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The European Union is preparing to launch formal talks on possible Ukrainian accession into the bloc, despite dire warnings by senior officials that the EU might not survive enlargement economically, and lose what’s left of the pan-European project’s political cohesion. Ukraine in its current state is corrupt to the core and absolutely ineligible to join the European Union, former European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker has said. "One mustn’t make false promises to the people of Ukraine who are up to their necks in suffering. I am very angry about the presence of some voices in Europe who are telling the...

Ahead of the EU elections, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has blasted “stupid nationalists,” who dare to “love their own counties” and dislike migrants. Juncker took to CNN on Wednesday to share his belief the nationalist politicians pose a distinct threat to European unity with their stance on migration. “These populist, nationalists, stupid nationalists, they are in love with their own countries,” he said, urging the EU to show “solidarity” with migrants instead. They don’t like those coming from far away, I like those coming from far away… we have to act in solidarity with those who are in a...

European Commission boss Jean-Claude Juncker has changed the rules governing the political activity of European Union Commissioners, allowing them to actively campaign in the upcoming EU Parliament elections. Formerly the EU Commission, an unelected body which acts as the bloc’s executive and is the sole initiator of EU-level laws, was regarded as technocratic rather than overtly political, and not supposed to take partisan political stances of its own volition — at least in theory. But the new rules will allow the Commission to campaign with, endorse, and support candidates and parties ahead of the European Parliament elections set to be...

European Union leaders on Friday backed a plan to tackle fake news on the internet and the bloc’s chief executive rounded on one of the EU chiefs, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, as one of the main culprits in spreading disinformation. The EU plan endorsed by the bloc’s 28 national leaders is largely aimed at guarding against what the United States, NATO and the EU say are Russian attempts to undermine Western democracies. But European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said the bloc should also look within its own ranks in its fight against disinformation and he zeroed in on Orbán...

First, I want to pay tribute to Mr Brookins and all other American soldiers for their courage and bravery. We are forever grateful. I offered as a gift to President Trump a photo of a military cemetery in Luxembourg, where General Patton is buried, with the inscription with a word saying: Dear Donald, let us remember our common history. And we should do that even in more difficult times. After World War Two, the generation of our parents and grandparents vowed: Never again. Together, they laid the foundation for our security and prosperity through Atlantic cooperation. The Marshall Plan helped...

Here Are Three Hot Things to Know About Stocks Right Now The Dow Jones Industrial Average shot higher at the close on reports of a U.S. deal with the EU to avoid a trade war. Facebook (FB) slides in after-hours trading after revenue miss. General Motors Co. (GM) slumped 4.3% after the automaker issued an outlook for 2018 that was below analysts' estimates. Wall Street Overview Stocks surged in late trading on Wednesday, July 25, to end sharply higher on reports the U.S. and Europe have reaced an agreement to avoid a trade war The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose...

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump and European Union leaders announced Wednesday they have agreed to work toward "zero tariffs" and "zero subsidies" on non-automobile goods and would work to resolve U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum imports that have roiled European markets. The president, in a hastily called Rose Garden statement with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, said the EU had agreed to buy "a lot of soybeans" and increase its imports of liquefied natural gas from the U.S. Juncker, meanwhile, said the U.S. and EU had agreed to hold off on further tariffs as part of trade talks aimed...

The Trump administration announced Thursday it will impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Europe, Mexico and Canada after failing to win concessions from the American allies. Europe and Mexico pledged to retaliate quickly, exacerbating trans-Atlantic and North American trade tensions. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said the tariffs would be 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum, and go into effect on Friday, as the administration followed through on the penalties after earlier granting exemptions to buy time for negotiations. President Donald Trump had announced the tariffs in March, citing national security concerns. The European Commission’s president,...

European Union Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker announced Thursday that the bloc plans to reactivate a law that would seek to block European companies from complying with any sanctions the US would reintroduce against Iran. Juncker’s announcement came during the second day of an EU meeting in the Bulgarian capital, Sofia, which had already been marked by sharp criticism from European leaders over American President Donald Trump’s decision to pull the US out of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. […] German-headquartered insurance firm Allianz and Danish shopping company Maersk have already said they plan to close operations in Iran in order...

European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker has opened a series of exhibitions in Karl Marx’s hometown of Trier. They include a huge bronze statue of Marx donated by China. It’s to be officially unveiled on Saturday; the 200th anniversary of the birth of the philosopher. The sculpture of Marx has proved somewhat controversial but Jean-Claude Juncker spoke in positive terms about him. "Karl Marx was a philosopher, who thought into the future had creative aspirations," he said. "Today he stands for things, which he is not responsible for and which he didn't cause, because many of the things he wrote down...

