France unveils €1.1bn emergency aid for farmers after record heat

​France has announced €1.1 billion in emergency aid for farmers after record heat and drought caused severe damage to crops, pastures and water supplies.

Issued on: 04/09/2026 - RFI

France's potato crop is among those hard-hit by this summer's record heatwave and drought. © Virginia Mayo / AP Photo

Unveiling the CASI aid package on Friday, Agriculture Minister Annie Genevard said the money was needed both to compensate farmers for their losses and protect future production.

“The country faces a double imperative: compensate for losses to avoid bankruptcies and restart agricultural production,” Genevard said. “If we structurally lose productive capacity, we will lose landscapes, market share, sovereignty and quality products.”

Some crop producers have reported losses of up to 80 percent, while livestock farmers have also been badly affected by shortages of animal feed.

Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu had described agriculture as his “number one priority” as the government returned to work after the summer.

Emergency payments

The support comes as the government works on next year’s budget and seeks to keep the deficit under control ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

“One billion euros represents a massive effort given the current budgetary context,” Genevard said.

About half of the package, some €520 million, will be used to provide rapid payments following weather damage.

A further €30 million will be available through the agricultural disaster scheme to cover losses that cannot be insured, including permanent crops and vineyards.

The plan also creates a local recovery fund to help farms buy seeds, plants and animal feed after drought left farmland parched.

Further measures include €330 million in land-tax relief, help with social-security payments and a fuel subsidy.

The funding will be available from next week, Genevard said, with regional authorities responsible for finalising how the money will be distributed.

Pressure from farmers

Farmers’ unions have warned that some producers are in a desperate situation after France experienced its hottest summer on record in 2026.

“We have just lived through the hottest summer ever recorded since measurements began in 1900,” Environment Minister Monique Barbut said on Thursday at the presentation of the summer climate report, which covers June to August.

Barbut said in mid-August that the direct and indirect impacts of the heatwaves would cost France between €10 billion and €15 billion.

France’s largest farmers’ union, the FNSEA, said agricultural production losses this summer would exceed €10 billion, with more than €5 billion already estimated in both the livestock and crop sectors.

The Confédération paysanne farming union, which supports smaller producers rather than intensive farming, had called for direct payments of €5,000 per farmer, costing €2 billion in total, to prevent farms from closing.

Young farmers have called for a general tax contribution modelled on a “drought tax” introduced in 1976 to finance longer-term investment needed to keep farms operating.

France, the largest agricultural producer in the EU, is bracing for another heatwave this week.

INTERVIEW

Farm workers face a ‘double-edged sword’ of extreme heat and pesticides

As extreme heat makes working outdoors increasingly dangerous, farm workers face another, less visible threat: the pesticides used on the crops around them. Higher temperatures can make these chemicals evaporate faster, increasing workers’ exposure as their bodies are already struggling with the heat.


Issued on: 30/08/2026 - RFI

A farm worker at a wine cooperative in the Var, southern France, on 17 August 2026. Agricultural workers are particularly exposed to extreme heat, which can also increase their exposure to pesticides used on crops. © Miguel Medina / AFP

The problem creates a dangerous trade-off. While protective clothing can reduce contact with pesticides, in extreme temperatures it can also trap body heat and increase the risk of heat-related illness.

Research by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), a US-based advocacy group, has documented the risks that extreme heat and pesticide exposure pose to farm workers.

In the United States, the issue is also part of a wider debate over protections for people working in extreme heat. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the federal agency responsible for workplace safety, has proposed the country’s first federal workplace heat standard.

It would cover agriculture and other sectors, but has not yet been finalised.

Omanjana Goswami is a scientist with the food and environment programme at UCS, which was founded in 1969 by scientists and students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

From Washington DC, she spoke to RFI about why heat and pesticides can be a particularly dangerous combination for the people who produce our food.

RFI: The UCS has documented how extreme heat can increase farm workers’ exposure to pesticides. Why does that happen?

Omanjana Goswami: When the outside air temperature is very high, pesticides that have been applied to fields and crops evaporate faster. This means the air in and around the fields can contain a much higher concentration of pesticides in vapour form.

An agricultural worker in that field can then be exposed to pesticides in several ways. They breathe in pesticides in the air, but they are also exposed through their skin. When a worker is outside in the field, their body temperature rises and they start sweating. Their pores become larger, which increases absorption through the skin.

