Poland takes over EU presidency with focus on security

WARSAW, Jan 4: Poland launched its presidency of the Council of the European Union on Friday mired in a diplomatic row with Hungary that underscored a deepening sense of political disunity across Europe just as it confronts a raft of major global challenges.

Saddled with a sluggish economy, the EU is bracing for the return of Donald Trump to the White House this month on an "America First" platform and the possible imposition of U.S. tariffs on European exports.

It also faces deteriorating trade relations with China and Russia's grinding war in Ukraine, all at a time when the EU's two leading powers, France and Germany, are distracted by domestic political upheaval.    —REUTERS