The Foreign Ministry has rejected as “hypocritical” statements by European Union Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker regarding two detained Greek soldiers in Turkey. “With these remarks ... The EU authorities lose their credibility and reliability day by day,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hami Aksoy said in a written statement on April 26 During a recent visit to Greece, Juncker said Turkey must release the Greek soldiers, detained after inadvertently crossing the border last month. “We reject this statement, which is far from being serious and lacks legal basis. Greek soldiers who violate Turkish law do not have any privileges before the independent...

BERLIN — The European Union will hit back at the heart of the United States, slapping tariffs on products like Harley-Davidsons, Kentucky bourbon and bluejeans, if President Trump goes ahead with a plan to place tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, the president of the bloc’s executive arm vowed on Friday. Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the European Commission, made the remarks to the German news media in reaction to the proposed tariffs. Mr. Junker said the plans to tax the American goods, produced in the home states of key Republic leaders, had not yet been finalized, but amounted to treating...

Tensions between Switzerland and the European Union over a planned institutional framework accord continued to simmer on Wednesday with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker saying the Swiss government was responsible for the current stalemate in the negotiations. “I have met with the [former] Swiss president [Doris Leuthard] eight times since coming to office, and have always indicated that an institutional framework accord is necessary,” said Juncker. “It was promised on many occasions, but has not materialized.” “I remain, despite that, a friend of Switzerland — although I have always noticed on holidays that when I met Swiss people, they have...

European Union Council President Donald Tusk on Tuesday urged Britain to change its mind about leaving the bloc next year, as time to conclude a Brexit agreement runs short and EU leaders await more details on how the country sees their future ties. Britain is set to leave the EU on March 29, 2019, but the complex negotiations on its costly departure and future EU-U.K. relations must be concluded by October to leave parliaments time to ratify any agreement. […] “If the U.K. government sticks to its decision to leave, Brexit will become a reality, with all its negative consequences,...

European Union member states on Monday moved ever closer toward establishing a defense union, after the European Council adopted the creation of a new European defense and security cooperation network known as PESCO. The Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO), which was first set out in the Lisbon Treaty, will allow member states to jointly develop military capabilities, invest in shared projects and enhance their respective armed forces. […] On December 7, Portugal and Ireland announced their decision to join, taking the total number of contributing members up to 25. The countries that have chosen not to take part are Malta, Denmark...

Jean-Claude Juncker never lets others outshine him if he spots an opportunity to give the European project a boost. And that goes for friends and enemies alike. Indeed, the European Commission president has now come up with a project that not only transgressions the mandate given him by the leaders of the European Union member states, but also pits him against all the Eurozone finance ministers as well. Juncker was supposed to reach an agreement with finance ministers from the common currency area on proposals for deepening European integration he will present at the forthcoming EU summit later this month....

The former UKIP leader took to Twitter to have a go at the EU Commission’s president over ridiculously expensive flights. Euronews reported that President of the EU Commission Jean-Claude Juncker had hired a private plane to fly to Turkey. The air taxi hire cost a whopping €63,000, the expenses form for which can be accessed here. Taking to Twitter, the ex-UKIP leader Nigel Farage had a go at the president by saying “That was just the bar tab.” His dig appears to point to the past allegations that Juncker has been publicly drunk, with Channel 4 reporting one possible incident...

The head of the European Union’s executive body denounced the bloc’s parliament as “totally ridiculous” during a spat over the meager attendance at Tuesday’s plenary session for the prime minister of tiny Malta. After EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker thanked the few dozen of the 700-plus legislators in the huge atrium for showing up, he insisted that the “parliament is not serious” since lawmakers failed to attend the day’s keynote debate in larger numbers. The session centered on Malta’s 6-month presidency of the EU, which ended last weekend. Malta has 415,000 people in contrast to the EU, which has half...

The head of the European Commission says he wants an official commemoration of former Chancellor Helmut Kohl, who led Germany to reunification and was a strong backer of the continent’s unity. Jean-Claude Juncker told Sunday’s Bild am Sonntag newspaper that he will personally push for a “European act of state” for Kohl, who was chancellor from 1982 to 1998, but didn’t give details. […] Juncker said that “without Helmut Kohl, the euro would not exist.” …

Brussels has threatened to take the Czech Republic to court after its government announced its withdrawal from the Commission scheme to force European Union (EU) countries to welcome migrants from the third world. Citing security issues, Czech Interior Minister Milan Chovanec said on Monday the Visegrád nation will not be resettling any more of the quota of 2,691 migrants demanded by the scheme, having so far taken just a dozen people who arrived uninvited to Italy and Greece on boats. “Due to the aggravated security situation and the dysfunctionality of the whole system, the government approved… a proposal to halt...