The European Commission should place greater focus on the long-term development of an EU able to better withstand geopolitical upheavals, counter their negative economic and social impacts and ensure that sustainable development guides its policies, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) has said in a resolution on the EU’s priorities for 2023. The resolution…
As part of the Commission’s ongoing efforts to provide support in the area of health, Commissioner Kyriakides visited Ukraine to meet Minister of Health Viktor Liashko and pay a visit to a medical centre for children as well as a patient rehabilitation centre. The EU and Ukraine on Friday signed an agreement which will open access for…
After two years of modified editions due to the health situation, the Comic Strip Festival is finally back in its original form, from 9 to 11 September. This year, to mark its return, it’s changing its name to the BD Comic Strip Festival. And that’s not all, the festival is also moving to the sublime…
At its July plenary, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) debated the Commission’s draft directive to tackle gender-based violence and gender equality in presence of Cristina Fabre of the European Institute for Gender Equality. The Committee adopted two opinions with recommendations for making the legislation more effective in combatting such an issue of epidemic…
The European Ombudsman inquiry into the Commission’s handling of a request for text messages between its President and the CEO of a pharmaceutical company is, she says, a wake-up call for all EU institutions about ensuring accountability in an era of instant messaging. One year after the initial request by a journalist, the Commission has…
Thanks to direct mediation by the Kingdom of Morocco, under the leadership of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, the Israeli authorities have decided to open, without interruption, the Allenby/King Hussein border crossing, linking the West Bank and Jordan. This mediation, led by the Kingdom of Morocco and the United States of America, led to an…
Russia is encouraging extrajudicial executions, and is converting the occupied territories of Ukraine into a prototype of a “new Kampuchea”. In Russia, the death penalty has been abolished at the legislative level, but Putin’s dictatorial regime encourages the creation of “gray zones” where lawlessness and arbitrariness reign. The Russian-controlled “republics” of the “LPR” and “DPR”…
Some have argued that the sanctions in effect against Russia have driven Russian businesses closer to Putin, for their own survival. But what is indisputable is that the sanctions have led to a sharp rise in prices, and have also reduced the number of quality Western goods, thereby greatly affecting the every day lives of…
An overwhelming majority of EU citizens who responded to a European Commission initiative say they support tobacco harm reduction products. The Commission’s “Call for Evidence” on the legislative framework for tobacco control received an unprecedented level of feedback, with consumers of alternatives to tobacco products – vaping, heated tobacco and oral nicotine pouches – making…
