European union

The probe is under a mammoth law known as the Digital Services Act (DSA) that forces the world's largest tech firms to do more to protect European users online and clamp down on illegal content.

From supply chain disruptions following the coronavirus pandemic to an energy crisis after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Europe's economy has faced multiple challenges in recent years.

Over two years into Moscow's all-out war against its neighbour, Kyiv's troops are struggling to hold back the Russian army as Western support fails to keep pace with the fighting.

The European Union in September named six so-called gatekeepers and 22 of their platforms including Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn that must adhere to the rules: Google's Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, TikTok parent ByteDance, Meta and Microsoft.

The European Union long ago set its sights on big tech, aiming to rein in globally dominant companies like Apple, Google and Microsoft.

The European Union has spent two years making an intensive effort to develop reforms supported by the more frugal member states like Germany and other countries, such as France and Italy, which seek more flexibility.

EU leaders will grapple with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban at a crunch summit meeting Thursday to try to overcome his veto on 50 billion euros in financial aid for Ukraine.

The UK will finally roll out post-Brexit border checks Wednesday on food, plant and animal products imported from the European Union, fanning fears of more price hikes, empty shelves and even Valentine's Day flower shortages.

The European Union will unveil a raft of measures Wednesday to better coordinate action on protecting sensitive technology and stopping critical infrastructure from falling into the hands of geopolitical rivals like China.

Belgian politician Charles Michel has announced he will step down as European Council president after running in the European Parliament elections set for June.

The EU agreed reforms Wednesday that will loosen budget rules with the goal of encouraging investments while keeping debt and spending under control, after France and Germany bridged their differences.

The Economic Partnership Agreement will give Kenya duty-free and quota-free access to the EU, its biggest export market, while European goods will receive progressive tariff reductions.

TikTok, owned by Chinese company ByteDance, is particularly popular with younger users, while YouTube is part of the Alphabet digital empire that includes Google.

The EU's executive gives its advice Wednesday on whether Ukraine is ready to begin formal membership talks, as momentum builds in favour of Kyiv's ambition to join the bloc.

The European Data Protection Board said Wednesday it had adopted a binding decision that will ban Facebook and Instagram owner Meta from using the personal data of users for targeted advertisements.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Thursday there is "a very clear link between terrorist acts and migration" as he went into an EU summit discussing a reform of the bloc's asylum rules.

Slovakia's new populist Prime Minister Robert Fico said Thursday that he "informed" the European Union's executive of his decision to stop military aid to Ukraine, the first such Western reversal of backing for Kyiv.

EU leaders will on Thursday debate calling for a "humanitarian pause" in Israel's war with Hamas, as the bloc grapples with another conflict on its fringes alongside Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

TikTok said Wednesday it pulled four million "violative" videos in the EU in September, in its first transparency report since a new law against illegal and harmful content came into force across the bloc.

The EU passed a new law forcing companies to not buy crops imported from areas with heavy deforestation, though activists say that this isn't enough due to its lack of protection for "other wooded areas" like the Cerrado savanna.

Protests due to the death of Mahsa Amini continue in Iran on Monday, as the death toll rises to more than 75 and Western institutions like the United States and the European Union consider sanctions on the country.

The energy crisis in Europe continues Russia announces a reduction in the natural gas it supplies to Europe on Tuesday, with states like Greece asking for a reprieve in new policies aimed to combat Russian aggression on the gas supply.

Rishi Sunak is leading the ballots to replace Boris Johnson as Prime Minister on Monday, as Johnson continues to spread conspiracy theories about Brexit and attempting to make deals to prevent Sunak from replacing him as Prime Minister.

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson claimed on Wednesday that Russia will run out of resources soon to continue the momentum of the war, as Ukraine is granted candidacy status to enter the European Union.

As the antagonism between Russia and the alliance between the United States and Europe grows, Russian President Vladimir Putin highlighted the brand-new intercontinental missiles that he claims will be used in combat by the end of the year.

Putin pal and Russian oligarch Vladimir Strzhalkovsky’s Malta-registered superyacht Ragner is stuck at a quay in Narvik, a port city in northern Norway, after running out of fuel and being “discriminated” against by local oil fillers who refused to help them top up their supply.

The 70-meter Galactica Super Nova, owned by Alekperov, the president and chief executive of Russia’s largest independent oil company, entered Tivat port at around 3 p.m. local time on Tuesday after the yacht sailed on Monday from Barcelona port in Spain.

Giant social media companies, such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok, have begun hitting Russia's state-backed news channels Russia Today and Sputnik with restrictions in their online platforms as the European Union (EU) moves to ban Russian state media.

Angela Merkel’s leadership of Germany comes to an end after 16 years as Olaf Scholz is sworn into office.

France has now made it mandatory for people to present their “passe-sanitaire” (health passport) when entering venues as part of its national campaign to clamp down on a recent surge in new infections brought by the highly infectious Delta COVID-19 variant.