Hanne Cokelaere

NATO allies ‘punching below their weight’ face pressure to buy arms for Ukraine Some non-NATO countries like Australia and New Zealand plan to chip in to the PURL scheme, while other allies are doing much less.

NEW: Pressure is mounting on NATO countries to spread more evenly the costs of buying desperately needed U.S. weapons for Ukraine, as the alliance looks to restructure its signature scheme.

www.politico.eu/article/nato...

William Boeva strijdt tegen gescheiden werelden: “Hoeveel vrienden heeft u met een beperking?” Hij wil geen zagevent genoemd worden, die steeds op dezelfde nagel klopt. Toch is het nodig, zegt comedian William Boeva. Hij trekt daarom de campagne van Hart voor Handicap op gang voor meer inclusie van mensen met een beperking. “Ik een rolmodel? Alleen omdat er nog te weinig anderen zichtbaar zijn.”

"Mensen met een beperking vormen de grootste minderheidsgroep ter wereld, en ieder van u maakt kans om er ooit deel van te worden. Toch is die groep het minst zichtbaar" — William Boeva in @standaard.be www.standaard.be/binnenland/w...

POLITICO Poll of Polls — Dutch polls, trends and election news for the Netherlands POLLING FROM ACROSS EUROPE. UPDATED DAILY. Netherlands — 2025 general election The Netherlands goes to the polls on October 29 to elect a new parliament. The chart below shows projected seat share …

Don't forget about former European Commissioner Frans Timmermans, though!

He now leads an alliance of Labor and GreenLeft, and even though the party is polling a bit below its 2023 election result, it could still emerge the winner today

www.politico.eu/europe-poll-...

Red hands and pig heads: Russia’s plan to destabilize France goes on trial Paris has emerged as a top target of Moscow’s hybrid war.

France’s social, economic, cultural, religious and political divisions offer fertile ground for the Kremlin’s interference, several policymakers, academics and military officers told POLITICO. Story with @msolletty.bsky.social

www.politico.eu/article/red-...

Dutch election dark horse Rob Jetten wants the Netherlands to get closer to the EU The underdog-turned-front-runner tells POLITICO the Netherlands must embrace a more central role in Europe.

Then there's the liberal D66's Rob Jetten — the latest wunderkind in the electoral campaign, who has made optimism his distinctive campaign trait

That appears to be working, going by the sudden rise of his party in the polls

www.politico.eu/article/dutc...

Geert Wilders’ one-man rule — and what that means for the Dutch How Europe’s smallest party became the Netherlands’ largest political force.

Fire-right firebrand Geert Wilders has lost seats in the projections, though his party still came out on top in most

He has next to no chance of becoming prime minister, or even being in government, but a good chunk of the campaign still revolved around him

www.politico.eu/article/geer...

Mark Rutte’s Dutch liberals were dominant for years. Now the party is bleeding support. It’s not easy being a European liberal.

The liberal VVD, long a dominant political force in the Netherlands, hemorrhaged support since the collapse of the government and the party has struggled to reboot, with internal divisions on display

.. but its numbers have improved in recent days

www.politico.eu/article/vvd-...

Make boring great again: Dutch anti-populist’s plan to beat Wilders “I’m not ordered to be the funniest or to make the craziest remarks,” said Christian Democrat Henri Bontenbal.

Early favorite Henri Bontenbal, the leader of the center-right Dutch Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), won strong support with his campaign for steady — boring — leadership

But his polling numbers have slumped slightly in the final stretch to today's vote

www.politico.eu/article/the-...

Dutch election promises to be a nail-biter, final polls predict With one day to go before the Netherlands elects a new parliament, three parties are expected to win 23 seats each.

One poll yesterday put three parties — far right-PVV , center-left GL-PvdA and liberal D66 — in pole position for an election win

But two other parties — CDA and VVD — were not far behind, and researchers found many voters were still (!) undecided

www.politico.eu/article/neth...

How to watch the Dutch election like a pro POLITICO lays out everything you need to know about a critical vote that is currently too close to call, as far-right Geert Wilders takes on the mainstream again.

The Netherlands is going to the polls today — and, guys, this could become a nail-biter

@evahartog.bsky.social

www.politico.eu/article/how-...

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De Gucht listed populism, authoritarian leaders, and questions surrounding the separation of power and freedoms being raised as blows to the liberal corner of the political spectrum.

Defending those freedoms doesn't require a liberal reboot, though, he said, only "clear communication."

Flemish liberal party Open VLD has a new leader: Frédéric De Gucht, the lead negotiator in the ongoing talks to form a Brussels government and son of former Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht, was elected Friday with 91 percent of the vote.

“Liberals are in the firing line,” De Gucht said.

Geert Wilders’ one-man rule — and what that means for the Dutch How Europe’s smallest party became the Netherlands’ largest political force.

Geert Wilders’ one-man rule — and what that means for the Dutch

How Europe’s smallest party became the Netherlands’ largest political force.

By @evahartog.bsky.social
www.politico.eu/article/geer...

vdL devoted her first State of the European Union address to her plans to use the pandemic as a catalyst for positive change.

Now she says, “Europe must fight.”

Text analysis of the two speeches shows how much political narrative has shifted in five short years

www.politico.eu/article/ursu...

