Let’s keep it ‘coherent’ on China, say EU leaders
EU leaders pushed for a coherent strategy to underpin Europe-China relations on April 18 in Strasbourg.
Politics
Latest reporting and analysis on politics.
Italy’s President tells EU to revise ‘prehistoric’ migrant treaties
Italian head of state Sergio Mattarella said on April 18 that the EU needs to revise its migrant treaties so that arrivals are handled jointly rather than by single,…
Gazprom says Europe set to struggle to fill gas storage for next winter
It will be very difficult for Europe to refill its gas storage to last year’s levels after the continent ended the winter heating season with relatively low stockpiles,…
More headaches for EC President von der Leyen as Pfizer lawsuit asks if she ‘destroyed official documents’
A Belgian lobbyist is suing European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen over SMS exchanges she allegedly had with Pfizer's chief executive, asking whether…
Is the European Commission turning into Kafka’s Castle?
In most of Europe, and for most of its existence, the European Commission has been considered a force for good.
Poland and Hungary defy EU on Ukrainian grain
Unilateral action on trade by European Union member states is unacceptable, a European Commission spokesperson said on Sunday, after Poland and Hungary announced…
Greece’s Prime Minister: border walls need fortifying
Europe's external borders need fortified walls.
European Commission sidesteps Pentagon leaks
The US is getting it in the neck from its European allies over recent intelligence leaks about the war in Ukraine.
Qatargate accused Marc Tarabella goes back to work
Qatargate accused Marc Tarabella will go back to work as soon as he is released from prison under electronic surveillance, Belgian press reports today.
Schengen still not functioning despite end of Covid
Europe's border-control-free zone, Schengen, collapsed during the Covid pandemic as national governments retrenched within more comfortable confines in the belief…
Is Macron just being a Gaullist?
Although France’s influence on the world stage has shrunk, French Presidents have a habit of still taking on larger-than-reality personas
Police raid shines unwelcome light on European Parliament financing
Belgian police, accompanied by German police, “raided” the European People’s Party (EPP) headquarters in Brussels on April 4 though the party itself said agents…
Brussels: nest of spies
A spy, according to the New Oxford American Dictionary, is “a person who secretly collects and reports information on the activities, movements and plans of an…
Kosovo-Serbia tensions flare again despite EU-mediated deal
Car number plates might seem a flimsy pretext for a geopolitical standoff but a renewed rise in tensions in Kosovo have been triggered by a dispute about where cars…
EC President von der Leyen links China trade deal with Ukraine war as tensions escalate
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hinted at rewriting the EU’s market access agreement with China on March 30 in the latest sign of a shift towards…
Can the booze industry kill off EU warning labels for a second time?
The wine and beer industries successfully killed off the first European Commission attempt to slap warning labels on their products – back in 2007 – and the…
Do EU officials really have cushy jobs?
European Union officials, and those of the European Commission in particular, reputedly have cushy jobs.
European Commission swivels in attempt to arm Ukraine without using the EU budget
The European Union is by law prohibited from arming Ukraine, though anyone watching the manoeuvrings of the Brussels institutions would be forgiven for thinking…
Should the EU give lectures on morality to the rest of the world?
There used to be an EU official whose sole job consisted of trying to convince non-EU countries to drop the death penalty.
Do personalities make EU politics?
What weight do personalities have in the design and implementation of European Union policies?
People will revolt against a European superstate, Polish PM warns
People will revolt against any attempt to turn the European Union into a superstate, the Polish Prime Minister warned on March 20.
EU joint purchasing push would concentrate power in hands of EC
Joint purchasing can seem an efficient solution to many problems facing EU Member States and their citizens.
Macron ‘weakened’ by pension reform rebellion
Whatever the outcome of the battle by French President Emmanuel Macron to push through an increase in his country’s pensionable age, he is likely to emerge weaker,…
United but fragile: Europe and Ukraine
Wars do not end in peace negotiations but at the ballot box, argues the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) in the introduction to its latest Ukraine war…
Qatargate: former European Parliament human rights committee chair surfaces
The former chairwoman of the European Parliament sub-committe on Human Rights, Marie Arena, has gone public for the first time to defend her actions with regard…
War: Brussels in desperate search for 155 mm shells
The war in Ukraine could be won or lost by the European Union’s ability to ship one specific type of ammunition to the front, to judge by a March 10 press briefing.
Minting it: Euro MPs pad out salaries with ‘side jobs’
Law-abiding Euro MPs must be furious with the Qatargate suspects, who have brought unwelcome attention to less-than-totally-ethical European Parliament practices…
Europe is the ‘Wild West of the lobbying industry’
The Qatargate scandal, now three months young, has revealed the seedy underbelly of the European Parliament: an assembly where Euro MPs – allegedly – accept…
Qatargate: EC official who accepted free flights conducted his own conflict of interest assessment
The European Commission official facing pressure over his free trips to Qatar conducted his own conflict of interest assessment, the Brussels executive admitted…
Qatargate: European Parliament ‘already back-peddling on reform promises’
The European Parliament is already back-peddling on reform promises made when the Qatargate scandal broke just three months ago, according to a transparency campaigner.