Tag: Geneva

Brink of war: President Trump demanding Iran abandon its nuclear program or face military action

American and Iranian officials are meeting today in Switzerland to discuss U.S. demands for Iran to abandon its nuclear program, amid threats from President Donald Trump and a buildup of American military assets. Trump has warned of using force if a deal is not reached.”I think they want to make a deal. I don’t think they want the consequences of not making a deal. They want to make a deal,” Trump said.Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and the president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, are in Geneva for a second round of talks over Iran’s nuclear program. Iran has stated that it will respond with an attack of its own if the U.S. initiates military action. The Trump administration insists that Iran must cease uranium enrichment, a process that could lead to the development of nuclear weapons, while Tehran maintains its program is for peaceful purposes.Trump is increasing American military presence near Iran, having recently announced the deployment of the world’s largest aircraft carrier from the Caribbean Sea to the Middle East, where another guided-missile destroyer is stationed.Trump was asked Friday if he wants regime change in Iran. He said it seems like that would be the best thing that could happen, but he did not comment on the specifics of who he wants to take over. Keep watching for the latest from the Washington News Bureau:

WASHINGTON —

American and Iranian officials are meeting today in Switzerland to discuss U.S. demands for Iran to abandon its nuclear program, amid threats from President Donald Trump and a buildup of American military assets. Trump has warned of using force if a deal is not reached.

“I think they want to make a deal. I don’t think they want the consequences of not making a deal. They want to make a deal,” Trump said.

Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and the president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, are in Geneva for a second round of talks over Iran’s nuclear program.

Iran has stated that it will respond with an attack of its own if the U.S. initiates military action.

The Trump administration insists that Iran must cease uranium enrichment, a process that could lead to the development of nuclear weapons, while Tehran maintains its program is for peaceful purposes.

Trump is increasing American military presence near Iran, having recently announced the deployment of the world’s largest aircraft carrier from the Caribbean Sea to the Middle East, where another guided-missile destroyer is stationed.

Trump was asked Friday if he wants regime change in Iran. He said it seems like that would be the best thing that could happen, but he did not comment on the specifics of who he wants to take over.

Keep watching for the latest from the Washington News Bureau:

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February 17, 2026
Top Army Official Meets Russians in U.A.E., Signaling New Phase in Peace Talks

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll met with a Russian delegation in Abu Dhabi on Monday and Tuesday, a sign that talks to end the war in Ukraine have hit a new phase involving direct negotiations with the Russians.

Driscoll, fresh off peace talks in Kyiv and Geneva with Ukrainian officials, landed in Abu Dhabi on Monday to meet with the Russians, according to U.S. officials. After holding initial meetings, he planned to conduct more substantive engagements with the delegation on Tuesday, the officials said.

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Lara Seligman

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November 24, 2025
Trump Blasts Ukraine, Europe as They Work to Reshape U.S. Peace Plan

President Trump criticized Ukrainian and European officials on Sunday, as they launched a diplomatic offensive aimed at reshaping a 28-point peace plan that has been criticized as too favorable to Russia.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump called the war a “loser” for everyone and said Ukrainian leaders had expressed “zero” gratitude for U.S. efforts. He said Europeans continue to buy oil from Russia.

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Matthew Luxmoore

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November 23, 2025
Ukraine and Western allies meet in Geneva to discuss US peace plan

