The Dispatch

MEPs call for financial support to Hungary to be withheld if democratic infringements persist

In a debate with EC Vice-President Vera Jourová and the Croatian Presidency of the EU, a majority of Members of the European Parliament underlined that the emergency measures taken by…

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Slovenia the first European country to declare its coronavirus epidemic over

The Slovenian government late on Thursday called an official end to its coronavirus epidemic, becoming the first European country to do so, after authorities confirmed less than seven new coronavirus…

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Photo Story: Ten more deaths from Covid-19 in Romania

Ten more deaths from Covid-19 were reported in Romania on Thursday, bringing the country’s total death toll to 1,046 as the government warned people to continue following social distancing rules…

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Photo story: Children’s toys adapt to the times

Toy figurines named 'Igracek' wearing protective mask are displayed at the Efko-karton company in Nove Veseli, Czech Republic. The legendary Czech toy figures, known in the world as 'Pokeeto', are…

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Hungary to ease some virus restrictions in Budapest next week

Hungary's government is considering some easing of restrictions to contain the spread of coronavirus in Budapest from next week due to a decline in the number of infections, Prime Minister…

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Czech Republic planning to open borders with Austria, Slovakia in June

The Czech Republic, Slovakia and Austria could open their mutual borders as soon as June 8, allowing residents of the three countries to travel between them, Czech Prime Minister Andrej…

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Photo Story: Border between Austria and Germany to reopen completely from 15 June

The border between Austria and Germany will be completely opened from 15 June, Austria’s tourism minister, Elisabeth Köstinger, has told the country’s public service broadcaster, ORF. The German chancellor, Angela…

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Poland to extend strict border controls, to reopen restaurants and hairdressers next Monday

Poland will extend its strict border controls until 12 June due to the coronavirus pandemic, its Interior Ministry said on Wednesday. Poland closed its borders to foreigners in March to…

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Photo Story: The renovated Great Mill in Gdansk

A view of the renovated roof of the historic Great Mill in Gdansk, north Poland. The Gdansk Museum has announced a tender for the next, last, stage of renovation and…

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Photo Story: Czech Republic eases lockdown

A woman sits on a bench at a tram station in front of an empty restaurant garden prepared for reopening in Prague, Czech Republic. Restaurants and cafes across the country…

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Poland’s new election date has to be declared in 14 days

The head of Poland's electoral commission said on Sunday that the speaker of parliament had 14 days to declare the date of a new presidential election. Poland had been due…

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Enjoying the sun and love

People enjoy the sun on Margaret Island in Budapest, Hungary, 09 May 2020 (issued 10 May 2020). The local authority made a recommendation that residents of Budapest should go to…

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Photo Story: Coronavirus infections in Poland reach 15,510

A soldier from the 8th Kuyavian-Pomeranian Territorial Defence Brigade establish the mobile Drive-Thru swab collection point at the Provincial Observatory and Infectious Hospital in Bydgoszcz, northern Poland, 09 May 2020.…

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Photo Story: Victory over Nazi Germany commemorated in Poland

Polish veterans lay flowers at the Monument of the Unknown Soldier at the Lithuanian Square marking the 75th anniversary of the Victory Day in Lublin, eastern Poland, 08 May 2020.…

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Polish parliament backs law allowing election to be held by post

The Polish lower house of parliament, the Sejm, approved on Thursday government-sponsored legislation that would allow the country’s presidential election to go ahead by postal ballot, according to voting records.…

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Austrian Airlines plans to cut 1,100 jobs

Lufthansa unit Austrian Airlines, which has applied for 767 million euros (669.7 million pounds) in emergency aid from the Austrian government, plans to cut 1,100 of its 7,000 staff by…

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Poland postpones presidential election

Poland's governing parties reached an agreement on Wednesday to postpone the country's presidential election, which was due to take place on Sunday. Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the leader of the ruling nationalist…

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Czech Government to lift ban on international bus and train travel from May 11

The Czech government agreed this week to lift a ban on international bus and train travel from May 11, a member of the government said. The measure was put in…

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Antibody study shows Czech population’s coronavirus immunity low

