European Union

https://tvnewsroom.consilium.europa.eu/uploads/council-images/thumbs/uploads/council-images/remote/http_7e18a1c646f5450b9d6d-a75424f262e53e74f9539145894f4378.r8.cf3.rackcdn.com/b9372782-70f8-11e6-bb62-bc764e092fac_2.01_thumb_169_1472813222_1472813222_129_97shar_c1.jpg

EU Ministers of Foreign Affairs meet on 2 and 3 September 2016 in Bratislava for their customary informal Gymnich meeting.

Download this video here.

http://tvnewsroom.consilium.europa.eu/uploads/council-images/thumbs/uploads/council-images/remote/http_7e18a1c646f5450b9d6d-a75424f262e53e74f9539145894f4378.r8.cf3.rackcdn.com/b9372782-70f8-11e6-bb62-bc764e092fac_2.01_thumb_169_1472813222_1472813222_129_97shar_c1.jpg

EU Ministers of Foreign Affairs meet on 2 and 3 September 2016 in Bratislava for their customary informal Gymnich meeting.

Download this video here.

General : A coup attempt, terrorist attacks, a war at the border and three million refugees... Turkey faces difficult times as do its relations with the EU. Ankara has accused the EU of not condemning the coup attempt enough and demanded that the EU lifts visa restrictions or otherwise it could put an end to the refugee deal concluded earlier this year. Meanwhile the EU wants visa conditions to be fully met and is concerned about the rule of law and the country´s desire to reintroduce the death penalty.

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

General : A coup attempt, terrorist attacks, a war at the border and three million refugees... Turkey faces difficult times as do its relations with the EU. Ankara has accused the EU of not condemning the coup attempt enough and demanded that the EU lifts visa restrictions or otherwise it could put an end to the refugee deal concluded earlier this year. Meanwhile the EU wants visa conditions to be fully met and is concerned about the rule of law and the country´s desire to reintroduce the death penalty.

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

Exactly one year ago German Chancellor Angela Merkel made the decision to allow the refugees stuck at Budapest's Keleti train station to travel on to Germany. Following this move, refugee numbers rose substantially. Merkel underpinned her policy with the phrase "We can do it". Europe's press is still deeply divided about the repercussions.

At almost 24 percent Greece's unemployment rate remains the highest in the EU, the European statistics agency Eurostat reported on Thursday. According to a new IMF study there is little hope of these figures improving substantially in the decades to come. While some Greek commentators see the situation as hopeless others call on those seeking jobs to adjust to market requirements.

Rome's mayor Virginia Raggi is facing a crisis of government: close confidants in the city council as well as the managers of the rapid transit and waste disposal systems resigned on Thursday. The new mayor, who was swept into office last June with the electoral breakthrough of the Movimento Cinque Stelle, has been overwhelmed by the demands put on her by the former protest movement, commentators believe, noting that the party has now lost its allure.

The European Commission ruled on Tuesday that US company Apple must pay Ireland up to 13 billion euros in back taxes after receiving illegal tax benefits from Dublin. Apple and Ireland have both announced they will appeal the decision. The ruling will boost the citizens' confidence in the international tax system, some commentators write. Others fear it will only create more legal uncertainty.

The citizens of Hungary will vote in a referendum on October 2 on whether to accept mandatory quotas for the distribution of refugees among EU member states. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán rejects the quota system approved by Brussels. The leftist opposition is in disarray over the issue, commentators note, and fear that the government is manipulating voters with unfounded panic-mongering.