The mantra says that the European Union is in crisis. Slowness in acting, critical dependencies, division, anemic economic growth, and little weight on the geopolitical board. However, facing Donald Trump's United States, Xi Jinping's China, or Vladimir Putin's Russia, the European bloc has established itself as the great power that most respects international and humanitarian law, as well as multilateralism in contrast to the law of the strongest. A stance that, in a context of building large blocs on the international stage, has led smaller or medium-sized countries to want to approach Brussels' orbit and shelter under the European Union's umbrella.The disarray caused by Trump and the decline of a Western order led by the United States are not the only reason, but they are among the main factors that have led, for example, Canada, Norway, Iceland, and the United Kingdom to make overtures towards the European bloc in recent times. "Indeed, it seems we are now the last adult in the room, the only reliable and predictable partner," summarizes Jean-Louis De Brouwer, an expert in European policies at the think tank

The name Obelix will continue to be strictly associated with the comic character. The General Court of the European Union (GCEU) has prevented a Polish company dealing in firearms, ammunition, and explosives from registering the commercial name Obelix. "It may lead the relevant public to associate [the two marks] and is liable to impair the reputation of the earlier mark," states the ruling issued by the General Court of the European Union.

New setback for European justice against Meta. The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) on Tuesday overturned the appeal filed by the parent company of Facebook and Instagram against Italian regulations that aim to oblige social networks and artificial intelligence services to pay compensation for feeding on and using content published by the media. "The right to fair remuneration for publishers of press publications is admissible," states the European court's ruling.

More and more voices in the European Union want to increase the protection of minors on social networks and advocate for establishing an age of majority. For some time now, some member states, such as France and Spain, have been urging the community bloc to ban access to platforms like Instagram or Tiktok for the youngest, but it has not been until this Tuesday that the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has opened the door to presenting a legislative proposal to approve a digital age of majority across the EU. "The discussions about a minimum age for social networks can no longer be ignored," the community leader pointed out at a conference on artificial intelligence and children in Copenhagen.

The European Union continues without applying sanctions against Benjamin Netanyahu's government, but this Monday it agreed to extend restrictions against violent Israeli settlers in the West Bank, as well as against Hamas personalities. "Violence and extremism have consequences," remarked the head of European diplomacy, Kaja Kallas.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has borrowed some words from the ad hoclaw.

The consensus is now almost absolute in the European Union. From the Spanish socialist Pedro Sánchez to the German conservative Friedrich Merz, not to mention the far-right Italian Giorgia Meloni, they all agree that the European club must stop depending defensively on the United States. European leaders have lost confidence in the ally that has offered them a military umbrella through NATO since the Second World War and, with each new threat and humiliation from Donald Trump, they proclaim with greater force their desire to become independent of Washington. However, beyond words and political declarations, what is the EU really doing to achieve security autonomy?

The Qatargate was that scandal that ironically broke out on the annual Anti-Corruption Day in 2022 with the search by Belgian authorities of the homes of various personalities linked to the European Parliament, including then-vice-president of the institution, Eva Kaili, in search of more than one million euros in cash that even appeared inside suitcases. The scandal generated a lot of noise, but also many promises. Especially from the European Parliament, which assured that it would clean house. What has become of those promises? I'll let you guess the answer.

On Friday, May 8, in the midst of the commemoration of the 81st anniversary of the end of the Second World War in Europe, it was evident that Germany will soon be the main European military power again. Next year its defense spending will be equivalent to that of France and Great Britain combined, and the plan is for it to be considerably higher by 2030. The declared objective of the German government is to have "the most powerful conventional army in Europe." It is true that France and Great Britain have nuclear weapons, but this means less money for other defense materials. Therefore, the question is not "will this come true?"; if there are no unforeseen events, it will come true. The question, especially on this solemn anniversary, is: "How can we ensure that, this time, the growth of German military power is positive for all of Europe?"

The European Union faces one of the most important economic debates of the coming years: should competition rules be relaxed to allow the creation of large European companies capable of competing with North American and Chinese giants? Or, before easing merger control, should Europe complete its single market?

