Tensions, tech ambitions, corporate reshuffles, and tariff headaches are shaping Europe this week.
Trump’s envoys are testing the waters in Moscow with a fresh peace pitch for Ukraine, even as European leaders eye the move warily.
In the UK, a major fusion partnership backed by Google is aiming to fast-track clean energy breakthroughs.
Switzerland’s Gunvor is navigating a leadership reset under a new CEO, while Bern braces for a future of elevated US tariffs despite a hard-won reduction.
Trump envoys court Putin
US President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, was in Moscow this week, and he brought along Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner.
The two met with Russian President Vladimir Putin to walk him through a revised peace plan aimed at finally ending the war in Ukraine.
Their trip comes after a stretch of intense back-and-forth diplomacy, including meetings with Ukrainian officials.
Washington has now put a streamlined, 19-point proposal on the table, hoping it’s something Putin might actually engage with.
And while he’s shown a bit of openness to using it as a starting point, he’s still holding the line on some major sticking points, especially control over parts of Ukraine and limits on NATO.
Meanwhile, Ukraine and Europe are watching all of this with a lot of caution. There’s real concern about giving too much away to Moscow, and not everyone is convinced these concessions are worth the risk.
TAE launches UK fusion push
TAE Technologies, the US fusion startup that’s backed by Google, just teamed up with the UK’s Nuclear Decommissioning Authority to push fusion energy closer to reality.
The new joint venture, called TAE NDA Fusion, plans to build and run a fusion power plant in the UK, using TAE’s unique plasma confinement tech.
The whole idea is to speed up the path to commercial fusion, that dream of clean, practically limitless energy.
If it works, it could power everything from massive data centers to entire cities, all while cutting carbon emissions.
The UK government is on board, seeing this as part of its push toward net-zero. And TAE’s big-name investors, including Google and Chevron, view this as a meaningful step toward fusion reactors that can actually scale in the real world.
Gunvor signals steady transition
Gunvor’s new CEO, Gary Pedersen, is trying to send a clear message as he steps into the top job: nothing’s about to get shaken up.
After co-founder Torbjorn Tornqvist stepped down following 25 years at the helm, Pedersen, notably the first American to run a major Swiss commodities firm, stressed that the company’s biggest banks and trading partners are still firmly in its corner, even with the turbulence of the past few months.
This leadership change comes right after a management buyout in which Tornqvist sold his stake to senior staff, essentially resetting Gunvor’s ownership structure.
All of this has unfolded under the shadow of US government criticism, including that headline-grabbing accusation calling Gunvor a “Kremlin puppet.”
Pedersen says his priority now is keeping the business running smoothly, avoiding unnecessary disruption, and pushing for global growth, all while keeping Gunvor anchored in Geneva.
Switzerland braces for tariffs
Switzerland looks like it’s going to have to get used to US tariffs sticking around, even after it agreed to match its tariff rates with the European Union.
Back in August 2025, the US slapped a hefty 39% tariff on Swiss goods, the highest anywhere in Europe. But just last month, Switzerland and Washington struck a preliminary deal to bring that number down to 15%, the same rate the EU faces.
Helene Budliger Artieda from Switzerland’s economic affairs office says it’s probably unrealistic to expect tariffs to go back to the much lower levels of the past, even if a Democratic administration takes over in the US.
A few Swiss exports still get a free pass, though: pharmaceuticals, gold, and coffee remain duty-free.
And although the new 15% tariff isn’t exactly tiny, it does represent a major improvement, saving Switzerland an estimated $6 billion a year and giving its exporters some breathing room as the country aligns more closely with the EU.
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