European Union

The Spanish Congress has agreed to consider a bill in favour of an individual's right to euthanasia. Under current legislation both assisted suicide and active euthanasia are punishable with up to six years in prison. What views does the Spanish press take of the decision?

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EU heads of state or government meet on 28 June 2018 in Brussels to focus on migration, security and defence, as well as economic and financial affairs. Leaders are expected to discuss the internal and external dimensions of migration policy, including the reform of the Common European Asylum System (CEAS).  EU leaders are expected to adopt conclusions on several issues recently debated under the Leaders' Agenda, such as taxation, innovation and digital. The European Council also endorses the country specific recommendations under the 2018 European Semester and discusses the future handling of the multi-annual financial framework (MFF), including a timeline. Leaders also discuss trade. In terms of security and defence, leaders discuss EU-NATO cooperation ahead of the NATO summit in July and provide orientations for further work, in particular on permanent structured cooperation (PESCO). The European Council also addresses military mobility, the European Defence Fund, the European Defence Industrial Development Programme (EDIDP) and Civilian Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). In light of events, the European Council may address specific foreign policy issues.

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Committee and political group meetings, Brussels

Source : © European Union, 2018 - EP

Negotiations over the EU's next long-term budget will start soon and the reform of the Cohesion Policy is one of its main elements. Nikola Dobroslavić (EPP), the European Committee of the Regions' rapporteur on this matter, analysed the worries cities and regions have about the current proposal in an interview with EURACTIV.

C and A
Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
Advocate General Mengozzi proposes that the Court should rule that the Netherlands law requiring a person who already has the right to family reunification to pass a second civic integration examination in order to obtain an autonomous residence permit is incompatible with EU law.

Berlusconi and Fininvest
Freedom of establishment
Advocate General Campos Sánchez-Bordona proposes that the Court of Justice should declare that the EU Courts have exclusive jurisdiction to review the legality of ECB measures and of preparatory measures adopted in procedures for authorisation to acquire or increase qualifying holdings in banks

EU ministers held the first-ever Article 7 hearing in Luxembourg on Tuesday (June 26) to determine the state of play in the rule of law dispute between Brussels and Poland. The EU remains unconvinced by Poland's recent efforts, with everyone waiting to see if and how a crucial judicial reform will go ahead on 3 July.

US president Donald Trump may meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Helsinki in July, a US official has said, according to CNN. Trump would meet Putin while in Europe for the Nato summit in Brussels in July. Neither the White House nor the Kremlin has confirmed a meeting. "At least neither country have strong objections to Helsinki as the location for a summit," researcher Teija Tiilikainen told Helsingin Sanomat.

Four individuals in the Cabinet Brexit sub-committee, namely Theresa May, Boris Johnson, David Davies and Liam Fox, are so trapped in their rhetoric about taking back control and regaining freedom, that if they changed their position, their political careers would be over, writes Michael Emerson.

After a nearly four-hour crisis meeting in chancellor Angela Merkel's office, party and parliamentary leaders of Germany's governing parties departed early Wednesday morning without agreement in the asylum dispute that is splitting the CSU and CDU sister parties ahead of the EU summit this week. Meanwhile a Spiegel survey showed a drop in support for CDU and CSU to 29.8 percent.

The Cypriot government on Tuesday confirmed a request from Israel to examine the possibility of building a port facility for Gaza-destined goods to pass through. Such a facility would provide a new way for goods to make it to the Gaza Strip, which is under a blockade by Israel and Egypt. The Cyprus port plan would include construction of a special pier for cargo ships carrying goods destined for Gaza.

Over 500 Austrian policemen and 220 soldiers took part in an exercise on Tuesday on the Slovenian border over fears of a repeat of the 2015 migrant crisis. "A state which can't protect its borders when needed loses its credibility," said far-right Freedom Party interior minister Herbert Kickl, overseeing the exercise with defence minister Mario Kunasek. It was the first time Austria's new border guard troop, 'Puma', was in action.

EU ministers agreed on Tuesday to revise the Union's maritime security strategy. With 90 percent of the EU's external trade and 40 percent of its internal trade transported by sea, security for the ships is of high priority. The strategy forms part of the larger EU Global Strategy, takes into account the future European Defence Fund and affirms the EU as a "global maritime security provider".

British and European trade unions and business organisations have clubbed together in a rare joint call for "pace and urgency" in Brexit negotiations. In a statement from CBI, BusinessEurope, TUC and the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), ahead of this week's EU summit, they call on the UK government and the EU to bring "measurable progress". Disagreement would be "dire for firms, workers and the communities where they live."

A minor escalation carries an important message. Russia has reason to support Azerbaijan’s move in Nakhchivan, as its primary imperative in the South Caucasus is to prevent any country from moving too far into the Western camp, writes Xander Snyder.