Workers are not only exposed through direct contact with crops – for instance while watering them or checking their growing conditions – they are also exposed through the air they breathe. Extreme heat increases the different ways in which workers can be exposed to pesticides.

RFI: You also say rising temperatures are likely to increase pesticide use. Why is that?

OG: Pesticides applied during the growing season are being lost through vaporisation and run-off at a higher and faster rate. It is a little like leaving a glass of water outside on a hot day: the water disappears faster than it would when the temperature is lower. If you want to maintain the same amount of water in the glass, you have to keep refilling it.

It is the same with pesticides. In the US agricultural system, farmers have to keep reapplying them to maintain the same level on crops as temperatures rise throughout the growing season.

That is unfortunate because pesticides can have harmful effects on both environmental and human health, and they also come with costs for farmers. So increased pesticide use during the summer months has both environmental and economic consequences.

RFI: Is there any way for agricultural workers to properly protect themselves from pesticide exposure while working in the fields?

OG: Pesticide labels usually include safety instructions that agricultural workers and farm owners need to follow when a pesticide is applied to a field. One common precaution is personal protective equipment, similar to what many people wore during the Covid-19 pandemic. It is designed to prevent direct contact with pesticides, both droplets in the air and pesticides in liquid form.

But one of the problems during extreme heat is that this equipment – which can include a full-body suit, mask and goggles – traps body heat. When the outside temperature is above 35C, that body heat can become trapped inside the protective equipment. That makes working conditions extremely difficult and uncomfortable for workers, but also dangerous. It increases their risk of heat-related illness.

A farm worker sprays a lemon plantation in Spain wearing a protective suit. © Getty Images/iStockphoto - Worledit

So equipment designed to protect workers can end up causing them harm. It is a double-edged sword. Many heat-related illnesses linked to wearing protective equipment go unreported because wearing it is simply considered part of the job.

So what do you do? Do you not wear the protective equipment, even though it is required and recommended, or do you wear it and increase your exposure to extreme heat?

RFI: Farm workers are particularly vulnerable in many countries, not just the United States. Is this also an issue of environmental injustice?

OG: Absolutely. Agricultural workers in major farming nations, particularly here in the US, are often immigrants. English is not their first language and they often have unequal access to healthcare or no access at all. They can also live in poor-quality housing and facilities.

This means there is a high chance that illnesses caused by exposure to large amounts of pesticides or extreme heat go unreported because workers simply do not have the economic means to access healthcare or see a doctor for treatment.

What we generally see is underreporting and undercounting of both deaths and illnesses caused by heat. Illness caused by pesticide exposure is part of that problem as well.

RFI: So what needs to be done?

OG: One of the main things we need is robust federal legislation protecting outdoor workers. Agricultural workers are the largest group of outdoor workers exposed to heat. We need heat thresholds and plans setting out what happens on farms when workers are exposed to high temperatures.

Unfortunately, the US has no federal heat law in place to protect workers. Several states have their own regulations requiring farmers, farm owners and managers to provide breaks during periods of extreme heat, ensure workers have access to fresh water and make adequate medical help available when pesticide exposure or heat causes an injury.

But because there is no overarching federal protection in the US, workers remain vulnerable when they are heavily exposed to heat and agricultural chemicals.

Agricultural workers are the backbone of our economy. We have to make sure they can work in proper conditions and have access to healthcare when they need it, because without them, we would not have the food we have on our tables.

This interview by RFI's Stefanie Schüler has been edited for clarity.

INVESTIGATION

Driven from their island, Zambian fishermen pay price of Chinese expansion

Hundreds of fishermen say they were violently driven from an island in southern Zambia and have been unable to return to their fishing grounds for more than three years, after a Chinese-owned fishing company expanded its operations in the area. They say they lost their homes and livelihoods, have never received compensation and are still seeking justice. An RFI investigation has traced what happened to the community and the Chinese company's growing presence on Lake Kariba.


Issued on: 06/09/2026 - RFI
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Cover image: Jeremiah Island lies off the shores of Lake Kariba in southern Zambia, near the border with Zimbabwe. © RFI
02:21

By: Zeenat Hansrod with RFI

On the night of 11 February 2023, residents of Jeremiah Island on Lake Kariba were forced from their homes by Zambian police and soldiers. Their properties were burnt down.

