European Union

Some 52 percent of Germans wanted deeper ties with the EU, while 27 percent said it was better off on its own, according to a poll by ARD-Deutschlandtrend. The pro-EU figure was down five points on April, while the anti-EU one rose by two points. Support grew marginally for left-wing parties and stayed the same for centre-right and far-right ones. Some 81 percent also said climate change was a priority.

Spain has said it would give shelter to Venezuelan opposition politician Leopoldo Lopez and his family after they sought refuge in its embassy in Caracas from government forces. Four people have died in street clashes this week, as Lopez' ally, the EU-backed opposition leader Juan Guaido, called on army chiefs to defect. Spain has extensive oil interests in Venezuela, but the political crisis there has not yet affected its investments.

The US has echoed Danish concerns that China's plan to renovate Greenland's airport and build a new research and satellite centre there could pave the way for a greater military presence in the Arctic. "Civilian research could support a strengthened Chinese military presence in the Arctic Ocean," the Pentagon said in a report. China's growing submarine fleet could lead its military expansion in the High North, it said.

All European parties, except those on the left and including the centre-right EPP, will be considered as allies to Italy's right-wing Lega party in the upcoming EU elections, leader Matteo Salvini said in Hungary on Thursday (2 May).

Estonia's new interior minister Mart Helme, from the far-right EKRE party in the ruling coalition, called Estonian president Kersti Kaljulaid an "emotionally heated woman" after she walked out of the swearing-in ceremony of his EKRE colleague, technology and trade minister Marti Kuusik. She did it following media reports that Kusik was guilty of domestic violence, prompting a police enquiry, which saw him quickly resign, despite calling the reports "slander".

The gloves are off at the United Nations between the United States and their once-close European allies, according to some diplomats.

An oddly uncontroversial debate between the lead candidates of the four major pro-European political families at this month's EU elections took place in Florence on Thursday (2 May).

Imports of liquefied natural gas from the US “can play a very important role for our security of supply,” and also contribute to the EU’s emission reduction goals, the European Commission said on Thursday (2 May).

The Netherlands, Austria "and all too often Germany" are preventing deeper euro zone integration, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker told German newspaper Handelsblatt.

The Capitals brings you the latest news from across Europe, through on-the-ground reporting by EURACTIV’s media network. You can subscribe to the newsletter here. /// BERLIN BMW under collective ownership. The leadership of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) has distanced itself...

Weber snubs debate and does not speak, UK secretary sacked over leak, and 15th birthday celebrations for the EU clique.

Written by Tania Latici,

© donfiore / Fotolia

Despite the recent turmoil in Britain’s defence establishment, it is in both the European Union and the United Kingdom’s interest to continue to have a deeply interlinked defence partnership.

The 2018 British National Security Capability Review states ‘Europe’s security is our security’. The expected departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union will not alter geography, and the UK will remain a European country. The UK and the countries of the EU share the same strategic environment and, by default, the same threats to their peace and security. Historically, pragmatically and geographically, they remain deeply linked from a security and defence perspective, and there is political consensus on the need to nurture this linkage. Official documents from the British government also confirm this: the UK is exiting the EU, not Europe.

In legal terms, after leaving the EU, the UK will become a third country to the EU and cooperation will continue on that basis. While the EU’s common security and defence policy has an established precedent in cooperating closely with third countries on missions and operations, albeit without providing them with decision-making roles, the EU’s new defence integration initiatives are currently exploring third party cooperation. As the UK played a founding role in developing the EU’s security and defence policy, it is naturally deeply interconnected with the other EU Member States in this area. As one of the EU’s biggest military powers, the UK brings a particularly valuable contribution and know-how to the field.

Both parties have made commitments to ensure as close as possible a partnership in foreign policy, security and defence matters. Can cooperation in the area of security and defence result in a positive post-Brexit tale?

Read the complete Briefing: ‘What role in European defence for a post-Brexit United Kingdom?‘ on the European Parliament Think Tank website.

The Conservatives suffered a big backlash over Brexit in Thursday's council and mayoral elections in England and Northern Ireland, where Labour and Ukip also lost seats while the Liberal Democrats, the Greens, and independent candidates gained support compared to the 2015 elections. Independent candidates won on average 25 percent of the vote where they were standing, the BBC reported. No local elections were held in Scotland and Wales.

North Macedonia goes to the polls on Sunday (5 May) in a presidential run-off vote that will be a litmus test for the pro-Western government, which has warned low turnout could invalidate the vote and trigger a general election.

German chancellor Merkel has excluded cooperation between the European Christian Democrats and right-wing populist parties after the European elections after Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban supported co-operation on migration policy with Italian far-right leader Matteo Salvini's planned new EU group. During a visit to Nigeria Merkel, repeated her support for the centre-right's leading candidate Manfred Weber, saying "there will be no cooperation with right-wing parties after the election," Spiegel reported.

With European elections around the corner, press freedom advocates are holding their breath because political change can make for uncertain times.

A new study ranks EU countries according to the influence they try to exert through the size and expertise of their "permanent representations". Finland and Ireland come out on top.

Hungary's Orban has hinted at leaving the EPP for Italy's far-right Salvini, saying it will be difficult to remain in the centre-right political family if it allied with leftist parties after the European Parliament elections.

The UK's local elections on Thursday (2 May) will offer a test of the damage done to Theresa May’s Conservative party by her failure to deliver the country's exit from the European Union.

Most pundits pin the loss of Theresa May’s authority to her losing her governing majority in June 2017. The two years since have gradually reduced her to a husk attracting derision or, worse, sympathy.