Euobserver.com

"I never dreamt I would see these things ... and chilling, chilling," Anthony Gardner, the former US ambassador to the EU, said of the pro-Trump mob which stormed the Capitol earlier this week.

China, Iran, and Russia have gloated about the attack on the US Capitol, but for Lithuania's foreign minister, the American republic and democracy more broadly speaking will bounce back.

European leaders hope Joe Biden will travel to Brussels in the first half of the year - although the timing of any such visit is not yet clear.

European far-right leaders who back outgoing US president Donald Trump condemned the violent mob who stormed the Capitol in Washington - but fell short of pinning blame on the man who incited the rioters.

The head of the European branch of the World Health Organization, Hans Kluge, said on Thursday that the variant of Covid-19, first detected in the UK and already registered in 22 European countries, has triggered "an alarming situation" that requires authorities to strengthen public health measures. In Europe, coronavirus cases have surpassed 25 million, according to a Reuters tally - with several countries reintroducing or extending lockdowns.

Customers in Europe buying products from UK companies are receiving unexpected bills for VAT and customs declarations or finding household names have stopped shipping to the continent, as post-Brexit trading rules bite, the Guardian writes. Since the end of the Brexit transition period, continental customers must both complete a customs declaration for goods imported from the UK and pay national VAT.

After the mob attack on Washington's Capitol Hill, we have to ask ourselves if it would be possible to see such a march on Brussels? The answer is yes. Europe is dealing with the same dark forces.

US Democrats unexpectedly won both Senate-seat races in the state of Georgia, a former Republican stronghold, giving them a majority in the Senate and the House of Representatives. Victories by Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock give president-elect Joe Biden more power for possible reform. However, the victories were overshadowed by violence from supporters of outgoing president Donald Trump in Washington the same day.

Portugal's interior minister Eduardo Cabrita has held talks with Greece on a new EU migrant-sharing accord, prior to holding similar discussions with Malta, Italy, and Spain, where most asylum seekers arrive, as well as with EU states with Poland and Hungary, who refused to help take care of them in the past, Reuters reports. EU "solidarity cannot be voluntary", Portugal, which took over the EU presidency on 1 January, said.

Leaders from all over Europe expressed disbelief and serious concern over events unfolding in the continent's main political, economic, and military ally.

Some 1,041 people infected with Covid died in the UK on Tuesday and 62,322 new cases were reported, the British government said on Wednesday. The daily death toll was the highest since 8 April, when 1,445 people died in 24 hours. The numbers made Britain Europe's worst corona-hotspot, ahead of Italy. The British government recently imposed a new lockdown, but its handling of the pandemic has faced severe criticism.

France, Germany, and the UK have said Iran's recent decision to enrich uranium to near weapons-grade, "risks compromising the important opportunity for a return to diplomacy with the incoming US administration". The US abandoned an EU-brokered nuclear non-proliferation deal on Iran in 2018, but the incoming administration of president-elect Joe Biden has signalled interest in rejoining the pact. Experts saw Iran's move as a "reversible" negotiating tactic with Biden's team.

Europe should share corona-vaccines with former Soviet countries on its eastern flank, for health and "strategic" reasons, according to 13 EU foreign ministers.

The EU has demanded China cooperate with the international community to understand better the pandemic, after Chinese officials blocked the arrival of a group of World Health Organization (WHO) researchers investigating the origins of Covid-19 in Wuhan.

Belarus started this week a coronavirus vaccination drive using the Sputnik V jab, becoming the first country outside Russia to use the vaccine developed by Moscow, the Moscow Times writes. Belarus, with a population of around 9.5 million, has registered more than 188,000 cases of coronavirus infections and nearly 1,400 deaths. Belarus' health minister said health workers and teachers would be among the first to be vaccinated.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will remain in custody in Britain, while the US appeals a court decision to block his extradition to face charges there for leaking secret documents, a judge in London ruled on Wednesday. Judge Vanessa Baraitser, who on Monday refused to grant his extradition, said that, if released, there were "substantial grounds" to suspect Assange would "fail to surrender" for future appeal hearings, AFP reported.

The Netherlands on Wednesday began its Covid-19 vaccination program almost two weeks after most other EU countries. Frontline hospital workers will be first in line. Prime minister Mark Rutte told MPs on Tuesday that authorities had focused on the easy-to-handle vaccine made by Oxford University and AstraZeneca, which has not yet been cleared for use in the EU, and not the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, which was approved first.

One little-discussed outcome of Berlin's six-months stint in the EU presidency hot seat is the reactivation of intra-EU consultations among France, Germany... and Poland.

German health minister Jens Spahn on Wednesday defended his country's handling of the Covid-19 vaccination roll-out, saying Germany has "more than enough" vaccines for its 83 million citizens. He added that the newly-approved Moderna jabs are expected in the coming week. Spahn, who came under criticism for the slow roll-out of the vaccine, said the vaccine is "scarce" globally. Since late December, German inoculated 367,331 people, DPA reported.

A journalist who had demanded the EU postpone its trade deal with Vietnam until human rights improved has been sentenced to 15 years in jail. The EU Commission says it first needs to conduct a detailed analysis before responding.