Talks between Ukraine and its Western allies on a U.S.-proposed peace plan to end Russia’s invasion got underway in Geneva on Sunday, Ukrainian officials said on Sunday.The head of the Ukrainian delegation, presidential chief of staff Andrii Yermak, wrote on social media that they held their first meeting with the national security advisers from the U.K., France, and Germany. The allies have rallied around Kyiv in a push to revise the plan, which is seen as favoring Moscow.U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was expected to join the talks together with Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff.”The next meeting is with the U.S. delegation. We are in a very constructive mood,” Yermak said. “We continue working together to achieve a lasting and just peace for Ukraine.”Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was waiting for the outcome of the talks. “A positive result is needed for all of us,” he said.”Ukrainian and American teams, teams of our European partners, are in close contact, and I very much hope there will be a result. Bloodshed must be stopped, and it must be guaranteed that the war will not be reignited,” he wrote in a post on Telegram on Sunday.Ukraine and allies have ruled out territorial concessionsThe 28-point blueprint drawn up by the U.S. to end the nearly four-year war has sparked alarm in Kyiv and European capitals. Zelenskyy has said his country could face a stark choice between standing up for its sovereign rights and preserving the American support it needs.The plan acquiesces to many Russian demands that Zelenskyy has categorically rejected on dozens of occasions, including giving up large pieces of territory. The Ukrainian leader has vowed that his people”will always defend” their home.Speaking before Sunday’s talks, Alice Rufo, France’s minister delegate at the Defense Ministry, told broadcaster France Info that key points of discussion would include the plan’s restrictions on the Ukrainian army, which she described as “a limitation on its sovereignty.””Ukraine must be able to defend itself,” she said. “Russia wants war and waged war many times in fact over the past years.”Speaking to reporters outside the White House on Saturday, Trump said the U.S. proposal was not his “final offer.””I would like to get to peace. It should have happened a long time ago. The Ukraine war with Russia should have never happened,” Trump said. “One way or the other, we have to get it ended.”Trump didn’t explain what he meant by the plan not being his final offer, and the White House didn’t respond to a request for clarification.Rubio’s reported comments cause confusionPolish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Sunday that Warsaw was ready to work on the plan with the leaders of Europe, Canada and Japan, but also said that it “would be good to know for sure who is the author of the plan and where was it created.”Some U.S. lawmakers said Saturday that Rubio had described the plan as a Russian “wish list” rather than a Washington-led proposal.The bipartisan group of senators told a news conference that they had spoken to Rubio about the peace plan after he reached out to some of them while on his way to Geneva. Independent Maine Sen. Angus King said Rubio told them the plan “was not the administration’s plan” but a “wish list of the Russians.”A State Department spokesperson denied their account, calling it “blatantly false.”Rubio himself then took the extraordinary step of suggesting online that the senators were mistaken, even though they said he was their source for the information. The Secretary of State doubled down on the assertion that Washington was responsible for a proposal that had surprised many from the beginning for being so favorable to Moscow.___Associated Press writers Claudia Ciobanu in Warsaw, Poland and Sylvie Corbet in Paris contributed to this report.

GENEVA —

Talks between Ukraine and its Western allies on a U.S.-proposed peace plan to end Russia’s invasion got underway in Geneva on Sunday, Ukrainian officials said on Sunday.

The head of the Ukrainian delegation, presidential chief of staff Andrii Yermak, wrote on social media that they held their first meeting with the national security advisers from the U.K., France, and Germany. The allies have rallied around Kyiv in a push to revise the plan, which is seen as favoring Moscow.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was expected to join the talks together with Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff.

Win McNamee/Getty Images
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio

“The next meeting is with the U.S. delegation. We are in a very constructive mood,” Yermak said. “We continue working together to achieve a lasting and just peace for Ukraine.”

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was waiting for the outcome of the talks. “A positive result is needed for all of us,” he said.

“Ukrainian and American teams, teams of our European partners, are in close contact, and I very much hope there will be a result. Bloodshed must be stopped, and it must be guaranteed that the war will not be reignited,” he wrote in a post on Telegram on Sunday.

Ukraine and allies have ruled out territorial concessions

The 28-point blueprint drawn up by the U.S. to end the nearly four-year war has sparked alarm in Kyiv and European capitals. Zelenskyy has said his country could face a stark choice between standing up for its sovereign rights and preserving the American support it needs.

The plan acquiesces to many Russian demands that Zelenskyy has categorically rejected on dozens of occasions, including giving up large pieces of territory. The Ukrainian leader has vowed that his people”will always defend” their home.

Speaking before Sunday’s talks, Alice Rufo, France’s minister delegate at the Defense Ministry, told broadcaster France Info that key points of discussion would include the plan’s restrictions on the Ukrainian army, which she described as “a limitation on its sovereignty.”

