Europe Explained

EU leaders to press Cyprus to lift veto over Belarus sanctions

European Union leaders will try to break a stalemate over Belarus on Thursday by untangling a separate standoff with Turkey that has exposed the paralysis in the bloc's decision-making. Meeting…

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Turkey expects concrete steps from EU summit – foreign minister

Turkey expects concrete steps to be taken at a European Union summit on Oct. 1-2 regarding issues including the updating of a 2016 migrant deal and customs union with the…

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EU launches new Customs Union Action Plan

The European Commission has launched a new Customs Union Action Plan setting out a series of measures to make EU customs smarter, more innovative and more efficient over the next…

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Hungary says new EU proposal on rule of law conditions ‘unacceptable’

Hungary considers a new proposal by the European Union presidency to tie future EU aid to rule of law conditions to be “unacceptable,” Justice Minister Judit Varga said on Tuesday.…

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Google offers concessions in fresh bid to win EU okay for Fitbit deal

Alphabet unit Google has offered concessions for a second time in a bid to address EU antitrust regulators' concerns about its bid for fitness tracker maker Fitbit, a European Commission filing showed on…

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EU fines German car parts makers 18 million euros for cartels

The European Commission said on Tuesday that it had fined German car parts makers Brose and Kiekert a combined 18 million euros (16.33 million pounds) for taking part in two cartels. Brose…

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Hungary PM calls for resignation of European Commissioner over ‘derogatory’ remarks

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has called for the resignation of European Commission Vice President Vera Jourova over what he described as her "derogatory public statements" about democracy in Hungary.…

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The S&D group condemns crackdown on Turkish HDP party

The S&D Group in the European Parliament condemns the new crackdown on the Turkish HDP party, following the news that Ankara prosecutors have decided to detain 82 people in seven…

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Saudi Arabia to hold virtual G20 summit on Nov 21-22

The G20 leaders summit will be held virtually on Nov. 21-22, Saudi Arabia said on Monday, as the COVID-19 pandemic thwarted Riyadh's hopes of hosting the gathering in the kingdom…

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Financial Services: EU seeks to boost Capital Markets Union

The European Commission has published a new, ambitious Action Plan to boost the European Union's Capital Markets Union (CMU) over the coming years. Developing the EU's capital markets, and ensuring…

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EPP says Armenia, Azerbaijan hostilities of ‘great concern’

The European People’s Party has said that the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan is of great concern. According to reports, the increase in conflict has led to the deaths of…

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ECB’s Visco says euro’s strength is a worry

A recent strengthening in the euro's exchange rate is a worry and will warrant a reaction from the European Central Bank if it drags inflation farther away from its goal,…

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European Parliament set to cancel Strasbourg’s October plenary session

The European Parliament is set to cancel its plenary session in Strasbourg in October after Belgian authorities designated the Alsatian city as a "red zone" due to the number of…

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New scientific model said to predict virus peaks of contamination in Europe

A team of researchers has revealed a pioneering model that aims to predict the rate of propagation of Covid-19 in each country in Europe. A team of scientists has set about…

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Slovenia, Netherlands to compete for ECB board job

Frank Elderson of the Netherlands and Bostjan Jazbec of Slovenia were the only two candidates put forward by their respective countries as candidates to succeed Yves Mersch at the executive…

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Germany pledges to speed up EU efforts on crypto-assets, capital market

German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz on Thursday pledged to speed up euro zone financial reforms aimed at regulating crypto-assets and deepening capital markets, which he said could help accelerate the…

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AstraZeneca gets partial immunity in low-cost EU vaccine deal

European governments will pay claims above an agreed limit against AstraZeneca over side-effects from its potential COVID-19 vaccine, under different terms to a deal struck with Sanofi, an EU official…

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European Parliament says shipping industry must contribute to climate neutrality

The European Parliament has voted to include CO2 emissions from the maritime sector in the EU Emissions Trading System. MEPs largely agreed that reporting obligations by the EU and the…

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ECB Bulletin warns Euro zone unemployment will continue to rise

