French minister calls for extension of EU-US trade talks

France’s finance minister has called for extending EU-U.S. trade talks beyond the July 9 deadline in order to secure a better agreement.
U.S. President Donald Trump has set the deadline for the trade talks, warning that failure to reach agreement could trigger higher U.S. tariffs on goods…[Read more]

France implements smoking ban at beaches and parks in step towards ‘tobacco-free generation’

Under new rules anyone who lights up on a beach or in a public park from Sunday will be breaking the law

Anyone who lights up on a beach or in a public park in France will be breaking the law from Sunday under new rules aimed at protecting children fro…[Read more]

China to allow resumption of some seafood imports from Japan

China has said it will allow the import of some seafood products from Japan to resume, a partial lifting of the blanket ban imposed following Tokyo’s release of wastewater from a wrecked Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in 2023.
The decision came after Japan’s government promised to…[Read more]

Japan launches a climate change monitoring satellite on mainstay H2A rocket’s last flight

Japan on Sunday successfully launched a climate change monitoring satellite on its mainstay H-2A rocket, which made its final flight before it is replaced by a new flagship model designed to be more cost competitive in the global space market.

The H-2A r…[Read more]

Türkiye-US ties enter new era after Trump meeting: Erdoğan

Relations between Türkiye and the United States are entering a new era after his meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in The Hague, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said, expressing his hope to see advance in technical talks for the former’s return to the F-35 joint fighter jet p…[Read more]

‘Russia ready for new round of Ukraine talks in Türkiye’

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow was ready for a new round of peace talks with Ukraine in Istanbul, although the location and time of the discussions have not been agreed upon yet.

Putin said there were big differences between the proposals submitted by the two sides at…[Read more]

Guterres: US-led Gaza food hunt a ‘death sentence’

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday issued a stark warning over the deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, declaring that the current U.S.-backed aid delivery operation is “inherently unsafe” and “killing people.”

Speaking at a press conference at U.N. headquarter…[Read more]

Japan executes by hanging ‘Twitter killer’ who murdered 9

Takahiro Shiraishi was hanged for the murders of eight women and one man whose body parts he concealed in his small apartment.

Japan has executed a man who was found guilty of killing and dismembering nine people he made contact with on social media, the first use of capital pun…[Read more]

Megaquake may hit central Japan within next 30 years, government panel says

Marine active faults off Japan’s Kinki western region and Hokuriku central region are projected to trigger an earthquake with a magnitude of 7 or larger at a probability of 16% to 18% within the next 30 years, according to a government panel.
The government’s Earthquake…[Read more]

Six Arrested over Modified Lamborghini

A Lamborghini sports car modified to shoot flames from its exhaust was fraudulently passed through vehicle inspection without proper testing, leading to the arrest of six people including a custom shop owner and a senior inspector.

The illegally altered Lamborghini, a rare model of which only 100 exist…[Read more]

Social democracy: PM Bayrou’s proclamations are not enough

Weakened by record unpopularity, his inability to assert authority over the centrist bloc and his complex relationship with the president, French Prime Minister François Bayrou downplayed the deadlock in the key pensions negotiations between labor unions and employers’…[Read more]

Louvre: ‘We want to find a lasting solution to overcrowding

The museum’s director, Laurence des Cars, and the chief architect of France’s historic monuments, François Chatillon, speak to Le Monde about the architectural competition to renovate the world’s most-visited museum.

At the end of January, French President Emmanuel Macron announced the…[Read more]

US ‘science refugees’ arrive at French university after Trump spending cuts

Eight researchers who left the US as a result of President Donald Trump’s spending cuts have arrived at France’s University of Aix-Marseille as part of a programme designed to attract American academics.

Eight American researchers have arrived at a university in…[Read more]

Berlin to simplify rules in bid to speed up defence surge, draft law says

The German government seeks to speed up defence procurement by simplifying legal procedures, fostering European cooperation and facilitating orders to start-ups to make its military combat-ready, according to a draft law seen by Reuters late on Friday.
The speedy surge of…[Read more]

Germany updates: Lawmakers curb refugee family reunification

Lawmakers have voted to suspend family reunification rights for refugees who do not hold full asylum status. Meanwhile, as Germany faces labor shortages, figures show much of its workforce is untapped.

SPD’s Klingbeil re-elected but not without internal dissent

Lars Klingbeil was r…[Read more]

Teen in Germany charged over Taylor Swift stadium plot

German federal prosecutors have charged a teenager with aiding in the preparation of a suspected terrorist attack targeting a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna last summer.

Germany’s Federal Prosecutor’s Office in Karlsruhe on Friday said judges had indicted a teenager accused of having helped…[Read more]

Japan scraps US meeting after Washington demands more defense spending -FT

Japan has canceled a regular high-level meeting with its key ally the United States after the Trump administration demanded it spend more on defense, the Financial Times reported on Friday.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had been expected…[Read more]

Macron challenges Europe to rival US, China in space

President Emmanuel Macron threw France’s backing behind plans for a European satellite manufacturing champion and called for accelerated deployment of Starlink-type satellites as he declared space the new theatre for world power competition.
Speaking at the Paris Airshow on Friday, after France…[Read more]

Dassault Aviation gets French government support for its VORTEX spaceplane demonstrator

Dassault Aviation (AM.PA), opens new tab and the French government signed on Friday an agreement whereby France’s armed forces ministry would support the development of Dassault Aviation’s VORTEX spaceplane demonstrator.
The agreement was signed at the Paris…[Read more]

German military deems Russia ‘existential risk’ to nation and Europe, Spiegel reports

The German military deems Russia an “existential risk” to the country and Europe, according to a Spiegel news magazine report that cites a new Bundeswehr strategy paper.
The confidential document warns that the Kremlin is aligning both its industrial and…[Read more]