Mike Moonga, 45, had lived on the island since 2017 and clearly remembers the night his life was uprooted.

“I was in bed with my wife when, around three in the morning, we were woken up by the loud noise of gunshots,” Moonga said.

“We went out and saw police officers and soldiers shooting and chasing the people. They said we have to get out of the island. Then, they burned everything down, our houses, our fish stocks in fridges, our money, our shops, all that we owned. We got out of the island with nothing.”

Six months in jail

Moonga said he was beaten after asking the security forces why they were burning their properties. Four people were arrested and around 100 injured.

When he went to hospital the next day for treatment, he was told he first had to report the incident to the police.

“At the police station, when I told them I was beaten up by soldiers, they arrested me because they said I was obstructing the officers in their duty,” Moonga said. “They did not want to hear that we were asking the officers to stop burning our properties.”

He was jailed for six months.

“When I came out of prison, I weighed 32kg,” he said. “I used to be 85kg. Meanwhile, my children were starving.”
Chinese fishing company

Moonga said the 500 fishermen on Jeremiah Island were forced out to make way for Chinese-owned fishing company Zamfresh.

Established in Zambia since 2018, it is one of the largest fishing companies in southern Africa and owns more than 300 large fish cages around Jeremiah Island, on the Zambian side of Lake Kariba.

The tilapia produced there is sold in Zambia and neighbouring Zimbabwe and exported around the world.

Zamfresh is part of the SunShare group, which signed a $246 million deal with the Zambian government in May to invest in solar power.

The fishermen are prohibited from returning to Jeremiah Island. Moonga said government representatives met their chief before the eviction and told him the islanders had to leave because the island was needed.

“But they didn’t tell us that the Chinese people secretly bought that island because, in Zambia, islands belong to the people and are not for sale,” Moonga told RFI. “After we left, we saw new buildings on the island which are now guarded by the same soldiers who beat us.”

RFI asked the Siavonga District Council whether the Chinese company had been given rights to use Jeremiah Island, but received no response. The council also did not respond to questions about the February 2023 evictions.

“The government should have first secured the livelihood of the 500 fishermen,” Vladimir Chilinya, country director for FIAN International Zambia, said.

“Instead of being relocated in a dignified manner, they have been chased away from their land and going through a lot of suffering.”

Infant death

Elita, the wife of a Jeremiah Island fisherman, was the mother of an infant who died after the eviction.

“My daughter was two months old the night the army chased us away,” she said. “The commotion, the gunshots terrified her. She suffocated after inhaling the tear gas the soldiers threw at us. She died soon after.”

No investigation was carried out into the infant's death, so a direct link with the violence could not be formally established.

Elita said she was arrested when she went to the police station to report what had happened.

“I hope justice will be done but we have no means of obtaining it,” Elita told RFI.

The remains of a house burnt down by Zambian security forces during the eviction of fishermen from Jeremiah Island on 11 February 2023. © RFI

Journalists in Zambia who asked to remain anonymous told RFI that the government had threatened to cancel their media outlets' licences if they reported on Jeremiah Island.

Zamfresh did not respond to RFI's request for comment.


Fishing restrictions

In May 2023, three months after the eviction, two fishermen paddled by canoe towards the fish cages operated by Zamfresh.

“There was a lot of fish around there,” Kennedy Mwetwa told RFI. “But one of their patrol boats saw us, sped towards to us and hit our canoe.”

The canoe capsized and Mwetwa's friend, who could not swim, died.

“I couldn’t save Titus Sramannsa,” Mwetwa said. “I was worn out but managed to reach the shore.”

RFI said it was not aware of any investigation being opened into his death.

Moonga said the Fisheries Department told fishermen they were not allowed to fish within one kilometre of Zamfresh's fish cages.

“As far as I know, the law says it is 100 metres,” Moonga said. “But at 1,000 metres where am I going to go? I can’t fish there. If I’m caught within the perimeter, I will caught by the police and sent to prison.”

“There is no basis why the company has been given the preference of a one-kilometer zone where fishermen not allowed,” Chilinya said. “Water cannot be commercialised. Our laws recognise the customary water rights of all individuals.”

Moonga also said the Chinese company was using nets to collect fish surrounding the cages, a fishing method he said broke Zambian law.

“The Fisheries department came, caught them red-handed and said this case is going to court,” he said. “But three days later, the Chinese were back at it.”