“Ukraine must be able to defend itself,” she said. “Russia wants war and waged war many times in fact over the past years.”

Speaking to reporters outside the White House on Saturday, Trump said the U.S. proposal was not his “final offer.”

“I would like to get to peace. It should have happened a long time ago. The Ukraine war with Russia should have never happened,” Trump said. “One way or the other, we have to get it ended.”

Trump didn’t explain what he meant by the plan not being his final offer, and the White House didn’t respond to a request for clarification.

Rubio’s reported comments cause confusion

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Sunday that Warsaw was ready to work on the plan with the leaders of Europe, Canada and Japan, but also said that it “would be good to know for sure who is the author of the plan and where was it created.”

Some U.S. lawmakers said Saturday that Rubio had described the plan as a Russian “wish list” rather than a Washington-led proposal.

The bipartisan group of senators told a news conference that they had spoken to Rubio about the peace plan after he reached out to some of them while on his way to Geneva. Independent Maine Sen. Angus King said Rubio told them the plan “was not the administration’s plan” but a “wish list of the Russians.”

A State Department spokesperson denied their account, calling it “blatantly false.”

Rubio himself then took the extraordinary step of suggesting online that the senators were mistaken, even though they said he was their source for the information. The Secretary of State doubled down on the assertion that Washington was responsible for a proposal that had surprised many from the beginning for being so favorable to Moscow.

___

Associated Press writers Claudia Ciobanu in Warsaw, Poland and Sylvie Corbet in Paris contributed to this report.

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November 23, 2025
Second Defendant Sentenced in Love Triangle Stabbing Death of Central Florida Man

A second defendant was sentenced in a love triangle stabbing death of a Central Florida man.

During a hearing, defendant Jaide Caporale pled to Second-Degree Murder. She was then sentenced to 35 years in prison, which is the maximum sentence in the range that was agreed upon in the plea deal.

On August 12, 2020, a dead body was found in Geneva, east of Sanford. Once the victim was identified, the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office initial investigation led detectives to Volusia County.

Caporale had dated the victim on and off for several years. She was the last one seen with him on August 9, 2020, in Sanford.

On August 10, 2020, Caporale drove the victim to the house in Deltona where she and her co-defendant, Marvin Bryant, lived. Bryant stabbed the victim multiple times in the head and torso before the two dumped the victim’s body in Geneva.

Seminole and Volusia Sheriff’s Office detectives uncovered an extensive amount of important digital and forensic evidence during a four-month joint investigation.

A search warrant was executed on the car that Bryant was renting and Caporale was driving on the day of the murder. Blood samples taken from the backseat were tested and a positive match to the victim’s DNA was made by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

It was also apparent that they had cleaned up the rental vehicle and their house in an attempt to destroy evidence.

“Love triangles never turn out good. This one turned deadly,” State Attorney R.J. Larizza said about the case after Bryant was convicted of First Degree-Murder and sentenced to life in prison in June.

The case was investigated by the Volusia Sheriff’s Office and Seminole County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant State Attorney Andrew Urbanak successfully prosecuted the case for the state. The Honorable Kathleen McNeilly presided over the case and pronounced sentence.

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September 7, 2024
Seminole County first responders rescue two people stranded on a boat

Two people are safe after getting stranded on a boat in Geneva on Sunday morning.Seminole County Fire Department crews got a call to Mullet Lake Park around 2 a.m.That’s where they found two boaters trapped on a sand dune about 150 yards from the main waterway. Crews tell us the pair was driving the boat down the creek and ran aground.Responders got them back to shore by 2:45 a.m., and no one was hurt.Fire rescue crews taped off the boat until they could remove it because it was sitting in a high-traffic area.

GENEVA, Fla. —

Two people are safe after getting stranded on a boat in Geneva on Sunday morning.

Seminole County Fire Department crews got a call to Mullet Lake Park around 2 a.m.

That’s where they found two boaters trapped on a sand dune about 150 yards from the main waterway.

Crews tell us the pair was driving the boat down the creek and ran aground.

