Free Republic

From a stumbling economy to soaring crime, France has plenty of problems. But, judging by recent events, the government seems to have another threat in mind: social media. Earlier this month, prosecutors opened a criminal investigation into Elon Musk’s X, alleging foreign interference through algorithm manipulation, while also condemning the platform for spreading “hateful” content. This followed a police raid on the headquarters of the National Rally, France’s leading opposition party, after the launch of yet another dubious investigation into campaign financing. The Fifth Republic is far from alone here. For Western democracy is under threat — not from “foreign...

President Donald Trump abruptly reversed course earlier this month when he decided to send Patriot missiles, along with other possibly offensive weaponry, to Ukraine, provided that European nations pay the United States for them. Trump also announced that he would place 100 per cent tariffs on Russia if, after 50 days, Russian President Vladimir Putin had failed to move to a ceasefire. The shift irritated some on the American Right, who wish to see Europe do more on a war which directly affects them, but it pleased the Ukrainian government and pro-Ukrainian voices in the United States. But for some...

European Union envoys are on the verge of agreeing an 18th package of sanctions against Russia for its full-scale invasion of Ukraine that would include a lower price cap on Russian oil, four EU sources said after a Sunday meeting. -snip- The sources said they had also agreed to a dynamic price mechanism for the price cap. On Friday, the European Commission proposed a floating price cap on Russian oil of 15% below the average market price of crude in the previous three months. One of the sources said the initial price would be around $47 a barrel based on...

Last month’s NATO summit in The Hague gave off the disturbing impression of an alliance finally crossing the fine line between serious defence policy into the realm of make-believe. The main outcome was presented to the world as a “new 5 per cent defence spending pledge” by all allies. The previous target, dating from 2014, was 2 per cent. President Trump naturally claimed the new benchmark as a “big win”, with the White House calling it a “monumental victory” and a “dramatic” increase in defence contributions across the alliance. Yet hardly any of this is true. Of the 5 per...

According to the portal, the new US administration does not consider Europe to be a partner, but as a "political battleground"BRUSSELS, July 8. /TASS/. The US is taking steps to carry out a "regime change" in the EU, trying to rig elections to put far-right forces in power to "turn Europe and allies like Canada and Mexico into US vassals," said Caroline de Gruyter in a column she contributed to the Brussels portal EUobserver. EUobserver previously always expressed the interests of the globalist European elite, which prevails among the supranational officials of the EU and NATO, as well as their...

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Key Points and Summary - At this week's NATO summit in The Hague, Ukraine was largely sidelined as the alliance focused on internal matters, primarily a new commitment to raise defense spending to 5% of GDP to placate US President Donald Trump. -While European allies pledged new military aid—including German artillery rockets, Dutch F-16s, and British-funded drones—the final summit declaration omitted previous language about Ukraine's "irreversible path" to membership. -This shift, combined with a strained and brief meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, leaves Kyiv in a precarious position, increasingly dependent on European support as US commitment appears...

The Cyprus visit is a calculated effort to advance India's Mediterranean strategy by countering the Turkey-Pakistan alignment, they added. Cyprus's maritime connectivity and strategic location position it as a potential hub in the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC).With Cyprus set to hold the rotating presidency of the EU Council in 2026, PM Modi's visit -- the first by an Indian Prime Minister in 23 years -- paves the way for deeper India-EU collaboration during Cyprus's leadership term. This visit comes amid heightened Turkey-Pakistan solidarity, particularly following Turkey's support for Pakistan during Operation Sindoor.Cyprus, engaged in territorial disputes with Turkey, naturally...

The EU cloaks supranational tax increases in green.On the hunt for fresh sources of cash, the European Commission has zeroed in on households and motorists. A planned expansion of the EU’s carbon pricing scheme to include home heating and transportation fuels is set to plug Brussels’ gaping budget deficit — at the expense of its citizens. What we are witnessing is a fiscal smash-and-grab dressed up in green. Starting in 2027, private homes, small businesses, and passenger vehicles will be folded into a second emissions trading system (ETS2), placing them under the strict control of EU-level cap-and-trade mechanisms. This bureaucratic...

G7 backs Israel as US and Iran eye reviving diplomacy. Summary. US President Donald Trump said Iran should have signed the “deal” I told them to sign," adding that "everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!"