“Whether it's in the Copper Belt mines, or here in the south of the country with aquaculture, we realise that the Zambian government tends to protect the Chinese,” Chilinya told RFI. “There is a pattern of eviction of local communities in preference for large-scale investment.”

Previous violations

Zamfresh has previously faced action by Zambian authorities. In 2021, government and health officials inspected its fish-farming operation and ordered it to close temporarily over breaches of public health and food safety laws.

Officials cited poor hygiene and waste management, overcrowded and poorly ventilated workers' accommodation, untreated sewage being discharged into the environment and a lack of protective clothing for employees. The company later resumed operations.

In March 2026, a video showing two Chinese Zamfresh employees mistreating a Zambian employee went viral on social media.

Zambia's Labour Ministry recommended that the two Chinese employees be expelled and fined Zamfresh's parent company, SunShare, 160,000 kwacha for failing to provide workers with employment contracts and payslips.

Moonga and the other fishermen now live on the shore opposite Jeremiah Island, in a deserted area not far from Butete village. High fuel costs make their situation even more difficult.

“My life is very much difficult to live,” Moonga said. “If I can’t fish, what am I going to do. I now eat only once a day. It’s hard to send my children to school. You need money to buy uniforms, books, shoes, transport. I can’t pay.”

Before the eviction, income from fishing allowed families to send their children to school, Moonga said.

Chilinya said the treatment of the Jeremiah Island residents broke both Zambian and international law.

“What happened to the people of Jeremiah Island is a betrayal from the state,” he said.

“Its duty is to its citizens, not put the interests of business first. It is wrong both according to our laws and in international law. We may actually engage the international community for help because there's been no response from the national mechanisms to assist the people of Jeremiah Island.”

This article is based on this version in French by RFI's Igor Strauss and Vesper Kove.

US drafting post-war plan for the Middle East, report says

Copyright Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

By Chaima Chihi & يورونيوز

Published on 05/09/2026 -  EURONEWS

Axios reported that the plan remains in its early stages but that it could set out US policy towards the Middle East for the remainder of Trump's term.

The Trump administration has begun working on a post-war strategy for the Middle East, aimed and reshaping the balance of power in the region by tightening pressure on Tehran and expanding normalisation between Israel and neighbouring countries, Axios reported, citing two US officials and two other sources familiar with the matter.

The US outlet said that the plan remains in its early stages but that it could set out US policy towards the Middle East for the remainder of US President Donald Trump's time in the White House.

The unnamed sources told Axios that three key pillars had been discussed as part of the plan - building "regional alignment" among US allies to deter and constrain Iran, working to wind down the regional consequences of the 7 October 2023 attacks on Israel, and broadening the Abraham Accords while pursuing normalisation of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Discussions over the plan, which are likely to be impacted by the US' upcoming midterm elections as well as Israel's October legislative elections, have also looked at the possibility of the US acting as a guarantor for the so-called regional alignment, working towards a security agreement between Israel and Syria, and implementing the next part of Trump's Gaza plan.

The regional alignment strategy would not represent a major shift in US policy, as successive administrations since the 1979 Iranian Revolution have sought to curb Tehran's regional influence by strengthening relations and alliances with Gulf states.

But Washington may seek to turn these efforts into a more structured framework that includes closer defence and security coordination among allies, against the backdrop of what the US sees as a shift in the regional balance of power amid the Iran war.

A push for a normalisation agreement between Saudi Arabia and Israel is a goal Washington has been pursuing for years but which has stalled as Riyadh has tied any move in such a direction to tangible progress towards resolving the situation in Gaza and the creation of a Palestinian state.

These efforts build on the "Abraham Accords" agreed to in 2020 under Trump's first administration, which normalised relations between Israel on the one hand and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan on the other.

Since then, Washington has worked to widen the circle of countries joining these accords, seeing them as one of the tools for reshaping relations and alliances in the Middle East and reducing the influence of Iran and its allies in the region.

The other pillar, which focuses on addressing the regional repercussions of the Hamas militant group's 7 October attack and the ensuing war in the Gaza Strip, could see the issue tackled in three main ways.

Firstly, moving to the next phase of Trump's plan for Gaza, which, according to previous reports, includes arrangements for the reconstruction of the Strip, the disarmament of Hamas and the establishment of a transitional administration.

