International
How will the rise of the far right influence the day-to-day life of the EU and the European Parliament?
The European elections to renew the European Parliament have certified an increase in seats throughout the EU of ultra-conservative and far-right parties, which are placed as the first force in France, Italy, the Netherlands or Austria.
As a result, they will have more weight in decisions such as the orientation of the EU budget between 2027 and 2034, the position of the European Parliament in the defense of the rule of law and European values, the future expansion to the east or the progress in implementing climate objectives.
The coming weeks and months will determine what their real capacity for influence is, if they manage to coordinate their positions in the hemicycle and how the day-to-day legislative work in the European Union will change.
In practice, the European elections redesign only one of the three community institutions involved in the legislative process. The European Council (the Heads of State and Government) and the Council of the EU (the ministers of the Member States) remain stable, since they only renew their members when there are elections at the national level.
This means, for example, that Emmanuel Macron and his ministers will continue to represent France in the Council even though Marine Le Pen has won the European elections in France.
A Parliament left to the right may have some influence to unbalance the confirmation vote of the president of the European Commission or the approval of his team of commissioners, but these will also be by definition “multicolored” politically because they are sent by their governments.
Most decisions in the European Parliament require the favorable vote of half plus one of the MEPs who cast their vote, so the combined 131 seats of the Conservatives and Reformists and Identity and Democracy (waiting for the like-minded non-attached) are not enough in a European Parliament with 720 seats.
To be noticed, they will need, as has been the case so far, almost all of the European People’s Party, which in this legislature inherits from the liberals the role of the “majority facilitator”: the block supported by the popular in each individual vote, whether the center-left or the ultra-right, will take the cat to the water.
Due to the nature of these groups, which often do not have enough cohesion or internal structure and respond to national interests rather than their European Parliamentary group, it tends to be difficult to find a stable majority to move legislation forward, but they can push for concrete amendments.
“It will take longer than other times to draw conclusions from these 27 elections in parallel and translate them into a clear parliamentary majority, which in my opinion will be flexible instead of permanent and will change depending on the proposals presented by the new Commission to Parliament,” said the professor of European Union Law at HEC Paris Alberto Alemanno.
The same analyst pointed to the rise of unregistered parties or newcomers without a political family that “could play a role in recomposing the existing groups and shaping the new political cycle.”
And it is that the “cake” of the hemicycle is not yet completely distributed after this Sunday’s elections, with almost a hundred MEPs who do not belong to any group or who arrive new to the European Parliament and have not yet been associated with one of the existing ones.
From today, they can look for fit in existing groups or, if new groups are formed, join them. It will be the case of the Alternative for Germany, which will provide 15 seats, or Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz, with 10.
With them and other related groups, arithmetically it will be possible to unite the votes of popular, ultra-conservative, extreme right-right and non-registered people who sympathize with their ideas to, occasionally, carry out narrow majorities such as the one that was about to destroy the Law of the Restoration of Nature in the legislature that now ends.
The need for total cohesion in the hemicycle disappears in other decisions within the European Parliament. They are taken by weighted vote in parliamentary forums such as the Conference of Presidents (which brings together the president of the institution and heads of political groups) or among the coordinators of the political groups in the different parliamentary committees.
In these spaces, the representative of each political group arrogates the voice and vote of all its MEPs, with no room for dissension, and – if it reaches 361 seats – EPP, ECR and ID could decant the balance in decisions on the agenda or legislative work, among others.
International
Federal immigration agents kill man in Minneapolis, sparking protests and outrage
Federal immigration agents shot and killed a 37-year-old Minneapolis man during an operation on Saturday, authorities confirmed, sparking new protests and deepening outrage over federal immigration enforcement in the city.
The victim, identified as Alex Jeffrey Pretti, was a U.S. citizen and intensive care nurse who worked at a Veterans Affairs hospital and was widely respected in his community, according to colleagues and news reports.
Officials said the shooting occurred during a targeted immigration raid in south Minneapolis. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) described the incident as an act of self-defense by agents who believed the man posed a threat.
However, videos reviewed by multiple outlets and eyewitnesses show Pretti holding a phone and not displaying a weapon before being pepper-sprayed, tackled by agents and then shot multiple times, raising serious questions about the official account.
The killing comes amid a broader federal immigration enforcement operation in the city and follows another controversial shooting in early January in which Renée Good, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, was fatally shot by an ICE agent, leading to widespread protests and criticism of federal tactics.
International
Delcy Rodríguez seeks political agreements after Maduro’s ouster
Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, on Saturday called for “reaching agreements” with the opposition to achieve “peace” in the country, which the United States says it now controls following the military operation that removed President Nicolás Maduro from power.
Rodríguez, who previously served as Maduro’s vice president, assumed interim leadership after the leftist leader was captured on January 3 during a military incursion that left nearly 100 people dead.
In her first public statements since taking office, Rodríguez signaled a shift in the strained relationship between Caracas and Washington, while also committing to the release of a “significant number” of political prisoners.
“There can be no political or partisan differences when it comes to the peace of Venezuela,” Rodríguez said during an address in the coastal state of La Guaira, broadcast on state television VTV.
“From our differences, we must speak to one another with respect. From our differences, we must meet and reach agreements,” she added.
The day before, Rodríguez instructed the head of Parliament — her brother Jorge Rodríguez — to convene talks with various political sectors in the country aimed at achieving “concrete and immediate results.”
International
Bogotá and Quito Seek Dialogue After Tariffs and Power Cut Escalate Tensions
Bogotá and Quito will hold an emergency bilateral summit next week amid recent developments that have strained relations between the two countries.
Tensions escalated this week after Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa unexpectedly announced a 30% tariff on Colombian imports. Colombia responded with a reciprocal measure, imposing the same tariff on around 20 Ecuadorian products and suspending electricity exports to Ecuador.
Aware that electricity imports are critical to easing Ecuador’s recent energy crises, Quito further imposed a 30% tariff on the transportation of Colombian oil through its territory.
However, recent statements from the Ecuadorian government suggest that dialogue between the two sides has intensified in recent hours. Ecuador’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gabriela Sommerfeld, confirmed that active conversations are under way.
In Colombia, segments of the business sector have welcomed the prospect of negotiations. The National Business Council (Consejo Gremial Nacional, CGN), for instance, urged both governments to restore commercial relations, warning that the dispute “puts jobs and regional economic stability at risk.”
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