ECFR Report on Germany’s Impact on EU

Germany and EU

A major pan-European polling round, the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) asked citizens of the EU’s 12 most important member states for their thoughts on German leadership within the EU-27, both retrospectively, with regards the Merkel-era, and how they see Germany’s representation in Europe changing beyond this week’s elections.  The findings include: There is enduring support in Europe for Angela Merkel…

Angela Merkel Hailed as a Unifying Force for Europeans

Angela Merkel

Europeans still regard Angela Merkel, who will shortly step down as German chancellor, as a unifying force, and expect Germany to continue to provide leadership within the EU, according to new polling in a report published on Tuesday by the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR).  In “Beyond Merkelism: What Europeans expect of post-election Germany”, the…

Commission Approves €2.7 billion funds for React-EU

EU Regional Funds

The Commission has approved the modification of six Operational Programmes (OP) for the ERDF and the ESF in Spain, Bulgaria, Italy, Hungary and Germany under REACT-EU for a total of €2.7 billion.  In Italy, €1 billion has been added to the ERDF-ESF National Operational Programme for Metropolitan Cities.  These resources aim to strengthen the green and digital transition as well…

Belgium Ranked 24th Most Valuable Nation Brand

COVID-19 Wipes Over US$13 Trillion Off Top Nation Brand Values Belgium retains its position as world’s 24th most valuable nation brand, brand value down 19% to US$505 billion Top 100 nation brands in Brand Finance Nation Brands 2020 ranking lose US$13.1 trillion of brand value in 2020 as they negotiate devasting COVID-19 pandemic China continues to close gap…

The Optimism Paradox

How optimistic or pessimistic do people in the European Union view their personal future and the future of their country? How does this differ between EU member states? And how do these basic attitudes relate to party-political preferences?  These questions are answered by the Bertelsmann Stiftung’s new eupinions study “The Optimism Paradox”.  The key finding:…