The second could be an effort to reach a security agreement between Israel and Syria, which would come amid sweeping political changes in Syria since the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime at the end of 2024 - as well as new authorities' attempts to recast the country's regional and international relations.

And thirdly, implementing an agreement between Israel and Lebanon that would limit Hezbollah's military capabilities. This comes as part of efforts linked to the ceasefire deal reached by Israel and the group in 2024, which provided for the withdrawal of Hezbollah fighters to north of the Litani River and the deployment of the Lebanese army in the south of the country.

Israel has since accused Hezbollah of trying to rebuild its military capabilities, however, while Lebanon has continued to report Israeli air strikes on its territory.

A final plan has yet to take shape

While the planning continues, one of the sources told Axios that it had not yet fully come together.

"They are cooking it, but it is not yet cooked," they said, adding: "The idea is to tie a whole lot of things in the region together — how you create a regional alignment after the war. It is still unclearif all U.S. allies in the region will be on board."

 

New Zealand approves party-drug MDMA for treating patients with PTSD

Copyright AP Photo

By Simon Ormiston

Published on 04/09/2026 - EURONEWS

Two psychiatrists in New Zealand can now prescribe MDMA in controlled clinical settings, built on trial results that have been challenged in the US.

Two New Zealand psychiatrists have won approval to prescribe pharmaceutical-grade MDMA to patients with severe post-traumatic stress disorder, making the country only the second in the world - after Australia in 2023 - to authorise the party drug for clinical use

New Zealand's medicines regulator, Medsafe, granted the approvals to Wellington's Dr Gary Wynn and Auckland's Dr Tom Paterson, who spent more than a year passing the regulatory process.

"PTSD ruins lives and is difficult to treat," said Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour, who last year backed a similar approval for psilocybin, the active compound in magic mushrooms, to treat severe depression.

"MDMA can be very effective at treating it through psychedelic-assisted therapy," he said, adding that New Zealand remains committed to opening access to "innovative treatments."

PTSD develops after a person experiences or is threatened by traumatic events such as combat, sexual assault or sudden death.

Existing pharmaceutical options in most countries are limited to two antidepressants that can take three months to take effect and produce uneven results.

The evidence behind the approval — and why the US said no

The approval draws on evidence from two pivotal international Phase 3 trials, run by the US-based Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) and sponsored by its public benefit corporation arm Lykos Therapeutics.

In the first, published in 2021, 88% of participants with severe PTSD who received MDMA-assisted therapy showed clinically significant improvement, and 67% no longer met the diagnostic criteria for PTSD.

A second trial in 2023, involving participants with moderate-to-severe PTSD, found 71.2% of those treated with MDMA no longer met PTSD diagnostic criteria by the end of the study.

Despite those results, the US Food and Drug Administration rejected the therapy's approval in 2024, citing insufficient evidence of its safety and effectiveness.

Regulators raised concerns that participants who had taken MDMA before produced an expectancy bias, complicating the trial data.

New Zealand's Ministry of Health said the new treatment would be tightly controlled, combining MDMA with psychotherapy in a clinical setting rather than take-home doses.

"Treatment takes place in a controlled clinical setting under the care of an authorised psychiatrist and forms part of a comprehensive treatment plan," the ministry said, adding that patients must be aged 18 or older.

 

German far-right AfD wins by a landslide in Saxony-Anhalt: exit polls

Copyright Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved

By Manuela Scarpellini & Maria Tadeo

Published on 06/09/2026 - EURONEWS

If the AfD manages to form a government, it would be the first far-right party to lead a German state since World War II

German far-right party AfD has taken a commanding lead in Sunday's Saxony-Anhalt vote, but it remains unclear whether it will be able to form a government, according to exit polls.

According to ARD projections, the far-right AfD is leading the election in Saxony-Anhalt with 44.5% of the vote, followed by the CDU on 18.5%, Die Linke on 9.5% and the SPD on 8%.

The result could significantly reshape the political landscape in eastern Germany, with the AfD emerging as by far the strongest force in the new state parliament.

The party looks on track to accomplish its election goal: emerging as the biggest force. Lead candidate Ulrich Siegmund said the AfD had "made history" in Saxony-Anhalt.

The CDU, led by Sven Schulze, suffered a major setback, finishing a distant second. The BSW is projected to win 5%, leaving its entry into the state parliament uncertain.

