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☆ Why predicted gains for right-wing populists could make Europe vulnerable to attack
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-11 | by ( Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Right-wing populists are set to make unprecedented gains in the elections to the European Parliament taking place next month. Polling data suggests that far-right Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) could have enough seats to, together, block the passage of European Union legislation, creating a massive headache for the union as a whole. “For some countries, that is a six-month process, in others it can take two years,” a senior European Parliament source told CNN. Britain's Nigel Farage used his seat in the European Parliament to promote Brexit. It only becomes an issue if they are working with foreign powers to advance their agenda,” an EU security source told CNN.

Persons: Ursula von der Leyen, Yiannis Kourtoglou, Reuters “, ”, James Shires, you’ll, don’t, Britain's Nigel Farage, SEBASTIEN BOZON, it’s, — Organizations: CNN, Parliament, European, Reuters, “, Brexit, Getty, British, EU, Brussels Locations: Brussels, China, Russia, Strasbourg, AFP, Britain, Ukraine, EU, Europe

☆ EU Parliament approves major reforms to migration policy
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The wide-ranging reforms are designed to ease the burden on countries that have historically taken the most asylum-seekers among the EU’s 27 member states. Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament, said: “We have delivered a robust legislative framework on how to deal with migration and asylum in the EU. In theory, the EU will now spread the burden across the 27 member states, either through relocation of people to other member states or through financial and practical assistance in processing refugee claims. In a number of EU countries – notably Italy, Hungary, Slovakia and Sweden – anti-immigrant Euroskeptic politicians are in power, either outright or through coalition. “And it will ultimately be up to the member states themselves to decide how these new measures are practically managed.

Persons: Roberta Metsola, Joelle Grogan, Grogan, ”, Alberto Neidhardt, Neidhardt Organizations: CNN, European, EU, European Policy, Ukraine Locations: Greece, Italy, Malta, East, North Africa, Dublin, Brussels, “, Hungary, Slovakia, Sweden, France, Germany, Ukraine, United States

☆ Geert Wilders abandons Dutch PM bid despite election victory
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-14 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Populist firebrand Geert Wilders has conceded that he will not become the next prime minister of the Netherlands because his potential coalition backers have refused to back him. “I can only become Prime Minister if ALL parties in the coalition support it. Similarly, Swedish Prime Minister Ulif Kristersson relies on the votes of the increasingly Euroskeptic, anti-immigrant Sweden Democrats. Despite admitting defeat this time, Wilders pledged to continue his push to become prime minister in the future. “Don’t forget: I will still become Prime Minister of the Netherlands.

Persons: Geert Wilders, Wilders ’, “, Wilders, ” Wilders, ”, Mark Rutte, Pieter Omtzigt, sanitaire, Jean, Marie Le Pen, Marine, Lionel Jospin, Jacques Chirac, Petteri Orpo, Sanna Marin, Ulif Kristersson, Robert Fico, “ Don’t Organizations: CNN, Democracy Party, Social Contract Party, European Union, National, Socialist, Socialists, Finns Party, Swedish, Sweden Democrats, Georgia Meloni Locations: Netherlands, Europe, Ukraine, Finland, Sweden, Georgia, Italy, Slovakia

☆ Dutch far-right Geert Wilders' hopes of becoming prime minister sink after coalition talks collapse
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON — Far-right Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders' hopes of becoming prime minister of the Netherlands are dwindling after coalition talks fell into disarray Tuesday. Wilders took to social media Tuesday evening to berate Omtzigt's withdrawal, calling the decision "incredibly disappointing." I don't understand it at all," Wilders wrote in a post on X, according to a Google translation. However, former Labor Party minister Ronald Plasterk, who has been leading the talks, earlier flagged finances as a major sticking point in talks. Alternatively, if no combination of parties can agree to form a coalition, a new election could be called.

