European Union

European leaders ask Commission to name areas of strategic EU weakness

European Union leaders asked their Brussels-based executive on Friday to name strategic areas where the bloc relies too much on countries such as China and the United States, and to…

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City of London will have “less fluid” trade with EU, says EU official

The flow of financial services between the European Union and Britain will be less fluid from January whatever happens in talks on a future free trade deal, the EU's financial…

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Brexit trade talks to go on until mid-October EU summit -sources

Britain and the European Union will continue trade talks next week and until a summit of the bloc's leaders on Oct. 15-16, sources told Reuters. This week's round of negotiations…

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Belarus announces sanctions list in retaliation against EU

The Belarusian Foreign Ministry said on Friday it had compiled a list of people barred from entering Belarus in retaliation against sanctions imposed by the European Union. The ministry said…

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Europe lays ground for fast-tracking COVID-19 vaccine reviews

The European health regulator has started reviewing data on AstraZeneca and Oxford University's potential COVID-19 vaccine in real time, the first of such moves aimed at speeding up any approval…

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EU leaders to impose sanctions on Belarus, to review Turkey’s behaviour in December

EU leaders broke a diplomatic deadlock on Friday and imposed sanctions on Belarus after hours of summit talks, assuring Cyprus that the bloc would also punish Turkey if it continues…

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EU representatives discussed possible election delay with Venezuelan government: statement

A European Union mission that visited Venezuela last week discussed with authorities the possibility of delaying a parliamentary vote scheduled for Dec. 6, in the hopes of improving electoral conditions,…

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EU faces summit impasse on Belarus sanctions as Cyprus stands firm

Cyprus will stand firm at a summit of European Union leaders over the bloc's proposed sanctions on Belarus on Thursday, insisting that they can only be imposed if sanctions are…

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UPDATED: EU launches legal case against UK over Internal Market Bill

The European Union on Thursday launched a legal case against Britain over its new Internal Market Bill that undercuts London's earlier legal commitments under its Brexit divorce treaty, the head…

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EU financial services chief will cut off City of London if necessary

The European Union is ready for every type of Brexit, including granting no further EU access to Britain's financial sector, the bloc's candidate for financial services chief said in a…

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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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Amid COVID-19 pandemic, EU warns about outbreaks of bird flu

European Union nations should step up surveillance against possible outbreaks of avian flu among wild and domestic birds, the EU said on Wednesday. The disease is highly contagious for birds,…

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Child poverty likely to increase in EU amid virus pandemic

Child poverty has reached an “unacceptable” level across the European Union, the world’s largest trading bloc, a situation likely to worsen during the coronavirus pandemic, the EU’s external auditor said…

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EU drafts rules to force big tech companies to share data

The European Union (EU) is preparing to force big technology companies to share their customer data with smaller rivals, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing an early draft of…

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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’s first-ever democracy report zeroes in on courts, media deficiencies

The first-ever report by the European Union's executive on rule of law gaps across the bloc, seen by Reuters ahead of official release later on Wednesday, singled out challenges to…

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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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Trust in EU increases during coronavirus pandemic

Trust in the European Union has gone up since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, a study has found. Interestingly, the same study, carried out by the Eurofound agency, shows…

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Poland expects EU to approve more public aid for coal mines

Poland expects the European Commission to approve a plan to gradually close mines owned by its biggest coal producer PGG and provide more public aid for the industry, although experts…

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MEPs call for specific regulations governing large Internet players

MEPs’ demands on how digital services, including online platforms and marketplaces, should be regulated were set out in a vote in the Internal Market Committee on Monday. Ambitiously, MEPs want…

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Erdogan spokesman says Turkey sees EU summit as chance for reset

Turkey sees a European Union summit this week as an opportunity to reset relations between them, but the bloc must produce specific proposals and a timetable to work on a…

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Britain and EU finalise temporary derivatives clearing accord

The Bank of England and the European Union's securities watchdog said on Monday they have agreed on the information-sharing arrangements needed for the bloc's banks to continue using clearing houses…

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EU chair Germany proposes rule of law scheme for getting bloc’s cash – document

European Union chair Germany has proposed a rule of law conditionality scheme for accessing the bloc's funds, including the new 750 billion euro coronavirus economic recovery fund, according to a…

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With EU help, Taiwan gets rare win in China naming dispute

Taiwan expressed satisfaction on Monday and said the European Union had stepped in to help after a global alliance of mayors stopped referring to Taiwanese cities as part of China,…

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Swiss voters clearly reject curbs on EU immigration

Swiss voters overwhelmingly rejected on Sunday a right-wing party's attempt to scrap a pact allowing the free movement of people from the European Union, opting for stability amid the economic…

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Swiss reject right-wing motion to end EU free movement policy – projections