More than 1.7 million voters cast their ballots in an election seen as an important test for Chancellor Friedrich Merz's federal coalition, already under pressure in Berlin.

Voter turnout reached a record high, with 80% of eligible voters casting their ballots. That was significantly higher than in the previous election in 2021, when turnout stood at 60.3%.

According to Infratest dimap, four issues were decisive for voters: declining confidence in established parties, social security, the economy and migration.

If the AfD succeeds in forming a government, it would become the first far-right party to lead a German state since the Second World War.

 

FIFA chief Gianni Infantino to stand for re-election

Copyright Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved

By Nathan Rennolds

Published on 06/09/2026 - EURONEWS

The next FIFA presidential election is due to take place at the 77th FIFA Congress on Thursday, 18 March 2027 in Rabat, Morocco.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino will stand for re-election next year.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the world football governing body said: "The FIFA President announced in April that he will stand for re-election in 2027. Of course, nothing has changed. Mr Infantino will be standing for re-election.”

Infantino, who was first elected as president in 2016, has been under huge pressure since FIFA announced a highly controversial - and since scrapped - private investment plan in late July, which would have seen third-party investors invited to take stakes in a commercial subsidiary dubbed the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE).

The proposal drew fierce pushback from across the football community, with some accusing FIFA of looking to "sell" the sport.

A major divide quickly opened up in world football over Infantino's position as head of the governing body, with regional confederations and individual nations split over whether he should continue.

In August, European nations withdrew a threat to boycott FIFA competitions after UEFA said it had received "assurances" that the FFE plan had been “irrevocably and permanently withdrawn” and that it “will not re-appear in any other shape, construction, name or form."

UEFA has nevertheless continued to push for Infantino's removal.

The next FIFA presidential election is due to take place at the 77th FIFA Congress on Thursday, 18 March 2027 in Rabat, Morocco.

Speaking at the 76th Congress in Vancouver, Canada earlier this year, Infantino vowed to re-run for the presidency.

“I want to tell you first – the 211 (FIFA) Member Associations – that I will be (a) candidate for the election of FIFA President next year,” he said to assembled delegates. “Thank you for your support over the last 10 years, your support today, your work, your progress, your love for the game, your commitment, and your passion.”

 

Berlin planning 'protective shield' to defend against sabotage, report says

Copyright (c) Copyright 2026, dpa (www.dpa.de). Alle Rechte vorbehalten

By Nathan Rennolds

Published on 06/09/2026 - EURONEWS

The new plan would see the creation of a "Cyberdome," a network of digital sensors that would help seek out and intercept hacking attempts, Bild reported.

Germany is planning to develop a "protective shield" to combat sabotage attempts following an attempted drone attack at Leipzig airport last month, Bild newspaper reported on Sunday

Alexander Dobrindt, Germany's Interior Minister, told the outlet that Russian hybrid attacks had become a "daily reality" and would likely increase, but he said there were ways the country can defend itself.

Bild reported, citing information from the German Interior Ministry, that the new plan would see the creation of a "Cyberdome," a network of digital sensors that would help seek out and intercept hacking attempts.

The plan would also involve the expansion of the German police's mobile drone defence capabilities, with "rapidly deployable units" based in key cities such as Berlin, Munich and Hamburg to protect airspace above major transport centres.

The use of AI technology, such as facial recognition, would also be ramped up to help seek out potential attackers, while companies would be given the rights to detect drones and "actively defend against them," the report added.

The Leipzig/Halle Airport incident

It comes after the German government formally blamed Moscow for an attempted drone attack in Leipzig in August.

On 4 August, a drone carrying explosives was found at Leipzig/Halle Airport - a major cargo hub - forcing runway closures and flight diversions.

In a press conference on Tuesday, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul announced that Berlin would be taking action against Russia "as the perpetrator of the hybrid attack in Leipzig," with Russia's consulate in Bonn and its Berlin cultural centre to be closed.

"The Russian general consulate in Bonn will be closed by 18 September," he said, adding that there would also be tighter border controls for Russian nationals and increased pressure on Russia's shadow fleet.

The Russian embassy in Germany later issued a statement denying Berlin's claims and threatening "consequences" for the sanctions.

Sergey Nechayev, the Russian ambassador to Germany, "categorically rejected the accusations made by Berlin as unsubstantiated, absurd, and contrary to common sense," the statement said.

