European neighbors cast a wary eye on France after far-right party's election lead

BERLIN (AP) — After France’s far-right National Rally surged into the lead in the first round of legislative elections, some European neighbors on Monday cast a wary eye on the latest country to veer to the right on the continent. The French result comes after the European...

European Union accuses Facebook owner Meta of breaking digital rules with paid ad-free option

LONDON (AP) — European Union regulators accused social media company Meta Platforms on Monday of breaching the bloc's new digital competition rulebook by forcing Facebook and Instagram users to choose between seeing ads or paying to avoid them. Meta began giving European users the...

European Union accuses Facebook and Instagram owner Meta of breaking bloc's digital rules with paid ad-free option

Surveys show Chinese economy growing but at modest pace

BANGKOK (AP) — Surveys of Chinese factory managers showed a mixed outlook for the world's second-largest economy in June, with growth steady but not picking up much steam. The China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing's official purchasing managers index, or PMI, remained at...

Hungary's Orbán presents a new alliance with Austrian and Czech nationalist parties

VIENNA (AP) — Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán on Sunday presented a new alliance with Austria's far-right Freedom Party and the main Czech opposition party, which hopes to attract other partners and become the biggest right-wing group in the European Parliament. Orbán...

Hungary's populist Orbán to take over EU presidency as many issues hang in the balance

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — When Hungary takes over the helm of the European Union on July 1, many politicians in Brussels will have the same thing on their minds: whether populist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will use the role to further his reputation as the bloc’s main spoiler. ...

Egypt, EU hold an investment conference to help Cairo battle inflation and foreign currency crisis

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt and the European Union on Saturday opened a two-day investment conference to advance the implementation of their strategic partnership agreement that includes a 7.4 billion-euro ($8 billion) aid package for the cash-strapped Middle Eastern nation. The March aid...

Estonia's ruling party taps climate minister for the Baltic country's top job

HELSINKI (AP) — Estonia’s ruling center-right Reform Party has chosen Saturday Climate Minister Kristen Michal to replace outgoing leader Kaja Kallas as prime minister of the Baltic country. The unanimous decision to nominate Michal was made following a closed-door meeting by...

European Union's competition boss signals fresh AI scrutiny for Microsoft-OpenAI deal and Google

LONDON (AP) — The European Union is escalating its scrutiny of the artificial intelligence industry, including taking a fresh look into Microsoft's multibillion-dollar partnership with OpenAI, a top EU official said Friday. The European Commission, the bloc's executive arm,...

EU leaders have tapped their top brass. Von der Leyen must win over parliament to keep her job

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union’s leaders this week agreed with surprising speed on a trio of top jobs, tapping European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen for a second term, Portugal’s António Costa as European Council President, and Estonia’s Kaja Kallas as their top diplomat....