Photo: Alina Bodnar / UNITED24 The recent adoption of the Declaration “Destruction of Cultural Heritage in Ukraine” by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe marks an important step in recognising the consequences of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. The document notes that as a result of deliberate actions by…
Law and Justice
Interpol Launches “Operation Identify Me”
Photo by Sam McNamara on Unsplash An international campaign to solve the mystery of scores of missing women in Belgium and mainland Europe is being stepped up. The initiative, called “Operation Identify Me”, aims to identify women whose bodies were found in six European countries, many of whom are believed to have been murdered….
Erosion of EU Sanctions Policy
Despite the imposition of the most stringent sanctions on Russia since 2014, aimed at crippling its military-industrial complex, the resilience of Russia’s defence sector remains evident, largely due to ongoing support from Chinese companies. These sanctions, designed to restrict high-tech product supplies, have not succeeded in stifling the production of military equipment and armaments in…
Attacks on Judiciary in Hungary
Photo by Keszthelyi Timi on Unsplash The US Ambassador to Hungary has criticised alleged attacks on the judiciary in Hungary. David Pressman was giving a keynote address at the 2024 Budapest Forum on 18 September. He told the event that soon after he arrived in Hungary, he had endeavoured to meet with leaders…
EU Financial Assistance for Ukraine
Photo by Christian Lue on Unsplash The European Commission has taken what it calls a decisive step in reinforcing support for Ukraine by proposing a comprehensive financial assistance package. This, it has been revealed, consists of a Ukraine Loan Cooperation Mechanism of up to €45 billion, and an exceptional Macro-Financial Assistance (MFA) loan…
Stop Labour Exploitation
Photo by Allan Wadsworth on Unsplash More than 700 workers “united” on Tuesday in front of the European Parliament, Strasbourg, France, to call upon the EU institutions for urgent action to stop exploitation in subcontracting chains and labour intermediation. The European action organised by the EFBWW (European Federation of Building and Woodworkers), EFFAT…
Decline of Media Freedom in Italy
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash Media freedom in Italy has been steadily declining in recent years, says a new report. This, it claims, is marked by “unprecedented attacks and violations often initiated by public officials in an attempt to silence critical voices.” The claims are made by the Media Freedom Rapid Response…
EU Crackdown on Apple’s Irish Tax Deal
Photo by zhang kaiyv on Unsplash A senior MEP says the outcome of a high profile court case on Tuesday was a “landmark victory” for the EU. The comments come after Europe’s top court backed the EU crackdown against Apple’s Irish tax deal and Google’s anti-competitive practices in two cases. Apple was told…
Call for Environmental Justice in Ukraine
Photo by Vasy Cotorobai on Unsplash For more than two and a half years, since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the world has witnessed a new level of destruction caused by the aggression of the Russian military. The extensive environmental crimes committed by Russian forces are not limited to Ukrainian territory; they threaten the environment…
British Journalist Killed By Russian Missile Strike
Photo by Engin Akyurt on Unsplash The National Union of Journalists of Ukraine has strongly condemned the killing of a British journalist working for the Reuters news agency. It also said the events of the last few days has been “unprecedented” for the media organisation and its representatives in war-torn Ukraine. This…