Referring to the German sanctions, it added: "He noted that the measures announced by the German side represent an unprecedented escalation in Russian-German relations and will not remain without consequences, for which the German government will bear full responsibility."

Speaking earlier this week, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed "full solidarity" with Germany over the attempted attack, which she said had used "military-grade material" and had been "carried out by Russian operatives on European Union soil."

"If the intention was to make us think twice about supporting Ukraine, I can tell you it has only strengthened my resolve," she added.

Germany's satellite rocket marks first successful launch from continental Europe

Isar Aerospace’s Spectrum rocket being moved to the launch pad, 23 March 2026 ESA

By Jesús Maturana

Published on 06/09/2026 - EURONEWS

German company Isar Aerospace has placed its Spectrum rocket in low Earth orbit at the second attempt, becoming the first European firm to do so with its own launcher and hitting the first milestone of ESA's European Launcher Challenge.

The Spectrum launcher, developed by German company Isar Aerospace, has lifted off from the Andøya spaceport in Norway and placed its payload into low Earth orbit. This was the rocket’s second flight; the first, carried out in 2025, managed only to clear the launch pad for 30 seconds before crashing into the sea.

Spectrum is 28 metres tall and 2 metres in diameter. It is powered by ten engines, nine on the first stage and one on the second, and is designed to carry payloads of up to 1,000 kilogrammes to low Earth orbit (LEO).

Unlike the first flight, which carried no passengers, this mission, named "Onward and Upward", included six commercial and educational payloads, among them several CubeSats and an experiment designed to test new technologies in space and give European students practical, hands-on experience.

A milestone for the European Launcher Challenge

The Director General of the European Space Agency, Josef Aschbacher, described the launch as historic and hailed it as the first time a European competitor in the launcher sector has reached orbit. He said that Isar Aerospace, founded only eight years ago, has taken an important step towards a more diverse and autonomous European space sector.

The mission was supported by ESA’s Boost! programme, which funds commercial space transport initiatives. Isar Aerospace had already received backing through the agency’s Business Incubation Centre, and also won the first Microlauncher Competition organised by the German Space Agency (DLR), a contest that determined the selection of the payloads carried on this flight.

In 2025, Isar Aerospace was selected, along with other companies, to take part in the European Launcher Challenge, a programme that requires providers to achieve an orbital launch before 2027. With this flight, the company has become the first to reach that initial milestone of the programme.

Géraldine Naja, ESA’s Director of Space Transportation, stressed that this is the first European company to reach orbit with its own launch vehicle and congratulated the teams involved, while pointing to the expectation of seeing more launches from Andøya in the near future.

First successful launch of the Spectrum rocket with satellites from continental Europe, 5 September 2026 ESA

A fast-growing sector

Isar Aerospace’s success comes at a time of strong momentum for Europe’s microlauncher ecosystem, with companies such as Spain’s PLD Space also beginning to secure contracts under the same European Launcher Challenge.

At the end of August, ESA signed a 158.9 million-euro contract with the Alicante-based company to increase the launch rate of its MIURA 5 rocket, in a move designed to serve the same objective: reducing Europe’s dependence on foreign launchers to put satellites into orbit.

 'We are family', says EU chief Ursula von der Leyen at start of Greenland visit

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Greenland on Sunday for a two-day visit aimed at reaffirming the bloc's support for the Arctic island coveted by the US President Donald Trump.


Issued on: 06/09/2026 - RFI

Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen (left) and Greenland's head of government Jens-Frederik Nielsen (centre) met European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen (right) at the start of her two-day visit to Greenland. 

Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scan - 


"We are family," she said on her arrival in the island's capital, Nuuk, where she was welcomed by Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen and his Danish counterpart Mette Frederiksen.

Throughout her trip, von der Leyen will send the message that the Danish autonomous territory belongs with Europe rather than the US.

Her agenda includes a boat outing amid the icebergs, meetings top Greenlandic and Danish officials and signing a joint statement between Greenland and the EU.

US security plan for Greenland

Trump insisted earlier this year that Washington needed to control Greenland for national security reasons, though he ultimately ruled out annexing it by force.

A Danish-Greenlandic-US working group has since met regularly to find a way of cooperating in the future.

Following Trump's threats, European countries as well as Canada backed Denmark and Greenland.