Persons: Geert Wilders, Pieter Omtzigt, vexing Wilders, Wilders, Omtzigt's, Omtzigt, Mark Rutte, Caroline van der Plas, Ronald Plasterk, European Union —, Plasterk, Frans Timmermans Organizations: Party for Freedom, NSC, BBB, Labor, Reuters, European Union, Labour, Green Locations: Netherlands, Dutch, Europe

BERLIN (AP) — At least 150,000 people gathered in front of the German national parliament Saturday afternoon to protest against the far right, the latest in a string of large weekend demonstrations across Germany. Some members of the far-right Alternative for Germany party, or AfD, were present at the meeting. Saturday’s protest drew more participants than organizers expected, despite intermittent rain showers in the German capital. Similar protests against the far right in other German cities, including the southern city of Freiburg and the western city of Hannover, also drew thousands of attendees on Saturday. Polls show AfD is the top party in eastern Germany, including in the states of Brandenburg, Saxony and Thuringia, which are scheduled to hold elections this fall.

Persons: —, ”, Jonas Schmidt, Kathrin, Olaf Scholz Organizations: BERLIN, Germany, Police, Bundestag Locations: Germany, Freiburg, Hannover, Bremen, Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia, Hamburg, Munich

It's the kind of obstruction of key policy objectives for which Orbán has become notorious within the European Union. “We are the sand in the machinery, the stick between the spokes, the splinter under the fingernail,” Orbán said in a speech to tens of thousands of supporters in 2021. Now, frustrated EU officials are trying to determine what Orbán seeks to achieve with his obstructionist strategy, and how they might overcome it. But with his veto power, the nationalist leader will have plenty of further opportunities to sow discord within the EU. Widely considered to be Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest ally in the EU, Orbán has been accused by his critics of promoting Moscow’s interests over those of his EU and NATO allies, and of preparing to lead his country out of the EU entirely.

Persons: —, Viktor Orbán, Orbán, ” Orbán, Donald Tusk, “, ”, Péter Krekó, ” Krekó, “ Orbán, Daniel Freund, Freund, it’s, he's, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, “ He’s, he’s, Krekó, Vladimir Putin’s Organizations: NATO, European Union, EU, Conservative Political, Green, United, U.S, Trump, Germany, Political Locations: BUDAPEST, Hungary, Brussels, Polish, Ukraine, Budapest, Germany, France, Italy, Europe, United States, Washington, Netherlands, Union

The demonstrations came in the wake of a report that right-wing extremists recently met to discuss the deportation of millions of immigrants, including some with German citizenship. Some members of the far-right Alternative for Germany party, or AfD, were present at the meeting. Additional protests planned for Sunday in other major German cities, including Berlin, Munich and Cologne, are also expected to draw tens of thousands of people. What started out as relatively small gatherings have grown into protests that, in many cases, are drawing far more participants than organizers expected. The protests also build on growing anxiety over the last year about the AfD’s rising support among the German electorate.

Persons: Germany’s, Martin Sellner, Alice Weidel, Chancellor Olaf Scholz, ” Scholz, ” Friedrich Merz, ”, Thomas Tuchel Organizations: BERLIN, Germany, Police, Hannover, Identitarian, Identitarian Movement, Austrian, Germany’s Greens, “, Christian, Bayern Munich Locations: Germany, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Nuremberg, Hamburg, Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Nazi, Bavaria, Hesse, Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia, Dresden, Tuebingen, Kiel

☆ Attack is the best market defense in international competition, ECB's Christine Lagarde says
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-19 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

President of the European Central Bank (ECB) Christine Lagarde attends a session on the closing day of the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, on January 19, 2024. Being strong means having a strong, deep market. Europe faces an uncertain future in its relationship with its closest international ally, following the U.S. vote. With that in mind, Lagarde said Europe should invest more in its capital markets in order to fund investments, such as, for instance, in the green transition. "Our competitive disadvantage compared to the U.S. is not subsidies but the function of our private capital market."

Persons: Christine Lagarde, Lagarde, Joe Biden, —, Donald Trump, Christian Linder, Linder Organizations: European Central Bank, Economic, Republican, German Finance Locations: Davos, Europe, U.S, United States

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — A countrywide billboard campaign that flooded the streets of Hungary this week takes aim at European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the start of an election campaign that marks an escalation of tensions between the country's nationalist conservative government and the European Union. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has long taken an adversarial approach to the 27-nation bloc. He has accused Brussels of seeking to impose unwanted policies on Hungary, and compared membership in the EU to the 40 years of Soviet domination Hungary experienced in the 20th century. “This national consultation is by far the most anti-EU document that the government has released so far," Kreko said. But after more than two years and little apparent progress, the anti-EU campaign may show that Orbán has given up on unblocking them, said Dorka Takacsy, a research fellow at the Centre for Euro-Atlantic Integration and Democracy.

