In 2023, the EU exported 8.5 million tonnes of recyclable products (paper, plastic and glass) to extra-EU countries, a 34% increase from 2022 (6.4 million tonnes), while imports dropped by 19% to 3.2 million tonnes, down from 4.0 million tonnes in 2022.
At the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the ninth review of the trade policies and practices of China takes place on 17 and 19 July 2024. The basis for the review is a report by the WTO Secretariat and a report by the Government of China, both embedded in this report.
The EU Commission has selected 134 transport projects to receive over €7 billion in EU grants from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), the EU’s instrument for strategic investment in infrastructure. This represents the largest call under the current CEF Transport programme.
The EU General Court judged today that the EU Commission did not give the public sufficiently wide access to the purchase agreements for Covid-19 vaccines. That infringement concerns, inter alia, those agreements’ provisions on indemnification, and concerns the declarations that there was no conflict of interest on the part of the members of the team who negotiated the purchase of the vaccines. Read how the EU Commission reacts.
At the EU Justice Council meeting in Luxembourg, justice ministers addressed the fight against impunity in the context of Russia’s war of aggression and the implementation of the EU anti-racism action plan.
The regulation increases duties on cereals, oilseeds and derived products from Russia and Belarus to a point that will in practice halt imports of these products.
“The new and stricter rules will strengthen our systems in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing. A new agency based in Frankfurt will supervise the work of actors involved” – Vincent Van Peteghem, Belgian minister for finance, for the EU Council Presidency.
E-commerce: A Member State may not impose additional obligations on an online service provider established in another Member State.
Online orders: An order button, or a similar function, must clearly indicate that, by clicking on it, the consumer assumes an obligation to pay. This applies even where the obligation to pay is also dependent on the satisfaction of a subsequent condition.
EU Trade Ministers hold a policy debate on trade and competitiveness and the future of EU trade policy. Furthermore, ministers have the opportunity to exchange views on trade and investment relations between the EU and Africa. And over a working lunch they discuss the follow-up to the 13th World Trade Organisation Ministerial Conference (MC13).
“We have a regulation so that we can see what financial products are actually delivering in terms of sustainability. I see this, our sustainable finance framework, as an important jigsaw. Pieces that will work together” – EU Commissioner McGuinness.
The Commission considers that there is no longer a clear risk of a serious breach of the rule of law in Poland. Warsaw has launched a series of measures to address concerns on the independence of justice. The government recognises the primacy of EU law and is committed to implementing all judgments of the EU Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights.
“China faces significant fiscal challenges, especially for local governments. Sustained fiscal consolidation over the medium term is needed to stabilize debt, while restructuring the unsustainable debt of local government financing vehicles can help reduce fiscal strains” – IMF staff report.
Pre-close calls are communication sessions between an issuer and analysts who generate research, forecasts and recommendations related to the issuer’s financial instruments. These sessions occur just before the periods preceding an interim or year-end financial report, during which issuers avoid providing additional information or updates.
Deposits protected by EU deposit guarantee schemes (DGS) increased by 1.7% to 8.5 trillion Euros between 2022 and 2023, whereas funds available to protect those deposits in case of bank failures rose by 14.9% to 73 billion Euros.
Since 2011, the European Union and its Member States have been the largest donors of humanitarian and resilience assistance to Syria and the region providing to date over €33 billion in response to the Syrian crisis.
The European Investment Bank and ETRA have signed an agreement concerning €100 million of investment in improving recycling facilities and integrated water services in the Veneto region.
Today, the EU Commission has sent a request for information (RFI) to Temu requesting the platform to provide detailed information and internal documents on the mitigation measures taken against the presence and reappearance of traders selling illegal products on its online marketplace.
Brussels, 15 February 2023 Overview by policy area In its regular package of infringement decisions,
ISSUE 1 / 2023 EU INTERNET GOVERNANCE Internet Governance Forum: MEPs advocate an open, accessible
11.02.2023 HR/VP Blog – Last Tuesday, the EEAS has organised in Brussels an important conference on
Brussels, 10 February 2023 Today, the Commission is publishing the first version of a common EU Toolbox to implement
Brussels, 9 February 2023 Innovation increasingly relies on data Legislation clarifies who can access data
# NIS 2 DIRECTIVE New stronger rules start to apply for the cyber and physical resilience
Brussels, 8 February 2023 The European Commission has today endorsed a positive preliminary assessment of
Brussels, 8 February 2023 The European Commission has today endorsed a positive preliminary assessment of
Brussels, 7 February 2023 Keynote speech by Commissioner McGuinness at 7th Annual Fintech and Regulation
Brussels, 7 February 2023 Today, the EU Commission is celebrating the 20th edition of Safer Internet
At the EU Justice Council meeting in Luxembourg, justice ministers addressed the fight against impunity in the context of Russia’s war of aggression and the implementation of the EU anti-racism action plan.
The EU continues to call for the universal abolition of the death penalty. In this context, the EU welcomes the fact that 29 US states have either abolished capital punishment or imposed a moratorium on executions. However, we are concerned by the fact that the number of executions in the US increased last year, as 24 people were executed in five states despite a steady, overall decline of the use of capital punishment in the US since 2020.
Europol supported the Spanish National Police (Policía Nacional) in an investigation that led to the arrest of 53 suspects in Madrid and Guadalajara, in Spain. The suspects acted as “betting mules” for a criminal organisation fixing sports events and defrauding betting houses. The operation took place from 29 January to 1 February and was also supported by Interpol and the Spanish Tax Agency (Agencia Tributaria).
The seven national authorities participating in the joint investigation team (JIT) on alleged core international crimes committed in Ukraine have agreed to prolong the JIT for two years. The Prosecutors General of the countries involved agreed to the extension in a coordination meeting that took place today in Kyiv, Ukraine. The meeting coincided with the United for Justice Conference, which also took place in Kyiv today.
