Successful Ariane 5 launch places 2 Telecoms Satellites in Orbit

Ariane 5 Blasting off from Kourou

Late on Friday night, the first Ariane 5 flight of 2021 operated by Arianespace successfully placed two satellites in orbit after launching from the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou with the support of teams from the French space agency CNES: Star One D2, built by Maxar Technologies for Brazilian operator Embratel, and EUTELSAT QUANTUM for…

EU Climate Change Strategy

Climate Change

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) says the new EU Strategy on Adaptation to Climate Change is a crucial step towards achieving climate neutrality and resilience by 2050. European civil society strongly supports the Commission’s commitment to strengthening efforts on climate proofing, resilience building, prevention and preparedness. The floods occurring in Western Europe, just weeks after a…

Michael Hoppe Obituary

Michael Hoppe

The S&D Group mourns the death of their Secretary General, Michael Hoppe, who died yesterday at the age of 58 after a long and severe illness.  Michael Hoppe, a “truly committed” European and long-standing member of the SPD, was one of the longest serving officials of the S&D Group. He served the Group and the…

ArianeGroup: European Scientific and Engineering Integration Behind the Scenes

Ariane Europe's Gateway to Space

The next Ariane 5 launch is scheduled to take place at GMT plus 1 (23.00-00.30) on Friday 30 July from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana. This will be the first Ariane launch in 2021. The rocket will carry a payload of two geostationary telecommunications satellites, Star One D2 and EUTELSAT QUANTUM which…

Innovative Green Technology to Build Europe’s Future Recovery

Prometheus

At their plant in Vernon in Normandy, within a stone’s throw from Claude Monet’s inspiring garden in Giverny, ArianeGroup is working on the design and construction of the latest generation of rocket engines. They are at an important turning point in their development, completing the construction of the last of the family of Ariane V…

Fresh Look At EU-Russia Relations

EU Russia Relations

The European Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee says the EU must push back against Russia’s aggressive policies while laying groundwork for cooperation with a future democratic country. In a new assessment of the direction of EU-Russia political relations, MEPs made clear the Parliament distinguishes between the Russian people and President Vladimir Putin’s regime. The latter is,…

European Parliament moves to withdraw Pakistan’s GSP+ status over abuse of Blasphemy Laws.

Pakistan Blasphemy Law

The European Parliament has criticised Pakistan’s controversial Blasphemy Laws and called for a review of the status quo, writes Philippe Jeune. Pakistan is a major beneficiary of the trading opportunities offered by the EU Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP).  From January 1st 2014 Pakistan has benefited from generous tariff preferences (mostly zero duties on two…

Morocco Stresses the Contribution of Marrakesh Compact on Migration

Nasser Bourita

Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Abroad, Nasser Bourita Speaking at a High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development convened by the UN Economic and Social Council, Nasser Bourita the Foreign Minister of Morocco stressed the importance of  continuing the implementation of the Marrakesh Compact. The Marrakesh Compact represents an open informal group…

China’s Malicious Cyber Activities Heavily Criticised by EU

malicious cyber activity

EU foreign affairs Josep Borrell has urged China to do more to combat malicious cyber activities originating from the country. The Spaniard said, “Today, the EU and its Member States, together with partners, expose malicious cyber activities that significantly affected our economy, security, democracy and society at large.” He added, “The EU and its Member…

EU Push for Affordable COVID-19 Vaccines For All

Vaccination

Ensuring access to safe and affordable COVID-19 vaccines around the world, and notably for low and middle-income countries, is a priority for the bloc, says the EU. At the health summit in Rome, on 21 May 2021, President von der Leyen announced that ‘Team Europe’ would share with low and middle-income countries at least 100 million doses…