Persons: Ursula von der Leyen, von der Leyen, Alex Soros, George Soros, “, Viktor Orbán, von, Leyen, Peter Kreko, Kreko, Dorka Takacsy, ” Takacsy, ” It’s, Soros, Jean, Claude Juncker, ”, Orbán, Eric Mamer, ” Mamer Organizations: European Union, Ukraine, EU, Centre, Integration, Democracy, European, Kreko, Huxit, Fidesz, Orbán Locations: BUDAPEST, Hungary, American, Hungarian, Brussels, EU, Budapest, ”, European, Europe

☆ Geert Wilders: A ‘Trump moment’ in the Netherlands shows that Europe still has a populist problem
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The shock election results in the Netherlands have taken Europe by surprise, and left many onlookers unsure exactly what happens next. Far-right populist Geert Wilders and his Freedom Party (PVV) are now seeking to form a government after an unexpected win in Wednesday’s national vote. It would be very unusual for a party that comprehensively won the most seats to be locked out of government. Beyond those immediate concerns, there are questions as to what Wilders’ victory means for the direction of Dutch and European politics more broadly. Congratulations to Geert Wilders on winning the Dutch elections,” Hungarian PM Viktor Orban said late on Wednesday.

Persons: Geert Wilders, “, Donald, Trump, ” Catherine de Vries, Wilders, Mark Rutte, Robert Fico, Giorgia, Tiziana Fabi, Viktor Orban, Marine Le Pen, Carl Court, Emmanuel Macron, Le Pen, Giorgia Meloni, Nigel Farage, Farage Organizations: CNN, Freedom Party, Wednesday’s, Italy’s Bocconi University, European Union, Democracy Party, VVD, New, Labour, Green, Italy's, Albania's, Edi, Getty, –, EU, ”, Conservative, firebrand, Conservatives, Conservative Party Locations: Netherlands, Europe, Ukraine, Italy, Slovakia, Rome, AFP, EU, Brussels, ” Hungarian, France, United Kingdom

☆ Ukraine ally Poland is moving to the political center. And that's bad news for Russia's Putin
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( Jenni Reid | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

It has taken in more than a million refugees from its close ally Ukraine since the start of the war, with many more millions passing through it. Its relations with Ukraine have soured in recent months, partly because of a dispute over the impact of Ukrainian grain imports on local farmers. Tian also expects the result to "reposition Poland as a staunch supporter of Ukraine" and for Tusk to push for EU accession for Ukraine. "The big thing to bear in mind when looking at Poland and Ukraine is they have an overarching strategic common interest [challenging Russian aggression], and this supersedes everything. So it will be difficult to restore relations to how they were in the first 18 months of the war, regardless of what Poland does."

Persons: Donald Tusk, Donald Tusk —, —, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Tusk, Tian, Aleks Szczerbiak, Szczerbiak Organizations: Civic, Getty, EU, Justice, CNBC, NATO, World Trade Organization, Law, Nurphoto, European, Economist Intelligence Unit, University of Sussex, Confederation, Soviet, Russia Locations: Warsaw, Moscow, Ukraine, Europe, Russia, China, India, Poland, Warsaw's, Krakow, Central Europe, Hungary, Slovakia, Berlin

☆ Britain’s Sunak issues rallying cry for a party that is already planning life without him
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

While the party establishment loathes Farage, Conservative members greeted him with open arms and requests for selfies after he arrived on Monday afternoon. The Conservative Party has always been a broad church, with competing factions jostling for supremacy. But Conservative Party members are rather different to the general public. Supporters applaud as Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaks during the Conservative Party annual conference on Wednesday. Bookmakers' odds on the next UK general election are displayed outside the Manchester venue for the Conservative Party Conference on October 4, 2023.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, –, steadying, ” Sunak, Sunak, Nigel Farage, loathes Farage, Hannah McKay, Kemi Badenoch, don’t “, Justin Tallis, Jeremy Hunt, Jon Super, Brexit, Johnson, didn’t, “ He’s, ”, Braverman, Grant Shapps, Suella Braverman, James, Stefan Rousseau, Christopher Furlong, Rishi Organizations: England CNN — British, Conservative Party, Conservative, CNN, Conservatives, Euroskeptic, Independence Party, European Union, selfies, Britain's UK Independence Party, PM, Labour Party, European, Human, Labour, British, Getty, Conservative Party Conference Locations: Manchester, England, “, North, Midlands, London, Sunak