Responders got them back to shore by 2:45 a.m., and no one was hurt.

Fire rescue crews taped off the boat until they could remove it because it was sitting in a high-traffic area.

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April 7, 2024
Putin and now-deposed Afghan president among top gift givers to Bidens in 2021

Russian President Vladimir Putin and the deposed leader of Afghanistan were among the top gift givers to President Joe Biden and his family in 2021, according to federal documents published on Thursday.

In happier diplomatic times between all three countries, Putin gave Mr. Biden a $12,000 lacquer writing box and pen when they met at a highly anticipated summit in Geneva, Switzerland in June 2021.

That month, then-Afghan President Mohammed Ashraf Ghani and his wife gave Mr. Biden and first lady Jill Biden silk rugs worth an estimated $28,800.

Relations between the U.S. and Russia soured soon after the Geneva meeting and have plummeted since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last February. Ghani, meanwhile, fled Afghanistan shortly after the U.S. withdrew from the country on Biden’s orders in August, 2021.

Biden also in June received a brass and lapis lazuli jewelry box, worth an estimated $1,150 from Abdullah Abdullah, who was then considered to be the No. 2 in the Afghan government. And Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was given a carpet valued at $2,650 in March by Ghani.

The details appear in the State Department’s annual accounting of gifts to U.S. officials from world leaders posted on the website of the Federal Register on Thursday. The list, covering 2021, will formally be published on Friday.

All of the Putin and Ghani gifts were transferred to the National Archives, a requirement for any gift to a U.S. official valued at more than $415. The recipient has the option of paying the estimated value and keeping the gift.

However, Mr. Biden decided to retain, at least for official display, a photograph of the late British monarch Queen Elizabeth II. The photo, in a silver frame was presented to the president on the occasion of a Group of Seven summit in southeast England and is estimated to be worth $2,200.

According to the records, Putin gave Mr. Biden a “Kholuy Lacquer Miniature Workshop Desk Writing Set and Pen” on the occasion of their meeting in Geneva on June 16, 2021.

There are no other gifts from Putin or other Russian officials to Mr. Biden or U.S. officials documented in the filing.

Later that month, well after the president had given the order for American forces to withdraw from Afghanistan in April, Ghani and his wife, Rula, gave Joe and Jill Biden two silk carpets: one valued $9,600 and the other $19,200, according to the list.

At the time, U.S. officials believed that Ghani’s government and security forces could survive the withdrawal of American troops. A White House statement from Biden’s meeting with Ghani on June 25 said that “the U.S. and Afghan leaders firmly agreed that although U.S. troops are leaving Afghanistan, the strong bilateral partnership will continue.”

In another relationship that has grown more rocky, Secretary of State Antony Blinken reported receiving a porcelain vase worth $2,000 from the former foreign policy chief of the Chinese Communist Party, Yang Jiechi. The exchange took place in March, 2021, just two months after the Biden administration took office, and the vase is now with the General Services Administration.

Two years later, the U.S. and China are now at odds on numerous issues ranging from Russia’s war in Ukraine to Chinese policies regarding Taiwan, Tibet, the South China Sea, Hong Hong and human rights.

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February 23, 2023
UN office urges Iran to free detained peaceful protesters

GENEVA — The U.N. human rights office is calling on Iran’s government to immediately release thousands of people who have been detained for participating in peaceful protests, faulting its “increasing harshness” as Western countries seek to ratchet up scrutiny of Tehran’s crackdown against demonstrators.

Spokesman Jeremy Laurence of the office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said it was calling for all charges to be dropped against the demonstrators and cautioned that Iran can only mete out the death penalty for the “most serious crimes” under international law — amid concerns that some protesters could be facing capital punishment.

“Instead of opening space for dialogue on legitimate grievances, the authorities are responding to unprecedented protests with increasing harshness,” Laurence said at a regular U.N. press briefing in Geneva.

He said at least 10 protesters had been charged with offenses that carry the death penalty — including one found guilty of either “waging war against God” or “corruption on earth” for allegedly damaging public property.