Unemployment will continue to rise in the euro zone and there is little upside in demand for consumer goods even as the economy recovers from an unprecedented recession, the European…

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UPDATED: EU says Belarus’ Lukashenko not legitimate president

President Alexander Lukashenko is not the legitimate president of Belarus, the European Union said on Thursday, saying his abrupt swearing-in on Wednesday went directly against the will of the people.…

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Upgrade of Single European Sky regulations on the cards

The European Commission is proposing an upgrade of the Single European Sky regulatory framework which comes on the heels of the European Green Deal. The objective is to modernise the management of…

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EU migration pact ‘bows to’ anti-migration governments

Anti-poverty organisation Oxfam said that the EU has bowed to pressure from anti-migration governments. “The tragic fire, which completely destroyed Moria refugee camp in Greece, has exposed Europe’s failure to uphold…

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European airlines pinning hopes on fast pre-flight Covid-19 tests

European airlines are pinning hopes on pre-flight Covid-19 tests that deliver results as fast as pregnancy tests to help restore passengers’ confidence in taking to the skies in confined spaces…

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EU court rules cities can restrict short-term rentals dealing blow to AirBnb

Europe's top court on Tuesday gave its backing to European cities cracking down on short-term rentals of private homes to solve a housing crunch, dealing a setback to homesharing site Airbnb.…

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Europol led dark web drugs raid leads to 179 arrests

Police forces around the world have seized more than $6.5m in cash and virtual currencies, as well as drugs and guns in a coordinated raid on dark web marketplaces. Some…

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EU Summit postponed after President Michel goes into coronavirus quarantine

European Council President Charles Michel postponed a summit of European Union leaders on Thursday and Friday until the start of October after going into coronavirus quarantine due to contact with an infected security…

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European Parliament approves plans for coronavirus testing centre

The European Parliament's Committee on Budgets has approved plans for a coronavirus testing facility for MEPs and staff. A request was made by the Parliament's President David Sassoli for €990,000…

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EU foreign policy chief ‘will do whatever he can’ for Belarus sanctions

EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said he will do whatever he can for sanctions against Belarus to be adopted. "It is becoming a personal commitment because I understand clearly…

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Belarus opposition appeal to EU fails to unblock sanctions

European Union foreign ministers failed to agree sanctions against Belarusian officials on Monday, despite an appeal by the country's main opposition leader. After a sixth straight weekend of huge protests…

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British customers in EU will lose bank account if no deal is reached

Major UK banking companies are informing their British customers living in the European Union that their bank accounts will be closed by end of the year should no post-Brexit trade…

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EP negotiators still pushing for better long-term EU budget

During the fourth trilateral talks with Council and Commission, the European Parliament’s negotiators underline that a lot remains to be done before an acceptable agreement can be reached. “During this…

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EU Commission sets out new ambitious mission to lead on supercomputing

The Commission is pushing forward new legislation to maintain and advance Europe's leading role in supercomputing and quantum computing. It will support research and innovation activities for new supercomputing technologies,…

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EU seeks new powers to penalize tech giants

The European Union wants to arm itself with new powers to penalize big technology companies, the Financial Times reported on Sunday. The proposed plan includes forcing tech giants to break…

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CDE Viewpoint – Let’s make change happen – Ursula Von Der Leyen

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission Throughout history, pandemics have changed the destiny of people. They make us see the world in a different light and remind…

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Original stolen books from Galileo Galilei and Isaac Newton found in Romania

During a house search led by the Romanian authorities in the county of Neamt several rare books buried underground were discovered. The books were reported stolen from a warehouse in…

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Covid-19 situation in Europe is alarming – WHO

While worldwide coronavirus have exceeded the 30 million mark, according to official data, it is the Old Continent which is causing the biggest headaches to the World Health Organisaton. “The…

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EP wants EU to step up efforts to tackle medicine shortages

The European Parliament has called for the EU to be more self-sufficient when it comes to medicines and medical equipment so that affordable treatments are available at any time. In…

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EP wants Council to act to protect minorities and the rule of law in Poland

