November 17, 2025: EU Frugals push budget cutbacks; Zelenskyy eyes air defense deal with France; Orbán pushes talks with Putin; Germany’s Rentenstreit escalates; scrutiny over Boris Johnson's finances

This Monday morning is dominated by major financial and geopolitical flashpoints across Europe, starting with the resurgence of the "Frugal" coalition attempting to rein in the EU’s long-term budget. This group—including countries like Austria, Sweden, Germany, and the Netherlands, alongside new participants France and Belgium—is campaigning to limit the size of the estimated €2 trillion Multi-Annual Financial Framework (MFF), arguing that the budget must be put "on a diet" and that nations must "spend better". This renewed split over fiscal policy signals the start of what some diplomats believe will be the "hardest in EU history" budget negotiations. Meanwhile, London is awash in political noise as the UK government unveils its headline-grabbing illegal immigration plans. These controversial measures aim to provide bare minimum protection to meet international obligations, institute a two-decade wait for settlement, restrict appeals, and reverse "hesitancy" around deporting families and Syrians, drawing criticism from Labour MPs but serving the government's aim of looking like it is fighting on an issue voters care about.Geopolitical maneuvering is equally urgent, centered on the war in Ukraine and diplomatic outreach to Russia and China. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in Paris to meet with President Emmanuel Macron, where he has teased a potential "historic deal" on air defenses to bolster Kyiv’s aerial fighting capabilities. Contradicting this line of support, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is urging the EU to establish a direct communication channel with Vladimir Putin, arguing that Brussels must avoid being cut out of negotiations and citing the constant nuclear risk. On the domestic front, the German coalition government is grappling with a potentially coalition-threatening crisis, the Rentenstreit, over the pension package after Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s visit with the Junge Union ended in disagreement, complicating efforts to bring the legislation through the Bundestag. Simultaneously, German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil has begun a key visit to Peking for finance talks, aiming to maintain dialogue with China despite growing international tensions, including concerns over Taiwan and new China-tariffs.