Separately, Germany and Iceland are leading a push led mostly by Western countries for the U.N.-backed Human Rights Council to create a special “fact-finding mission” — a team of independent rights experts — to look into alleged rights violations in the Islamic Republic linked to nationwide protests that erupted on Sept. 16.

Iranian women — and some men — have been protesting the government’s severe restrictions on their daily life since the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who had been arrested for allegedly violating the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code.

The council, which is made up of 47 member states and whose composition is tweaked every year, is set to hold a special session on Nov. 24 to debate the situation in Iran and ultimately vote on the proposal that includes the call for the fact-finding mission.

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November 15, 2022
UN, Russia hold talks on extending wartime grain deal

GENEVA — Top Russian and U.N. officials held talks in Switzerland on Friday to try to iron out the extension of a deal allowing Ukrainian grain shipments and Russian food and fertilizer exports, with just over a week left before the wartime agreement meant to ease a global food crisis is set to expire.

U.N. humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths and U.N. trade chief Rebeca Grynspan, who has been in charge of the Russian side of the agreement, were meeting in Geneva with a Russian team led by Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin.

“This discussion, it is hoped, should advance progress made in facilitating the unimpeded export of food and fertilizers originating from the Russian Federation to the global markets,” U.N. Geneva spokeswoman Alessandra Vellucci told reporters.

The deal is critical because Ukraine and Russia are major suppliers of wheat, barley, sunflower oil and other food, especially to parts of Africa, the Middle East and Asia where many people are already going hungry and food prices have surged. A failure to renew the wartime agreement has raised fears that a global food crisis would get worse.

U.N. officials say the meeting will focus on “full implementation” of two separate agreements signed with Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul on July 22. Russia briefly suspended its participation in the deal two weeks ago, alleging a Ukrainian drone attack on its Black Sea fleet in Crimea.

Russian authorities have said they are dissatisfied with the implementation of the accord and that they haven’t yet decided whether to extend the agreement brokered by the U.N. and Turkey after it is set to expire on Nov. 18.

There are no U.S. or European Union sanctions on food and fertilizer shipments, but Russian diplomats have cited problems getting financing and insurance for ships and finding ports where Russian vessels can dock.

“We need to resolve a number of issues related to the well-known part of the so-called grain deal that concerns us,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters. “Here, there is a mutual understanding on the part of our counterparts in the UN. Therefore, work is underway in this direction.”

Grynspan, who heads the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development, told the Security Council last week that Ukraine and Russia provide around 30% of the world’s exported wheat and barley, 20% of its corn, and over 50% of its sunflower oil. Russia is also the world’s largest exporter of fertilizers, accounting for 15% share of global exports.

Ukrainian grain shipments from the Black Sea ports have topped 10 million metric tons, the U.N. has said, and an end to the deal could have a ripple effect on food prices, availability and security in many parts of the world.

“Nobody, I think, wants to see that there is a termination of the deal. I think the situation would be really difficult, and the implications would be very serious,” said Boubaker Ben Belhassen, who heads the trade and markets division of the U.N.’s Food and Agricultural Organization.

“In the short term, certainly prices will have to respond and they will increase, especially, for example, for wheat, for maize, and also for sunflower seed oil,” he told reporters during a U.N. briefing Friday.

———

Follow all of AP’s coverage on the food crisis at https://apnews.com/hub/food-crisis and the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine.

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November 11, 2022
Teens tackle 21st-century challenges at robotics contest

GENEVA (AP) — For their first trip to a celebrated robotics contest for high school students from scores of countries, a team of Ukrainian teens had a problem.

With shipments of goods to Ukraine uncertain, and Ukrainian customs officers careful about incoming merchandise, the group only received a base kit of gadgetry on the day they were set to leave for the event in Geneva.

That set off a mad scramble to assemble their robot for the latest edition of the “First Global” contest, a three-day affair that opened Friday, in-person for the first time since the pandemic. Nearly all the 180-odd teams, from countries across the world, had had months to prepare their robots.

