Keir Starmer arrives in Kyiv for farewell visit as British PM – Europe live

Key events

4m ago

Google may be held liable for commercial partners' content on YouTube

45m ago

EU fails to agree the latest round of sanctions against Russia

1h ago

1000+ people protest against Zelenskyy's move to fire popular minister, leaving Starmer in 'embarrasing' position as he visits Kyiv

1h ago

Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismisses Ukraine’s defence minister on eve of Starmer visit

2h ago

Morning opening: Zelenskyy's move to oust popular defence minister sparks protests as Starmer makes last visit

Google may be held liable for commercial partners' content on YouTube

Lisa O’Carroll

Elsewhere, we have got some big news from Luxembourg.

Google may be held legally liable for content on Youtube when it is made by a commercial partner, the European Court of Justice has ruled.

The case follows Google decision to challenge a €750,000 fine imposed by an Italian court in 2022 in relation to content that promoted online gambling, in breach of Italian law.

The administrative court in Italy had ordered Google to remove the videos from the YouTube which the US tech firm owns.

The ECJ found that the legal premise for the fine did fall within EU law on electronic commerce.

In addition, it rejected arguments Google could be exempt from regulations concerning content in this case because the YouTube video did not arrive on the platform through “automated and passive activity excluding any knowledge or control over the information which is transmitted or stored”.

“That is not the case where an operator reviews, for the purpose of concluding a commercial partnership contract, the main theme of a video channel, that channel’s most viewed videos or newest videos and the associated metadata. The operator thus acquires specific knowledge of the essential content of a set of videos and cannot therefore claim to act as an intermediary service provider,” the judges ruled.

Ukraine’s military ⁠struck six Russian tankers ⁠and ⁠two tugboats ​in the Black ⁠Sea and Sea of ⁠Azov overnight, the ​military’s ‌General ‌Staff said, as reported by Reuters.

The tankers are being used to transport Russian ‌oil and petroleum products in ​circumvention of international sanctions, as well ⁠as to transport ​fuel for ​Moscow’s ​military, the ​General Staff ‌said ​on ​Telegram.

EU fails to agree the latest round of sanctions against Russia

Jennifer Rankin

in Brussels

Meanwhile, the EU has failed to agree the latest round of sanctions against the Kremlin.

EU ambassadors agreed to maintain the current price cap on Russian oil of $44.1o a barrel until 23 July pending another attempt at finalising the measures. If the EU’s 27 countries do not reach an agreement soon, the price cap on Russian oil will automatically go up, boosting revenues for Russian president Vladimir Putin.

That would be a blow to the EU’s strategy and credibility when turmoil in the Middle East is already sending oil prices higher.

The deadline for the legal review was 15 July, but the new price cap does not come into force until later this summer.

The deadlock is a reminder that EU sanctions were never going to be sweet and simple to agree just because Moscow-friendly Viktor Orbán is no longer in power. The EU’s 27 member states have always had divergent interests over Russia sanctions, exemplified in the current proposals, the 21st round of restrictive measures since the full-scale invasion.

France and Italy have raised objections to a proposal to ban ex-Russian combatants from the EU. Germany objected to a proposal to ban Russian imports of cod and pollock, now scrapped. Bulgaria protected Patriarch Kirill from being sanctioned.

Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he wanted maximum sanctions pressure on Russia, as he urged the EU to see the big picture. “We must be very persistent and remember that it’s not only EU leaders who grow tired of adopting sanctions, of finding compromise and balance – Russia gets tired of every such package.”

The wide-ranging package also targets Russian banks, crypto firms, drone producers and refiners.

1000+ people protest against Zelenskyy's move to fire popular minister, leaving Starmer in 'embarrasing' position as he visits Kyiv

Luke Harding

in Kyiv

I will give you a flavor of the demonstrations this morning in Kyiv against Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his bizarre decision to fire Mykhailo Fedorov, the defence minister.

There are maybe 1000 people, 1000 plus, people already here in the summer sunshine right under Zelensky’s presidential office, and I’ve been talking to them about this decision.

They have basically been saying that they are furious, they are bewildered. They say Fedorov essentially represents openness and innovation and transparency, he has been very successful, and that it’s the kind of old forces, Soviet-style forces, who’ve got rid of him, and that that at heart this is about two things.

One is a conflict with Oleksandr Syrskyi, the commander in chief, who they allege is involved in, or his generals are involved in, various kind of corruption schemes. People now saying Syrskyi out, keep Fedorov.

And the other is just personal rivalry; that Fedorov is very popular. He’s young, 35, and is regarded by some people here as a kind of future presidential leader. And that Zelensky has got rid of him for really just pretty blatant political reasons. At least that’s the critique here.

There are posters, cardboard placards saying: “for what?,” “Syrskyi out,” and so on.

It’s a young crowd here. This is only the second big demonstration since the full-scale invasion against Zelensky, right on his doorstep.

And one final thing: a lot of people have been saying that it’s embarrassing for Starmer, and that Starmer has to raise the Fedovor issue with Zelenskyy if he wants to become Nato secretary general in the future.

We’ll have to see if that’s the case.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismisses Ukraine’s defence minister on eve of Starmer visit

Luke Harding

and Artem Mazhulin

in Kyiv

Fedorov’s six months in office coincided with a dramatic improvement in Ukraine’s position on the battlefield. Kyiv has repeatedly hit Russian oil refineries with long-range drones, embarrassing Vladimir Putin and creating nationwide fuel shortages.

In his farewell message Fedorov, 35, listed his achievements. They included disabling Starlink for Russian troops and procuring more drones, used to destroy “enemy logistics” and to isolate occupied Crimea. He said he had “radically improved” the procurement system, saving the state budget “billions of dollars”.

On the day of his departure the minister revealed Ukraine’s military had successfully tested a ballistic missile. “We fundamentally revised ⁠the technical requirements ​and achieved maximum ​accuracy. ​We reduced ​the ‌cost ​by ​30%. Ukraine will enter a new league,” he said.

The sacking appeared likely to overshadow Keir Starmer’s visit to Kyiv. The British prime minister, who is due to leave office this week, arrived on Thursday to mark the country’s support for Ukraine during his premiership.

Morning opening: Zelenskyy's move to oust popular defence minister sparks protests as Starmer makes last visit

Jakub Krupa

Volodymyr Zelenskyy is facing public outrage this morning over his decision to remove Ukraine’s popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, as he welcomes the UK’s departing prime minister Keir Starmer to Kyiv.

The Ukrainian president moves to oust Fedorov despite pleas from foreign partners and civil society for him to keep his job, as part of wide-ranging government reshuffle which also saw Yulia Svyrydenko leave the post of the prime minister.

The timing makes it a bit awkward for Starmer who is finishing his legacy tour and is keen to highlight Britain’s support for Ukraine under his premiership.

But Zelenskyy will be keen to portray it as a clear sign of continuing international support, a day after he welcomed the EU’s Ursula von der Leyen and several national leaders from south-eastern Europe.

I will also keep an eye on Emmanuel Macron’s visit to France’s historic Fontainebleau forest after days of raging fires, and his later engagement with Germany’s Friedrich Merz.

We will no doubt have plenty of updates from Kyiv and beyond to cover for you.

It’s Thursday, 16 July 2026, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.

Good morning.