European Union

The Kremlin might again be tempted to invent an external threat in an attempt to steer the public’s attention away from societal discontent, Kai Mykkänen, the former foreign minister and current chair of the National Coalition Party’s parliamentary group who...

The Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) has come under criticism for consecutive delays in overhauling its IT systems which would allow for more effective GDPR enforcement. Documents obtained by the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) through freedom of information...

German defence minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, together with the Bundeswehr’s General Inspector Eberhard Zorn, has presented a report to MPs outlining a proposal to modernise the country’s military. The paper says it is “time for new thinking,” advocating for restructuring and...

In the next five years, China intends to import more than €140 billion of goods from Central and Eastern European countries (CEE) countries, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Tuesday during the “17+1” summit of China and Eastern European countries....

The European Commission chief prepared to defend its stumbling vaccine rollout before the EU parliament on Wednesday (10 February) as the pandemic's grip on the continent forced Greece into tightening a lockdown around its capital.

Portugal's foreign minister Augusto Santos Silva said on Tuesday (10 February) that China is no substitute for the United States, emphasising that Beijing is an economic partner while Washington is an ally.

A leading Member of the European Parliament is organising a debate on Wednesday (10 February) intended to overturn a decision by the assembly's President David Sassoli not to open an office in Brussels representing the Belarus opposition, presumably under the advice of EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell.

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen goes on trial Wednesday (10 February) on charges she broke hate speech laws by tweeting pictures of Islamic State atrocities, a case she has slammed as a violation of free speech.

Eight EU member states have yet to submit their national recovery and resilience plans to the European Commission to access EU post-crisis funds for COVID-19, while 19 countries have already done so, including Portugal. Asked on Tuesday by EURACTIV’s media...

The development of the EU’s Strategic Compass should involve a strategic deepening of EU relations with its partners, write Kinga Brudzinska and Lucia Rybnikárová. Kinga Brudzinska is GLOBSEC’s Policy Institute’s programme director, Future of Europe; Lucia Rybnikárová is the project...

The US Senate voted 56 to 44 Tuesday that the second impeachment process against former US president Donald Trump was constitutional and could proceed, Deutsche Welle reports. The vote meant Trump was officially accused of inciting the Capitol riot on 6 January 6 and will face a fully-fledged trial. But with only six Republicans breaking with their party Tuesday, the Democrats still lack a majority to convict the former leader.

Turkey is close to completing purchase of a gas-drilling ship from Norwegian firm Dolphin Drilling in a move that bodes ill for EU relations. The ship was "legendary" and the "crown jewel" of the Norwegian fleet, Turkish pro-government newspaper Daily Sabah said Tuesday. Turkey is currently in talks to reduce tension with Cyprus and Greece after its three existing drilling vessels violated Cyprus-claimed waters in recent months, prompting EU sanctions.

A Polish court has ordered two eminent historians, Jan Grabowski and Barbara Engelking, to apologise to a Polish woman for "defaming" her late uncle in a book saying he had given up Jews to Nazis. The ruling could chill Holocaust research, academics feared, amid wider EU concern the right-wing Polish government wielded political control of judges. Germany, also Tuesday, charged a 100-year old man for 3,518 murders at concentration camps.

The pandemic has exposed how important it is to effectively and quickly fight against disinformation campaigns. The Czech Republic has long underestimated this problem.

The UK expects the EU to ask for a two month extension to ratify the new post-Brexit trade deal, David Frost, London's chief negotiator on the pact, told UK lawmakers on Tuesday (9 February).

EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell has promised new sanctions on Russia in ongoing fall-out from his "humiliating" trip to Moscow.

The process of drafting national recovery plans under time pressure seems to be a handful for Visegrad countries. Frequent issues include a lack of stakeholder involvement, problems with streamlining different requests and ensuring transparency in the process.

The UK will require passengers arriving from countries where worrying coronavirus variants are spreading to pay for 10 days of quarantine in hotels, while rule-breakers will face heavy fines or jail terms, under tighter restrictions from next week, Reuters reports. "Anyone who lies on the passenger locator form [...] will face a prison sentence of up to 10 years," UK health secretary Matt Hancock told parliament.

The European commission published on Tuesday the redacted contract signed with the pharmaceutical firm Sanofi-GSK last September. This is the third contract that has been made public, after CureVac's and AstraZeneca's deals. "Transparency, accountability and building trust with institutions and citizens are a key commitment of our work," said EU health commissioner Stella Kyrirakides. Three of the early purchase agreements signed between the EU executive and vaccine-developers remain confidential.

A baby born in Spain to a same-sex couple from Bulgaria and Gibraltar is at risk of statelessness, reports Reuters. Bulgaria has refused to provide the child with a birth certificate and citizenship due to the parents' sexual orientation. The case was heard at the European Court of Justice on Tuesday. "It's caused us a lot of upset. This discrimination feels very personal and has shocked us," said the mother.