European Union

The Five Star Movement (M5S) and the Democratic Party (PD) are almost ready to form a new government in Italy, but cannot agree on who should be the new prime minister. The PD first refused current prime minister Giuseppe Conte, but now says "'yes' to Conte, but without Di Maio". Luigi Di Maio is currently deputy prime minister and M5S leader. The presidential deadline for an agreement is Tuesday.

At the end of June 2019, there were 439,039 asylum seeker applications in the EU awaiting a decision in the first instance - an increase compared to a year ago, according to figures from the European Asylum Support Office. An equal number of cases were also pending an appeal. The rejection rate for asylum requests in Europe has risen from 37 percent in 2016 to 64 percent in 2019.

US president Donald Trump promised a "quick" free-trade agreement with the UK after Brexit at the G7 summit, saying the UK quitting the EU would be like getting rid of an "an anchor round the ankle". As a member of the EU, the UK cannot conclude trade deals with other countries on its own, but it has provisionally agreed 13 different deals that should apply post-Brexit.

UK leader Boris Johnson said at the G7 summit that Britain could "easily cope" with a no-deal Brexit, adding that the £39bn [€43bn] Brexit settlement previously agreed by his country would not "strictly speaking" be owed to Brussels if there was no exit accord. He added that the prospect of a Brexit deal was "improving", but EU officials said it was up to Britain to solve the Irish border issue.

Western leaders could not agree whether to drop Russia sanctions or how to handle Iran and Brazil at the G7 summit in France.

Belgium's outgoing government has nominated its foreign minister, Didier Reynders, to join the European Commission, complicating government talks.

A trade deal between Europe and the Mercosur countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) provides a clear commitment to the Paris Agreement in combatting climate change, the new EU ambassador in Brasilia, Ignácio Ybáñez, told EURACTIV’s partner EFE in an...

The UK government confirmed on Friday (23 August) that it would not nominate a European Commissioner candidate, branding the issue “a distraction” as Britain prepares to leave the EU on 31 October.

It may sound like a strange thing to enshrine in a country's constitution: the right to pay cash. But a debate on whether to do just that has entered Austria's election campaign, shining a light on the country's love of cold, hard currency.

The power of the European Parliament

The only directly elected European Union (EU) institution; the European Parliament’s (EP) power and influence in pursuit of citizens’ interests have evolved significantly, transforming it into a full-fledged legislative body and forum of discussion and engagement at the heart of representative democracy, whose influence is felt in virtually all areas of EU activity.
What are then the European Parliament’s main powers?

What difference does the Parliament’s work make to how Europeans live their lives? This series highlights some practical examples of EP impact during the 2014-2019 legislative term.

Ukraine is a key example of how the European Parliament has increased its ‘soft’, diplomatic power. As explained below, before and after the Maidan revolution in 2013-2014, which was sparked by the decision by the then President, Viktor Yanukovich, not to sign an Association Agreement with the European Union, the European Parliament has played an increasingly visible role in relation to democracy support. In February 2014, the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament) voted to impeach Yanukovich, who fled Kyiv. The conflict in Ukraine represents a struggle for respect for international law, which Russia violated through its illegal annexation of Crimea in March 2014 and its hybrid war against Ukraine. The European Parliament, whose diplomatic role has steadily expanded, is now leading internal reform and capacity-building efforts for the Verkhovna Rada.

The European Parliament’s evolution to becoming an agenda-setter in Kyiv has also boosted its visibility in Brussels. While initially limited to monitoring the trial against former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, a European Parliament-initiated mission led by former Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewksi and former European Parliament President Pat Cox, later expanded its function. Cox and Kwasniewski helped pave the way for the negotiation of the Association Agreement. Thus, the function of the mission evolved from monitoring to mediation; in Cox’s own words, it became a ‘point of exchange between not only Brussels and Kiev, but also between the Ukrainian government and the opposition’.

The simultaneous ratification of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement by the European Parliament and the Verkhovna Rada on 16 September 2014 was a historic demonstration of the commitment of both parties to develop solid inter-parliamentary ties, laying the ground for the continued mutual commitment to democracy support activities. The European Parliament and the Verkhovna Rada signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Kyiv on 3 July 2015 with the stated purpose of establishing a joint framework for parliamentary support and capacity-building of the Verkhovna Rada. In line with the MoU, a Needs Assessment Mission (NAM) led by Pat Cox, was conducted in Ukraine to identify the key needs of the Verkhovna Rada in this respect. The European Parliament’s NAM prepared the ground for the EU/UNDP project ‘Rada for Europe: driving reforms across Ukraine’, with 52 recommendations recognised in the March 2016 Verkhovna Rada resolution 1035-VIII.

