European Union

The European Commission will have ‘exclusive power’ to enforce obligations on very large online platforms, according to the most recent compromise text on the Digital Services Act (DSA).

The session of the UN Security Council on the situation in BiH initially set for Tuesday (2 November) has been postponed to an unconfirmed date, according to unofficial sources. It is believed the issue centres around Russia, which disputes the...

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said on Tuesday (2 November) that he had not yet read the report High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina Christian Schmidt prepared for the UN Security Council, but that it appeared to him that that the...

With the COP26 climate conference about to get underway in Glasgow, major breakthroughs look elusive. Among the spectres at the feast are raging geopolitical tensions, high energy prices, the ongoing pandemic and a lack of diplomatic vigour from Europe.

Croatia has become the most popular EU destination for Russians going on COVID-19 vaccination tours, with about 60 arriving every week, Večernji List daily said on Tuesday. Russians arriving in Croatia cannot choose whether to get vaccinated in Zagreb or...

Asked if it was time President Zoran Milanović was removed from office, Defence Minister Mario Banožić (HDZ-EPP) said: “Of course it is. It was a long time ago, but look at his conduct. Would you reach a different conclusion than...

Croatia, the Czech Republic, and Hungary did not sign a pact on stopping deforestation at the 'COP26' climate summit in Glasgow, even though all 24 other EU states and the EU Commission, "on behalf of the EU", as well as some 80 other countries, did sign the treaty. Czech prime minister Andrej Babiš, speaking at the summit, also denounced what he called the EU's pro-green "ideology".

Britain, France, Germany, the EU, and the US have pledged $8.5bn (€7.3bn) to help South Africa, the world's 12th biggest emitter of CO2, transition away from coal-fired power at the 'COP26' summit. The funds would help in "choking off international finance for coal", British prime minister Boris Johnson said. It was a "watershed moment" for South Africa and an example for other states to follow, its president, Cyril Ramaphosa, noted.

French president Emmanuel Macron knew his submarine deal with Australia was in doubt days before Australia made its decision, according to messages from Macron to Australian prime minister Scott Morrison, leaked Tuesday to Australian media. "Should I expect good or bad news for our joint submarines ambitions?", Macron said on 14 September. France has repeatedly accused Morrison of lying. "Deceit was intentional," France's ambassador to Australia, Jean-Pierre Thebault, said Wednesday.

The Czech Republic will not enter the euro under its next government, Zbyněk Stanjura, the man tipped to be its next finance minister said Tuesday, Reuters reports. "We have to put our public finance in order, so even if someone wanted [the euro], we don't have a shot at entering now," he said. "We should adopt the euro only when it's favourable for the Czech Republic," he added on TV.

A European Parliament delegation arrived in Taiwan Wednesday (3 November), part of an effort to build closer ties with the island despite warnings from China.

Seven MEPs have put themselves in the firing line for Chinese sanctions after visiting Taiwan Tuesday to study Chinese disinformation, Politico reports, citing EU Parliament sources. The MEPs - Petras Auštrevičius, Marco Dreosto, Andrius Kubilius, Georgios Kyrtsos, Markéta Gregorová, Raphaël Glucksmann, and Andreas Schieder - hail from all the major political groups, as well as France and Italy, among other member states, making them harder to blacklist.

Britain, the US, India, China, and the EU were among 40 nations who pledged to increase production of so-called near zero-emissions steel around the world by 2030 at the 'COP26' climate summit. "Near-zero emission steel is the preferred choice in global markets, with efficient use and near-zero emission steel production established and growing in every region by 2030," the UK said in a statement announcing the accord.

The Google News service is likely to return to Spanish internet users after Madrid enacted an EU law on copyright Tuesday. "Conditions look promising for the potential launch of Google News in Spain," the US firm said. The EU law means Spain cannot force Google to pay collective licencing fees to publishers in return for using snippets of their content, which saw Google abandon its service in Spain in 2014.

Despite the responsibility for drafting the EU's artificial intelligence ethics guidelines, few of the expert group members were ethicists. In fact, 26 experts – nearly half of the group's 56 members – represented business interests.

Closed-door negotiations to strengthen the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control appear to be faltering, according to an internal EU document that spells out the so-called trilogue positions of the co-legislators.

Algeria's decision to halt gas exports to Spain via Morocco, due to increasing tensions with Rabat, will force Madrid to import more liquefied natural gas on carrier ships.

Barbados PM Mia Amor Mottley made a concrete proposal to world leaders at COP26 - to give poorer nations easier access to money trough the International Monetary Fund.

No wonder, despite the diplomatic and military initiatives, most countries in the region see China as the new leader. Perhaps it is easier to adjust military strategy towards China, than to tackle the addiction of consumers and companies to China.

EU policy in Bosnia and Herzegovina has been on a failing trajectory for a decade-and-a-half. Now, in cooperation with the US/UK, it is seeking to camouflage failure with appeasement of separatists in Bosnia - lending a geopolitical win to Russia.