European Union

Giorgos Kyrtsos, an EU lawmaker of the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP), decided on Wednesday to leave the party and join the centrist Renew Europe group in the European Parliament. The move comes as a result of an ongoing row...

Dragan Čović, leader of the biggest Bosnian Croat party, the HDZ, criticised the decision of the national electoral commission to call countrywide elections for 2 October without implementing any changes to the electoral law sought by Croats. “We consider this...

A recent report has detailed how thousands of health workers fled to Germany in 2020, while Prime Minister Edi Rama has dismissed concerns about the loss of skilled workers in key sectors. The European Training Foundation published a report last...

The German government is ready to support Kosovo’s membership bid in the Council of Europe, Bundestag MP Knut Abraham has confirmed. On Twitter, Abraham confirmed he had reached out to the German government and received a positive response to his question about...

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Wednesday said he wants all Western Balkans countries to join the EU but that Serbia must press ahead with reforms, including on media freedom, before it can join. “For Serbia, it is important that it...

Slovenia’s central bank has announced an adjustment of mortgage lending standards in a move that could spur demand for loans, even as it acknowledged that the housing market is already overheated. Lending requirements for those buying property will be relaxed...

The European Union has proposed a phased embargo of Russian oil but may find it tricky to implement, given Europe's complex distribution network and challenges in tracking crude once it is blended or refined.

Hospitals in Zagreb have refused to perform an abortion on a pregnant woman whose 24-week-old foetus was diagnosed with a malignant and deadly brain tumour, reviving the abortion debate in the staunchly Roman Catholic country. In Croatia, abortion is legal but...

Microprocessors are the backbone of our digital infrastructure and a key enabler for a more sustainable economy and carbon neutral future. Intel has made a commitment to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across our operations by 2040.

The investigation and prosecution of war crimes will be among the topics of the Czech EU Council presidency in the second half of 2022, Justice Minister Pavel Blazek (ODS, ECR) has said. Blažek is heading to Hague within the next...

Budapest and Bratislava are unhappy with the European Commission’s proposal to ban Russian black gold despite being given extra time to phase it out, while Sofia and Prague have jumped on the bandwagon and are now asking for special treatment. ...

The Spanish Social Security scheme (Seguridad Social) added 184,577 more contributors in April, and broke, for the first time, the threshold of 20 million people at work, EURACTIV’s partner EFE reported, quoting official sources. According to sources, the latest data...

There is great uncertainty within the ruling Social Democrats’ parliamentary group regarding the question of potential Swedish membership in NATO, according to a poll conducted by the daily Aftonbladet on Wednesday. The survey shows that leading Social Democrats are still wavering...

The government and Swedish Armed Forces ramped up their efforts to protect Gotland island in Southern Sweden following Russia’s repeated threats and the general security situation in Europe since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In Gotland, the military capability is being...

The European Parliament and EU governments on Wednesday (4 May) each agreed their negotiating position on a proposal aimed at levelling the playing field for European companies facing competition from foreign companies that receive financial support in their home countries.

The UK would always come to the help of Finland and Sweden even if they are not NATO members, UK Defence Minister Ben Wallace told a press conference in Finland on Wednesday afternoon. Wallace is currently visiting the bi-annual military...

The 1,300-kilometre border separating Finland and Russia is getting a makeover as the government wants new fences on some parts of the Eastern border and to replace two Dornier 228 surveillance aircraft with new multirole planes. After World War II,...

The five Nordic prime ministers gathered in Copenhagen for the India-Nordic summit, where green energy, Russia and a possible fast NATO ratification period for Sweden and Finland were on the agenda on Wednesday. As part of his three-day visit to...

The farmers association, ZLTO, fear that the lack of rain this spring could lead to crop failure and a food shortage, broadcaster NOS reports. Ukraine is responsible for a third of the world’s grain production, meaning exports have dwindled due to Russia’s...

The Austrian government collected €42 million in donations from citizens, more than doubling its financial support for Ukraine. The donation drive called “Neighbour in need” gathered €41.9 million by Easter Monday, now doubling the government’s foreign catastrophe fund, with another...