“We couldn’t back down because we were really determined to compete here and to give our country a good result — because it really needs it right now,” said Danylo Gladkyi, a member of Ukraine’s team. He and his teammates are too young to be eligible for Ukraine’s national call-up of all men over 18 to take part in the war effort.

Gladkyi said an international package delivery company wasn’t delivering into Ukraine, and reliance on a smaller private company to ship the kit from Poland into Ukraine got tangled up with customs officials. That logjam got cleared last Sunday, forcing the team to dash to get their robot ready with adaptations they had planned — only days before the contest began.

The event, launched in 2017 with backing from American innovator Dean Kamen, encourages young people from all corners of the globe to put their technical smarts and mechanical knowhow to challenges that represent symbolic solutions to global problems.

This year’s theme is carbon capture, a nascent technology in which excess heat-trapping CO2 in the atmosphere is sucked out of the skies and sequestered, often underground, to help fight global warming.

Teams use game controllers like those attached to consoles in millions of households worldwide to direct their self-designed robots to zip around pits, or “fields,” to scoop up hollow plastic balls with holes in them that symbolically represent carbon. Each round starts by emptying a clear rectangular box filled with the balls into the field, prompting a whirring, hissing scramble to pick them up.

The initial goal is to fill a tower topped by a funnel in the center of the field with as many balls as possible. Teams can do that in one of two ways: either by directing the robots to feed the balls into corner pockets, where team members can pluck them out and toss them by hand into the funnel or by having the robots catapult the balls up into the funnels themselves.

Every team has an interest in filling the funnel: the more collected, the more everyone benefits.

But in the final 30 seconds of each session, after the frenetic quest to collect the balls, a second, cutthroat challenge awaits: Along the stem of each tower are short branches, or bars, at varying levels that the teams — choosing the mechanism of their choice such as hooks, winches or extendable arms — try to direct their robots to ascend.

The higher the level reached, the greater the “multiplier” of the total point value of the balls they will receive. Success is getting as high as possible, and with six teams on the field, it’s a dash for the highest perch.

By meshing competition with common interest, the “First Global” initiative aims to offer a tonic to a troubled world, where kids look past politics to help solve problems that face everybody.

The opening-day ceremony had an Olympic vibe, with teams parading in behind their national flags, and short bars of national anthems playing, but the young people made it clear this was about a new kind of global high school sport, in an industrial domain that promises to leave a large footprint in the 21st century.

The competition takes many minds off troubles in the world, from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to the fallout from Syria’s lingering war, to famine in the Horn of Africa, and recent upheaval in Iran.

While most of the world’s countries were taking part, some were not: Russia, in particular, has been left out.

Past winners of such robotics competitions include “Team Hope” — refugees and stateless others — and a team of Afghan girls.

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October 16, 2022
London, Paris, Frankfurt and beyond: CNBC names Europe’s best hotels for business travel
International travel may still have its challenges.

But finding a solid hotel for a business trip isn’t one of them.

CNBC Travel and the market data firm Statista today release a ranking of the “Best Hotels for Business Travelers” in Europe.

This is the first ranking of its kind between CNBC and Statista, who are also releasing hotel rankings in the Middle East today. Asia-Pacific rankings were published in September.

In total, we analyzed more than 10,000 four- and five-star hotels in 117 locations to produce lists corporate travelers can trust. We did this using a three-step process:

Asking business travelers and hotel industry professionals to answer a CNBC reader survey which ran from May 3 to June 7, 2022.

Reviewing more than 1 million hotel data points, which included objective information (location, business facilities, food, leisure activities and room characteristics) and subjective reviews (gathered from Google, TripAdvisor, Expedia and similar websites).

Weighting the data to prioritize the hotel characteristics deemed most important in the reader survey.

For full details about our research methodology, click here.

From Amsterdam to Zurich, here is the full list of the European winners in PDF format — complete with final scores — some of which are highlighted below.