MEP in charge of EU’s 2040 climate target moves to kill it Centrist MEPs immediately condemned the far-right lawmaker’s move, which is unlikely to succeed.

The lawmaker leading the European Parliament’s work on the EU’s 2040 climate target has filed a motion rejecting the entire proposal, a move other MEPs slammed as “economically illiterate” and “destructive.”

www.politico.eu/article/far-...

Dilan Yesilgöz - Zegerius on X: "Het land heeft nu duidelijkheid en een sterk kabinet nodig. Kiezers moeten zich kunnen uitspreken over welke kant ze willen dat het land opgaat. Dus zo snel als mogelijk verkiezingen. Voor mij van belang dat we ondertussen ook de komende weken doorgaan met het leveren op het" / X Het land heeft nu duidelijkheid en een sterk kabinet nodig. Kiezers moeten zich kunnen uitspreken over welke kant ze willen dat het land opgaat. Dus zo snel als mogelijk verkiezingen. Voor mij van belang dat we ondertussen ook de komende weken doorgaan met het leveren op het

Equally unsurprisingly, the leader of the VVD party — which is also doing well in the polls — also says she wants elections "as soon as possible"

The country "needs clarity and a strong government," according to Yeşilgöz

x.com/DilanYesilgo...

Timmermans gaat minderheidskabinet niet steunen en wil nieuwe verkiezingen Frans Timmermans (GroenLinks-PvdA) wil zo snel mogelijk nieuwe verkiezingen. Een doorstart van VVD, NSC en BBB gaat zijn partij niet steunen. 'Met deze partijen in de huidige vorm is geen stabiel best...

Timmermans told NOS that he wants elections "as soon as possible"

He ruled out supporting the remaining government parties to continue on without Wilders' PVV:

"With these coalition parties in the current form, it's not possible to form a stable national government"

nos.nl/video/256977...

POLITICO Poll of Polls — Dutch polls, trends and election news for the Netherlands POLLING FROM ACROSS EUROPE. UPDATED DAILY. Netherlands — National parliament voting intention Projected seat share in the parliament, based on seat distribution polling data. What is Poll of Polls …

Two of Wilders' (former) coalition partners — BBB and NSC — are doing terribly in the polls.

But the liberal VVD and the largest opposition party, the leftwing GreenLeft/Labour of Frans Timmermans, are in good shape

www.politico.eu/europe-poll-...

Dutch government collapses after Geert Wilders’ far-right party quits Asylum dispute topples coalition in the Netherlands.

Dutch elections soon?

In a not-so-surprising move Tuesday, far-right firebrand Geert Wilders, who leads the largest party in the Dutch coalition, decided to pull his party out of the government

www.politico.eu/article/geer...

Nationalist moves ahead in Polish presidential election Populist Karol Nawrocki is slightly ahead of liberal Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski in a nail-biting presidential election.

49.3 percent to 50.7 percent

In an updated exit poll in Poland's presidential runoff, nationalist Karol Nawrocki edges ahead of centrist Rafał Trzaskowski

via @wojciechkosc.bsky.social

www.politico.eu/article/libe...

Polish presidential election exit poll shows a dead heat Liberal Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski is slightly ahead of nationalist Karol Nawrocki, but within the exit poll’s margin of error.

50.3 percent vs 49.7 percent

An exit poll puts centrist Rafał Trzaskowski very (VERY) slightly ahead of his populist rival Karol Nawrocki in Poland’s presidential election, within the poll's margin of error

via @wojciechkosc.bsky.social

www.politico.eu/article/libe...

After an unprecedented (and embarrassing) failure to get elected in the first voting round

Centrist Nicușor Dan faces uphill battle to beat Simion in Romanian presidential runoff Mayor of Bucharest has a daunting deficit to bridge with hard-right opponent.

Romania's Nicușor Dan, the independent centrist mayor of Bucharest, goes into the May 18 second round of the presidential election as the underdog against George Simion, a self-declared “Trumpist” who wants to cut military aid to Ukraine.

www.politico.eu/article/cent...

The method in Trump’s Greenland madness The climate skeptic is responding to the reality of the Arctic’s melting ice: more resource extraction, faster trade routes, new military bases.

NEW: Donald Trump’s demand for Greenland is no 19th-century imperial throwback.

Rather it signals a hypermodern reality: a world transforming thanks to climate change, with China, Russia and the United States jostling to take advantage.

www.politico.eu/article/dona...

Some great data and charts in the EU's climate action progress report, out today: climate.ec.europa.eu/system/files...

How to watch the Polish election like a pro Everything you need to know about the October 15 general election.

Poles vote Sunday to elect a new government in a race that could convulse the EU.

Here is everything you need to know about the October 15 general election 👇

Here are the latest polling trends for the Polish parliamentary election on October 15:

How a fight over an Alpine pass turned into an EU-wide political headache Locals want fewer trucks; truckers and national politicians want uninterrupted cargo traffic; Brussels wants the problem to go away.

I traveled to Tyrol this summer to talk to locals and transport operators — and all of them said Brussels doesn't understand

... and the Commission is MIA

In the summer, von der Leyen promised one last attempt at mediation, but logistics groups say that hasn't happened yet. And they're running out of patience.

This week, they (again) demanded that the Commission drag Vienna to court.