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).

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News
Luhansk the first Ukrainian region fully occupied by Russia

Luhansk the first Ukrainian region fully occupied by Russia

A Russia-appointed official in Ukraine’s occupied Luhansk region was quoted by AP on Monday saying that Moscow’s forces have overrun all of it, one of four regions Russia annexed from Ukraine in September 2022. If confirmed, it would make Luhansk the first Ukrainian region fully occupied by Russia after more than three years of war with international peace efforts led by the US failing to make progress on halting the fighting. Russian President Vladimir Putin has effectively rejected a ceasefire and hasn’t budged from his demands, which include Moscow’s control over the four illegally annexed regions. 
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News
Denmark takes over EU Presidency with a focus on Security, Migration and Enlargement

Denmark takes over EU Presidency with a focus on Security, Migration and Enlargement

On July 1, Denmark takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union for the eighth time. Under the motto ‘A Strong Europe in a Changing World’, the Danish Presidency said its programme of work will ensure that the EU takes responsibility for its own security, while also strengthening its competitiveness. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said that priority will be given to boosting defence capabilities in Europe amid Russia's war in Ukraine and US threats to Greenland, a Danish autonomous territory. Pushing countries to keep promises to boost defence spending and bolstering Europe's "dangerous" security will top Denmark’s agenda as it takes over the rotating presidency on Tuesday, according to Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen.

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Opinion
Azerbaijan and the EU should seize the new momentum in bilateral relations

Azerbaijan and the EU should seize the new momentum in bilateral relations

On April 25, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas paid a visit to Azerbaijan. This was the first visit of the EU’s top diplomat to Baku in the past nine years. Both sides gave positive messages during the visit about the existing situation in bilateral relations and future prospects. President Ilham Aliyev reaffirmed Azerbaijan’s position as a dependable EU partner, drawing attention to the Southern Gas Corridor’s steady supply of natural gas to Europe over the past four years. Currently, ten European nations – eight of them EU members – receive Azerbaijani gas, positioning Baku as a major contributor to the continent’s energy security. Aliyev also pointed to effective collaboration under the Southern Gas Corridor Advisory Council and noted promising opportunities in renewable energy. Azerbaijan’s involvement in advancing the Trans-Caspian Energy Corridor and joint Black Sea energy projects with countries like Georgia, Romania, Hungary, and Bulgaria was also underscored.
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Monday Commentary
New Pope, new Chancellor, same old Trump

New Pope, new Chancellor, same old Trump

The Catholic Church has a new leader. Robert Prevost was not discussed by the media before being announced as the new Pope on Friday. He will follow the Church’s mantra, that has served it well over two thousand years, to be as flexible as necessary and as rigid as possible Europe has fresh energy in the person of the new German chancellor, Friedrich Merz. Despite the wobbly start in the German Parliament, Merz in the four days after his swearing-in met key European leaders, and laid the basis for his Chancellorship. Meanwhile, Donald Trump statements continue to hanker for the past. His call for the re-opening of the prison on Alcatraz is a case in point. Trump marks the end of the “American era”. The US will remain a rich and powerful country, but its global role will be much diminished.
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News
Ukraine and its allies push for 30-day ceasefire 

Ukraine and its allies push for 30-day ceasefire 

Ukraine and its allies are ready for a “full, unconditional ceasefire” with Russia for at least 30 days starting on Monday, Ukrainian FM Andrii Sybiha said on Saturday.  His remarks came as the leaders of four major European countries visited Kyiv, amid a push for Moscow to agree to a truce and launch peace talks on ending the nearly three-year war. They followed what Sybiha said was a “constructive” phone call between them, U.S. President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. 
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News
Turkey's accession to the European Union frozen due to lack of progress

Turkey's accession to the European Union frozen due to lack of progress

Turkey's EU accession process remains frozen due to democratic backsliding, despite the Mediterranean country's strategic importance and cooperation on migration, the European Parliament has stated in a report approved by MEPS in Strasbourg. Turkey's EU accession process, which has been at a standstill since 2018, cannot be relaunched in the current circumstances, despite Ankara's geopolitical and strategic importance, the report says. MEPs in Strasbourg approved the report on Wednesday 7 April, with 367 votes in favour, 74 against and 188 abstentions.
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News
Russia holds Victory Day parade marking 80th anniversary of Nazi Germany defeat

Russia holds Victory Day parade marking 80th anniversary of Nazi Germany defeat

Russia marked the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II with a massive military parade on Red Square on Friday attended by President Vladimir Putin and foreign leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The parade and other ceremonies underline Moscow’s efforts to project its global power and cement the alliances it has forged while seeking a counterbalance to the West amid the conflict in Ukraine that has dragged into a fourth year.
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News
The rise of George Simion, a nationalist who topped Romania’s presidential election

The rise of George Simion, a nationalist who topped Romania’s presidential election

George Simion, a nationalist and vocal supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, won Romania’s first-round presidential election on Sunday by a landslide after capitalizing on widespread anti-establishment sentiment. The 38-year-old leader of the Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR), will face a pro-Western reformist in a May 18 runoff that could reshape the European Union and NATO member country’s geopolitical direction.
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News
Great power interest in Central Asia putting Uzbekistan in the spotlight

Great power interest in Central Asia putting Uzbekistan in the spotlight

In recent times, Central Asia’s most populous nation has become the centre of attention for great powers, underscored by high level diplomatic contacts with the United States, the hosting of a regional summit with the leadership of the European Union and a high profile visit by hundreds of Russian officials and executives who participated in a trade fair in Tashkent. Western interest centres on Uzbekistan’s abundant reserves of critical minerals and a desire to develop clean energy  sources, including nuclear power. Russia, along with China, has broader trade interests, including developing manufacturing capacity.
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News
Drones attacked a vessel carrying aid to Gaza in international waters

Drones attacked a vessel carrying aid to Gaza in international waters

Drones attacked a vessel carrying aid to Gaza while it was in international waters off Malta on Friday, the group organizing the shipment said. A fire broke out but was brought under control, according to authorities. A nearby tugboat responded to a distress call from the Conscience, which was carrying 12 crew members and four civilians, Malta’s government said, adding that those aboard refused to leave their ship. The group was safe and no injuries were reported, it said.
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Monday Commentary
Is the Sahel Europe’s soft underbelly?

Is the Sahel Europe’s soft underbelly?

The Sahel region stretches from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea and consists, according to the UN, of ten countries which sit, wholly or partly, within it: Senegal,  Gambia, Mauritania, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, Cameroon and Nigeria Other neighbouring countries however, such as Benin, Togo Sudan and Central African Republic, due to their proximity, and to the fact that they increasingly share the same problems, are often included when the Sahel is discussed.