European Union

The Kremlin has published a long historical article in Russian and Ukrainian in which Putin evokes the common roots of Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians in the 'Ancient Rus' and portrays any division of this great people into several states as an accident of history. He fiercely opposes the positioning of Ukraine, supported by the West, as an antipole to Moscow.

As the US and Nato troops withdraw from Afghanistan, the Taliban are expanding their sphere of influence. They have now taken control of large swathes of the country and are fighting the Afghan security forces in several cities. The countries of Europe will not be able to avoid further engagement in the region, commentators write.

By unveiling the ambitious climate package “Fit for 55”, the European Commission showed that the EU’s climate law adopted in April can have teeth. The proposed overhaul of the EU’s regulatory environment is necessary to deliver on the promise to...

At least 1,146 people lost their lives on maritime routes to Europe in the first six months of this year, according to the International Organization for Migration. The figure is more than double that for same period in 2020. "The Mediterranean Sea was the main site of these fatalities," it said, noting 896 people are known to have died attempting to reach Europe on this maritime route.

Guerlain v EUIPO () and cylindrique)
Intellectual and industrial property
EU trade mark: the three-dimensional mark in the shape of a Guerlain lipstick may be registered

The coronavirus pandemic has affected women more than men in France in 2020, according to the national public health agency Santé Publique France, which said that women's socioeconomic status played a greater role than purely health factors. EURACTIV France reports.

A row in Germany over a carbon tax on heating and transport fuels has revealed some of the issues that Europe may soon be confronted with when extending its own carbon market to road transport and housing.

Written by Maria Niestadt.

Tourism plays an enormously important role in the EU economy and society. It generates foreign exchange, supports jobs and businesses, and drives forward local development and cultural exchanges. It also makes places more attractive, not only as destinations to visit but also as locations to live, work, invest and study. Furthermore, as tourism is closely linked with many other sectors – particularly transport – it also affects the wider economy.

The coronavirus pandemic has hit the tourism sector hard. The impact on various tourist destinations in the EU has been asymmetrical and highly localised, reflecting differences in types of tourism on offer, varying travel restrictions, the size of domestic tourism markets, level of exposure to international tourism, and the importance of tourism in the local economy. At the beginning of summer 2021, several EU Member States started to remove certain travel restrictions (such as the requirements for quarantine or testing for fully vaccinated travellers coming from certain countries). However, all continue to apply many sanitary and health measures (such as limits on the number of people in common areas, and cleaning and disinfection of spaces). Such measures and restrictions change in line with the evolving public health situation, sometimes at short notice, making recovery difficult for the sector. The EU and its Member States have provided the tourism sector with financial and other support. Some measures were already adopted in 2020. Others were endorsed only shortly before the beginning of summer 2021. One flagship action has been the speedy adoption of an EU Digital Covid Certificate. This certificate harmonises, at EU level, proof of vaccination, Covid-19 test results and certified recovery from the virus. However, it does not end the patchwork of travel rules. Despite efforts to harmonise travel rules at Council level, Member States still apply different rules to various categories of traveller (such as children or travellers arriving from third countries).

Read the complete briefing on ‘Re-starting tourism in the EU amid the pandemic‘ in the Think Tank pages of the European Parliament.

• Contribution of travel and tourism to GDP (2020 change compared with 2019)
• Contribution of travel and tourism to employment (2020 change compared with 2019)

In today's edition of the Capitals, find out more about Bulgaria's former PM Borissov being summoned for questioning over an alleged threat, Germany launching a space command, and so much more.

On Thursday (15 July), German Chancellor Angela Merkel will visit US President Joe Biden in the White House in what will be her last trip to Washington after nearly 16 years in power. The general objective is to reset transatlantic...

Following the fourth Stabilisation and Association Council with Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), the EU’s chief diplomat Josep Borrell said that there has been some momentum and steps taken since last year. Borrell noted the holding of the elections in Mostar,...

Cafe and restaurant owners on Tuesday called on the government to reduce VAT on beverages to 13% or to treat labour costs as a tax deduction, which would help the hospitality sector to recover, develop and increase wages. Business owners...

Romania, one of the main beneficiaries of the EU’s cohesion policy, still has a lot of work to do on its operational programmes before it is able to draw any funds from the 2021-2027 period. The main focus of the...

Former Prime Minister Boyko Borissov announced that he had been summoned for questioning by caretaker Interior Minister Boyko Rashkov over alleged threats made to a Bulgarian businessman. “He calls on me to appear for questioning on Thursday,” Borissov said during...

Former Slovak prime minister, Robert Fico, who was ousted from the office after the murder of journalist Ján Kuciak in 2018, has paid a visit to the European Commission representation in Bratislava.  Fico said that he is “awaiting the final...