Europe Explained

US ends diplomatic spat with the EU

It seems the United States has ended a spat with the European Union over diplomatic protocol. Early this year it emerged that the United States had changed the way it…

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Reform party wins Estonia’s general election

The centre-right Reform Party has won Estonia's general election. The BBC reports that the Reform Party, led by former MEP Kaja Kallas, won about 29% of the vote whilst the…

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Corporate Dispatch Europe Explained – The Week Ahead

A quick glance at the main forthcoming events in the European Union including EU Council, Commission and Parliament meetings and other EU-related conferences and events. Events for the week of…

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Viktor Orbán calls EPP antagonists ‘useful idiots’

Politico reported that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán labelled those in the European People's Party (EPP) critical of his party, "useful idiots". Orbán was quoted by Politico as saying this…

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Greece tries to confront banking crisis

Germany’s international broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) takes an in-depth at the banking crisis afflicting Greece after eight exhausting years of financial crisis and the scandals that accompany it. Greek banks…

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Polls indicate La Lega to be top Italian party and second at the EP elections

Italian news agency ANSA reported that in the upcoming May European Parliament (EP)elections Interior Minister Matteo Salvini's far-right group La Lega will be the top party in Italy, according to…

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EU plans to place Saudi Arabia on a money laundering blacklist blocked

The Financial Times reported that European Union plans to place Saudi Arabia and four US territories on a money laundering blacklist has suffered a humiliating defeat after virtually unanimous opposition…

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European Commission publishes annual economic and social situation assessment

In its annual assessment of the economic and social situation in the Member States, the European Commission today stresses the need to promote investment, pursue responsible fiscal policies and implement…

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Panama and Saudi Arabia included in 23-country list with serious money laundering and terrorism related risks

The European Commission concluded that 23 countries have strategic deficiencies in their anti-money laundering and counterterrorist financing regimes. This includes 12 countries listed by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF)…

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New EU rules to combat fake medicines enter into force

The falsification of medicines has remained a serious threat to public health in the EU for too long. As of tomorrow, the new rules on safety features for prescription medicines…

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Bulgaria’s minimum wage remains lowest in EU

Bulgaria might have increased its minimum wage in January to 286 euros per month, but it still remains the lowest miminum wage of all the 22 EU states that have…

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On this day in 1992, the Maastricht Treaty was signed

The Maastricht Treaty, officially known as the Treaty on European Union, marked the beginning of “a new stage in the process of creating an ever closer union among the peoples of…

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Eu accuses eight banks for collusion in government bonds

Brussels has accused eight unnamed banks of colluding to game the €7tn market for eurozone government bonds, marking another escalation in the EU’s drive to punish financial institutions for rigging…

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EU Commission welcomes European Parliament vote on InvestEU

The European Commission welcomes today's vote by the European Parliament to agree its position on InvestEU, the proposed programme to boost private and public investment in Europe in the next…

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Will Barnier be the next European Commission President?

via Politico - "European Union Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier opened the new political year vocally discussing Europe's future — possibly hinting at his own next career step. "Now is not the…

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Anti-Migrant vs Pro-Migrant ‘alliances’ to characterise MEP campaigns, as efforts to ‘change’ EU political landscape are declared

Hungary's Viktor Orban hopes a right-wing alliance can help gain an anti-migrant majority in the European Parliament. The alliance was pitched by Italy's Matteo Salvini, whom Orban described as a…

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European Union chooses Tripoli and Tunisia as HQ for governing board for borders and reform of security services in Libya

The European Union (EU) have chosen Tripoli and Tunisia as the HQ of the governing board for borders and reform of security services in Libya. Tunisie-telegraph website reported Monday that…

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New guidelines for European Parliament to ensure a gender-neutral language

The European Parliament has released new guidelines aimed at ensuring more gender-neutral language is used by the organisation. Words such as "mankind” will be replaced (with humanity), “manpower" (with staff),…

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Romania takes over EU Presidency

Romania took over the EU's rotating presidency on Tuesday at a tumultuous time for the bloc and just days after European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker voiced doubts about the country's…

