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davekeating.substack.com
🇺🇸🇪🇺American-European journalist in Brussels www.DaveKeating.net Find me on Substack: https://davekeating.substack.com/
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I know Europeans are high-fiving each other over this, but it's actually pretty sad that the foreign minister of Poland felt he couldn't rebut Musk's attack until after Musk fell out of favour with the leader. Like something out of Soviet times.

the most predictable and predicted feud in history: Donald Trump has attacked Elon Musk as “crazy” and threatened to rip up his government contracts, as the spat between two of the world’s most powerful men erupted into an all-out public feud. www.ft.com/content/3e5b...

I thought we had reached the zenith of this story but no, we're still at base camp, the summit is still so far away www.mediaite.com/media/tv/fox...

With her long silence on Gaza, Ursula von der Leyen imposed Germany’s Staatsräson on the entire EU, leaving it less able to project soft power and credibly advocate for human rights. Her tone is shifting. But she's been "a bit too German" for a leader of Europe. New episode.

Breaking: Huge development from the EU's high court in Luxembourg. In a preliminary ruling, the AG finds that Hungary's ban on LGBT content and promotion (which includes the 🏳️‍🌈pride ban) violates EU law. curia.europa.eu/jcms/upload/...

#NATO Sec Gen Rutte's compromise proposal on Trump's 5% GDP demand, which would split 3.5% military spending and 1.5% 'military-adjacent', is being discussed by defence ministers today in Brussels. About a third of countries have already endorsed it. But Trump's opinion is still not known.

There is literally no point in going down without a fight. You comply, you lose, and you allow the administration to outsource its fascism. You fight, you just might win.

The White House silence following Ukraine's successful drone attacks this week was telling. This was bad news for Trump, who sees 🇺🇦weakness as the easiest route to ending the war. Likewise, China wants this war over ASAP and the easiest route is on Putin's terms. Hence the block on drone sales.

Empty chair policy ? US defence secretary skips Nato Ukraine support meeting

I'll be on the France 24 Debate in one hour to talk about the US absence at a Ukraine defence group meeting today at #NATO, and why Sec Gen Mark Rutte seems to be gaslighting reporters about America's commitment to NATO, Europe and Ukraine.

For the 1st time, today the US defence secretary is not attending a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group which was set up by the US in 2022 to supply Ukraine with weapons following Russia's invasion. But Sec Gen Rutte is continuing his role as Trump's chief defender in Brussels.

"Europeans have become accustomed to Americans thinking for them. Trump has turned everything upside down" "Some allies have become aware of the contempt in which the American president held them, but not all. The Hague summit may be a wake-up call" lamatinaleeuropeenne.substack.com/p/trump-a-pl...

Now official: Today, as expected, police banned #BudapestPride citing Orban's constitutional amendment passed in April banning LGBT events in public. Police published a 15-page document to back up their decision, anticipating legal challenges. Organisers will illegally stage the parade anyway.

With Reform surging in the polls its interesting to see what happened when the radical right (kind of) entered government following a poll surge in the Netherlands - support halved in less than a year, centre-left (GL/PvdA), trad right (PVV) and Christian Dems (CDA) all recovered support

As news breaks that Europe will face another snap election in which the far right makes a play for government control (this time in the Netherlands), here's my take on what centrists need to do to fight back in the face of American election interference:

Following the Trump-endorsed far right’s narrow victory in yesterday’s Polish election, here’s my take on what Europe’s besieged centrist leaders need to do to present a clear European Sovereigntist alternative to voters:

This week, 🇪🇺President @vonderleyen.ec.europa.eu called for a new "Pax Europaea" in which Europe declares independence. But her bold words obscure a sad truth: she is following, not leading, in Europe's sovereignty struggle. And she is driven by fear. My take:

We'll never know if Nawrocki won because of 🇺🇸interference, or in spite of it. But it's important to bear in mind the Polish president is a mostly ceremonial position (though with significant veto power to block Tusk's agenda). Also, given the outgoing president was PiS-aligned, nothing changes.

The European and American far right is eagerly watching today's razor-thin Polish presidential election results to see if Karol Nawrocki can bring them more success than they had in Romania's presidential election 2 weeks ago in which George Simion lost.

SEE YOU AT BUDAPEST PRIDE ON 28 JUNE 🏳️‍🌈 After an initial police ban on a demonstration by 5 human rights NGOs and our successful court challenge, Budapest Police today acknowledged a demonstration for LGBTIQ+ rights in Budapest. This means Budapest Pride on 28/6 is ON. ℹ️ helsinki.hu/siker-szabad...

This week, 🇪🇺President @vonderleyen.ec.europa.eu called for a new "Pax Europaea" in which Europe declares independence. But her bold words obscure a sad truth: she is following, not leading, in Europe's sovereignty struggle. And she is driven by fear. My take:

In today's #SubstackLive, @julienhoez.eu and I agreed that we need a European patriotism. But I would take it a step further: we need to define who our adversaries are. And that's why I'm still left unimpressed by VDL's Aachen speech yesterday. Full video: davekeating.substack.com/p/what-a-wee...

Merz will meet with Trump in Washington on June 5th www.politico.eu/article/merz...

🇺🇸Foreign Affairs Committee chair sends letter to 🇪🇺Commission Thursday complaining of supposed foreign interference supporting centrist Polish presidential candidate Rafał Trzaskowski - on the same day the 🇺🇸Homeland Security Secretary is in Poland campaigning for far-right candidate Karol Nawrocki.

While the 🇪🇺Commission lights up the Berlaymont in pride colors, they refuse to take concrete actions that would help LGBT 🇪🇺citizens in Italy & the East. They thus get the worst of both worlds: a perception of interference without the benefits that real interference would bring to citizens My take:

While the 🇪🇺Commission lights up the Berlaymont in pride colors, they refuse to take concrete actions that would help LGBT 🇪🇺citizens in Italy & the East. They thus get the worst of both worlds: a perception of interference without the benefits that real interference would bring to citizens My take:

In today's #SubstackLive, @julienhoez.eu and I agreed that we need a European patriotism. But I would take it a step further: we need to define who our adversaries are. And that's why I'm still left unimpressed by VDL's Aachen speech yesterday. Full video: davekeating.substack.com/p/what-a-wee...

Quick preview of my conversation with @davekeating.substack.com, which we’ll be publishing later today!

In Europe we can only dream of having a leader this bold and clear eyed. "The 80-year period [of American leadership] is over. While this is a tragedy, it is also a reality. We must respond with both purpose and force. We are masters in our own home."

Most European countries are unitary states dominated by their capital city - with a few notable exceptions.

The Trump regime is continuing its regime change efforts to unseat centrist governments in Europe. Here is the US Secretary of Homeland Security, seemingly more concerned about foreign lands than her job title would suggest, in Poland trashing the Polish governing party.

Tomorrow at 11am CET tune in for a Substack Live with me and @julienhoez.eu on all the blockages of the week 🙅🏻‍♂️ open.substack.com/live-stream/...