LIVERMORE — Caught in the crossfire of President Donald Trump’s trade war with China, U.S. vineyards are struggling to sell Syrah in Shanghai and Chardonnay in Shenzhen. They risk losing their foothold in one of the world’s fastest-growing wine markets. The 16-month dispute between the world’s two biggest economies has...
EU Labors to Keep Nuclear Deal Alive After New Iran Moves
BRUSSELS — European Union foreign ministers on Monday affirmed their support for the nuclear deal with Iran, after the Islamic Republic began enrichment work at its Fordo site in a fresh act of defiance that seems likely to spell the end of the painstakingly crafted international agreement. At talks in...
EU Condemns New Burst of Israeli Settlement Approvals
JERUSALEM — The European Union on Monday criticized Israel’s approval of plans to build over 2,000 new homes in West Bank settlements. In a statement, the EU reiterated its longstanding position that all settlement activity on occupied land is illegal. “It erodes the viability of the two-state solution and the...
EU Grants Brexit Delay to Jan. 31; UK Ponders New Election
LONDON — The European Union agreed Monday to delay Brexit by three months until Jan. 31, acting to avert a chaotic U.K. departure just three days before Britain was due to become the first country ever to leave the 28-nation bloc. The decision was welcomed by politicians in the U.K....
EU Envoys Agree That Brexit Extension Is Needed, No Date Set
LONDON — Less than a week before Britain is scheduled to leave the European Union, ambassadors from the bloc's 27 other nations agreed Friday to grant the U.K.'s request for another extension to the Brexit deadline — but they did not settle on how long that delay should be. As...
UK's Johnson Seeks Dec 12 Election to Break Brexit Impasse
LONDON — Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Thursday that the only way to break Britain's Brexit impasse is a general election, and he will ask Parliament to approve a national poll for Dec. 12. Johnson said he would ask lawmakers to vote Monday on a motion calling for an early...
Johnson Urges Support for Brexit Deal Before Knife-Edge Vote
LONDON — Boris Johnson worked behind the scenes Friday to win enough support to push his new Brexit deal through the fractious British Parliament and pave the way for Britain — finally — to leave the European Union in two weeks. His message to allies and opponents alike: Approve the agreement so...
Saturday Drama: Brexit Battle to be Decided in UK Parliament
LONDON — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who has lost every important vote in Parliament since taking office, faces a titanic struggle Saturday when he puts his Brexit deal with the European Union before suspicious legislators. Johnson is gambling his political fortunes on being able to win a majority in...
Brexit Talks Inch Toward Tentative Deal Ahead of Summit
BRUSSELS — The European Union and Britain were inching closer to a tentative Brexit divorce deal that leaders would seek to close at a summit meeting Thursday. Hopes were increasingly turning toward getting a broad political commitment, with the full legal details hammered out later. Negotiators were locked in EU...
EU Nations Commit to Arms Export Ban Against Turkey
LUXEMBOURG — European Union nations vented outrage Monday at Turkey's military offensive in northern Syria against the Kurds and joined France and Germany in banning arms sales to Ankara, a rare move against a NATO ally for many of them. Many EU foreign ministers were looking beyond a strong statement...