Most member states and the European Commission want to apply the trade deal closed with the United States last summer as soon as possible to prevent Donald Trump from having any excuses to further increase tariffs against the European Union. However, some partners, especially France, and the European Parliament want to include a series of safeguard clauses in the pact with the White House. These disagreements are keeping the negotiations between European institutions to ratify the pact at a standstill, while the President of the United States pressures the EU to approve it definitively and threatens with new customs duties on European cars.

Caught in the Iran war, Donald Trump has chosen to toughen reprisals against the European Union. The threat of a trade war has once again surfaced to punish, precisely, allied reluctance to be involved in the battle to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The more Trump pressures, the further the EU moves away. The transatlantic distance is becoming insurmountable because no one hides a mutual disillusionment that threatens to collapse more than seventy years of understanding and a shared vision of the world. Even old Europe, which still tried to maintain appearances with the President of the United States – like Giorgia Meloni or Friedrich Merz – has fallen out of favor by not submitting to the White House's erratic agenda.

The return of Donald Trump to the White House and his constant threats against European states have led the European Political Community to unite not only against Russia, but also now against the United States. Emmanuel Macron promoted this alliance after the start of the war in Ukraine. It is an organization that goes beyond the territory of the European Union and includes, for example, countries like the United Kingdom, Turkey, and various states that lie between Russian influence and proximity to the European bloc, especially from the Western Balkans. Those not invited, however, are Belarus and Russia. And, in fact, the raison d'être of this organization is the desire to isolate Vladimir Putin's regime and promote –beyond the EU borders– a more sovereign European alliance with respect to the Kremlin. And now, also, with respect to Washington.

The intentions of the Spanish government to ban social media for under-16s have been very well received in Catalonia. 87% of Catalans - almost 9 out of 10 - endorse this as the minimum age for social media users in all EU countries, according to a survey by the Centre d'Estudis d'Opinió (CEO) and the European Parliament. The poll, published this Monday to mark 40 years since Spain's accession to the community club, indicates that only 10% of respondents are against the measure, while only 3% do not know or do not answer. Setting a minimum age limit for these platforms convinces even the youngest in the sample, as 84% of those interviewed between 18 and 24 years old are in favor.

Viktor Orbán did not attend the last European summit and, instead, Volodymyr Zelensky attended in person as a guest. A change of pieces symptomatic of what the far-right pro-Russian leader's farewell could mean for the future of the European Union, and, above all, its relationship with Ukraine.

Donald Trump's latest stunt is the announcement of new 25% tariffs on European cars and trucks. He let it slip on Truth Social, and theoretically the measure aims to boost the United States' automotive industry, but it was made public two days after the president threatened a "possible reduction" of American troops deployed in Germany. The target of this measure, due to the weight of the automotive industry, is precisely Germany. The US president believes that Berlin has not helped him enough with the war he declared jointly with Benjamin Netanyahu against Iran.

Donald Trump has taken another step in the trade war with Europe and has announced a 25% tariff on trucks and cars manufactured in the European Union that are marketed in the United States. According to a message published on Truth Social this Friday, he expects the measure to come into effect "next week".

The European Central Bank (ECB) remains cautious. The banking institution has once again avoided making a move prematurely and, despite the war in Iran and the rebound in inflation, has decided this Thursday to keep interest rates at 2% for the seventh consecutive meeting. In this way, the financial entity chaired by Christine Lagarde keeps its powder dry in case the situation worsens and, in fact, has already warned of "the high uncertainty" of the Eurozone's economic future due to the war initiated by Donald Trump.

An era has ended and a new one begins. With the farewell of Viktor Orbán, the main black sheep of the European Union, comes Péter Magyar, a conservative who aims to bring Hungary back into the fold. The intentions of the future Hungarian prime minister have been staged with the trip to Brussels and the meeting he had with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the President of the European Council, António Costa. Budapest aims to recover ties with Brussels and, in the short term, save money from European funds, which are in the balance due to the breaches of Orbán's government.