The Technical Assistance Financing Facility for Disaster Prevention and Preparedness supports projects, studies and trainings in disaster and climate resilience and promotes the sharing of knowledge among countries on disaster risk management. The World Bank will implement the activities with financing from the European Commission. As a result of this financing tool, civil protection authorities will increase their technical capacity to prevent disasters and will be better equipped when a disaster strikes.
For the ECR Group, the abolition of unanimity would be a fall from grace that would destabilise the entire institutional structure of the EU. According to the Conservatives, only unanimity guarantees that important decisions are negotiated on an equal footing and that all states are on board. Nevertheless, the ECR Group believes that the European Parliament has rightly emphasised the role of enlargement as an important foreign policy instrument, the importance of granting candidate status to Ukraine, Moldova and – under certain conditions – Georgia, and the role of the Western Balkans. However, the EU should decentralise rather than centralise further with a view to enlargement.
In the text, passed by 451 votes in favour, 46 against with 49 abstentions, MEPs take stock of the two years since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022. Highlighting how the war has fundamentally changed the geopolitical situation in Europe and beyond, they point out that the main objective is for Ukraine to win the war, warning of serious consequences if that does not happen. MEPs say that other authoritarian regimes are watching how this develops to assess their own leeway for exerting aggressive foreign policies.
The European Parliament strongly condemns the murder of Alexei Navalny and gives its full support to Yulia Navalnaya in her determination to continue his work. In a resolution adopted on Thursday, they stress that the full criminal and political responsibility for his death lies with the Russian state, and its president Vladimir Putin in particular, who should be held accountable. MEPs warn that the killing of Alexei Navalny is yet another sign of the increasing and systematic repression in Russia and demand an independent and transparent international investigation into his murder in order to uncover the truth, ensure accountability, and secure justice.
Brazil took the Presidency of the G20 last December. It is the next of a series of emerging economy Presidencies, starting with Indonesia in 2022, India in 2023, and to be followed by South Africa in 2025. The current Brazilian government wants to show that “Brazil is back” on the multilateral scene after the Bolsonaro era and enhance the role of the “Global South”. G20 meetings are always a critical moment in international relations. G20 members represent indeed more than 80% of the world’s GDP and they can play a crucial role in steering the world away from a global confrontation.
Judicial and law enforcement authorities in Italy, Latvia and Lithuania have taken concerted action against a large-scale money laundering business, centring around a Lithuanian financial institution. Since 2017, an estimated EUR 2 billion has been laundered by two main suspects via a worldwide web of shell companies. The suspects, who now have been detained, offered money laundering online as a service to criminals.
With US versus China competition as a backdrop, Parliament is concerned about the increasing relevance of more exclusive formats of cooperation and emphasises that traditional multilateral forums – in particular the UN and its agencies, should be the EU’s preferred format of cooperation.
Between 19 and 26 February, 50 states and three international organizations made oral submissions to the ICJ on the legal consequences arising from the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory. The Court has been asked to consider several important questions of international law and its conclusions will form a key part of the basis for future peace negotiations between the parties. It was the UN General Assembly that in 2022 requested that the ICJ render an advisory opinion on the legal consequences related to the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories, including the question of whether the Israeli occupation itself must be considered a violation of international law.
Bartjan Wegter was appointed as the EU Counter-Terrorism Coordinator (EU CTC). His five-year term will start on 1 March 2024. Mr Wegter succeeds Ilkka Salmi, who has held the office since October 2021.
Bartjan Wegter is a senior Dutch diplomat, who until his appointment as EU CTC served as Minister Plenipotentiary at the Permanent Representation of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to NATO. A graduate from Leyden University and the College of Europe, Mr Wegter held various multilateral and security related positions over the course of a diplomatic career spanning 25 years.
The EU Commission has approved the acquisition of joint control of NTS Middle East of the United Arab Emirates by ADNOC Drilling Company, Alpha Dhabi Holding, both of the United Arab Emirates, and Tubacex of Spain. The transaction relates primarily to the provision of specialised machining services to the oil and gas sector.
On Wednesday, Parliament approved a review of the CAP Strategic Plans Regulation and the CAP Horizontal Regulation with 425 votes in favour, 130 against, and 33 abstentions.
The regulation, which aims to tackle constantly growing waste, harmonise internal market rules and boost the circular economy, was approved with 476 votes in favour, 129 against and 24 abstentions.
MEPs approved the creation of a European Health Data Space, improving citizens’ access to their personal health data and boosting secure sharing in the public interest.
The Energy Charter Treaty (ECT), established in 1994 to govern trade and investment in the energy sector, has become controversial. The European Parliament has also voiced the need for the EU to exit in a resolution adopted in 2022.
The new rules set stricter 2030 limits and target values for pollutants with a severe impact on human health, including particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, and sulphur dioxide. But member states may request that the 2030 deadline be postponed by up to ten years, if specific conditions are met.
The Plenary approved rules which will add transparency and structure to how environmental, social and governance (ESG) ratings are undertaken and communicated.
Strasbourg, 24 April 2024 More flexibility for farmers to exchange between each other plant reproductive
The EU Commission’s Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) and the Belgian EU Presidency have launched a Critical Medicines Alliance at the margins of the informal Council meeting of health ministers. The Alliance is part of actions to build a strong European Health Union.
The new rules, adopted with 613 votes in favour, 7 against and 11 abstentions, will establish an EU-wide disability card to make sure that persons with disabilities have equal access to preferential conditions, such as reduced or zero entry fees, priority access and access to reserved parking.
The main mission of this Commission department is to support the Commission’s efforts to fight climate change at the level of both the EU and internationally. The date of effect will be determined later.
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