European Union

In today's edition of the Capitals, find out more about the 30-page document outlining Italy's recovery plan, the EU agreeing to disburse €2.4 million in grants to help Serbia's media outlets deal with the COVID-19 crisis, and so much more.

Moscow only subsequently learned about the details of Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić’s visit to Washington, which caused surprise among Russia’s leadership, Moscow daily Kommersant reported on 8 September. “The signing of the item on Kosovo and Israel agreeing to mutually...

The EU will disburse a total of €2.4 million in grants over the next three years to assist media outlets in Serbia in dealing with the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Applicants can receive between €10,000 and €150,000, with grants...

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Tuesday (8 September) that the intentional calculated risk in relaxing virus measures enabled the reactivation of the economy and that the policy of reopening the country was based on expert estimates. Asked by reporters...

Poland’s Justice Ministry plans to cut the number of Supreme Court judges to 20-30 from the current 97 and merge some of the top court’s chambers, Rzeczpospolita said on Tuesday, as the ruling coalition pushes on with judiciary reforms. “To...

Senate chair Ružena Sabová has denied media reports stating that the decision to acquit the alleged masterminds behind the double murder of journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancee Martina Kušnírová had been made by two senate members, who outvoted her....

Fire broke out at Greece’s overcrowded migrant camp of Moria on the island of Lesbos early on Wednesday, Reuters reported. According to Greek media, this occurred after 35 people were tested positive for COVID-19. Approximately 12,000 people have fled the...

A 30-page document outlining Italy’s recovery plan will be discussed by Italy’s interministerial committee on European affairs today. Six key “missions”, including digitalisation and innovation, the green transition, health, sustainable infrastructures, education and research, as well as social and territorial...

Finnish cheese, which has long been a must in the shopping baskets of Russian tourists, has now become the number one item of illegal trading due to COVID-19 restrictions prohibiting normal visits from across the border and EU sanctions prohibiting...

Open Vld leader Egbert Lachaert, who is currently tasked with exploring options for a potential governing coalitions for a new federal government, has tested positive for COVID-19 and will go into a 14 day quarantine. This gives the country’s protracted...

On Tuesday (8 September), Russia demanded a meeting with German ambassador to Moscow Géza Andreas von Geyr and accused the country of bluffing in response to Germany’s reaction to the poisoning of dissident Alexei Navalny. At the meeting, which is...

“There is a broad agreement not to withdraw the fiscal stimulus of the economy,” a senior EU official said yesterday (8 September) ahead of a Eurogroup meeting on Friday. The meeting on Friday will be the first with the physical...

On the 62nd day of protests in Bulgaria, which aim to force the resignation of Prime Minister Boyko Borissov, pressure is mounting on the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP) to withdraw support for his GERB party. MEP Radan Kanev from...

Valencia is one of the dozen finalists in the race to become the 2020 European Capital of Innovation. In an interview with EURACTIV, its mayor, Joan Ribó, defended their mission-oriented proposal to overcome the biggest challenges of our period, bringing on board political parties, the civil society and the scientific community.

The European Court of Auditors, which monitors European Union spending, has called for an overhaul of the bloc’s development spending programmes for African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) to prioritise domestic manufacturing and energy.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her economy minister on Tuesday (8 September) played down the possibility of halting the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany as part of any sanctions imposed on Moscow due to the poisoning of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.

France has postponed a visit to Moscow next week by its foreign and armed forces ministers as European powers seek answers from Russia to Germany's findings that Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny was poisoned.

The international community is reluctant to act and prefers to stick to empty condemnations of Vladimir Putin’s toxic acts. But Putin is ready to intervene in Belarus and the West cannot shy away, as it did in Ukraine. Only a 'big stick' policy can turn the tide, argues Hans van Baalen.

Poland wants to speed up phasing out coal and spend billions to build renewable and nuclear power infrastructure to address challenges related to climate change and ensure stable power supplies, the government said on Tuesday (8 September).

Britain was preparing to violate international norms by reneging on parts of the Brexit withdrawal treaty, Brandon Lewis, Britain's Northern Ireland secretary, told MPs Tuesday. "Yes, this does break international law in a very specific and limited way ... in a certain very tightly defined circumstance," he said. "How can the government reassure future international partners that the UK can be trusted?", former British prime minister Theresa May also said.