Europe

Russia Expels European Diplomats Over Navalny Protests

Russia announced the expulsion of three diplomats from Sweden, Poland, and Germany for allegedly participating in illegal actions in Moscow and St. Petersburg. This move was firmly rejected by all three countries and the head of EU diplomacy Josep Borrell, who is currently in Russia. Moscow describes unauthorized protests against the imprisonment of opposition politician […]

EU Economy Shrank 6.4% In 2020

The European Union’s economy contracted by 6.4 percent last year, mainly due to measures against the new coronavirus’s spread. In the eurozone countries, the decline was even more pronounced, at 6.8 percent. This was announced today by Eurostat in its first quick estimate. The full-year decline was most pronounced until 1995 when Eurostat began monitoring […]

EU Must Further Relax State Aid Rules, Say Austria, Denmark, Czech Republic

EU regulators should loosen state aid rules further to make it easier for companies hit by the COVID-19 pandemic to receive support, the governments of Austria, Denmark and the Czech Republic said on Thursday. The European Commission, the EU competition enforcer, relaxed its rules in March 2020 but the three member states said limits still […]

Pfizer Cuts Back Vaccine Deliveries To EU

Pharmaceutical company Pfizer will temporarily cut supplies of its covid-19 vaccine to Europe while increasing production capacity. The authorities of several European countries stated this. The Scandinavian and Baltic health ministers have sent a letter to the European Commission expressing concerns and asking for an explanation for the move. Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen […]

EC Launches Probe Into Czech Agriculture Investment Aid

The European Commission has approved two Czech investment aid support schemes for the restructuring of orchards and irrigation, while opening an in-depth investigation to assess whether investment aid granted to certain large enterprises active in the agricultural sector in the past was in line with EU rules on State aid in the agricultural sector. In […]

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo czechia
Pompeo Cancels Europe Trip After Luxembourg Snub

Outgoing US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo cancelled his Europe trip at the last minute on Tuesday (12 January) after top EU officials and Luxembourg’s foreign minister declined to meet him, according to European diplomats and other people familiar with the matter. Pompeo, a close ally of US President Donald Trump, had sought to visit […]

US Raises Tariffs On EU Imports In Airbus-Boeing Dispute

The United States announced Wednesday that it will impose additional tariffs on French and German products as part of a long-running dispute over subsidies for aircraft manufacturers Airbus and Boeing. The tariffs are on “aircraft manufacturing parts from France and Germany, certain non-sparkling wine from France and Germany, and certain cognac and other grape brandies from France and […]

EU Approves Fiat Chrysler And PSA Merger

The European Commission (EC) has approved the Italian-American carmaker Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) merger with the French competitor PSA. The $38 billion merger will create the world’s fourth-largest carmaker, Stellantis. However, the European Commission’s approval is conditional on companies complying with the promised measures to prevent the merger’s negative effects on competition. Based on its […]