Launched within the framework of the European Parliament’s democracy support activities for Ukraine in 2016, the concept of using the Jean Monnet House in Bazoches (France) for mediation and dialogue activities is expanding, as the Parliament is demonstrating the added value of parliamentary mediation as a soft power tool to complement overall EU approaches. Building on the experience with its Jean Monnet Dialogues with Ukraine, the first Jean Monnet Dialogue with the Sobranie of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia took place on 18-19 May 2018 in Ohrid.

The 2018 Sakharov Prize was awarded to Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov – a prominent civil society activist during the Maidan, who was arrested by the Russian Federal Security Service in Crimea in May 2014 and is currently detained in Siberia. The European Parliament thus increased the pressure on Russia to release Sentsov, drawing attention also to other Ukrainian political prisoners in Russia.

Growing soft power – EU foreign policy

a mapping of EP powers

Ever since 1979, Members of the European Parliament have aimed to boost the role of the institution in the EU’s foreign policy. These efforts have continued to increase since the creation of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) in 1993. The EP is seen internationally as a ‘capable moral force with strong focus on strengthening human rights, supporting democracy and enhancing the rule of law worldwide’ (P. Bajtay). The Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought is one specific example of this: set up in 1988, it is awarded each year to honour individuals and organisations defending human rights and fundamental freedoms.

The EP’s comprehensive approach to democracy support is also part of this ‘soft-power’ approach to international relations. Launched in 2014, it includes election monitoring, mediation, as well as training of staff and members of non-EU parliaments. In addition to this, Parliament can convey messages in ways and through channels that are different from those employed by the EU’s traditional diplomatic players, for example, through its parliamentary networks.

The European Parliament has become a public forum both for representatives of partner countries and international organisations, as well as influential non-state actors. Parliamentarians pro-actively engage in inter-parliamentary delegations and missions to third countries, and are members of various joint parliamentary assemblies. Moreover, parties in different countries often share strong links by virtue of the fact that they belong to the same political family.

Parliament also enjoys treaty-based information and consultation rights, which allow its members to shape the EU’s external policies. The High Representative is invited regularly to consult Parliament on the main aspects and basic choices of the CFSP and the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). MEPs can also address questions and make recommendations to the Council and the HR/VP. A major innovation in the EP’s powers to shape and control EU foreign policy has been MEPs’ exchanges of views with Heads of EU delegations after their appointment by the HR/VP, but prior to taking up their post in a third country. EU ambassadors inform Members about the country concerned and the EU priorities and objectives to be pursued in relations with the partner country. MEPs may use these opportunities to question the ambassadors, and provide advice and suggestions on the conduct of relations.

Read the complete study on ‘The power of the European Parliament: Examples of EP impact during the 2014-19 legislative term‘ in the Think Tank pages of the European Parliament.

The readmission of Russia in the Group of Seven most industrialised countries became a bone of contention between Donald Trump and his partners during a summit held in Biarritz (France), as the Europeans and Canada insisted on maintaining the group as a “club of liberal democracies”.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Sunday (25 August) said he and President Donald Trump were "gung-ho" about a post-Brexit trade deal but cautioned the United States would be tough negotiators and that he would not rush talks.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif flew into Biarritz in southwestern France for the G7 summit on Sunday (25 August) in a surprise attempt to break a diplomatic deadlock over Tehran's disputed nuclear programme.

Talks between Italy's anti-establishment 5-Star Movement and the centre-left Democratic Party (PD) to form a new government have hit a stumbling block over the PD's opposition to Giuseppe Conte being reinstated as prime minister.

Two of the industries involved in the infernos consuming the Amazon rainforest and drawing the attention of global powers gathered at the G7 meeting in France are familiar to diners worldwide: soy and beef.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told Russia’s Vladimir Putin on Friday (23 August) that Syrian army attacks in northwest Syria are causing a humanitarian crisis and threaten Turkey’s national security, the Turkish presidency said.

What if Europe was the best place in the world for digital innovation? When it comes to Europe’s position on the global digital market, some might say we are better at regulating and planning than delivering, but we are catching up and this positive development has already been going on for about a decade. Europe is cool again!

The EU executive will urgently contact the Italian authorities to better understand the exact circumstances regarding the lack of instant and accurate caller location of a French hiker found dead in Italy earlier this month, an EU source told EURACTIV.com.

At a press conference ahead of the summit, President Tusk highlighted the EU position on the summit topics

The EU will react with new tariffs against US products if Donald Trump decides to impose duties on French wine, European Council President Donald Tusk said hours before the opening of what is likely to be a heated G7 summit on Saturday (24 August).