Immunity to the novel coronavirus is building up very slowly in the Czech Republic and likely does not cover more than 4-5% of the population, the health ministry said on…

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Netflix and the Polish National Chamber of Audiovisual Producers (KIPA) create new assistance fund for the neediest TV and film industry employees

Netflix and the Polish National Chamber of Audiovisual Producers (KIPA) have created a new assistance fund for the neediest TV and film industry employees affected by the suspension of productions…

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Intensive Care – Hungary

A nurse in protective gear strokes the hand of a patient at the Intensive Care Unit for patients with the COVID-19 disease at the National Koranyi Institute of Pulmonology in…

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Photo Story: Poland commemorates anniversary of the 03 May Constitution

An aerial picture taken with a drone shows the Royal Castle during the anniversary of the 03 May Constitution in Warsaw, Poland, 03 May 2020. The Constitution of 3…

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Polish government seeks to introduce ‘Netflix’ tax for video-on-demand platforms

The Polish government is seeking to expand its multi-billion-zloty economic support package aimed at easing the burden of the coronavirus crisis on businesses and workers. Notes from Poland reports that…

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Photo Story: Postal voting for Poland presidential election due to pandemic

Post boxes by the national road No. 80 in Pedzewo, north-central Poland. At the beginning of April 2020, Poland's Sejm, lower house, passed a bill envisaging postal voting as the…

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Schools in Hungary to remain closed

Schools in Hungary will remain closed until the end of May and events with more than 500 participants cannot be held until 15 August, prime minister Viktor Orban’s chief of…

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Czech Republic declares coronavirus spread contained

The spread of the novel coronavirus has been contained in the Czech Republic and the government will continue to cautiously open up the economy, Health Minister Adam Vojtech said on…

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Photo Story: Drone delivers coronavirus test samples in Poland

A drone in front of the Central Clinical Hospital of Ministry of the Interior and Administration in Warsaw, Poland. This week the first drone flight in Poland took place, which…

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Slovenia to ease coronavirus restrictions

Slovenia will from Thursday lift a restriction imposed at the end of March that prohibited citizens from travelling outside their local municipalities, Prime Minister Janez Jansa said. Education Minister Simona…

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Romania to keep flights to several EU countries suspended until May 14

The flights to several EU countries and the U.S. will remain suspended until May 14 while the movement restrictions for senior citizens have been eased, according to the tenth military…

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Tusk urges Poles to shun May presidential vote

Polish voters should boycott a presidential election set for May 10 out of “basic human decency” because of the new coronavirus pandemic, Donald Tusk, leader of the centre-right European People’s…

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Hotels in Poland to open for summer holidays

Hotels in Poland will be open for summer holidays, government spokesman Piotr Muller told state radio on Wednesday, while adding that the novel coronavirus infections were still on the rise…

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Romania relaxes restrictions on the elderly, but schools remain closed until September

All educational institutions in Romania will remain closed until September, including kindergartens and universities. This was announced yesterday evening by President Klaus Iohannis. The President justified this decision by explaining…

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EPA’s Eye in the Sky: Przemysl, Poland

A picture taken with a drone shows a water play ground on a wintery morning in Przemysl, Poland, south-east Poland.E Via EPA-EFE/Darek Delmanowicz

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Hotels in Romania will reopen in May, masks to become mandatory in all enclosed public spaces

The hotels in Romania will reopen after May 15, when Romania will start to ease the restrictions imposed during the state of emergency, prime minister Ludovic Orban said. However, the…

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Budapest makes masks mandatory for public

From today, it is mandatory to cover one’s face in Budapest's shops, stores, markets and taxis, Mayor Gergely Karácsony has announced on the city page. The city council has…

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Protected view…

View of a protective face mask hanging from the rear-view mirror of a car for use during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, in Nyiregyhaza, northeastern Hungary, 26 April 2020. EPA-EFE/ATTILA BALAZS

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Prayer….

