Russia is posing an existential threat to the European Union's security and to only way to address that is to increase spending on defence, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on Wednesday, adding that the EU had for too long offered Russia alternatives.

EU finance ministers approved Romania's deficit-cutting plan on Tuesday to bring its fiscal deficit below 3% of national output by 2030, a move Bucharest hopes will help reassure investors about its economic outlook and tame surging bond yields.

Slovakia’s pro-Russian prime minister has raised the prospect of his country leaving the European Union and Nato, arguing that world events could consign them to the “history books”.

Energy company Drax lobbied Canadian officials for their intervention as the UK group sought changes to EU rules that could prevent the bloc from burning wood biomass sourced from forests in British Columbia.

"It is necessary to have a constructive attitude of dialogue, but also naturally in defence of what is the interest of Europe and its member states," he said, adding that protectionism would only harm consumers in the countries or blocs that were raising tarriffs.

The European Union is working on a proposal for bloc-wide purchase incentives for electric vehicles to support the bloc’s struggling automakers, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Tuesday.

Germany’s economy minister Robert Habeck warned Europe not to become overly reliant on US energy and urged the region to stick together in response to the new Donald Trump administration.

Mr Trump has also withdrawn the US from the Global Tax Deal - an agreement on a global minimum corporation tax.

Poland’s presidency of the European Union is firmly focused on security. The challenges and contradictions of defending the bloc and its values are stark at Poland's border with Belarus, Russia's ally in its war on Ukraine.

The government may be signalling that its rules on goods may closely align with the EU's in the future, writes BBC News NI's economics editor.

The European Union will raise concerns with the US over a decision to restrict the export of artificial intelligence chips from the likes of Nvidia Corp. to some of its member states, according to people familiar with the matter.