Josep Borrell News

BRUSSELS/MADRID (Reuters) -EU finance ministers on Friday picked Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Nadia Calvino to become the next head of the European Investment Bank in a boost for Spain's clout within the bloc.

Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani said on Sunday he had growing confidence that a hostage deal between Israel and Hamas would be reached, adding challenges that remained were «very minor». «The challenges facing the agreement are just practical and logistical,» Sheikh Mohammed said at a joint press conference with European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell in Doha. The Washington Post, citing people familiar with the deal, reported that Israel, the United States and Hamas militants had reached a tentative agreement to free dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting. However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. officials said no deal had been reached yet. Reuters said on Nov.

Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said on Monday that he will visit multiple Middle Eastern countries to discuss humanitarian access and assistance in the war-torn region. He asserted that the ongoing situation in Gaza needs two-state solutions and can only be achieved through dialogue. Taking to X, the EU official said, «I will travel to Israel, Palestine, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan this week to discuss humanitarian access and assistance and political issues with regional leaders. We need a political horizon looking towards the two-state solution.

Israeli military has intensified its attacks in the Gaza Strip, resulting in a significant disruption of internet and communication services. The military has opened a “second stage" in the war against Hamas. Israeli military aircraft carried out a series of intense nighttime airstrikes in northern Gaza, targeting around 150 underground facilities, according to an announcement by the army on Saturday.

By Andrew Gray and Tassilo Hummel

Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas even as some member governments signalled reservations about the idea. Josep Borrell, the EU's foreign policy chief, said he backed a call by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for a break in the conflict to allow much more humanitarian aid to reach Palestinian civilians in the besieged Gaza Strip. EU officials also drafted a statement in support of the proposal for an EU summit later this week, although they cautioned the text could still change in the coming days. The moves reflected increasing alarm about the fate of Palestinian civilians after two weeks of Israel bombarding and blockading Gaza in response to the Oct.

By Laurie Chen

Josep Borrell said Saturday that a plan by Israel to evacuate more than one million people out of northern Gaza in a single day was «utterly impossible to implement». Israel warned residents in the area to evacuate before an expected ground offensive against Palestinian Islamist organisation Hamas in retaliation for the deadliest attack in Israel's history. «I am saying that, representing the official position of the European Union… (the evacuation plan) is utterly, utterly impossible to implement,» Borrell told a press conference in Beijing on the final day of a three-day diplomatic visit to China. «To imagine that you could move one million people in 24 hours in a situation like Gaza can only be a humanitarian crisis,» he added. EU chief Ursula von der Leyen had expressed support to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday during a visit to the country. «Europe stands with Israel,» said von der Leyen, adding that the country had «a duty to defend its citizens». But Borrell's comments in Beijing showed the limits of that affirmation, saying that Israel was also obligated to follow international humanitarian law in the process of defending itself. «The position is clear,» said Borrell. «We certainly defend the right of Israel to defend itself.» «But, as any right, it has a limit.

The European Union’s top foreign policy official has warned that public sentiment in Europe could turn more protectionist if the bloc's trade deficit with China is not reduced

Hamas attack targeting Israel and the retaliation that followed, but others blamed Israel itself and some celebrated the surprise assault. The early morning Hamas offensive by air, land and sea was met by Israeli air strikes on the blockaded coastal enclave, in the bloodiest escalation since May 2021. «We are at war,» Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, promising that «the enemy will pay an unprecedented price». Here is a roundup of reactions from the region: — Egypt - The foreign ministry appealed to «both the Palestinian and Israeli sides to exercise the utmost restraint», warning of the «dire danger of ongoing escalation». Cairo has historically been a key mediator in conflicts between the two sides. Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry made a series of calls to regional and international leaders, including his Jordanian, UAE, Turkish, German and French counterparts, and to European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. A foreign ministry statement said Shoukry sought to rally «international actors» to «intervene immediately». — Jordan - Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi warned of the «volatility» of the situation, «particularly in light of what cities and areas of the West Bank are witnessing of Israeli attacks and violations against the Palestinian people». The Hamas assault follows months of surging violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with fatalities in the occupied West Bank reaching a scale not seen in years. Jordan and Egypt were the first two countries in the region to agree peace deals with Israel. — UAE - The United Arab Emirates called for «an immediate ceasefire» and «exercising the utmost restraint,» state news agency WAM reported. «The UAE has expressed its sincere

Reuters. 7. The most sensitive issue is the status of the 120,000 ethnic Armenians in Karabakh, whose rights and security Armenia says must be guaranteed.

The leaders of Serbia and Kosovo have held long-awaited face-to-face talks that the European Union hopes will improve their strained relations

NIAMEY (Reuters) — The European Union has cut off financial support to Niger and the United States has threatened to do the same after military leaders this week announced they had overthrown the democratically elected president, Mohamed Bazoum.

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang's prolonged absence from public view for 12 days has raised concerns and speculation about his well-being. Qin was scheduled to meet with the European Union's top diplomat, Josep Borrell, this month, but China unexpectedly postponed the meeting without providing further information. There have been rumors in Brussels that Qin's absence might be due to health issues, but Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin stated that he had not heard about such reports during a press briefing in Beijing. The official website of the Chinese Foreign Ministry indicates that Qin's last official engagement was on June 25, where he met officials from Sri Lanka, Russia, and Vietnam. On the same day, he also participated in an event alongside Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Barbados Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley. Additionally, a lunch meeting between Qin and ambassadors from the European Union in late June was abruptly canceled, according to an ambassador based in Beijing who was on the invite list.

Brussels added Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) to the list of official candidates to join the European Union on Thursday, ending a six-year wait since the small Balkan country filed its membership application to the 27-nation bloc.

Serb protestors in Kosovo blocked roads for a second day on Sunday, following a nighttime exchange of fire with the police. 

The leaders of Serbia and Kosovo reached an agreement to end their dispute over licence plates, according to the European Union's top diplomat.

Vladimir Putin is waiting for "General Winter" to come and support Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, claims the EU's foreign affairs chief.

There's been an outcry to Russia's decision to pull out of a key UN-brokered Black Sea grain deal, dealing a blow to attempts to ease a global food crisis.

A Russian nuclear strike against Ukraine would trigger "such a powerful answer" from the West that the Russian army would be "annihilated," said Josep Borrell, the EU's foreign policy chief.

Russia and the West have traded blame over alleged sabotage that caused mysterious leaks on the Nord Stream gas pipelines.