Holy Mass in the Primate's Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Gniezno, Poland 26 April 2020. The Mass is celebrated on the occasion of the annual…

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Photo Story: Romanian transports EU aid to Italy

A C-27 J Spartan aircraft of the Romanian Air Force took off on Saturday, April 25, from Otopeni Air Base, to Milan, Italy, with a consignment of 90,000 FFP 2.…

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Polish health minister says presidential vote in two years would be safest option

Poland’s health minister on Friday urged a delay of the presidential election scheduled for May 10, saying postponing it by two years would be the safest option because of…

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Poland says no data to show coronavirus will ease in autumn

Poland’s Health Minister Lukasz Szumowski said on Friday that there was no reliable data showing that the new coronavirus will ease in autumn, when asked whether he expected infections to…

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Photo Story: Polish soldiers give a helping hand to local nursing home

Polish Soldiers from the 9th Brigade of Territorial Defense Forces donate potato peeling equipment to one of the nursing home care in Lodz, central Poland, 24 April 2020. Equipment was…

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Alp resort in Austria at heart of Europe’s outbreak reopens

Austria has lifted the strict quarantine on three ski resorts in Tyrol which were coronavirus hotspots. The three include Ischgl, known as the "Ibiza of the Alps", where hundreds of…

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Photo Story: Fire at the Biebrza National Park in Poland

A view on a meadow in flames at the Biebrza National Park, in Wrocen, northeastern Poland, on the evening of Wednesday 22 April 2020. According to reports, about 6,000 hectares…

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Czechs to test 27,000 persons to gauge coronavirus antibodies

The Czech Republic will test 27,000 people for coronavirus antibodies to gain information on how many came into contact with the infection, officials said. The study, wider than others made…

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Photo Story: Starlink satellites above Hungary

A computer-generated image from several long-exposure images shows Starlink satellites (centre) in the sky above the concrete base of a former heating plant in Salgotarjan, Hungary, 20 April 2020. The…

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EU Parliament condemns Hungary and Poland for undemocratic decisions

The European Parliament strongly condemned recent political decisions taken by the Polish and Hungarian Government during the current pandemic, which have been described as "totally incompatible with European values". Hungarian…

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Poland commemorates the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising

A yellow a daffodil is displayed on the facade of the Presidential Palace to mark the 77th anniversary of the outbreak of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in Warsaw, Poland, on…

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Poland records spike in cases as it prepares to ease some restrictions

Poland saw its biggest spike in coronavirus cases on Sunday with 545 new infections recorded, according to health ministry data, a day before the country plans to ease some of…

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Covid19 will not impede government from fighting corruption – Slovakia PM

The new Slovak government will focus on fighting corruption, improving economic competitiveness and restoring people's trust in the state, the cabinet said in a programme declaration that it approved on…

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EPA’s Eye in the Sky: Budapest, Hungary

A picture taken with a drone shows empty outdoor pools of the Szechenyi Thermal Bath in Budapest, Hungary. The company that manages the capital's spas and hot springs closed all…

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Commemoration of Holocaust victims in Budapest

Hungarian Minister of Justice Judit Varga pays tribute to the victims as she stands next to cast iron shoes, a memorial of Holocaust victims on the bank of River Danube,…

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Slovenia to ease coronavirus lockdown from Monday

Slovenia will from Monday ease restrictions that have been imposed since the middle of March to contain the spread of the new coronavirus, the government said late on Thursday. Slovenia,…

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Poland’s borders to remain closed, first fatality among medical personnel

Poland’s borders will remain closed until at least May 3, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Thursday. Morawiecki said Poland would start easing some coronavirus restrictions from April 20. A…

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Hungary extends national lockdown

Hungary is extending lockdown measures to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus by one week from Saturday, Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s chief of staff said at a media conference…

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Poland to start easing lockdown curbs

Poland will reopen parks and forests on Monday and then revise the rules on the number of customers allowed in shops, as the country starts to loosen its coronavirus…

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Photo Story: Poland receives medical protective gear delivery from China

Airport workers unload boxes with medical protective gear delivered from China at the Poznan-Lawica airport amid the coronavirus pandemic in Poznan, Poland, 15 April 2020. Countries around the world are…

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Photo Story: Traditional Easter celebrations in Poland amid lockdown

A Polish boy throws water over a girl on Wet Monday in Szczecin, northwestern Poland, 13 April 2020. Wet Monday is a Catholic celebration held on Easter Monday mostly in…

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