European Union

The European economy is one of the biggest in the world. We tend to forget that we have more than 500 million consumers and an economy worth 15.9 trillion euros, meaning more than China and almost as much as the...

In an interview with EURACTIV, Michaela Pichler, secretary-general of the International Association for Cereal Science and Technology (ICC), spoke about the importance of whole grains, but also about the lack of industry standards, labelling and promotion of whole grain foods.

On Thursday, the European Parliament adopted three resolutions taking stock of the human rights situation in Haiti, Algeria and Cuba.
Committee on Foreign Affairs
Subcommittee on Human Rights

Source : © European Union, 2019 - EP

On Thursday, the European Parliament adopted three resolutions taking stock of the human rights situation in Haiti, Algeria and Cuba.
Committee on Foreign Affairs
Subcommittee on Human Rights

Source : © European Union, 2019 - EP

Greece’s medical community was shocked following the news that an 8-year-old child died of diphtheria on Wednesday (27 November), a disease that has been eradicated for 30 years now.

National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs) are the blueprint for climate action between 2020 and 2030. Although transport decarbonisation is an essential part of the puzzle, some argue it lags behind in the EU. Transport’s climate footprint in Europe continues...

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Lisbon Treaty, European Parliament President David Sassoli is hosting a ceremony in the House of European History on 1 December

Source : © European Union, 2019 - EP

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Lisbon Treaty, European Parliament President David Sassoli is hosting a ceremony in the House of European History on 1 December

Source : © European Union, 2019 - EP

The European Defence Agency’s Annual Conference 2019 entitled 'Taking European Defence Cooperation to the Next Level - Prospects for the decade ahead’ was opened this morning in Brussels with a message from the outgoing Head of the Agency, Federica Mogherini.

Addressing a 400-strong audience representing the whole European defence spectrum - governments, armed forces, industry, EU institutions, NATO, think tanks and media - Ms Mogherini said she had been honored to lead EDA over the past five years. She recalled the first steps and the "shared goal"  set at the time, namely to make European cooperation the norm – not the exception – on defence matters. "And we took the commitment to stubbornly work on this path", she said in her message to the audience. 
 

Federica Mogherini: "European defence cooperation has expanded like never before"

Devoting this year's Annual Conference to taking stock of what has been achieved since then, especially with the new EU defence initiatives - revised Capability Development Plan (CDP), Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD), Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO), European Defence Fund (EDF) - proved a good choice because during that short timeframe, "European defence cooperation has expanded like never before”, Ms Mogherini said.  "Five years ago, no one imagined how far we would have come. But we made it (...) And the Agency has been at the core of our work and of all the progress we have achieved together". Importantly, all this impressive work has been done while strengthening cooperation with NATO, "because a stronger European Union makes NATO stronger", Ms Mogherini said.

EDA made "essential contributions to crafting these initiatives all along the way, and now plays a central role in their implementation", the Head of the Agency stressed. "The Agency is the secretariat for both CARD and PESCO, together with the European External Action Service and the EU Military Staff. It is also a central operator for EU-funded defence activities. The Agency is today in a unique position to contribute to coherence among the various initiatives, efficiency and a steady focus on our capability priorities". She also insisted on the importance of ensuring a good and efficient cooperation between the EU institutions and bodies involved (EDA, EEAS, Commission, Council) but also with the Member Stares. "This will be even more crucial in the years ahead, to make the most of all the tools we have set up together", Ms Mogherini concluded.
 

Michel Barnier: "We want the UK to be our closest an most strategic partner in security and defence"

Ms Mogherini’s intervention was followed by a keynote speech delivered by Michel Barnier, the European Commission’s Chief Negotiator, Head of the Task Force for Relations with the United Kingdom and former chair of the 2002 European Convention’s Working Group on Defence which laid the foundation for the creation of EDA. Brexit is an immense challenge and will have consequences, sometimes underestimated ones, on our citizens and businesses, including our defence industries, Mr Barnier said. This has to be dealt with in an "international context which is more challenging than ever with instability becoming the new norm", he stated. Against that backdrop, "Europe must be the shaper of a better global order", and in order to do that, "Europe must upgrade its cooperation if it wants to uphold its values". The UK must be integral part of this endeavor because even if it leaves the European Union, it will not leave Europe, Mr Barnier said.Therefore, the EU wants the "closest possible partnership" with the United Kingdom, also in foreign and security policy, including to build cutting-edge defence capabilities and interoperability among our Armed Forces. "Cooperation is Europe's DNA. Therefore, we want the UK to be our closest and most strategic partner", as a member of NATO and as a member of our "European family of Security and Defence" , stated Mr Barnier.
 

