes into Sunday’s vote fresh off the back of…

Around 150 metres below the water’s surface, west of the Norwegian island of Fedje, a fragment of German wartime history lies on the seabed. A submarine called U-864 has been resting there for more than eight decades, broken into two parts, surrounded by sediment and a cargo that still poses an environmental problem today. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT U-864 is an exceptional case: according to historical records, large quantities of mercury were probably on board, with a Japanese order mentioning 1,867 containers. If the entire shipment had been loaded, that would correspond to between about 65 and 67 tonnes. However, the exact…

Published on 18/09/2026 – 16:45 GMT+2 A 68-year-old Russian man, who travelled from the Russian Baltic sea enclave of Kaliningrad to Lithuania by river was met by border guards on the riverbank on Thursday afternoon and was sent back without being granted asylum. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “After the swim, he was provided with dry clothing,” Lithuania’s State Border Guard press service told Euronews. “More details about his journey, such as the exact distance covered, the route or how long he was in the water, cannot currently be provided.” The man allegedly told Lithuanian authorities that he was fleeing Russia because of…

Published on 17/09/2026 – 17:24 GMT+2 The European Commission stepped up pressure on China on Thursday, calling for tangible results with Beijing following a one-hour video call between Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Wentao. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The EU executive hopes to secure commitments from Beijing to rebalance the trade relationship, as the bloc’s trade deficit with China has been widening by €1 billion a day. However, Beijing wants to secure access to the EU’s market of 450 million consumers, resisting calls from the Europeans to reduce its exports. “While genuine engagement remains a priority, it is…

Published on 16/09/2026 – 15:48 GMT+2 Ottawa and Brussels are in talks for Canada to join the Erasmus+ exchange programme, which would let students from both sides study at each other’s universities. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT EU-Canada relations have rarely been closer, as Prime Minister Mark Carney has sought to build a tighter relationship with the European bloc following the aggressive trade agenda and erratic foreign policy of the second Trump administration. On Wednesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen invited Canada to become the first “associate member” of the EU, an unprecedented arrangement short of full membership, which remains off…

A European Parliament debate on the situation in Ceuta on Tuesday descended into a bitter internal clash between the political groups backing European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, just one day before her landmark State of the Union address. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The two main groups underpinning the centrist majority — the European People’s Party (EPP) and the Socialists and Democrats (S&D) — clashed over the aftermath of the mass influx of migrants into the Spanish exclave on 30-31 July, when around 80,000 people crossed the border irregularly and more than 150 people died. “The EPP has been exploiting Ceuta…