The Latest Breaking News from Stephane Sejourne

The European Union has unveiled new “Made in Europe” regulations to help bolster its manufacturers in the face of competition, including from China. While the bloc’s industry chief has heralded the move as a major shift in economic doctrine, it risks fuelling criticism from Beijing over perceived protectionism.

The European Union will take a page out of US President Donald Trump's tariff playbook on Tuesday with a plan to hike levies and slash quotas for imported steel -- to protect the bloc's struggling industry from cheap Chinese competition.

The European Parliament has given the final greenlight for EU chief Ursula von der Leyen's new executive commission to start work, as the bloc faces mounting challenges.

The heavyweights of the EU's new top team are to be quizzed by lawmakers in Brussels on Tuesday during confirmation hearings that are set to lay bare political dividing lines within the bloc.

The head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen has named her team, which will lead the EU's most powerful institution for the next five years. While the number of women falls short of the gender parity she aimed for, they've been handed the lion's share of top roles.

To confront the challenges, von der Leyen handed French candidate Stephane Sejourne a powerful executive vice president role overseeing industrial strategy, and also named a new commissioner for defence to help Europe rearm.

French President Emmanuel Macron has proposed Stephane Sejourne, the country's outgoing foreign minister, to replace Thierry Breton as its European commissioner, after Breton announced he would be quitting, claiming EU chief Ursula von der Leyen had asked Paris to withdraw his candidacy.

Deadly Israeli strikes hit Lebanon and Gaza on Saturday as the US secretary of state headed back to Israel aiming to finalise a Gaza truce agreement, which diplomats say could help avert a wider regional conflagration.

Lebanon's health ministry said an Israeli air strike on Saturday in southern Lebanon killed nine people, as the Israeli military reported hitting weapons stores of the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement.