Your daily briefToday's most important news in one place

Grand Duke Guillaume makes appeal to protect European ‘peace project’

At the European Investment Bank (EIB) Forum in Luxembourg, Grand Duke Guillaume urged European leaders to protect the continent’s “peace project” through targeted investments in competitiveness, security, and youth.

Addressing the 2026 EIB Forum, the Grand Duke highlighted the European Union’s role in a rapidly changing world. He called for strategic investments not only in economic competitiveness but also in social cohesion, security, sustainability, and young people. In this context, he emphasised the importance of multilateralism and the need to strengthen the single market.

Delivering a speech titled “A strong Europe in a changing world,” the head of state acknowledged the challenges facing the continent – geopolitical rivalry, war on European soil, and international tensions. Even so, he argued, Europe must defend its values and maintain a long-term perspective. The Grand Duke noted that Europe’s development has never followed a linear path.

He described the European Union as “the most ambitious and at the same time most successful peace project of modern times,” while urging that peace must never be taken for granted – particularly given the conflict at the Union’s eastern borders. All generations, he said, share “a responsibility to protect, renew, and value this peace.”

A central theme of his address was the role of the EIB itself. The Grand Duke characterised the bank not only as an “important funding source” but also as a strategic instrument for strengthening Europe’s economic resilience, advancing the ecological transition, and supporting collective security. He argued that investments should not be viewed in purely financial terms, but as investments in people, knowledge, and the institutions that “guarantee freedom.”

Also today

• A meteorological report finds that winter 2025/2026 in Luxembourg was warmer and drier than average, with a significant rainfall deficit despite wetter conditions in February.
• Hundreds of singles have already signed up for Crush, a new dating platform from Luxembourg that requires users to meet at real-world events rather than chat endlessly behind screens.
• Donald Trump has lamented that the once “most solid” US–UK alliance has frayed amid tensions over Britain’s stance on strikes against Iran, openly criticising Keir Starmer for refusing initial support.
• Luxembourg City’s council has approved a major expansion of CCTV surveillance in the Gare district, adding cameras to 30 additional streets amid ongoing debate over security.
• Nearly one in three women in the EU is subjected to some form of violence during her lifetime, the bloc’s rights agency said today, warning that gender-based violence is “widespread, increasingly digital and overlooked”.
• The UK government has cut its 2026 growth forecast in its Spring Statement. The update came as the Labour government struggles to boost sluggish economic growth, now threatened further by the widening Middle East conflict pushing up energy prices.
• Donald Trump hosted German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Tuesday for the US president’s first meeting with a foreign leader since joining Israel in strikes on Iran that have dragged the Middle East into war

On air

Another special guest addition of the ‘Algo-rhythm’, this week by our very own Sarah Tapp! get ready to have new favourites!

Figure of the day

Over 4,000 homes were completed in Luxembourg in 2021, Housing Minister Claude Meisch has confirmed – but statistics for the four years since remain unavailable.

• A recent parliamentary response has laid bare significant delays in the publication of housing statistics in Luxembourg, leaving policymakers and the public in the dark about recent developments in the sector.
• In a reply to a question submitted by the Luxembourg Socialist Workers’ Party (LSAP), Housing Minister Claude Meisch confirmed that 4,051 homes were completed in 2021.
  However, data for the following years remains incomplete. According to the minister, statistics for 2022 and 2023 are expected to be published over the course of this year, while figures for 2024 and 2025 will not be available until next year.
  

Stay connected: tune in to RTL Today Radio, now on DAB+, and follow the latest news as it unfolds on our website.