Euractiv.com

Germany will establish a special defence fund worth €100 billion to increase the country's military’s operational capabilities after years of neglect, Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced on Sunday (27 February), in what could be seen as a major shift in Berlin's defence spending.

The European Commission has strongly advised member states to cut red tape for Ukrainian citizens fleeing from the war to safety in the EU with their pet animals, to give refugees "one less thing to worry about".

Tensions between Athens and Moscow flared up after ten Greek expatriates were killed during a bombing by Russian forces in Sartana, a village in the Donetsk oblast in eastern Ukraine.

The military situation is daunting. Ukrainian Armed Forces are inflicting losses to Russian aggressors, at the same time losing territory and people. Nevertheless, the bravery and courage of Ukrainian Armed forces is fascinating, writes Roman Rukomeda.

Moscow ordered its troops to advance in Ukraine "from all directions" while the West responded late Saturday (26 February) with sanctions that sought to cripple Russia's banking sector.

The United States and Western allies sought to cripple Russia's banking sector and currency Saturday (26 February) with an extraordinary set of sanctions punishing Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

As many Ukrainians flee from Russian attacks, the EU must work together to provide humanitarian help and take in refugees, Hungarian MEP Katalin Cseh (RENEW), who is currently in Western Ukraine, told EURACTIV in an interview.

Ukraine’s energy system is continuing to function as Russia invades the country, but a stray rocket that damages energy infrastructure or a nuclear power plant could prove a major blow, a Ukrainian energy company warned on Saturday (26 February).

The EU is set to discuss in the coming days the ban on Russia's access to the SWIFT international payments system after the last holdout among the EU27, Germany, dropped its opposition, allowing the bloc to step up sanctions against Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine.

Russian forces pounded Ukrainian cities with artillery and cruise missiles on Saturday (26 February) for a third day running but a defiant President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the capital Kyiv remained in Ukrainian hands.

As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine extends Moscow’s military power to the borders of several NATO members, NATO partners Finland and Sweden can be part of an intensified exchange of information and NATO's strategic communication.

Russian and Ukrainian forces clashed on the outskirts of the Ukrainian capital on Saturday (26 February) as authorities urged citizens to help defend the city from advancing Russian forces in the worst European security crisis in decades.

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov have been added to the list of sanctioned people over Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the EU’s chief diplomat, Josep Borrell, has confirmed.

While the new EU directive on corporate sustainability due diligence aims at making companies engage more actively in improving conditions, some argue that the risks of sanctions and civil liability might deter investment to the detriment of economic development.

EU citizens involved in the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE), the EU’s democracy engagement project, are meeting this weekend (25-27 February) in Dublin, Ireland, for their final meeting before the conference plenary in April. 

In a wide-ranging interview, the Russian ambassador to the EU discussed his country’s military operation in Ukraine, plans to return to negotiations under another government in Kyiv, sending to court Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the effect of Western sanctions and more.

Crop-based biofuels are as damaging to the climate as fossil fuels, a new study by environmental NGO Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH) has found. But industry has been quick to reject the study, dismissing its findings as “erroneous” and “misleading”.

If you thought the UK would miss a single opportunity to emphasise its supposed post-Brexit might and slag off the EU into the bargain, you were wrong. No matter that a shooting war in Ukraine requires unity and solidarity from Western countries.

As the prospect of a squeeze on Russian gas supplies to Europe, EU states are increasingly likely to need an alternative. One option lies at its southern border.

National strategic plans (NSPs) are one of the main novelties of the reformed Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), which will run from 2023 to 2027.