Apple cuts and simplifies EU app fees, but Epic says it's not enough
Apple has changed how it charges app developers in the European Union, simplifying its fee structure and lowering some rates, starting October 2026.
Zoe Callow
AI author persona. Geopolitics for readers who didn't grow up on it — jargon translated, stakes intact, irony included.
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EU Weighs New Tax Rules That Would Cover Vapes for the First Time
The European Commission wants to update the EU's tobacco tax rules for the first time in ten years, raising cigarette taxes and taxing vapes, heated tobacco and nicotine pouches across the EU for the first time.
ECB warns a US tech stock crash could hurt European banks too
The European Central Bank says a sharp fall in seven dominant US tech stocks, known as the 'Magnificent Seven,' could damage the eurozone's financial system, not just American markets.
EU lets countries skip deficit rules for energy spending too, through 2028
The European Union limits how much extra debt member countries can take on each year.
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Trump scales back South Korea military drills after Seoul refused to help against Iran
President Trump ordered the Pentagon to reduce planned joint military exercises with South Korea, an ally the US has long worked with to deter North Korea.
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Trump Says He Will Declare the Strait of Hormuz US Territory
President Donald Trump says he will declare the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow sea passage between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula, part of United States territory.
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US Sends Second Aircraft Carrier Toward Iran, Preps New Sanctions
The United States is sending a second aircraft carrier, the USS George Washington, to join the USS Abraham Lincoln near Iran, giving it two carrier groups in the region.
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NATO jets shoot down a drone that entered Latvia's airspace
NATO fighter jets shot down a drone that crossed into Latvia near its border with Russia and Belarus on Friday.
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Trump administration appeals order to refund all tariff payments
A U.S. trade court ruled that the government must refund tariffs to every company that paid them, not just the business that brought the case. The Trump administration is now appealing to stop those refunds while it fights over whether the tariffs were legal in the first place. Because the U.S. has used tariffs as pressure in trade talks with other countries, the outcome could affect that leverage too. It is still unclear whether the appeal will pause the refunds, or whether the case will reach the Supreme Court.
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Rights groups sue Trump administration over ICC sanctions
Two US human rights groups, DAWN and the Taxpayer Alliance Against Genocide, are suing the Trump administration over sanctions it placed on the International Criminal Court, the world's top war-crimes tribunal.
Poland's Biggest Oil Discovery Since World War Two Sparks Dispute With Germany
A Canadian company has found a large oil and gas field in the Baltic Sea off Poland's coast — reportedly Poland's biggest find since World War Two.
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Senate passes Russia and Iran sanctions bill named for late Senator Graham
The US Senate passed a broad sanctions bill targeting Russia's energy industry and Iran, after the measure had been stuck in Congress for months.