In a resolution adopted on Thursday with 513 votes to 148 and 33 abstentions, the European Parliament expresses concerns regarding the legislative and electoral system, the independence of the judiciary,…

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Conte welcomes von der Leyen’s announcement on Dublin Regulation overhaul

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte on Thursday welcomed European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's announcement that the Dublin Regulation, whereby migrants must register in the EU country they arrive,…

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European Commission recommends green energy, transport, digital investment for recovery

The European Commission recommended on Thursday that EU governments spend money from the 750 billion euro EU recovery package to boost the economy after the COVID-19 pandemic on green energy,…

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Brexit: Johnson not expecting tariff barriers between UK and EU

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday if Britain were to set an external tariff regime with the European Union, it would be "quite formidable" for some of the bloc's products. Johnson said…

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Smoke from US wildfires reaches Europe

Smoke from the fires devastating swathes of the U.S. West Coast has reached as far as Europe, the European Union's climate monitoring service revealed in its assessment of the "unprecedented"…

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European Parliament votes for new taxes in EU to repay recovery borrowing

The European Parliament voted on Wednesday in favour of assigning new tax revenues to the European Union to repay the bloc's intended joint borrowing of 750 billion euros ($888 billion)…

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MEPs fast track vote to approve EU rcovery plan

The European Parliament has accelerated the procedure that will enable the EU to borrow €750 billion for the “Next Generation EU” recovery plan. MEPs have fast-tracked and voted already during…

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EasyJet CEO chides EU states over fragmented travel policies

European governments should focus on developing coherent air travel policies as airlines struggle to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, rather than shielding national carriers, easyJet Chief Executive Johan Lundgren said.…

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ECB’s Visco says efficient public administration in Italy more important than state lender

European Central Bank governing council member Ignazio Visco said on Wednesday Italy would benefit more from reforms to its public administration than from the creation of a large public lender…

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European space agency signs deal for asteroid defence mission

The European space agency (ESA) signed a deal worth 129 million euros ($154 million) on Tuesday to make a spacecraft for a joint project with NASA looking at how to…

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UPDATED: EU chief executive unveils blueprint to get Europe back on its feet

The European Union's chief executive on Wednesday painted a sober picture of the bloc grappling with a pandemic and the deepest recession in its history, but laid out ambitious goals…

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LIVE: Commission President delivers State of the European Union Speech

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is addressing the European Parliament in her first State of the European Union address. The annual event will see von der Leyen update…

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EU sources say Britain has moved to break fisheries deadlock in Brexit trade talks

Britain offered tentative concessions on fisheries in trade talks with the European Union last week, two diplomatic sources told Reuters, just as London was publicly threatening to breach the terms…

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EU parliament votes to make ships pay for their pollution

The European Parliament on Tuesday voted in favour of including greenhouse gas emissions from the maritime sector in the European Union's carbon market from 2022, throwing its weight behind EU…

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Could you imagine Malta without the EU during the pandemic?

EU member states were frozen when the Coronavirus pandemic first hit, European Commission Representation head Elena Grech said. The European Commission was now ensuring that the EU is better prepared…

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EPP wants digital or financial transactions tax back on EU agenda

The centre-right EPP Group will vote in favour of setting up a binding calendar for introducing revenues such as a digital tax on big international tech companies, a levy on…

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EU and China sign landmark agreement protecting European Geographical Indications

The EU and China have signed a bilateral agreement to protect 100 European Geographical Indications (GIs) in China and 100 Chinese GIs in the European Union against usurpation and imitation.…

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WHO Europe warns of tougher months ahead with more deaths

The World Health Organization expects Europe to see a rise in the daily number of Covid-19 deaths in October and November, the head of the body’s European branch has told…

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World’s largest carbon market faces revamp under draft EU plan

The world's biggest carbon trading market faces a major overhaul under European Union climate change plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions faster this decade, a draft seen by Reuters shows.…

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EU says ‘time is too short’ to send observers for Venezuela’s December vote

The European Union has received an invitation to observe parliamentary elections in Venezuela in December, but President Nicolas Maduro’s authoritarian government so far has not met “minimum conditions” to allow…

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