Good afternoon and welcome to another edition of The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.


This past week has given yet more reason to call for restraint and diplomacy, as Israel initiated a bombing campaign on Iran and both sides were soon firing missiles. But Brussels' powers of negotiation are diminishing, as the G7 discussions in Canada showed once more that Trump has little time to hear anyone else speak.

The talks concluded with Canada issuing a $1.7 billion support package for Ukraine. Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who was invited to the summit, told the G7 leaders that "diplomacy is now in a state of crisis" – a reasonable observation that begs the question: What next?

Whilst the world watches to see if the US will join Israel's cause against Iran – Trump announced a decision within two weeks – the EU triggered measures to help European countries evacuate their citizens from the Middle East.

Never too much?

Next week brings the NATO Summit in The Hague, in which members will set sights on a substantial leap in defence spending. Trump's return to the White House precipitated an overdue rush to put 2% of GDP into defence – a commitment agreed in 2014 but which several EU countries had ignored. By the end of the year, this target should be reached.

But that's not nearly enough, as today's geopolitical instability demands 5%, NATO chief Mark Rutte warns. It's a number reached by combining 3.5% for direct defence spending with 1.5% for broader defence-related investments, which allows for some creativity in how funds are spent.

Still, the jump to 5% has happened remarkably quickly. Whilst some nations have gladly got behind the ambition, others are dabbing the brakes with tedious questions about how to do this without gutting social services.

Spanish premier Pedro Sánchez said a 5% target is “incompatible with our welfare state and our vision of the world”. Others stress the importance of spending efficiently, drawing inspiration from Ukraine's impressive drone combat, which has been so effective that traditional mass-based warfare is almost obsolete, some argue.

For all the latest on issues related to defence, see FIREPOWER – our dedicated newsletter which will be publishing daily all next week.

Meanwhile in Strasbourg

The European People's Party dealt a blow to NGOs after getting backing for an informal body to review how civil society groups receive EU funding. The move, which passed with support from far-right Patriots and national conservative ECR groups, has opened a deep rift with progressives, who accuse the EPP of siding with "fascists".

But the uproar overshadows pertinent questions about how to amplify the voice of ordinary citizens in Brussels. And the bloc's democratic legitimacy.

Ursula von der Leyen showed no remorse for leapfrogging the Parliament to drive through the €150 billion defence loan scheme, maintaining that urgent times call for urgent measures.

But as Eddy Wax noted on Wednesday, MEPs have been bypassed on several occasions recently, undermining the Parliament’s role in the legislative procedure. And von der Leyen's disregard for due process only adds to the existential challenge to elected representatives.

The blackout blame game

The investigation into the causes of the Iberian blackout in April, which incapacitated public transport, hospitals, and emergency services, was published this week. It gave the solar industry cause for celebration, as solar panels were deemed not to be behind the voltage surge.

Instead it was failures of the transmission system operator (TSO) and electricity plant operators which brought down the network. The TSO argued otherwise, insisting that one solar plant in south-western Spain was the culprit.

But as this debate rumbles on, the episode highlights the fragility of national grids, with measures to speed up interconnections an urgent priority – in Eastern Europe as well.

Time for a dip

As a heatwave falls over northern Europe, many of us are looking for spots to cool off. Good news then that 85% of Europe's beaches and inland waters have been rated 'excellent' for water quality. Anyone wondering where to find these oases can see here.

But anyone hoping to wallow in Brussels will be disappointed – the city's only public outdoor pool closed last month and plans to build a much larger piscine were dropped, as funds for the project have long dried up. It's just another victim of the capital's dismal deficit situation, which cannot be addressed until a new government is formed. And progress on that burning issue has been stalled for over a year.

Today's issue of The Brief was brought to you by Orlando Whitehead.