The compromise was reached after the German Social Democrats, the junior coalition partner in Friedrich Merz’s government, dropped their opposition.

France and Germany told a closed-door EU meeting that the diesel they pledged to release to U.S. President Donald Trump would come from stocks already committed in March, rather than adding new supply. Germany has so far released only 600,000 tons of the 2.65 million tons of oil, diesel and jet fuel promised, while France has privately indicated it still has 8 million barrels left under its March commitment. The disclosure suggests the headline pledge could deliver fewer additional barrels than markets expected, limiting relief for Europe’s tight diesel supply, according to POLITICO.

France proposed at a meeting of senior EU energy officials that countries release 100 million barrels of strategic reserves, split evenly between crude oil and diesel. The move comes after the United States urged Europe to release 120 million barrels over three months to curb diesel prices, warning that failure to act could trigger export restrictions. The proposal marks a significant concession by Paris in response to Washington’s demands.

European countries including Britain, France and Germany held an emergency meeting and agreed on a tougher, coordinated response to U.S. pressure to release diesel reserves. Washington is urging a release of 120 million barrels over six months, more than a third of the EU’s total diesel stockpiles. The officials also agreed that any decision on releases should be handled at the International Energy Agency level and that talks with the U.S. should aim to reduce tension.

U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright has proposed that EU countries release 120 million barrels of diesel from their strategic reserves over 180 days, more than a third of the bloc’s stockpiles. The aim is to ease fuel prices and avert a potential U.S. ban on diesel exports. The proposal was disclosed by a government official from a European country.

The White House is preparing a 90-day ban on U.S. diesel exports, a move that could hit Europe’s fuel supply because more than half of its diesel imports come from the United States. Germany and the United Kingdom said supplies are secure in the near term, while not dismissing potential impacts. The proposed restriction could lift diesel and crude prices.

Meta reached an $18 billion settlement with 47 U.S. states, agreeing to curb addictive design features to better protect teenagers. The European Commission said it may demand changes that go further than the U.S. deal. If Meta fails to comply, it could face a fine of up to 6% of annual global revenue, or about $12 billion. UK officials also said they want the same protections extended to British teens.

A U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Trump v. Slaughter granting Donald Trump the power to fire members of independent agencies has intensified scrutiny of the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, which underpins €1.7 trillion in transatlantic trade each year. European privacy regulators and activists argue the decision weakens the independent oversight they say is essential to protect Europeans’ data from excessive U.S. surveillance. The European Data Protection Board has begun assessing the judgment’s potential implications for the framework, while Noyb and French lawmaker Philippe Latombe are pursuing separate legal challenges. If the framework is revoked, companies that rely on it, including major U.S. technology firms, could face major disruption to cross-border data transfers.