European Union

National airline Finnair is planning to set up a joint venture with Chinese carrier Juneyao Air, Yle Uutiset newspaper writes. Both firms have been cooperating since July 2019. "Despite these immensely challenging times for our industry, we at Finnair remain steadfast in our belief and commitment to China as a key market and to Juneyao Air as a key partner," chief commercial officer Ole Orver said.

In light of the disruptive impact of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the European Commission is assessing the need to delay a series of important actions, including in the field of digital affairs, a draft copy of the executive's working programme seen by EURACTIV reveals.

As the world's largest single market, the EU is an influential leader for setting global sustainability reporting standards. While we’ve seen significant growth in the number of organisations reporting sustainability impacts, more needs to be done to improve the disclosures, writes Tim Mohin.

Parliament and Council revise EU rules at unprecedented speed to give EU member states immediate access to EU funding to combat the pandemic and its consequences.

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Parliament and Council revise EU rules at unprecedented speed to give EU member states immediate access to EU funding to combat the pandemic and its consequences.

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Austria has taken the initiative and began easing its lockdown measures for containing the coronavirus on Tuesday. Plans for an exit strategy from the restrictions are also being made in other European countries. Journalists discuss when such steps can be taken and what dilemmas societies face.

The International Monetary Fund has predicted that the coronavirus pandemic will spark the worst recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s. GDPs are set to shrink by 7.5 percent in the Eurozone and around three percent globally. Europe's press voices concern and discusses the consequences.

As the focus of global debate slowly shifts from curbing the coronavirus to how to end the social and economic restrictions, previously dominant "green" issues such as climate protection seem to have disappeared from the political and social agenda. Europe's press stresses in unison that these issues are no less urgent than they were before - on the contrary.

Today, Wednesday, the Polish parliament is debating a law that would ban abortion and make sex education at schools a punishable offence. Human rights organisations are fiercely criticising the government and accusing it of taking advantage of the fact that public protest is not possible in the current lockdown. People are instead using posters, car windshields and windows to express their opposition to the legislation. Polish media join in the protest.