European Union

In today's edition of The Capitals, find out more about France mulling new COVID-19 restrictions, the European Commission givingPoland an August deadline comply with the CJEU’s decisions, and so much more.

North Macedonia’s government has approved the text of the bill on Control of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, which is harmonised with several international acts. One of the standout points is the establishment of the Agency for Control of Cultivation...

New COVID-19 vaccine incentives for residents of Serbia will be presented over the next few days, said Mirsad Djerlek, a state secretary at the country’s health ministry. In a statement to Tuesday’s issue of Belgrade daily Kurir, Djerlek said he...

The European Commission has decided to launch an investigation on the surveillance of EU journalists as the bloc reels from the Pegasus Project revelations released over the weekend that governments had used military spyware to intercept communications. “We are starting...

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has convicted Bulgaria for inhuman and degrading treatment of a journalist extradited back to Turkey, despite the risks of being abused during the persecution of Gulenists in the country. In 2016, Bulgarian authorities...

Brussels and Washington have reacted strongly to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s decision to partially reopen a coastal resort town emptied of its original Greek Cypriot residents as well as his proposal for a two-state solution on Cyprus issue.

The UK government on Tuesday (20 July) accused the European Union of “seeking to undermine the UK’s sovereignty over Gibraltar”, warning that the bloc’s plans “cannot form a basis for negotiations”.

Freedom of the press, lack of independence of the judiciary and the management of migrants: The European Commission in its second EU-wide rule of law report released on Tuesday stated that during the COVID-19 pandemic, “the risk of corruption in...

The EU executive has given Poland a 16 August deadline for it to comply with the order issued by the EU Court of Justice (CJEU) last week, which called on the country to freeze all actions by the disciplinary chamber...

The prosecutor general’s office is looking into the Israeli spy software that targeted Hungarian journalists, lawyers, politicians and businessmen, while the country’s data office is on leave, Telex reported on Tuesday. The Israeli cyber company NSO’s spyware programme Pegasus has been used...

Ownership of Czech media is very concentrated and not always transparent, according to the Media Pluralism Monitor published by the European University Institute. “The Czech Republic does not have any media-specific provision in its national law that requires the disclosure...

The United States and Germany will take action against Russia if it uses the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline to harm Ukraine or other Eastern European countries, according to sources familiar with a bilateral agreement expected on Wednesday (21 July).

Only those fully vaccinated against COVID-19 will be able to attend the meeting with Pope Francis, who will visit Slovakia in September, announced Health Minister Vladimír Lengvarský, after an agreement with the President of the Conference of Bishops of Slovakia...

Without measuring and quantifying the extent of discrimination and inequalities in Europe, it becomes very difficult to effectively tackle them, the EU’s first anti-racism coordinator, Michaela Moua, told EURACTIV. Michaela Moua is a former basketball player and Finnish justice ministry...

EU equality bodies have a significant potential to contribute to more equal societies, and they have proved to be effective agents of change. Last September, the European Commission proposed an EU Anti-Racism Action Plan, which laid out policies to address...

Portugal should reach group immunity by the end of the summer, Prime Minister António Costa said on Tuesday, adding that this creates “a very important moment for confidence and total liberation of society.” At the ceremony to sign four investment...

If the world does not react to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s regional provocations in Cyprus and beyond, he will be encouraged to continue in a destabilising way that undermines US interests, Cypriot Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides said on Tuesday....

Companies that transfer bitcoin or other cryptoassets must collect details of senders and recipients to help authorities crack down on dirty money, EU policymakers proposed on Tuesday (20 July) in the latest efforts to tighten regulation of the sector.

As France faces an “explosion” of COVID-19 cases due to the Delta variant, according to government spokesman Gabriel Attal, the executive seems to be considering new restrictions. New measures may include early closing hours for restaurants, the renewed obligation to...

Chancellor Angela Merkel and conservative chancellor hopeful Armin Laschet visited flooded areas in western Germany on Tuesday, promising speedy financial aid to the regions. The area “is hit so hard that it really leaves you speechless,” said Merkel in Munstereifel,...