In January, von der Leyen vowed there would be massive EU investment in Greenland to step up security in the Arctic.

Brussels has proposed doubling direct EU aid to Greenland to €530 million under the 27-nation bloc's next budget for the 2028-2034 period.

According to the British newspaper Financial Times, von der Leyen is expected to propose an additional €200 million in support during her visit on Sunday and Monday.

"Europe is delivering," she said. "We are expanding our cooperation to new areas, from better, faster connectivity and clean energy to critical raw materials."
10-nation military exercises

Von der Leyen's visit coincides with the start of Nato's Arctic Shield military exercise, bringing together soldiers from 10 countries.

The Trump administration has repeatedly accused Denmark of neglecting Greenland and Arctic security.

However, Copenhagen has since reinvested in the region, as has Nato, which launched its Arctic Sentry mission at the start of the year.

"Greenland is becoming increasingly important to the EU as a gateway to the Arctic and because of its geopolitical location, critical raw materials and role in Arctic security," Marc Jacobsen, a researcher at the Royal Danish Defence College, told the French news agency AFP ahead of the visit.

"We've been getting 'postcards' from Trump or those close to him about Greenland every month, showing that they haven't forgotten," said Mikaa Blugeon-Mered, a geopolitics researcher at the University of Quebec.

One such image Trump posted on social media in May showed him peering over the island, with the headline: "Hello, Greenland!"

Last month, media reports of an American oil company's preparatory operations in a remote region of eastern Greenland rekindled concerns on the island.

The project, run by a Texas-based company with licences granted before a 2021 moratorium on oil and gas exploration and extraction, has left locals and authorities uneasy.

Authorities have yet to grant the company approval for exploratory drilling, citing procedural reasons.

Greenland, home to 57,000 inhabitants, is also struggling to develop its mining industry, which could help it fund its independence from Denmark.

But turning Greenland's geological potential into reality is proving more difficult than expected. Around 135 mining permits are held by more than 60 companies, but only two mines are currently in operation.

EU chief von der Leyen heads to Greenland in show of support for the island

By Nathan Rennolds

Published on 06/09/2026 - EURONEWS

Speaking at the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos this year, von der Leyen said the EU was working on a "massive European investment surge" in Greenland in a bid to ramp up Arctic security.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is visiting Greenland on Sunday and Monday as the bloc signals its continued support for the island amid US President Donald Trump's repeated calls for the United States to acquire it.

As part of the visit, von der Leyen is expected to sign a joint declaration between the EU and the Danish autonomous territory on Monday.

Since his return to the White House in January last year, Trump has claimed the US needs to take control of Greenland for its "national security," arguing that either China or Russia would otherwise seize the island.

Von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa issued a joint statement in January in which they highlighted the importance of "territorial integrity and sovereignty" and said the EU stood "in full solidarity with Denmark and the people of Greenland."

Speaking at the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos this year, von der Leyen said the EU was also working on a "massive European investment surge" in Greenland in a bid to ramp up Arctic security.

The Commission has proposed allocating €530 million to Greenland under its budget for the 2028–2034 period, which it said reflected its "growing geostrategic importance in the Arctic."

The Financial Times reported that von der Leyen is set to announce an additional €200 million in funding for the island during her visit.



Houses are seen near the coast of a sea inlet of Nuuk, Greenland, on Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026. Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved

In May, Trump's special envoy to Greenland, Jeff Landry, said it was time the US "puts its footprint back" on the territory.

Landry, who is also the governor of Louisiana, made the comments during a trip to the territory, his first since his appointment to the special envoy role in December 2025.

Speaking from Greenland's capital, Nuuk, Landry told Agence France-Presse: "I think that you're seeing the president talk about increasing national security operations and repopulating certain bases in Greenland."

"Everyone that I've talked to in Greenland would love to see the US repopulate those bases," he continued, adding that the territory "needs the US."

In January, the leaders of five political parties in Greenland’s parliament released a joint statement with a clear message to the US.

"We do not want to be Americans, we do not want to be Danes; we want to be Greenlanders," it read.

The US is reported to have had 17 military facilities and more than 10,000 troops on Greenland at the height of the Cold War. It currently operates just one base on the island, the Pituffik Space Base - the US Department of Defense's northernmost installation.

Pituffik is used for missile warning, missile defense and space surveillance missions, according to the US Space Force.