FT Europe news editor. Brussels veteran. The name is real.https://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.socialhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mpq2it5xlk2ohttps://as.ft.com/r/fe2e8775-0652-47f3-bb85-de2896d0e7b8 Albania’s flamingos meet the Trump family bulldozers03 Jul 2026 07:45 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mpq2it5xlk2ohttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mpilke4gi22zhttps://as.ft.com/r/6ae1a0c9-ee1d-4927-b24e-a2619d3e3d5c Putin ties himself to ruling party as war fatigue bites30 Jun 2026 08:29 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mpilke4gi22zhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3moxpycgmpk2fhttps://as.ft.com/r/19c312b3-47dd-4403-9586-dd9db803dc24 An astute observer of life behind the Iron Curtain, Drakulić made her name with work that joined political analysis to the intimate texture of daily existence. She wrote about ideology not as abstraction but as something felt in kitchens, wardrobes and courtrooms.23 Jun 2026 15:33 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3moxpycgmpk2fhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mouaswqdrs2rhttps://as.ft.com/r/d229c732-3701-4719-9827-4e1dd4b723cf Italy open to Germany joining fighter jet project, says Leonardo chief22 Jun 2026 06:24 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mouaswqdrs2rhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mlvosqh5ps2mhttps://as.ft.com/r/0c191ea1-33c1-47ba-9a14-41f0b9fc8bff Russian missiles used in deadly strike were built this year with western parts, says Ukraine @christopherjm.ft.com15 May 2026 15:51 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mlvosqh5ps2mhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mlvorlso6s2mhttps://as.ft.com/r/d956aeee-796d-49e1-9119-7a4bea40e1ae Germany’s Friedrich Merz says he would not want his children to move to US15 May 2026 15:51 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mlvorlso6s2mhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mjem532e6c27https://as.ft.com/r/2ace6bdb-2336-43e5-9cc3-1015b2f46d76 EU ties €35bn fund release to Hungary’s break with Orbán era13 Apr 2026 09:58 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjem532e6c27https://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mhukpgpbcs2xhttps://as.ft.com/r/ef5f7b74-13ac-4d90-a556-41e3aaf06568 Nato chief riles Europe by backing Trump’s war in Iran @henryjfoy.ft.com25 Mar 2026 07:25 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhukpgpbcs2xhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mhbbzioewk2hhttps://as.ft.com/r/1e8fdc2a-613d-47b8-816d-242e3689ac91 From Vienna’s rooftops, the Kremlin is listening in17 Mar 2026 15:29 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhbbzioewk2hhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mfizvnagos2hDystopian future is here @christopherjm.ft.com https://ig.ft.com/ukraine-kill-zone/23 Feb 2026 06:34 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mfizvnagos2hhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3me6gc5dfws2nhttps://as.ft.com/r/2cb61a10-fd14-4924-b20f-898275d29aa7 US government to fund Maga-aligned think-tanks and charities in Europe06 Feb 2026 07:51 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3me6gc5dfws2nhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3me6bcj2qsc2lhttps://as.ft.com/r/0ec4825e-a9b3-4607-aa8d-504df46a4fff Kyiv’s great freeze06 Feb 2026 06:22 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3me6bcj2qsc2lhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mdz7rs3g4c2shttps://as.ft.com/r/ba44ce43-3a7f-4a4a-b3d6-644a8f5fc610 Russian spy spacecraft have intercepted Europe’s key satellites, officials believe04 Feb 2026 06:12 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mdz7rs3g4c2shttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mdnswhwq322jhttps://as.ft.com/r/4a16c2f2-59e4-411d-9ca8-1336eab2440c Italian far-right activists push for ‘remigration’ law30 Jan 2026 17:22 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mdnswhwq322jhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mdmoka3rnk25https://as.ft.com/r/18827118-9986-416d-9e7c-48bf6708caa6 Bike lanes vs narcos: French mayors step up fight against