On January 20, 2025, the first day of his second presidential term, Donald Trump signed an executive order: “Restoring Freedom of Speech and Ending Federal Censorship.” The bad old days of the “censorship-industrial complex,” allegedly responsible for suppressing online speech under President Joe Biden, were over.Except they weren’t. The driving force behind online censorship had never been the U.S. government, which meant that freedom of speech could not be restored by the stroke of a president’s pen. Rather, the European Union has wielded its Digital Services Act (DSA) to restrict the speech not just of Europeans but especially of Americans...

BRUSSELS, June 11 (Reuters) - The world experienced its second-warmest May since records began this year, a month in which climate change fuelled a record-breaking heatwave in Greenland, scientists said on Wednesday. Last month was Earth's second-warmest May on record - exceeded only by May 2024 - rounding out the northern hemisphere's second-hottest March-May spring on record, the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) said in a monthly bulletin

French nationalist politician Marine Le Pen launched a scathing attack on the trajectory of the European Union at the Patriots for Europe rally in France on Monday, declaring, “We don’t want to leave Europe. We want out of this Europe, because it is not Europe.” Addressing a crowd of allies and supporters from across the continent, Le Pen opened her speech with a rejection of the EU’s current direction, accusing it of becoming a “merchant, wokist, ultraliberal empire” that tramples national sovereignty and democratic choice. “Our Europe does not reside in Brussels,” Le Pen said. “What we are seeing today...

One reason America has become the economic superpower is that the 50 states comprise one giant free trade zone. The Europeans wanted to emulate that model with the creation of the EU, but it hasn’t worked. Here is a stunning fact from the Wall Street Journal’s Joe Sternberg: The International Monetary Fund calculates that Europe’s complex economic regulations impose the same costs as would a 44% tariff on goods traded between EU countries. For services, the costs of complying with different national rules are equivalent to a 110% tariff. By comparison, the regulatory costs associated with trading manufactured goods across...

A scenario European leaders would do well to consider, as Kyiv enters the Washington-sponsored peace process with profound frustration: with the White House determined to put an end to the war in Ukraine, the Europeans are telling Zelensky that no peace is necessary. The war can continue indefinitely, they say; and, if the Americans want out, Europe can still step in to fill the void. But Zelensky is foolish to believe that the Europeans will save him from the forces of reality. Europe, the last bulwark of the once-insurmountable pro-war consensus, is a continent of hawks without beaks. Ukraine cannot...

In the swish hotel conference rooms and cafés of the Brussels EU quarter, the indignation was palpable: Why had poor Henrik been singled out? Henrik Hololei, a gregarious Estonian who had reached the heights of director-general in the EU’s civil service, had been caught accepting freebies from the government of Qatar while his department was negotiating a lucrative aviation deal ― with, ever so coincidentally, Qatar. It was fine, the European Commission said when the matter came to light in 2023: All his free flights had been signed off by a senior person in the department. Trouble was, the senior...

Donald Trump said Sunday that he had a “very nice call” with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and he has agreed to delay his threatened 50 percent tariff until July 9 at her request. The EU wants to negotiate, Trump said:That agreement came after a call Sunday with Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, who had told Trump that she "wants to get down to serious negotiations," according to the U.S. president's retelling."I told anybody that would listen, they have to do that," Trump told reporters on Sunday in Morristown, New Jersey, as he...

Bernard Arnault, the head of luxury giant LVMH, has strongly criticised the European Union for its slow and shaky start in trade talks with the United States. Speaking at a French parliamentary hearing, Arnault said the EU’s handling of negotiations aimed at reducing US tariffs had begun badly. He warned that delays and weak strategy could hurt major European industries, especially luxury goods. LVMH, the company Arnault leads, owns famous brands such as Louis Vuitton and Hennessy. The United States is LVMH’s biggest market. That’s why Arnault is deeply concerned about the 20% “reciprocal” tariffs introduced by President Donald Trump...

50% is a reasonable tariff to place on the E U since we are going into 80 years of the Marshall plan to help Europe recover from World War 2. Eighty years, when Truman was president. I wasn't even born yet. It's time to cut these freeloaders loose. In addition, let's make them pay for their own defense. June 1 is as good a date as any.

The European Union has stepped in to provide Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty an infusion of millions of dollars to keep functioning as the international broadcaster battles the Trump administration to release funds Congress has already designated for it. "We are grateful for the emergency funding to help keep Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty afloat," the network's president, Steve Capus, said in a statement from Brussels, where he has been meeting with European officials. "Radio Liberty's survival remains at risk as long as these funds are withheld," Capus said, referring to $75 million held back by the Trump administration. Radio Free Europe...