Jorge Domecq: “We need a complete change of mindset” 

Previously, in his welcome speech, EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq had recalled the huge progress EU defence cooperation has made over the past three years, as well as the role EDA plays in the implementation of all new EU defence tools. “Even though much has been achieved over the last years, even more needs to be done. If we want EU defence initiatives to lead towards a more coherent and integrated European defence landscape with a more capable, deployable, interoperable and sustainable set of military capabilities and forces that are able to deliver on these strategic priorities, we need sustained efforts and unfaltering political commitment”, he said. 

A key factor for success of the new EU defence initiatives’ success will be the extent to which Member States will actually use and embed the new cooperation tools into their national defence planning processes, Mr Domecq stressed. “This is certainly not an easy task. In my discussions in capitals I have seen that embedding the EU defence initiatives into national processes not only puts a burden on financial and human resources but it also requires a complete change of mindset, sometimes even a change of culture”.
 

More information:

• Welcome speech by EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq
• Speech by Michel Barnier (European Commission Chief Negotiator)
• Speech by General Claudio Graziano, Chairman of EU Military Committee
• Speech by NATO ASG Camille Grand

Russia must pay Ukraine €2.4bn in a long-running gas dispute, a Swedish court has said, in a ruling that could lead to a repeat of the 2009 winter gas crisis in the EU.

Benin has ordered the European Union's ambassador to leave the country over alleged political interference, diplomatic sources said Wednesday (27 November).

A man convicted of a 1982 murder has the right to be forgotten and have his name removed from online search results, Germany's highest court ruled, AFP reported on Wednesday. His case was rejected by federal court in 2012 saying that his right to privacy did not outweigh public interest and press freedom. But the Karlsruhe court has now rejected that initial ruling and the case returns to federal courts.

French farmers angered by government policies that they say threaten their livelihoods drove convoys of tractors into Paris on Wednesday, obstructing commuter traffic and adding to the social unrest facing President Emmanuel Macron.

German lawmakers on Wednesday discussed the possible danger of Turkey possessing hundreds of classified asylum requests, following the arrest of a lawyer working with the German embassy in Ankara. Yilmaz S. was arrested by Turkish authorities in September amid accusations that his work with the embassy amounted to espionage. German authorities dismissed the charges, DW reported. Germany already granted protection to 45 people involved.

EU governments will vote on Thursday on a new rule that would require multinational companies to reveal how much profit they make and how little tax they pay in the bloc's countries, the Guardian reported. The aim is to expose how large companies, with an annual turnover of more than €750m, avoid paying an estimated €50bn-€70bn a year in EU countries through tax avoidance, and tax deals with some governments.

An MRP poll, the only survey that predicted a hung parliament in the UK in the previous election, now says the Conservatives of prime minister Boris Johnson would win a landslide victory if the elections were held today, the Times writes. Based on a seat-to-seat analysis for the Times, the Conservatives would win 359 seats, while Labour would fall back to 211 seats and the LibDems to 13 seats.

A lawyer for the US ambassador to the EU, Gordon Sondland, has said sexual harassment allegations against him were a form of "witness tampering" designed to harm his credibility in the impeachment enquiry against US president Donald Trump. Three women told their stories to US publications ProPublica and Portland Monthly shortly after he testified that Trump had tried to blackmail Ukraine into meddling in upcoming American elections.

In today's edition of the Capitals, find out how Catalan separatists ERC and Spanish socialist party PSOE will try to solve to the country's current political deadlock, and so much more. The Capitals brings you the latest news from across Europe, through on-the-ground reporting by EURACTIV’s media network.

As the share of the EU in the global economy shrinks, the soft power of its economic instruments and the attraction of the internal market is destined to decline.

EU seas will contain "more" and "bigger" fish five years from now - if the fisheries committee does its job. But rows on post-Brexit rights could grab attention.