Euobserver.com

United Nations secretary-general Antonio Guterres told the COP27 climate conference in Egypt that the world is on "a highway to climate hell, with our foot on the accelerator." He told leaders to "cooperate or perish," singling out the two biggest polluters, China and the US. He called for a pact between rich and poor countries. "It is either a Climate Solidarity Pact — or a collective suicide pact" Guterres said.

British prime minister Rishi Sunak and EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen agreed to work to resolve problems with the Northern Ireland Protocol, at a meeting on Monday at the COP27 conference in Egypt, Downing street said in a statement. Sunak's spokesperson said the two had agreed "on the importance of working together to agree a resolution." Britain has previously threatened to override the post-Brexit trade agreement.

Poland's ruling party leader triggered anger and ridicule by claiming that the country's low birthrate is partly caused by overconsumption of alcohol by young women, AP reported. Jarosław Kaczyński, the 73-year-old lifelong bachelor, said Saturday that "if [...] the situation remains such that, until the age of 25, girls, young women, drink the same amount as their peers, there will be no children." The Polish government has restricted abortion rights.

The EU Commission on Monday proposed rules to make Airbnb and other short-term home rental companies share monthly data on the number of people using their platforms. Currently, different national laws regulate Airbnb and its rivals, and authorities have little oversight over their activities. The hope is that improving transparency on the short-term accommodation hosts will lead to harmonisation of rules, preventing illegal listings, and more sustainable tourism.

Brexit has curtailed Britain's role within European internal security, presenting new risks. The greatest impact comes from the loss of UK influence — and the newfound reliance on informal influence and the goodwill of its European counterparts.

Is it kind of funny to watch Elon Musk burn billions of dollars driving a popular social media company into the ground in a quixotic quest to build a better 'public square'?

As Italy's new government eyes plans for more humane jails aimed at rehabilitating convicts, there are two unconventional spots that are successful case studies.

The European Commission says it is powerless to stop Italy from banning charity rescue boats entering its territorial waters. The statement follows moves by the new government under Georgia Meloni to further crack down on the Mediterranean Sea rescues.

Renowned British conspiracy theorist David Icke has been denied entry to the Netherlands for two years.

For the first time, the EU is facing pressure at COP27 to soften its resistance to compensate the world's poorest nations for the loss and damage created by floods, rising seas and other impacts fuelled by the climate crisis.

Israel is trying to gag its critics by formally labelling them as antisemites in the UN, Jewish academics have warned, but the EU Commission says there's no cause for alarm.

Member states are looking at circumventing an EU court ruling on hoovering up people's personal data. The data vacuum is part of an EU law known as the passenger name record (PNR) directive, aimed help track and prevent terrorist attacks.

60-year-old cleaner José Antonio González died of a heart attack after being forced to sweep the Madrid streets in a 40 degree heatwave — just one example of workers losing their lives because labour law hasn't changed with the climate.

The European Central Bank (ECB) has set a deadline of the end of 2024 deadlines for banks to green their lending operations and meet climate requirements

Two blips of light in the night sky, whizzing around the globe every 90 minutes, could be where Russia opts to clash with Nato over the Ukraine war.

Danish social democrats secured the best result in two decades (27,5%) in general elections on Tuesday, giving prime minister Mette Frederiksen's 'red bloc' of parties the required 90 seats to form a new government. But Frederiksen resigned on Wednesday and wants instead to form a new government based on parties in the middle of the political spectrum. A record high 12 political parties secured representation in the new parliament.

The spike in violence against the LGBTQ+ community directly reflects the proliferation of hateful, ultra-nationalist rhetoric — often perpetrated by Poland's PiS party leaders.

NGOs say Athens should no longer consider Turkey as a safe place to return asylum seekers, citing a European Commission report that highlights likely abuse and violations.

Finland and Sweden will not be requesting any preconditions before joining Nato.

Denmark's anti-piracy mission in Gulf of Guinea was launched with such haste that no protocols were made with the Nigerian government. So no plan was in place if Denmark killed or captured pirates — likely to be Nigerian nationals.