European Union

France and Italy will enhance their cooperation looking forward, French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said at a meeting in Paris on Tuesday, marking a thaw in relations. The two leaders met to highlight the points...

The controversial pensions reform that French President Emmanuel Macron forced through parliament in March will not close the pensions deficit as predicted by the government, France’s pensions watchdog found in a report. Macron signed the pensions reform into law in...

EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager, known for her crackdown and hefty fines meted out to Big Tech for anti-competitive practices, is in the running for the top job at the European Investment Bank (EIB), she said on Tuesday (20 June).

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen must resolve the internal Bulgarian political disputes about who should replace former EU Commissioner Mariya Gabriel, the government in Sofia said. Bulgaria will offer von der Leyen two candidates to replace Gabriel, who...

Diplomatic sources deny Polish media reports quoting EU diplomats and experts as saying that Poland could possibly apply for a derogation to the EU relocation scheme Warsaw recently vetoed with Hungary. Warsaw will be able to apply to the EU...

More Icelanders are now in favour of joining the European Union, according to a new poll that marks a shift in thinking in the country at a time the government has signalled it may want better relations with the EU...

Neutral states in the EU, like Austria and Malta, need to be listened to on security matters, Austrian Defence Minister Klaudia Tanner said ahead of Tuesday’s meeting with her Maltese counterpart, Byron Camilleri, citing the now reduced number of conflict-neutral...

The European Commission's proposal for a regulation of ESG ratings providers is essential to introduce some transparency in the area of responsible investments, write Aurore Lalucq, Jonás Fernández and Paul Tang. 

EU environment ministers approved their position on a historic law to restore Europe's ecosystems on Tuesday (20 June), marking a turning point for the embattled proposal.

The European Commission proposed the introduction of a new source of income for the EU budget based on corporate profits as well as adjustments to previously proposed direct revenue streams, calling on member states to quickly adopt them.

The European Commission announced on Tuesday (20 June) it would create a new Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (STEP), formerly known as the EU Sovereignty Fund, but expectations are low as no new cash has been brought to the table.

Some pictures are hard to forget, such as that of a black street cleaner in Paris in a fluorescent vest, sweeping up rubbish left the night before by young, petit bourgeois protesters.

The European Commission circulated some initial pledges as part of its voluntary initiative to move the online advertising industry away from 'cookie fatigue'.

Member states need to agree on the proposed numbers among themselves and with the European Parliament by 4 December, so that next year's budget can be adopted accordingly.

EU environment ministers have agreed a joint position on a nature-restoration law, sending a message to divided MEPs to get their act together.

The Swedish presidency of the EU Council has circulated a final text on the European Media Freedom Act ahead of an ambassador meeting on Wednesday (21 June) that is set to adopt the legislative proposal. 

Source : © European Union, 2023 - EP

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Tuesday (20 June) called on China to lobby Russia to withdraw troops and end its war in Ukraine.

EU institutions are due to reach a political agreement on the Data Act next week, with ongoing discussions on the issue of trade secrets, governance, territorial scope, product safety and time of application. The Data Act is a flagship legislative...

Members of the AFET Committee will meet on Monday 26 & Tuesday 27 June 2023 (Antall 2Q2).

Debates:

Monday 26 June: 2022 Commission Report on Montenegro from 18:30 to 19:00

Tuesday 27 June from 9:00 to 12:30

• Inter-parliamentary Committee Meeting: Moving the EU enlargement forward - 20 years since the Thessaloniki Declaration and
  
• Special address by H.E. Ms Aïssata Tall Sall, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Senegal, followed by an EoV

Tuesday 27 June from 15:00 to 16:00

• In association with DROI and SEDE: Structured Dialogue on the Commission Work Programme: EoV with Josep Borrell Fontell
• Public hearing on the EU's preventive diplomacy - practise makes (not yet) perfect

Votes:

• Uzbekistan
• 2022 Commission Report on Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Recommendation on Relations with the Palestinian Authority
• 2022 Commission Report on North Macedonia
• Information security in the institutions, bodies, offices and agencies of the Union

The meeting will be webstreamed.

AFET-SEDE-DROI meetings 2023
Meeting documents
Webstreaming
Source : © European Union, 2023 - EP