"The outcome of the ballot appears to confirm the government's policy of bilateral accords with the 27-nation bloc," says Urs Bieri, political scientist at the leading GfS Bern research institute.…

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Hungarian PM Orban against new EU migration pact over hosting asylum seekers

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban rejected a new migration plan by the European Union's executive, saying it would force Hungary to welcome aslyum seekers, but he welcomed some other elements…

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Switzerland gets ready to vote on ending free movement with EU

Swiss voters will decide on Sunday whether to tear up a pact with the European Union on the free movement of people, after a referendum campaign that exposed rifts in…

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EU leader Michel lashes out at Britain over post-Brexit plan

European Union leader Charles Michel used the virtual pulpit of the U.N. General Assembly on Friday to lash out at Britain for its threats to renege on parts of the…

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EU mission visits Venezuela in run-up to parliamentary vote

The European Union has sent a mission to Venezuela in the run-up to parliamentary election scheduled for December, the EU announced, as the country prepares for a vote that will…

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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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EU sanction threat on Turkey fades after it accepts talks with Greece

The European Union is unlikely to follow through on a threat to impose sanctions on Turkey after Ankara agreed to talks with Greece over maritime claims on Tuesday, senior EU…

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As COVID surges in Europe, officials warn of “twindemic” with flu

A surge in COVID-19 cases in Europe risks becoming a deadly double epidemic of flu and coronavirus infections, EU health officials warned on Thursday as they urged Europeans and their…

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UPDATED: Hungary PM Orban says EU commission immigration plan ‘no breakthrough’

The European Commission's migration plan presented on Wednesday is not a breakthrough, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in a press briefing in Brussels according to state TV channel M1…

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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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EU close to concluding preliminary talks with Novavax on COVID vaccine supply

Brussels is close to wrapping up preliminary talks with U.S. vaccine maker Novavax for its potential COVID-19 shot, an EU source involved in the negotiations said, as the bloc ramps…

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UPDATED: European Union seeks to overhaul defunct migration policies

The European Union's executive proposed on Wednesday overhauling the bloc's broken migration and asylum rules, seeking to end years of feuds and bitterness over the hundred of thousands of people…

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COVID-19 vaccine makers see EU shield against side-effect claims

Vaccine makers will be indemnified in Europe if their COVID-19 shots cause unexpected side-effects, an industry official said, urging European regulators to set up more predictable schemes to compensate possible…

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The European Commission would view Brexit legal remedies from end September

The European Commission will look into legal remedies at the end of the month if Britain does not adjust the parts of a domestic bill which breaches the Brexit divorce…

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EU in early talks with Italy’s ReiThera over potential vaccine supply deal

Italian biotech ReiThera is in early talks with the European Union about supplying the bloc with its potential COVID-19 vaccine, a source close to the company said, the latest attempt…

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Lithuania, Poland and Romania to ask EU leaders to offer trade, visa-free travel to Belarus

The presidents of Lithuania, Poland and Romania will ask European Union leaders at a summit later this week to offer a support package for Belarus if the country holds a…

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Turkey may resume talks with Greece but warns against EU sanctions

Turkey and Greece could soon resume talks over their contested Mediterranean claims but European Union leaders meeting this week will not help if they threaten sanctions, Turkey’s presidential spokesman said…

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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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Belarus warns EU against inviting Lukashenko’s rival to meeting

The foreign ministry in Belarus warned that it saw the possible participation of opposition politician Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya in an EU ministerial meeting as an interference in domestic affairs, the Belta…

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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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EU’s Barnier still hopes trade deal with Britain possible – sources

The European Union's Brexit negotiator told the bloc's 27 national envoys to Brussels that he still hoped a trade deal with Britain was possible, stressing that the coming days would…

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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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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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Top European firms back Green Deal, pledge business overhaul

Executives from 30 of Europe's leading companies backed the EU's Green Deal on Wednesday and pledged to overhaul their businesses to help the bloc achieve climate-neutrality by 2050. The commitment,…

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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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Luxembourg warns EU over “fixing” cross-border fund rules

European Union regulators should avoid trying to fix problems that don't exist in operating cross-border investment funds, Luxembourg's financial regulator said on Monday. The EU's securities watchdog ESMA has suggested…

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Not many issues remain to secure ‘thin’ EU-UK trade deal – Irish foreign minister

There are not that many outstanding issues in the way of securing a "thin" free-trade deal between the European Union and Britain, which is the best-case scenario at this stage,…

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Turkey does not expect EU sanctions over east Mediterranean dispute

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Monday that Turkey does not expect the European Union to impose sanctions on it over a dispute with Greece over territorial claims in the…

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Europe, Britain’s carmakers warn of 110 billion euro hard Brexit bill

Europe and Britain's car industries called on Monday on the two sides to urgently clinch a free trade agreement, warning that a disorderly Brexit would cost the sector 110 billion…

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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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