Attack on Donald Trump terrifies Europeans – POLITICO

Farage added that he had been attacked in public just last week. “The last time someone threw a drink at me was last Wednesday. I don’t normally make such things public.”

The counterattack

This week’s summit of the European Political Community (EPC) at Blenheim Palace in southern England offers European heads of state and government the opportunity to take a stand against political violence following the assassination attempt on Trump. The heads of state and government of 47 European countries will meet in Great Britain on Thursday.

The host is the new British Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer. One of the three roundtable discussions at the EPC is dedicated to “defending and securing democracy”.

His government hopes to lead by example this week after the Home Office launched a rapid investigation into the UK election campaign to understand the nature of the threat candidates face and the level of protection they are receiving.

“The disgraceful scenes we have seen in some areas during this election campaign must not be repeated,” said British Home Secretary Yvette Cooper.

Some European countries have already passed new laws to protect politicians from the growing threat.

In Slovakia, parliamentarians passed a new law last month banning gatherings near politicians’ homes or government offices following the attempted assassination of Prime Minister Fico.

The British government announced earlier this year that it would spend an additional £31 million on MPs’ security.

But for many leading politicians, the threat is still too great.

Geert Wilders, leader of the far-right Dutch Freedom Party (PVV), who has himself been under 24-hour protection for years because of death threats, wrote on X: “What happened in the US can also happen in the Netherlands. Don’t underestimate it.”

Eva Hartog contributed to the reporting.