💥 Spain threatens to derail Nato’s Trump appeasement summit as Sánchez says that US President’s 5% defence spending demand is “unreasonable” Madrid is doubling down on its longstanding opposition to higher spending four days before The Hague w @barneyjopson.bsky.social on.ft.com/4ecEWkv

Powerful new cannabis outstrips dangers of ‘Woodstock pot’. Boss of EU drugs agency tells me the continent is being flooded with super-strength cannabis that puts users at greater risk of psychosis. on.ft.com/43GPcwx

NEW- Nato plans for all allies to pledge 5pct defence spending at a ministerial meeting June 5, but Spain is still resisting that Trump demand, officials told @financialtimes.com, disrupting preparations for the alliance’s crucial summit in The Hague w @barneyjopson.bsky.social on.ft.com/3SjoDbx

Spain’s grid operator has accused some large power plants of not doing their job to help regulate the country’s electricity system in the moments before last month’s catastrophic blackout. The blame game intensifies … on.ft.com/3YW3WWU

Former Yanukovych aide Andriy Portnov was shot several times in the back and head and killed by a group of gunmen outside a school near Madrid, Spain’s interior ministry confirmed. The assailants fled the scene into a wooded area. Story w/ @barneyjopson.bsky.social. www.ft.com/content/5f11...

Trouble in 'paradise': The US base in Spain braced for Trump's Nato cuts. My report from the beach town of Rota, where warships dock, Chevrolets cruise and the pizza slices are huge ... www.ft.com/content/e46c...

Italy’s Giorgia Meloni rejects ‘childish’ choice between Trump and Europe The FT gets Italian PM’s first interview with a foreign newspaper www.ft.com/content/96d0...

👂 🇪🇸 PODCAST TIME 🇪🇸 👂 another dispatch from Madrid featuring: - Europe getting its act together on defence - Spain is miles from Moscow tho, where does it fit in? - mild trolling of Americans With: @robarmstrong.bsky.social @barneyjopson.bsky.social open.spotify.com/episode/1eVu...

The Spanish government wants to turn Indra into a European defence champion Next step: Indra declares it wants to buy a US-owned arms maker based in Spain and accuses the owner (General Dynamics) of ‘destroying’ it ft.com/content/83ac... from @sylviapfeifer.bsky.social & me

Defence laggard Spain calls for cyber and climate efforts to count as security spending "Our threat is not Russia bringing its troops across the Pyrenees," says PM Pedro Sánchez ft.com/content/7f18...

Portugal’s government on brink of collapse on.ft.com/4bGl8ES

Is giving old reactors new life the future of nuclear energy?— Most of the world’s operating nuclear power plants, around 400, were built in the 1970s to 1990s and are now… www.ft.com/content/9178... @barneyjopson.bsky.social @financial-times.bsky.social

Donald Trump adds US ‘gold card’ to global cash-for-visas competition But his $5mn price tag blows past the cost of investment-linked residency permits in Europe & the Caribbean ft.com/content/c062... via me & @joshspero.ft.com @cynthiao.bsky.social

Europe and US clash over Ukraine in G7 and UN https://www.ft.com/content/6d78e821-1e53-492e-9018-b4e85410ccd1

A hit @financialtimes.com story from the weekend: Why ‘Trump regime refugees’ are falling in love with Madrid The chart shows you one of the many reasons. The Spanish capital is 150th in the cost of living rankings ft.com/content/3a2d...

Yes, Milton Keynes is a success story, mostly

Santander explored sale of UK business with NatWest https://www.ft.com/content/5868abdb-0f46-4c56-a342-49763a55cdb8

The Spanish company HBX is a bit of a hidden force in the world of hotel bookings. But they priced their IPO badly coz the shares have plunged on.ft.com/3WTw37V

Europe left reeling by Trump over Ukraine peace talks with Russia on.ft.com/4hMHG96

How a UK-born executive became the Spanish government’s corporate fixer My @FT profile of Marc Murtra, the new Telefónica boss from Blackburn. He’s PM Pedro Sánchez’s favourite business agitator. And, in the eyes of conservatives, an agent of political “colonialism”. on.ft.com/3PYWpl7

Has Europe’s great hope for AI missed its moment? Mistral. Remember Mistral? on.ft.com/4aGPoPK

Virgin Money’s AI-powered chatbot has reprimanded a customer who used the word “virgin”, telling him: “Please don’t use words like that. I won’t be able to continue our chat if you use this language.” on.ft.com/40IjLke

Spain's far-right Vox party rejects climate action, but has gained support after the Valencia floods that were worsened by climate change “There is a visceral component to citizens’ analysis of things. It is not entirely rational," the transport minister tells the FT www.ft.com/content/5599...

Western investors ‘stupid’ to shun arms industry, says Nato official on.ft.com/4h5VMSk

Valencia floods: the scandal of a disaster foretold Our longform FT reconstruction of how political leaders let people down on the day — and over decades on.ft.com/3P7vXFC

My first piece on Bluesky … Spain fines 5 low-cost airlines €179mn for ‘abusive’ practices on.ft.com/40Vo1OZ