EU leaders meet to counter pressure from Russia, China, Trump

EU leaders convene in Belgium to address defense spending, trade, and unity amid pressures from Russia, China, and the U.S.

Leaders from across the European Union are meeting Thursday (February 12, 2026) in a Belgian castle as the 27-nation bloc faces antagonism from U.S. President Donald Trump, strong-arm economic tactics from China and hybrid threats from Russia — challenges that have prompted a rethink of Europe's approach to diplomacy and trade.

“We all know we must change course, and we all know the direction," Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever told a meeting with some European leaders on Wednesday (February 11, 2026). “Yet it sometimes feels like we're standing on the bridge of the ship staring at the horizon without being able to touch the helm.” But there are competing visions of how the EU must change. Thursday's (February 12, 2026) meeting is to shape proposals for another summit in late March.

As leaders are set to walk across a drawbridge to the 16th-century Alden Biesen castle, the fault lines in the battle for Europe's future are becoming clear.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni lead a wing of the bloc calling for deregulation, rebooting Europe's relationship with Washington and forging trade deals like the recent one struck with the Mercosur nations of South America.

“We must deregulate every sector,” Mr. Merz said Wednesday (February 11, 2026).

But they are at odds with France.