Closing summary
… and on that note, it’s a wrap for today!
My colleague Shrai Popat will cover Merz’s meeting with Trump over on the US blog here:
For all the latest updates from Iran and the region, follow our Middle East blog here:
And here is our summary of the day in Europe:
Several EU countries, including Belgium (16:56), France (15:52), Ireland (13:36), Italy (10:57, 14:29), Poland (14:26) and Spain (13:53), were pushing ahead with their plans to move hundreds of thousands of European citizens stranded in the Middle East amid continuing flight disruptions in the region (10:09, 11:28).
The French president, Emmanuel Macron, will address the nation tonight to speak about the situation in the Middle East, the Élysée Palace said (15:40).
Meanwhile, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned that the US involvement against Iran could disrupt the flow of weapons that Ukraine needs to continue defending itself against Russian invasion (12:05).
If you have any tips, comments or suggestions, email me at [email protected].
I am also on Bluesky at @jakubkrupa.bsky.social and on X at @jakubkrupa.
Belgium calls for patience as it moves to repatriate citizens amid 'enormous' challenges
Belgium is also to start repatriating citizens stuck in the Middle East.
There are currently about 26,000 Belgians in the region of whom 2,500 are tourists in Dubai and Qatar elsewhere in the Gulf area.
The Belgian foreign minister Maxime Prévot and the Belgian defence minister Theo Francken announced they were working on a plan on Tuesday afternoon.
However Prévot has warned that the closure of airspace poses an “enormous logistical challenge” and it could be days before they get aircraft into the region.
“Transport to the airports concerned must be safe, and the airspace must be secure. I understand the frustration and impatience of our fellow citizens, but the situation is extremely complex. We are doing everything we can,” said Prévot.
The focus will be to get tourists out using commercial or military aircraft.
Belgium is working with Luxembourg and “other partners” on the evacuation plan.
EU member states cooperated in a similar fashion to repatriate hundreds of thousands of citizens after the global Covid lockdown.