Alternatively, you can search by city or country using the table here:

Amsterdam

Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam

Canal House Suites at Sofitel Legend The Grand Amsterdam

Hotel Okura Amsterdam

Sofitel Legend The Grand Amsterdam

Conservatorium Hotel

Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam

Source: Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam

The Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam tied for the highest scores for customer reviews among Europe’s largest financial centers, a distinction it shared with Rome’s Villa Spalletti Trivelli. Travelers rave about the canal-side location, but they say it’s the smaller points — the turndown service, fresh tulips in the room, the luxurious bedding — that make it one of Amsterdam’s finest hotels.

Berlin

Louisa’s Place

InterContinental Berlin

SO/Berlin Das Stue

Hotel Adlon Kempinski Berlin

KPM Hotel & Residences

In a city with ample competition from major hotel brands, the owner-run Louisa’s Place — named after Queen Louise of Prussia — topped our list. Built around 1900, the boutique hotel in West Berlin has 47 spacious rooms, each with high ceilings and separate bedrooms.

Brussels

Steigenberger Wiltcher’s

Sofitel Brussels Europe

Hotel Manos Premier

Le Louise Hotel Brussels – MGallery

Stanhope Hotel Brussels

Steigenberger Wiltcher’s location on the prestigious Avenue Louise — and its style, aptly described as “luxurious simplicity” — make it a favorite with business travelers in Belgium. Travelers can take an online tour of the hotel before visiting, virtually walking the hallways to peer into its restaurants and ballrooms.

Copenhagen

Charlottehaven

Hotel Kong Arthur

Villa Copenhagen

Hotel Skt Petri

Zoku Copenhagen

Charlottehaven

Source: Charlottehaven

Charlottehaven has hotel apartments in two areas — the larger units in the “Garden” and the newer apartments in the “Tower” which have 180-degree views of the city. The hotel combines kitchens, laundry areas and other comforts of a house with the amenities of a hotel. Nearby metro and train stations make it easy to commute around the city too.

Dublin

The Merrion

InterContinental Dublin

The Marker

Camden Court Hotel

The Shelbourne, Autograph Collection

The Merrion

Source: The Merrion

Scoring 3.78 (out of a possible 4 points), the five-star Merrion hotel in the center of Dublin tied for the second highest overall score in Europe. Its 142 rooms and suites are inside four restored Georgian townhouses dating to the 1760s. There’s also a two-star Michelin restaurant — Ireland’s first — plus two bars, a spa and six meeting spaces.

Frankfurt

Sofitel Frankfurt Opera

JW Marriott Hotel Frankfurt

Best Western Premier IB Hotel Friedberger Warte

Le Meridien Frankfurt

Steigenberger Airport Hotel Frankfurt

Sofitel Frankfurt Opera

Source: Sofitel Frankfurt Opera

The Sofitel Frankfurt Opera is on Opera Square, or the Opernplatz, near the city’s famed opera house. In addition to its central location, the hotel wins over business travelers for the small touches that make for seamless stays: complimentary car valets and minibar beverages, 24-hour room service and stylish rooms outfitted with Illy espresso machines and Bose sound systems.

Geneva

Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues Geneva

Fairmont Grand Hotel Geneva

Hilton Geneva Hotel and Conference Centre

The Woodward Geneve

La Reserve Geneve Hotel & Spa

Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues

Source: Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues Geneva

Marble bathrooms, down pillows and balconettes with unobstructed views of Lake Geneva — these are some of the reasons the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues Geneva consistently ranks among the city’s most luxurious places to stay. Business travelers can take meetings to the next level with private tours of the nearby Patek Philippe Museum or helicopter tours over Mont Blanc — with all details organized by the hotel.

London

The Langham London

The Savoy

Bulgari Hotel London

One Aldwych

The Lanesborough

The Langham London

Source: The Langham London

The Langham London is a U.K. institution. It’s got a West End location, restaurants helmed by the two-Michelin starred chef Michel Roux Jr., and a bar, Artesian, that was named the world’s best four times in a row. Travelers who book executive rooms or higher get access to The Langham Club, which comes with perks like private check-ins, pressing services, all-day dining options and private meeting spaces.

