New Deal Illustrates EU’s Support for Ukraine

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Photo by Andrew Lvov on Unsplash The new EU-Ukraine Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) has entered into force. As of 29 October, the EU and Ukraine will benefit from an enhanced, stable, fair and permanent trade framework. The EU also says the upgraded DCFTA delivers additional, mutually beneficial trade liberalisation, while taking fully into account…

How Putin Uses Dragan Šolak to Influence Serbia

For years, Serbia’s balancing act between Moscow and Brussels has defined its foreign policy. Now, newly surfaced corporate and financial records suggest that the Kremlin found an unexpected instrument to pull those political strings through one of the Balkans’ best-known businessmen, Dragan Šolak. According to multiple intelligence-grade assessments reviewed by EU Political Report, Swiss lawyer…

Kazakhstan and Europe: Building a Strategic Economic Partnership

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Photo by Ilyas Dautov on Unsplash Europe today is rethinking its economic security and long-term resilience. Questions of energy autonomy, supply chain diversification, and connectivity have risen to the top of the agenda, accelerated by geopolitical fragmentation and the global green transition. At the same time, Central Asia has emerged as a region of growing…

Danger Posed by Octopus Farming

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Photo by Diane Picchiottino on Unsplash A new report warns of the disastrous implications for the marine environment, animal welfare, and food security of octopus farming and the expansion of carnivorous aquaculture.  It claims the world’s first octopus farm proposed by Spanish company Nueva Pescanova, could require up to 28,000 tonnes of wild-caught fish in…

When Sanctions Evasion Meets Media Capture

Wolfram Kuoni

Wolfram Kuoni   Why the EU Should Pay Attention to Kuoni and Šolak The European Union has invested heavily in sanction regimes and media freedom initiatives since Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. But the integrity of both is at risk when opaque financial networks and concentrated media ownership intersect. Two names illustrate the problem: Wolfram…

Tackling Housing Crisis a Priority

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Photo by Siân Wynn-Jones on Unsplash Europe will hit its climate goals only if its smallest construction firms can fully contribute. That is the get tough message from policymakers, social partners and market actors. It came as the European Builders Confederation (EBC) capped its 35th anniversary celebrations at the European Economic and Social Committee with a…

EU Defence Drive Lacks Plan or Mandate

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Photo by Levi Meir Clancy on Unsplash   It is almost 30 years since the last collaborative defence initiative collapsed, leaving Europe’s military clout weaker than ever, writes Giles Merritt. The Saint-Malo agreement’s promises of hard power proved a mirage, the European Defence Agency largely toothless, and the EU’s battlegroups more a paper army than…

A Resounding Mandate for Democracy

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Photo by Yuriy Vinnicov on Unsplash MEPs have greeted the outcome of elections in Moldova which saw the pro-European party of Moldovan President Maia Sandu claim victory and a new majority in parliament. She had warned of massive Russian interference after voting, saying the future of Moldova, flanked by Ukraine and Romania, was on the line.Igor…

Heavy Rain in Europe Increasingly Concentrated

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Photo by Atilla Bingöl on Unsplash From flooding in northern Italy to torrential rain in Slovenia and submerged subway stations in Paris, extreme weather events have become a reality in EU member states. Increasingly, heavy rainfall is causing flooded streets, evacuations, and billions in damage, placing enormous strain on cities and municipalities across the continent….