CNN —As Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) grows ever popular, the country’s once dominant Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party finds itself at a crossroads. The center-right CDU was in power for much of Germany’s post-war era and oversaw the reunification of East and West Germany. Max Schwarz/ReutersBerlin’s CDU mayor, Kai Wegner, took to X to write: “What cooperation is there to be had? Populist parties as ‘lightning rods’The CDU’s Michael Kretschmer, state premier of Saxony, believes a shift in policy is the best approach for democratic parties to stop the rise of the far-right. Opinion polls in his state, one of the five that make up Germany’s former east, put the AfD in the lead; Saxony has long been a stronghold for the far-right party.

Persons: Angela Merkel, Friedrich Merz, shockwaves, Merz, Merz backpedaled, ”, Robert Sesselmann, Max Schwarz, Kai Wegner, Jörg, “, ” “, Kühne, ” Tino Chrupalla, John MacDougall, Merkel, it’s, sadi, Michael Kretschmer, Kretschmer Organizations: CNN, Christian Democratic Union, CDU, East, Social, Green Party and Free Democrats, ZDF, Reuters Berlin’s CDU, INSA, New, SPD, Greens, ARD, Bundestag, Getty, Federal Criminal Police, UN, UNHCR, “, Citizens Locations: Germany, West Germany, Sonneberg, Thuringia, Germany’s, Saxony, Leipzig, West, East Germany, East Germans, West Germans, Saxony Anhalt, Ukraine, Poland, Syria

☆ Why are far-right parties on the march across Europe?
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-22 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

Far-right parties are propping up coalitions in Finland and Sweden. Afraid of losing voters to UKIP (and other far-right parties), the governing Conservatives ended up adopting many of its positions. Chesnot/Getty Images Europe/Getty ImagesConversely, far-right parties have attempted to sanitize some of their rhetoric, hoping to appear a more credible electoral prospect. Leon Neal/Getty ImagesA different type of populismAnd so the recent successes of far-right parties cannot be explained by dramatic shifts in public opinion. A lot depends on the ability of mainstream parties – particularly on the left – to build tents big enough to accommodate their differences, rather than compromising with far-right parties to prop up their coalitions.

Persons: Donald Trump, –, Emmanuel Macron, Angela Merkel’s, Mario Draghi, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Viktor Orban, Andrej Babis, Czech Michael Bloomberg, Czech Donald Trump, Meloni, Mussolini, Nigel Farage, Jack Taylor, Farage, Jean, Marie Le Pen, Marine, Lionel Jospin, Jacques Chirac, Petteri Orpo, Sanna Marin, Vilhelm Junnila, Ulif Kristersson, Mark Rutte’s, Pen, Chesnot, Philippe Marlier, ” Le, Matteo Salvini, Vladimir Putin, Tino Chrupalla, Alice Weidel, Thomas Lohnes, Omer Messinger, Larry Bartels, Boris Johnson, Leon Neal, Giorgia Meloni, Odd Andersen, Orban, Kaczynski, Rutte’s, Pedro Sanchez Organizations: CNN, White, Channel, European Central Bank, Italy’s, Vox, UK Independence Party, UKIP, European Union, EU, Conservatives, National, Socialist, Socialists, Finns Party, Swedish, Sweden Democrats, Rassemblement National, University College London, Lega, Ukraine, Russia, Former British, Italy's, NATO, Getty, Spain’s Locations: United Kingdom, United States, Europe, Brussels, Spain, Poland, Hungary, Germany, Czech, France, Finland, Sweden, Austria, European, Netherlands, Russian, Oxfordshire, Vilnius

CNN —A candidate from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party won a local leadership post for the first time on Sunday in a resounding victory for a group whose anti-migrant, Euroskeptic and anti-Muslim agenda is under surveillance by German authorities. The AfD’s Robert Sesselmann triumphed over incumbent Jürgen Köpper of the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party to become district administrator of Sonneberg, in Thuringia, central Germany, at the weekend. “Unfortunately, it has not been a personal election as state elections have always been, it has become a pure party election,” he said. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democratic Party’s chairwoman Saskia Esken called the AfD victory in Sonneberg a “political dam-break” on Monday. Even though the move doesn’t apply to parent party AfD, it revealed a growing segment of young Germans united by extreme views on migration and anti-feminism.

