European Union

Since the start of the war in Ukraine criticism of Germany for its hitherto Russia-friendly policy has increased. The country has now put the controversial Nordstream 2 pipeline project on ice but it continues to purchase gas from Russia and for economic reasons rejects calls for it to immediately suspend all imports. Commentators are annoyed.

Hungary will elect a new parliament on Sunday. Until the war, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán of the Fidesz party was considered Putin's closest friend in the EU; hardly any country in Europe is more dependent on Russian gas. Now the war in Ukraine could inject new life into the election campaign. A look at the country's opinion columns.

On their Caribbean trip to Belize, Jamaica and the Bahamas, Prince William and Kate Middleton were confronted with protests and debates about colonialism, slavery and compensation, as well as calls for independence from the British royal family- although they were actually there to mark the Queen's Platinum Jubilee. Commentators note that this does not bode well for the British monarchy.

On Tuesday afternoon, the Women’s Rights Committee will discuss with Commissioner Johansson how to protect women and children refugees fleeing Ukraine.
Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality

Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

On Tuesday afternoon, the Women’s Rights Committee will discuss with Commissioner Johansson how to protect women and children refugees fleeing Ukraine.
Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality

Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Europe cannot just buy alternatives to Russian gas—it must create supply in a way that complies with its climate objectives and avoids locking in further greenhouse gas emissions, writes Nikos Tsafos.

EDA is working on the establishment of a European Terrain Database (ETDB) which will include a vast selection of images taken from across Europe to be made available to Member States’ Armed Forces for multiple military purposes. To this end, a Multinational Field Trial Exercise was held on 23/24 March at the land test centre of the Italian Armed Forces (Centro Polifunzionale di Sperimentazione) in Montelibretti near Rome. 

More than 30 experts from military test centres based in Italy, Sweden, Greece, Spain, the Netherlands, France and Portugal participated in the exercise co-organised by EDA and the Italian Secretariat General of the Defence and National Armaments Directorate - Technological Innovation Department. The first part of the event took place outdoor, in the wider area of the test centre, and was aimed at acquiring images with several cameras working in different spectral regions (visible, long wave Infrared, short wave Infrared) under diverse configurations (mounted on a drone or grounded). A large number of pictures of different terrain landscapes were taken, with and without a specific target. During the second part of the exercise, all these images were uploaded onto the prototypic software platform of the future European Terrain Database which will be installed on EDA servers in the coming months, ready to be populated by users from different participating Member States with unclassified images in different spectral regions (visible, Infrared wavelengths and microwave). The stored pictures will also include information and metadata deemed necessary or useful for their military usage in test and/or research activities.

Once established and fully accessible, the database can be used, for instance, for target recognition, the assessment and improvement of camouflage effectiveness, the testing and enhancement of sensors in different terrains, the generation of synthetic images or the support of modelling and simulation activities. 

The exercise participants came from different expert communities with an interest in the ETDB, particularly scientists and technicians specialised in Optronics and Radar sensor design (including materials) and performance prediction, design, development and testing of new camouflage, visible and infrared signature and Radar Cross Section mitigation solutions. The future dataset can be employed by the Ministries of Defence of all participating Member States for R&T initiatives as well as for operational and training purposes. The multinational field trial was therefore an excellent opportunity for those experts to meet and explore potential cooperation opportunities among European defence test centres.

The event was organised in the framework of EDA’s Defence Test & Evaluation Base (DTEB) initiative, which was launched in 2010 to collect, share and harmonise defence test & evaluation standards and procedures at European level. In the meantime, the DTEB has developed into a dynamic and useful network, not only of European Military Test Centres, but also of companies, universities and public/private research centres operating in the sector of defence technologies.

 

The 24 February was a turning point in European history. But while we are currently focused on the immediate consequences of the Russian aggression in Ukraine, it is also pivotal to pay attention to other regional theatres of exchange between Russia and the West, write Andreas Raspotnik and Andreas Østhagen.

Sky-high gas prices have sent demand for heat pumps booming across Europe, exposing a range of bottlenecks limiting industry's ability to deliver, including a shortage of skilled labour, as well as the need to simultaneously insulate buildings to ensure maximum efficiency.

Israeli and Arab partners convened for a rare summit in Israel on Sunday (27 March) attended by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who sought to reassure the US allies over Washington's diplomacy with Iran.

Russia and Azerbaijan on Sunday (27 March) traded barbs over the movement of Azeri forces in Nagorno-Karabakh where a simmering dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan flared into a six-week war in 2020.

In today's edition of the Capitals, find out more about German states banning the Russian 'Z' symbol, Czech diplomats in Moscow being harassed by Russian authorities, and so much more.