News from the 27 EU member countries
Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway has been placed on a lung transplant waiting list as her pulmonary fibrosis condition has worsened, the royal palace has confirmed.
Nineteen-year-old Russian Mirra Andreeva secured her first Grand Slam title at the French Open, defeating Polish qualifier Maja Chwalinska 6-3, 6-2 in Saturday’s final to become the first teenager to win at Roland Garros since 2020.
Denmark has become the only European Union member state without a dedicated agriculture minister, setting itself apart from all other 26 EU countries that maintain specific ministerial responsibility for farming and agricultural policy.
A Russian Geran-2 drone, part of an overnight assault on Ukraine, crashed into an apartment block in Galati, eastern Romania, on 29 May 2026, injuring two people. It was the most serious airspace incident for the NATO member since 2022; Bucharest expelled the Russian consul and summoned Moscow’s ambassador.
In a Strasbourg ceremony on Tuesday 19 May 2026, the European Parliament honoured the first laureates of the European Order of Merit, including former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Polish President and Solidarność leader Lech Wałęsa, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Two and a half years into Robert Fico’s fourth term as Slovak prime minister, the institutional architecture of anti-corruption enforcement built during the 2020-2023 Hegerova governments has been substantially dismantled. The European Parliament’s pending resolution on Thursday lays out a detailed list of grievances.
A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck Liuzhou in China’s Guangxi region in the early hours of Monday 18 May 2026, killing two, injuring four, collapsing 13 buildings and forcing evacuation of more than 7,000 residents.
Romania’s political parties met President Nicusor Dan in Cotroceni on Monday 18 May 2026 for consultations on a new prime minister after the Bolojan government fell on 5 May. PSD rejected another Bolojan-led cabinet; PNL ruled out any coalition with PSD; AUR said it was ready to govern.
More than 90 Labour MPs have publicly called for Keir Starmer to resign after the party’s catastrophic local election defeat to Reform UK. Brussels watches the crisis with concern given Starmer’s deliberate strategy of re-engagement with the EU since 2024.
UK Health Secretary Wes Streeting is expected to resign on Thursday 14 May 2026 to mount a Labour leadership challenge against Sir Keir Starmer, after 93 Labour MPs publicly called for the Prime Minister to step down. The political turbulence overshadows the King’s Speech and arrives amid acute gilt-market pressure.