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20 years of the Euro

The euro was launched on January 1, 1999, at first only for accounting and financial transactions, and then three years later as notes and coins. On December 31, 1998, on…

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New rules to strengthen Schengen Information System come into force

New rules to strengthen the Schengen Information System (SIS) – proposed by the Commission in December 2016 and adopted earlier this year – are entering into force today. The SIS…

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EU agrees for Eurozone zone budget

The EU has decided to give the eurozone its own budget, accepting a scaled-down version of a core French idea to reform the currency bloc. FT reports that the EU…

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Provisional agreement on 2019 EU budget reached

The European Parliament and the Council, with the support of the Commission, reached a provisional agreement on the 2019 EU budget during a decisive trilogue. This agreement is to be…

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EU finance ministers agree on Euro area reforms

EU finance ministers on Tuesday morning (4 December) agreed on reforms to bolster the euro area's preparedness to tackle any future financial crisis - after talks that lasted all night…

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EU Brexit Summit

Brexit Vote in Commons to take place on 10 or 11 December - EU officials have been told to expect the parliamentary vote on the Brexit deal on 10 or…

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MEP Election Watch – Greens choose candidates for Commission President

The European Greens picked Germany’s Ska Keller and Dutchman Bas Eickhout as co-candidates for European Commission president, at the party’s congress Saturday, making them the faces of the party’s campaign…

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France and Germany express hope for a Eurozone budget by 2021

The eurozone should have its own budget in place by 2021 with financial firepower to absorb economic shocks, said the French and German finance ministers on Monday. POLITICO reports that France’s Bruno…

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Macron tells German lawmakers that it was up to France and Germany to build a modern, efficient, democratic Europe fit for the future

In a speech to the Bundestag to mark Germany's Day of Mourning for those killed in war, Macron said that Germany and France had overcome 200 years of "merciless wars" to make a…

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European Commission publishes detailed information on contingency work in event of no deal Brexit

The European Commission has today published detailed information on its ongoing preparedness and contingency work in the event of a no deal scenario in the Article 50 negotiations with the…

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Merkel addresses MEPs about Germany’s vision for future of Europe

The German chancellor has addressed MEPs in Strasbourg, laying out Germany's vision for the future of Europe. Seven months ahead of EU parliamentary elections, she gave her personal assessment of…

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Europe Explained – 25 years of Maastricht Treaty

The early 1990s were a milestone for European integration. The end of the Cold War especially marked a turning point in history, after which the 12 European member states of…

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Europe Explained – European Commission’s position on Italian budget

The Commission has issued an opinion on the Italian draft budgetary plan for 2019. It requests that Italy presents a revised draft budgetary plan as soon as possible, and in…

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Eurostat confirms Malta registered biggest budget surplus in EU

In 2017, the government deficit and debt of both the euro area (EA19) and the EU28 decreased in relative terms compared with 2016. In the euro area the government deficit to GDP ratio fell from 1.6%…

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Eu Council Roundup

BREXIT, might have taken up most of the European Council media Agenda, however it was not the only item to be discussed. The EU leaders also discussed the issue of…

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European Regional Funds and the multi-annual Financial Framework

Despite Brexit and new priorities, it is important to keep EU funds for all regions - rich and poor - argues EU regions commissioner Corina Cretu in an interview with…

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Putin’s Russia is the major threat for the unity of the European Union – Donald Tusk

Vladimir Putin’s Russia represents a major threat to the unity of the European Union, the President of the European Council Donald Tusk said Saturday. Tusk used his speech at a…

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If not October, we’ll do it in November – Juncker about Brexit deal

European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker gave a wide ranging interview to three Austrian newspapers. He indicated that Brexit deal is possible, highlighting the narrowing of the gap between the…

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European Parliament approves updated rules on audiovisual media services, protecting further children and stricter rules on advertising

MEPs voted on updated rules on audiovisual media services, protecting children better, with stricter rules on advertising, and 30% European content in video-on-demand. Following the final vote on this agreement,…

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European Commission welcomes progress on improvements on VAT in EU

The European Commission has welcomed the progress made today by Member States on much-needed improvements to how Value Added Tax (VAT) works in the EU. Tuesday's meeting of EU finance…

