European Union

In a letter sent to German chancellor Angela Merkel and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, leaders of the largest European parliament groups, including the centre-right EPP, leftwing S&D, liberal Renew, and Greens, called for tougher rule-of-law conditions in the EU budget. Without an agreement on this with member states, the parliament cannot pass the long-term EU budget agreed by the EU-27 leaders, the letter said.

EU-UK talks will not be discussed at a meeting of EU ambassadors next week because of the lack of progress in negotiations about the future relationship, the Guardian reported. EU officials think the British government is prepared to risk a no-deal exit when the transition period ends at the end of the year. EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier last week said he was surprised by the UK "wasting valuable time".

Belarusian authorities have questioned Nobel prize-winning author Svetlana Alexievich as part of an investigation into an opposition council created to facilitate the political transition in the country. Alexievich is part of the council's leadership. After being released on Wednesday, she said she had refused to answer questions. Belarusians have been protesting for free elections after Alexander Lukashenko won re-election in a 9 August poll that the EU says was rigged.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is not giving up on Turkish claims in the eastern Mediterranean, he said in a fiery speech.

Kosovo will do its part, but it needs help from Germany to realise its potential as a member of the Euro-Atlantic community.

Spain detected more than 7,000 new corona-infections Tuesday, mostly in Madrid, but also in the Balearic islands, surpassing the US in per-capita cases. France reported over 5,400 new ones, with neighbouring Belgium declaring Paris a "red-zone", forbidding travel. One third of Spaniards told a survey by the Carlos III Health Institute they would refuse to take a vaccine if there was one and 42 percent voiced pessimism on the pandemic.

The EU has frozen the work of its 600-man strong military and police training missions in Mali following a recent putsch there, while admitting it had trained some of those responsible. "Some of the leading figures of the coup d'etat have ... enjoyed training in Germany and France," German defence minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said in Berlin. "We don't train armies to be putschists," EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said.

Norway is planning to expand oil drilling in previously untouched areas of the Arctic, a move campaigners say threatens the fragile ecosystem and could spark a military standoff with Russia.

The city of Berlin has banned demonstrations planned for the weekend opposing measures to curb the coronavirus pandemic, amid increasing infections in Germany. At a recent rally, marchers deliberately did not wear masks and did not kept their distance. About 20,000 people, including libertarians, far-right supporters, and anti-vaccination activists marched in Berlin earlier this month. Several thousand police will patrol Berlin streets at the weekend.

In today's edition of the Capitals, find out more about Prague suing China for the low quality FFP2 respirators purchased during the coronavirus pandemic, how PM Sanchez is looking to talk with the opposition to create unity against the virus, and so much more.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic reiterated on Wednesday (26 August) that Belgrade’s stance was “the absolute adherence to the Dayton agreement” and the preservation of Republika Srpska (RS) in the way that is envisaged in that peace agreement. After the meeting...

Montenegrin police have received data that individuals and groups plan to cause incidents and unrest on the day of parliamentary elections set for Sunday (30 August), said Veselin Veljović, the director of Montenegrin police. “Our findings indicate that these people...

Croatia’s Andrej Plenković told foreign diplomats at a reception that he expects “intensive and open communication in the years to come”. Plenković also hopes his peers will help towards “strengthening the economy” and building “a tolerant society and resolving open...

Justice Minister Danail Kirilov filed his resignation on Wednesday after a talk with Prime Minister Boyko Borissov. The PM will decide whether to accept Kirilov’s resignation following talks with coalition partners, after which parliament will have to vote on his...

It is in the best interest of Poland that a sovereign Belarus can decide its fate, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Wednesday (26 August) after parliamentary cross-party talks focused on the situation in Poland’s eastern neighbour. Morawiecki said that...

The solar auction at which 670 megawatts (MW) were awarded broke “a new world record” with the price of €11.14 MW-hour (MW/h), announced Portugal’s Environment Minister João Pedro Matos Fernandes at a press conference in Lisbon. “The auction was in...

Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is set to meet the heads of the country’s main opposition forces in parliament, official sources announced on Wednesday. The Spanish PM will meet the leader of the Partido Popular (PP), Pablo Casado, on 2...

On Wednesday (26 August) the Italian government held a summit attended by ministers and regional governors on the reopening of schools. For now, the country’s education ministry has published the details of many of the safety protocols for the new...

Finnish President Sauli Niinistö has expressed growing concern over the way the EU is stretching the limits of its treaties. Speaking at the Ambassadors’ Conference on Tuesday (25 August), Niinistö pointed out that there is a growing gap between the...

According to the latest update from Belgium’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Belgians can no longer travel to several new regions in France and Spain, which have been declared a ‘red zone’. At the same time, the EU’s capital has been...