I'm wondering if the 2027 French presidential election might turn out like the 2024 US presidential election did.

What I mean is: what if left-wing voters refuse to back the moderate (Edouard Philippe in France, Kamala Harris in the US), which just helps the far-right candidate to win (Le Pen in France, Trump in the US)?

Melenchon is liked by the left in France, but the polls show he fares much worse against Le Pen than Philippe does. If the second round is Melenchon vs Le Pen, then Le Pen's victory becomes more likely.

“The Korean engines are falling apart like a Christmas tree on Epiphany. (…) What is especially worrying is the overheating of the engines and cases of complete seizure of the power units,” wrote Wolski.

Sweden’s Gripen fighter, the plane marketed as Europe’s most independent jet, runs on an American-made GE engine, and that fact just became a live national-security question. After Washington quietly throttled Ukraine’s Starshield satellite service and Portugal raised fears that an F-35 could be shut off remotely, we dig into exactly how much control Sweden has actually clawed back over the engine inside its own fighter.

cross-posted from : https://lemmy.zip/post/73781809

Schools without heating or air-conditioning, teacher shortages, deep-rooted social and material inequalities, dilapidated buildings, toilets that are unusable or located out in the schoolyard: the French student protests are finding resonance across Europe, and bringing to light the situation in other countries.

To anyone who believe Putin's right hand is controlling Trump's mouth:I know where Putin's left hand is — allow me to introduce German AfD party leader Alice Weidel.The full interview with this Kremlin proxy is mind-blowingly scary — especially from 18:00 where she starts unfolding her Kremlin script about Ukraine.If you want to know what happens if she and Marine Le Pen in France get the power, watch the full video here:youtu.be/_cGGDu8sgXY

cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/12053855

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Volkswagen has yet to reveal details, but the €20,000 EV is expected to use the same 37 kWh LFP battery as the base ID. Polo and ID. Cross to keep costs down.

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According to Spanish auto magazine Autofácil, Volkswagen could manufacture the €20,000 EV in Spain, although Volkswagen has yet to confirm a production site.

The Group currently produces the ID. Polo and Cupra Raval at its Martorell plant, while the ID. Cross and Skoda Epiq are manufactured at the Navarra plant, both in Spain.

Volkswagen’s new Electric Urban Car Family is off to a promising start, securing nearly 150,000 orders after series production began in June.

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Even under a moderate scenario, 196,000 jobs would be created, a new study commissioned by Transport & Environment (T&E) says.

The Clean Corporate Vehicles Regulation requires 45% of new car sales in large corporate fleets to be electric by 2030. This establishes a minimum floor for fleet transition. Strictly limiting financial support for company cars from January 2028 (Article 4 of the Regulation) to vehicles that are low and zero emissions and Made-in-Europe triggers the biggest gains.

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T&E analysis shows that in the strong scenario, where combustion cars are pushed out of company fleets much faster, 69% of new cars in large corporate fleets could be electric by 2030, generating 344,000 additional jobs. Economic gains could also jump from €28 bn to €48 bn, while investments could grow from €20 bn to €38 bn.

Germany and Poland stand to reap the greatest benefits. Demand for additional jobs in Germany could rise by 134,000 (39% of the additional EU jobs), while Poland could capture 38,500 jobs more.

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Failing to seize the demand potential of the regulation would be a historic misfire at a time when European carmakers could easily expand EV capacity to protect jobs, according to the analysis.

"Volkswagen serves as a case in point: while the group plans to cut 35,000 jobs by 2030, the new regulation alone could generate up to 56,300 additional direct jobs at the automaker over the same period."

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Beyond vehicle manufacturing, the regulation would drive investments across the entire electric vehicle supply chain. In Poland, battery cell production could more than double (31 GWh to 81 GWh) by 2030 and jobs could increase by 38,500, 82% of which would be in the battery sector.