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France and Germany call for change of EU funding for economic development projects

France and Germany are calling for a shake-up of EU funding for economic development projects, warning that Europe’s largest multilateral lenders are poorly coordinated and could be merged. In…

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Former Finnish prime minister Alex Stubb will throw his hat in the ring to become the centre-right’s Sptizenkandidat for the job of European Commission president

The formal race to replace Jean-Claude Juncker is finally beginning to resemble a contest. Later today, former Finnish prime minister Alex Stubb will throw his hat in the ring to become the centre-right's Spitzenkandidat for the job…

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EU allocates €1.5 million to earthquake stricken Indonesia

EU releases €1.5 million in emergency aid for victims of Indonesian earthquake Following the high number of casualties and damages caused by the earthquake and tsunami that struck Indonesia…

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Hate speech, xenophobia and extreme nationalism addressed by Commissioner Jourova

"We have to translate the Charter into basic principles. These principles should become an anchor in this fast changing, confusing world – simply the bedrock of our society. The bad…

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EU and Iran agree to create ‘special vehicle’ to maintain trade despite US sanctions

The remaining signatories of the Iran nuclear deal announced on Monday that they would establish a channel to facilitate payments for Iran's exports, including oil, as well as its imports.…

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Commissioner Jourová requests EBA to probe actions of Danish and Estonian national financial watchdogs following Danske Bank money laundering scandal

The EU’s banking watchdog is set to probe the actions of Denmark and Estonia’s national supervisors to see how they failed to pick up on Danske Bank’s massive money laundering…

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European Commission refers Poland to Court of Justice

The European Commission decided to refer Poland to the Court of Justice of the EU due to the violations of the principle of judicial independence created by the new Polish…

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Greece, Romania and Italy register highest VAT evasion

Romania (35.88%), Greece (29.2%) and Italy (25.9%) have registered the highest VAT tax evasion in the past years. As a whole, the EU recorded revenue losses on VAT of €…

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EU reacts to Theresa May’s statement

In a statement released on Friday evening Donald Tusk blamed in part Ms May’s conduct for the rejection of her proposals, warning that EU leaders had responded to a “tough and in fact…

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Airbnb commits to complying with European Commission and EU consumer authorities’ demands

Following the call from the European Commission and EU consumer authorities in July, Airbnb has now committed to making the necessary changes to their terms and conditions and improving the…

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PN leader attends EPP summit

PN leader Adrian Delia attended the European People's Party summit in Salzburg. The summit took place in parallel to the EU informal meeting being held in the same city. In…

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Malta’s Prime Minister remarks ahead of EU informal summit

Apart from Brexit the EU heads of state or government who will gather at the informal meeting in Salzburg on 19 and 20 September. will also discuss internal security and…

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EU publishes its vision for a reformed WTO

The European Commission has today put forward a first set of ideas to modernise the WTO and to make international trade rules fit for the challenges of the global economy.…

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BMW, Daimler and VW (Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche) investigated for collusion in breach of EU antitrust rules

The European Commission has opened an in-depth investigation to assess whether BMW, Daimler and VW (Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche) colluded, in breach of EU antitrust rules, to avoid competition on…

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Maros Sefcovic announces his bid for the presidency of the European Commission

Maros Sefcovic, a Slovak currently overseeing EU energy policy, announced on Monday his bid for the presidency of the European Commission, the bloc's top job, vowing to tackle the "barbed-wire"…

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The Economic & Monetary Union: how has Malta benefitted and what does the future hold?

The European Commission Representation in Valletta, in collaboration with the Central Bank of Malta, hosted a conference "The Economic & Monetary Union: how has Malta benefitted and what does the…

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From travelling to driving, from manufacturing to certification UK releases document on how a no-deal Brexit will affect 28 new areas

UK driving licences will not be valid in the European Union if no Brexit deal is agreed, and travellers with passports close to their expiry may be denied entry into the bloc,…

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Understanding Article 7

What is Article 7? Why is it considered as the Nuclear Option? The procedure is sometimes called the EU’s “nuclear option” as it provides for the most serious political sanction…

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