Terrorism theme
"The writing's on the wall - or rather, on the strait - as tensions between Iran and the West escalate like a Wagner opera."
"Europe is on edge after growing extremist threats and conflicts in the Middle East." There is still extreme violence in Europe that can increase further. The President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, warned on March 21 in Brussels before NATO's Foreign Minister meeting that extremism "can become more powerful than us". An eight-year-old girl, Linda Lampenius, will play the violin live at Eurovision in May. There artists will sign an open letter against Israel prior to the contest. 1,100 artists are already on board. Iran's Foreign Minister Araghchi said after Hormuz Strait was closed again for a day that the US must choose between ceasefire or war with Israel together. See article on SVT News.
Trade Deal for Europe - US is Not Ready. According to sources including Karl Arnerdal, EU agrees on US tariffs, introducing zero tariffs on American goods coming into Europe while the US will cap its goods sent to the European Union at 15 percent. US President Donald Trump has expressed patience is running out, giving the EU until July 4th to approve the agreement otherwise higher tariffs would await. The situation with Russia in Ukraine has led to a stronger NATO and accelerating defense industries being major topics of discussion in the upcoming NATO meeting. The Ukrainian military recaptured 590 square kilometers since the beginning of the year, according to President Zelenskyy. Iran wants to introduce a permanent customs system in Hormuz which the US president Donald Trump stated wants the strait 'free from tariffs'. According to Axios, there is disagreement between Trump and Netanyahu on how forward with Iran regarding striking Iranian military capabilities. In Sweden the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio landed at the airport participating in the NATO meeting in Helsingborg. The US and Sweden signed an agreement that aims to improve technology cooperation in sectors for AI, biomedicine, energy, space, and defense innovation. The Russian military is struggling on the battlefield with more Russian soldiers dying than getting injured in Ukraine, according to Ukraine's defense chief. This aligns with think tank CSIS' estimate of 1.2 million Russians killed and injured so far. US President Donald Trump stated that he has asked his negotiation team not to rush an agreement with Iran, and that the relationship is becoming more professional but Iran must understand they are not allowed to develop nuclear weapons. See article on SVT News.