EU climate chief warns water scarcity will deepen Europe's challenges

At a briefing in Brussels, Jessika Roswall, the EU commissioner responsible for climate and water resilience, warned that water scarcity is becoming a central European problem. Recent extreme weather has led to premature mortality, forced shutdowns of nuclear facilities due to cooling shortages, and halted river transport. She argued that these disruptions have already erased potential economic gains, pointing to Germany's lost growth.

Roswall expects water policy to dominate Ursula von der Leyen's forthcoming state of the Union speech, with a new water law likely on the agenda. She also emphasized that dwindling water supplies in regions such as the Middle East can fuel conflict and migration, adding to Europe's security concerns. Overall, she called for urgent action to address both quantity and quality of water resources.