European Union

The European Commission's rule of law assessment could increase the drive to tie the distribution of EU funds with adherence to rule of law. Yet under the surface of that discussion, a sinister storm is brewing that could threaten the EU's coronavirus recovery hopes.

"We have precise information that indicates that the Syrian militants have abandoned the battlefield in Gaziantep [southern Turkey] in order to join the fighting in Karabakh [an Armenia-controlled region of Azerbaijan]," French president Emmanuel Macron said Thursday after arriving for a summit in Brussels. "This is very serious ... We will discuss it here at the summit," he said, amid allegations Turkey sent Syrian mercenaries to help its Azeri ally.

Written by Marie-Laure Augère-Granier,

© Simone van den Berg / Adobe Stock

The 150 million pigs reared across the EU represent the largest livestock category before that of bovines, and the EU pig meat sector alone accounts for nearly half of total EU meat production. Germany, Spain and France contribute more than half of the total amount of pig meat produced in the EU. The sector is highly diverse, with huge differences in rearing methods and farm sizes across the Member States: from backyard farming to industrial installations with thousands of animals.

Within the common agricultural policy (CAP), the pig meat sector is covered by the common organisation of markets regulating trade and providing support in the event of a sectoral crisis. Farmers can also receive rural development funding under the second pillar of the CAP, for example, to make necessary investments on their farms.

A large number of EU legislative acts apply to this sector, covering various aspects of pig farming: environmental protection, food safety and public health, organic production, animal health and welfare. However, evidence shows a lack of compliance with EU regulations on the welfare of pigs and the persistence of harmful routine practices. Another challenge is the air, soil and water pollution caused by intensive pig farming, which takes a heavy toll on the environment.

The EU is currently the world’s top exporter of pig meat products and its exports have been boosted by the fall in production in Asia, where African swine fever is decimating millions of animals. Increased demand for EU pork pushed prices to a peak in early 2020.

In the coming years, the pig production sector may be impacted by the evolution of the policy environment: negotiations on a new CAP are ongoing and the recently published Green Deal initiative and Farm to Fork strategy, both of which promote greener and more sustainable agriculture and food systems, mention the future revision of legislation relevant to the pig sector, including on animal welfare.

Read the complete briefing on ‘The EU pig meat sector‘ in the Think Tank pages of the European Parliament.

Listen to policy podcast ‘The EU pig meat sector’ on YouTube.

To monitor the spread of the new coronavirus, EU member states have taken additional surveillance measures at the expense of fundamental rights. EURACTIV France reports.

Welcome to EURACTIV’s Global Europe Brief, your weekly update on the EU in the global perspective from our foreign affairs news team: Georgi Gotev and Alexandra Brzozowski. You can subscribe here. /// UNANIMITY FRUSTRATIONS Here we go again. While you’re reading this, EU leaders...

Paul Tang has been elected chair of the new permanent tax subcommittee the European Parliament has created. In an interview with EURACTIV, the Socialist MEP said one of his key goals is to "crack down on tax avoidance", and he therefore wants to strengthen ties with national parliaments and get them involved in the fight against fiscal dumping in the EU.

Instead of transnational lists leaving our European election in the hands of national parties, we must reform European parties, place them at the heart of European elections, and rewrite our electoral law to bring MEPs closer to citizens, writes Louis Drounau.

EU countries which have not assigned 5G spectrum frequencies by the end of 2020 will be in breach of EU law and could face legal action from the Commission, the EU executive has warned.

Written by Eric Pichon,

© Gilles Paire / Adobe Stock

The August 2020 coup in Mali has once again demonstrated the instability of the Sahel. The region is affected by climate change and rapid population growth. Rivalries over access to livelihoods exacerbate grievances against states. Struggling to provide basic services throughout their territory and security at their borders, governments are competing with armed groups that have emerged from the failed regimes of Central Africa, North Africa and the Middle East. The instability in this region has direct consequences for the security of the European Union’s neighbours and for the EU itself.

In 2011, to respond to the multiple factors of this instability, the EU adopted the Sahel security and development strategy: the first comprehensive approach aimed at ensuring various external policy programmes and instruments converge towards common objectives. Despite the revamping of the strategy in 2015 based on the lessons learnt, its implementation, which involves the coordination of multiple stakeholders, has been difficult. While it has contributed to notable progress towards integration and regionalisation, security challenges have impeded tangible achievements in preventing radicalisation and fostering inclusive development. The Sahel action plan, adopted in 2015 to provide an overall framework for the implementation of the strategy, comes to an end in 2020; its revision (or replacement) will need to take the EU’s and Africa’s new geopolitical interests on board. As the EU endeavours to reconnect with Africa in a regional and full-fledged partnership, the successes and failures of the EU Strategy for the Sahel could inspire the whole EU development and security policy on the continent.

This briefing is a translated and revised version of Le Sahel: un enjeu stratégique pour l’Union européenne, of November 2017.

Read the complete briefing on ‘Understanding the EU Strategy for the Sahel‘ in the Think Tank pages of the European Parliament.

Listen to policy podcast ‘Understanding the EU Strategy for the Sahel’ on YouTube.

The European Commission has announced its intention to revise the EU Batteries Directive and create a new regulatory framework for batteries, with a view to providing Europe with an effective battery value chain to achieve the ambitious EU climate change,...

The European Commission launched on Thursday (1 October) the first step of legal proceedings against Boris Johnson’s government over its controversial Internal Market Bill that threatens to break the terms of the country’s Withdrawal Agreement.

The EU published its first report on the situation of the rule of law in its member states on Wednesday. The Commission sees shortcomings in areas such as press freedom, the separation of powers and the fight against corruption, not only in Poland and Hungary, but also in countries like Bulgaria, Spain or Malta. However, commentators do not believe that this will have serious consequences for the states concerned.

Facebook has indicated that it will withdraw from the EU if the bloc's data protection rules impede its business. The background to this is an investigation by the Irish Data Protection Commission against the company. The EU's General Data Protection Regulations prohibit the transfer of personal data to non-EU countries. Commentators don't believe Facebook's threat should be taken too seriously.