EU ministers vowed on Monday to explore ways to save Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) after U.S. President Donald Trump cut its funding, but warned that replacing U.S. support would not be easy.
Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky urged his counterparts in Brussels to find solutions to keep the Prague-based broadcaster running. RFE/RL, a U.S.-funded outlet established during the Cold War to reach audiences in authoritarian states, provides news to countries with restricted press freedom, including Iran, Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas called the station “a beacon of democracy” and expressed regret over the funding cut. “Can we come in with our funding to fill the void the U.S. is leaving? The answer to that question is not automatically, because we have many organisations requesting the same,” Kallas said. She confirmed that ministers had agreed to explore solutions but noted it would be difficult.
Over the weekend, the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) terminated grants to RFE/RL as part of Trump’s broader effort to scale back federal funding. The move also affected Voice of America (VOA), where more than 1,300 employees were placed on leave on Saturday.
Despite the funding halt, RFE/RL journalists continued publishing on Monday. RFE/RL President and CEO Stephen Capus warned that shutting down the service would be “a massive gift to America’s enemies.”
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said Warsaw would consider how to assist both RFE/RL and VOA.
Trump’s executive order on Friday went beyond the broadcaster, dismantling programmes at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and cutting more than 80% of its operations. The decision sparked criticism from media and diplomatic circles.
Tech billionaire Elon Musk, a vocal Trump ally, previously called for RFE/RL to be shut down, posting on X that it was “just radical left crazy people talking to themselves.”
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Georgia is in national mourning following the death of Ilia II, the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, who has died at the age of 93. His passing marks the end of a nearly 50-year era during which he became one of the most influential spiritual and public figures in the country’s modern history.
South Korean pop sensation BTS, one of the world’s biggest music acts known for their record-breaking albums, global tours and devoted fanbase ARMY, will return to the spotlight in a new documentary, BTS: THE RETURN, premiering globally on Netflix on 27 March.
Morocco has been declared winners of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations and Senegal stripped of their title by the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
One person has died after a cable car cabin at the Titlis ski resort in central Switzerland plunged down a snow-covered mountainside on Wednesday (18 March) amid strong winds.
President Donald Trump said NATO is making a “very foolish mistake” by refusing to help the U.S. as Israel Katz claimed Ali Larijani was killed in Israeli strikes.
Iranian President Pezeshkian has confirmed the killing of intelligence minister Esmail Khatib calling it a "cowardly assassination", following reports that Israel carried out an overnight strike.
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One person has died after a cable car cabin at the Titlis ski resort in central Switzerland plunged down a snow-covered mountainside on Wednesday (18 March) amid strong winds.
A Chinese man, Zhang Kequn and his Kenyan associate, Charles Mwangi, have been charged by a court in Kenya for alleged involvement in illegal dealings of wildlife species.
Six people died on Wednesday, following fresh Israeli offensive against suspected Hezbollah infrastructure in Central Beirut on Wednesday.
Employees of Voice of America (VOA) who had spent nearly a year on paid administrative leave may soon return to work after U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth ruled that efforts to scale down the broadcaster were unlawful.
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