Persons: Robert Sesselmann, Jürgen Köpper, Sesselmann, Köpper, ”, Olaf Scholz’s, Saskia Esken, Ricarda Lang, ” Lang, Mario Czaja, Steffen Hebestreit, ” Hebestreit, ‘, BfV, Martin Schutt, Hans Vorländer, ” Vorländer, Alice Weidel Organizations: CNN, Christian Democratic Union, CDU, Office, Statistics, Olaf Scholz’s Social Democratic, Green Party, Getty Locations: Germany, Thuringia, Thuringian, Sonneberg, Ukraine, Dresden, Berlin “, Saxony

☆ Silvio Berlusconi, a Showman Who Upended Italian Politics and Culture, Dies at 86
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Jason Horowitz | Rachel Donadio | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

He and his party, which built Italy’s center-right coalition when he entered politics in 1994, had become increasingly irrelevant. In 2018, the conservative leadership moved to Matteo Salvini, the hard-right leader of the nationalist League party (formerly the Northern League party). By 2020, the once marginal post-Fascist party Brothers of Italy had outperformed Mr. Berlusconi’s once powerful Forza Italia. But Mr. Berlusconi still dreamed big. In the most right-wing government since Mussolini, Mr. Berlusconi argued that he would keep a toe in the center.

Persons: Matteo Salvini, Berlusconi’s, ” Mr, Berlusconi, ”, Mario Draghi, “, ’ ” Cristian Romaniello, Mr, Draghi, Meloni, Mussolini Organizations: nationalist League party, Northern League, Brothers, Forza Italia, Salvini’s League, “ Fascists, Star, European Central Bank, Five Star Locations: Italy

☆ ‘A Trump tribute act’: Meet Suella Braverman, the commander-in-chief of Britain’s culture wars
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-07 | by ( Rob Picheta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

London CNN —Late last year, after a breakneck ascent of British politics put her in charge of the country’s migration, crime and national security agenda, Suella Braverman revealed her political fantasy. Leon Neal/Getty ImagesAnd she is an equally furious culture warrior, borrowing rhetoric from the American right when lambasting “woke” culture, transgender rights and climate protesters. Sameer Al-Doumy/AFP/Getty ImagesIt is a stance that has drawn sharp criticism – including from within the traditional wing of Braverman’s Conservative Party. Should Braverman succeed at her next bid for the party leadership, her critics fear another rightwards shift in British politics. “She’s recognized that in the current political climate, her way of creating an impact… (is) positioning herself as a Trump tribute act.

Giorgia Meloni, a nationalist accused by political rivals and experts of spreading white supremacist ideas, was on Monday set to become Italy's first far-right leader since World War II. The results confirm her party’s rise from a radical fringe group to the driving force in right-wing Italian politics. Meloni, who would be Italy's first female leader, and the Brothers of Italy advocate naval blockades to stop unauthorized migration from Africa. Giorgia Meloni, leader of the Brothers of Italy, in Rome on Monday. Brothers of Italy leader Giorgia Meloni casts her vote at a polling station in Rome on Sunday.

☆ The far-right win big in Italy. Here's what that means for Europe
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Giorgia Meloni seen speaking during the campaign. Fratelli d'Italia's runaway success means that Giorgia Meloni is likely to become Italy's next prime minister and the country's first female leader. Speaking as the results emerged, Giorgia Meloni said the party would "govern for everyone" and would not "betray" the country's trust. "We are dealing with a right-wing coalition and we need to understand what type of right-wing coalition," Francesco Galietti, chief executive and co-founder of political risk consultancy Policy Sonar, told CNBC Monday. Fratelli d'Italia has argued for a slimmed down, less bureaucratic EU and has championed the primacy of Italian law in domestic issues.

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