drug gangs30 Jan 2026 06:31 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mdmoka3rnk25https://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mdk4gxsdes2ehttps://as.ft.com/r/eb83af13-dae6-41ef-9a5c-86c913719d0f Russian oil income drops sharply as sanctions bite29 Jan 2026 06:02 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mdk4gxsdes2ehttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mdk4ey42rc2eThe idea that hope is a kind of torment, that outright crisis is at least mentally clarifying, was most famously expressed by John Cleese and his 1986 road caper Clockwise: “It’s not the despair, Laura. I can take the despair. It’s the hope.” https://as.ft.com/r/1dceb5c4-7118-4886-85a6-af61de8ba71029 Jan 2026 06:01 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mdk4ey42rc2ehttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mdhmm6i4ws2ihttps://as.ft.com/r/d7abf46b-d3c3-4958-a3f0-e2f124fb636c The Russian refinery Berlin cannot afford to lose @chassnews.bsky.social28 Jan 2026 06:13 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mdhmm6i4ws2ihttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3mcpqvuydhs2dhttps://as.ft.com/r/4c493b50-c5c8-4cb6-8c81-17634fa89f34 ‘It’s about trust’: Donald Trump’s fresh tariff threats push Europe to harden its stance18 Jan 2026 18:26 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3mcpqvuydhs2dhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3ma64danyyc2yhttps://as.ft.com/r/3217586f-2876-40f8-90bc-aa5a73edff02 Germany set to approve €50bn in military purchases @laurapitel.bsky.social17 Dec 2025 07:12 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3ma64danyyc2yhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3ma5zmippnk2fhttps://as.ft.com/r/625541e6-3ef1-4fa9-a167-1f67a21cae6b Giorgia Meloni’s European moment comes with a price17 Dec 2025 06:24 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3ma5zmippnk2fhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3m45twrwym22zon.ft.com/4ozfoC3 Dutch voters eye return to centre after far-right experiment fails https://on.ft.com/4ozfoC327 Oct 2025 07:01 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3m45twrwym22zhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3m3ordd45ns2aon.ft.com/4oPyJzl Trump-Putin summit in Budapest unsettles Europe https://on.ft.com/4oPyJzl21 Oct 2025 07:05 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3m3ordd45ns2ahttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3m3kzx6at6s2von.ft.com/42PX0wu Trump urged Zelenskyy to accept Putin’s terms or be ‘destroyed’ by Russia https://on.ft.com/42PX0wu19 Oct 2025 19:28 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3m3kzx6at6s2vhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3m3fkjnsagc2xon.ft.com/4qdu37G EU offers to buy US weapons for Ukraine using Russia’s frozen assets https://on.ft.com/4qdu37G17 Oct 2025 15:09 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3m3fkjnsagc2xhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3m3encz3lt22ton.ft.com/4onmcmj How Vladimir Putin’s history rant in Alaska nudged Donald Trump closer to Ukraine https://on.ft.com/4onmcmj17 Oct 2025 06:26 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3m3encz3lt22thttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3m3c6v5hxds2uon.ft.com/42L9Dc5 FT Investigation: How the Trump companies made $1bn from crypto https://on.ft.com/42L9Dc516 Oct 2025 07:03 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3m3c6v5hxds2uhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3m3c5vvusi22uon.ft.com/4n9h30b The Tomahawk missiles Trump is considering for Ukraine @christopherjm.ft.com https://on.ft.com/4n9h30b16 Oct 2025 06:45 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3m3c5vvusi22uhttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3m35zxih7cs2gon.ft.com/4nMH72b French PM to freeze Macron’s pension reform until 2027 https://on.ft.com/4nMH72b14 Oct 2025 15:24 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3m35zxih7cs2ghttps://bsky.app/profile/valpop.bsky.social/post/3m35zwlhgtk2gon.ft.com/478fY2C Russia accuses Mikhail Khodorkovsky of plotting coup https://on.ft.com/478fY2C14 Oct 2025 15:23 +0000at://did:plc:ofa5efm5c6qbehwmnqnoj5ch/app.bsky.feed.post/3m35zwlhgtk2g