Madrid

Gran Hotel Ingles

Barcelo Torre de Madrid

Rosewood Villa Magna

VP Plaza Espana Design

Wellington Hotel & Spa Madrid

Gran Hotel Ingles

Source: Gran Hotel Ingles

It’s rare for a small property to outrank major hospitality companies, but Gran Hotel Ingles has done exactly that. “Pure luxury” is how the 48-room hotel is described by travelers, from its sleek interior to its cocktail weekend events accompanied by live music. Opened in 1886, the hotel is said to be Madrid’s oldest.

Milan

Hotel Viu Milan

Excelsior Hotel Gallia

Best Western Plus Hotel Galles

Milano Verticale | UNA Esperienze

Armani Hotel Milano

Hotel Viu Milan

Source: Marriott International

The website for Hotel Viu Milan leads off — not with its rooms or restaurants — but with one word: bleisure. That’s because this hotel is serious about blending business stays with relaxation: morning yoga on the terrace, aperitives after work and dinner at the on-site restaurant Morelli, helmed by the Italian Michelin-starred chef Giancarlo Morelli.

Oslo

The Thief

Hotel Continental

Radisson Blu Scandinavia Hotel, Oslo

Clarion Hotel The Hub

Scandic Holmenkollen Park

The Thief

Source: The Thief

The Thief Hotel on Tjuvholmen, or “Thief Islet,” takes its name from its seedy past as a hotbed of criminals. Now it’s an upmarket neighborhood known for art and architecture. Art features prominently in the hotel too, as do designer furniture and upmarket Nordic cuisine.

Rome

Hotel de la Ville

Villa Spalletti Trivelli

Hotel Villa Pamphili Roma

Hotel Artemide

Anantara Palazzo Naiadi

The historic Hotel de la Ville, next to the Spanish Steps, is a Rocco Forte Hotel — a company bearing the name of one of Italy’s most famous hotelier families. Business travelers love its rooftop bar and central courtyard, but it’s the concierge — known to help with insider tips and hard-to-book restaurant reservations — that gives the hotel the edge in Italy’s capital city.

Paris

Le Bristol Paris

Les Jardins du Faubourg

Kimpton – St Honore Paris

Pullman Paris Center-Bercy

Le Meurice

Le Bristol Paris

Source: Le Bristol Paris | Claire Cocano

Guests of Le Bristol Paris can count President Emmanuel Macron as a neighbor — Elysee Palace, the official residence of France’s president — is just steps away. From white-gloved service to its three-Michelin-starred restaurant Epicure, the hotel is the height of Parisian elegance and culinary excellence.

Stockholm

Grand Hotel Stockholm

Radisson Blu Waterfront Hotel Stockholm

Hotel At Six

Bank Hotel

Lydmar Hotel

Grand Hotel Stockholm

Source: Grand Hotel Stockholm

Tying for No. 2 in overall points with Dublin’s The Merrion, the stylish Grand Hotel Stockholm secured the top score for its amenities and facilities, not only in Sweden, but in all of Europe. Its waterfront location is bolstered by four restaurants, a champagne bar, spa and gym, the latter with personal trainers. Room service is available round the clock for those with late-night work to complete.

Vienna

Palais Coburg Hotel Residenz

Hotel Sans Souci Wien

The Ritz-Carlton, Vienna

The Harmonie Vienna

Grand Hotel Wien

This grand hotel built in 1845 is the former home of Austrian royalty. The all-suite boutique hotel has a restaurant with two Michelin stars and a wine cellar that is said to house some 60,000 bottles of wine.

Zurich

The Dolder Grand

Widder Hotel

Baur au Lac

Park Hyatt Zurich

Acasa Suites Zurich

The Dolder Grand

Source: The Dolder Grand

The Dolder Grand may have opened in 1899, but this hotel outside of Zurich’s city center has an almost futuristic feel. The interior features works by Salvador Dali and Jean Tinguely, and it has a two-Michelin starred restaurant and a 4,000-square-foot spa. From royalty to rock legends, former guests include King Charles and The Rolling Stones.

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Shanghai, Mumbai, Melbourne and beyond: CNBC names the best Asia-Pacific hotels for business travel

— Natalie Tham contributed to this report.
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October 3, 2022