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This also affects employees of companies using AI. Companies are giving AI vendors confidential data, including personal information. The same is probably already happening with health data, fostered ny companies like CompuGroup Medical which are all-in on AI.

On Wednesday, EU Member States approved a change to the GDPR that would put the profit-making interests of OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Meta and SpaceX over European's fundamental right to data protection. According to the approved text, processing personal data “in the context of AI” should automatically be lawful. In particular, Big Tech would be able to use all personal data collected over the past decades with virtually no restrictions, as long as this happens “in the context” of AI. Schrems: “Under the agreed text, the profits of AI companies would typically trump European’s fundamental right to privacy. This is nothing but a digital expropriation of Europeans.” All this is happening despite the key figures of AI corporations actively warning about the enormous risks associated with their own products.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.online/c/euro@feddit.online/p/2050289/worst-on-record-brutal-summer-heat-wave-killed-more-than-50000-in-europes-cities

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The cooperation agreement places an emphasis on defense technology and energy security. Under the new terms, Ukraine will expand its access to Finnish satellite capabilities through direct collaboration with telecommunications technology giant Nokia and satellite provider ICEYE.

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Earlier this month, ICEYE and Nokia announced a partnership to develop secure, sovereign and high-performance broadband low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite communications systems for governments, supporting missions from defense and border security to emergency services and disaster response. Built on trusted European technology, the jointly developed satellite communications systems will give nations ownership and control of satellites, ground segment and terminals.

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Austria's foreign ministry said on Friday it was expelling four Vienna-based Russian diplomats over "activities incompatible with their diplomatic status", a term usually used for spying.

"Based on ​findings by the Austrian security authorities, the Austrian foreign ministry has taken measures ​against four Russian diplomats in Vienna," it said in a statement, adding ⁠that they had been declared personae non gratae and ordered to leave the country.

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Three ​of them worked at Russia's embassy to Austria and one at the Russian delegation to ​the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) on military security and arms control, the ministry said.

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The move brings to 18 the number of Russian diplomats Austria has expelled since 2020. While Austria is ​a neutral country, politically its governments have sided with Ukraine since Russia launched its ​all-out invasion in 2022.

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While Austria does not usually comment on the specifics of such expulsions, during the last round in May, when it ​expelled three Russian diplomats, ​it said it ⁠was because of an "antenna forest" on the roofs of Russian diplomatic buildings that could be used for spying.

Vienna is a major diplomatic ​centre, hosting the OSCE and United Nations organisations such as the ​International Atomic ⁠Energy Agency.

Larger countries like Russia and the United States often have separate ambassadors to Austria, the OSCE and UN organisations, each running an embassy or mission.

Vienna, which was divided into Allied ⁠sectors ​after World War Two, has long had a reputation ​as a den of spies. The large diplomatic presence offers the opportunity to station intelligence agents there under cover ​of diplomatic immunity.

The 2026 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought is collectively awarded to the International Criminal Court (ICC) and its officials.

Announcing the 2026 laureate in the hemicycle on Thursday, European Parliament President Roberta Metsola declared: “The European Union is built on respect for multilateralism and international institutions. With the award of the Sakharov prize to the International Criminal Court and its officials, the European Parliament recognises the Court’s important work in upholding international law and justice.”

The International Criminal Court (ICC) investigates and, where warranted, tries individuals charged with the gravest crimes of concern to the international community: genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and the crime of aggression.

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Behind a wire fence lies a vast gaping wound of earth. Before Google’s arrival a few months ago, an estimated quarter of a million trees occupied the 330 hectares (815 acres) of forest near the town of Muhos in rural northern Finland. Now they are all gone.

After the tech company illegally stripped the entire area to build a datacentre – taking even the top soil with it – all that remains is a vast expanse of mud indented with the trail marks of machinery, puddles and mounds of earth, roots and branches. Residents say that brown water flowing off the site is going into a stream that feeds the Oulujoki River.