Region

EU plus

Stories in this section cover the EU-27 countries plus the UK, Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Andorra and the Balkan Countries (Albania, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia).

Editor's choice
News
EU to push for sanctions on Israel ministers and suspend bilateral support

EU to push for sanctions on Israel ministers and suspend bilateral support

The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen stated she would push to sanction "extremist" Israeli ministers and curb trade ties over Gaza, as she warned famine should not be used as a "weapon of war". Addressing the European Parliament on 10 September in the annual State of the Union, von der Leyen lamented that divisions among member states were holding back a European response but insisted the European Commission "will do all that it can on its own". "What is happening in Gaza has shaken the conscience of the world. People killed while begging for food. Mothers holding lifeless babies. These images are simply catastrophic," von der Leyen said. The German politician said the Commission would put its bilateral support to Israel on hold, stopping all payments, but without affecting work with civil society groups and Israel's Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial.
Editor's choice
Opinion
What role for the EU in the post-Washington South Caucasus?

What role for the EU in the post-Washington South Caucasus?

The agreements reached in the US-mediated summit of the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders in Washington on August 8 are poised to fundamentally reshape the region's future. Particularly, the deal concerning the Zangezur corridor – rebranded as the “Trump Route for Peace and Prosperity” (TRIPP) – holds significant geopolitical importance. If implemented, the TRIPP agreement would deal a severe blow to the regional standing of Russia and Iran. More importantly, it would pave the way for a strategic U.S. presence in this critical geography. This outcome represents a success that few would have predicted for the United States, especially for the Trump administration, given the region's notoriously complex and volatile geopolitics.

Filter archive

Publication date
Editor's choice
Hikmat Hajiyev: Karabakh is an existential issue for Azerbaijan too, but we are ready to discuss how to resolve it
Hikmat Hajiyev: Karabakh is an existential issue for Azerbaijan too, but we are ready to discuss how to resolve it

Hikmat Hajiyev: Karabakh is an existential issue for Azerbaijan too, but we are ready to discuss how to resolve it

Speaking in London, the head of the Azerbaijani Presidential Administration Foreign Relations Department expressed his frustration at lack of progress in peace talks.
Editor's choice
News
From the Kremlin to Rustavi 2, hysterical reactions pose a threat to Georgia

From the Kremlin to Rustavi 2, hysterical reactions pose a threat to Georgia

Georgian politicians of all persuasions, who constantly wrap themselves up in EU and NATO flags, have been acting in a way which makes Georgia look like an unstable banana republic not an aspirant for EU or NATO membership. There seems to be no one in Georgia who is able to exercise restraint on a political class that has got used to shooting from the hip, creating a highly polorised, divided and disillusioned society. The international community now needs to step in and step up.
Editor's choice
Opinion
Opinion: 'Game of Thrones moment' for Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh

Opinion: 'Game of Thrones moment' for Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh

In this op-ed, Ahmad Alili considers the implications if Azerbaijan decides to use force to resolve the Karabakh conflict. "Any further military action in the region will further increase the enmity between Azerbaijanis and Armenians; regaining control militarily over Nagorno-Karabakh may, in fact, end up prolonging the conflict itself", he says.