Section: European Parliamentary Research Service Blog (EU)
EU sanctions against Russia : What’s next?
Written by Martin Russell, DG EPRS Policy round table – ‘ EU sanctions against Russia : What’s next? ‘ Four years after Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea, the issue of sanctions against Moscow is more topical than ever. Relations between Russia and the West have continued to deteriorate to a level not seen since the end of the...
Cyber-security [What Think Tanks are thinking]
Written by Marcin Grajewski, © NicoElNino / Fotolia Cyber-security can be defined as the protection of computer systems and mobile devices from theft and damage to their hardware, software or information, as well as from disruption or misdirection of the services they provide. Cyber-crime and cyber-attacks have become a growing threat to...
Online disinformation and the EU’s response
Written by Naja Bentzen, © ommbeu / Fotolia The proliferation of disinformation – including false news posing as factual stories – became increasingly visible in the context of the crisis in Ukraine, gaining notoriety as a global challenge during the 2016 United States presidential election campaign. While the EU is stepping up its efforts to...
Outlook for the meetings of EU leaders on 22-23 March 2018
Written by Ralf Drachenberg and Silvia Polidori, © European Union On 22 and 23 March 2018, the EU Heads of State or Government will convene in four different formations with varying compositions and levels of formality: a regular meeting of the European Council, a Leaders’ meeting on taxation, a Euro Summit and a European Council (Article...
Russia’s 2018 presidential election: Six more years of Putin
Written by Martin Russell, © Vastram / Fotolia On 18 March 2018, Russians will elect the president who will govern their country for the next six years. Incumbent, Vladimir Putin is firmly on track to win, with approval ratings that have stayed above 80 % since Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014. Russians see him as a strong...
Resurgent Russia [What Think Tanks are thinking]
Written by Marcin Grajewski, © 3dmitry / Fotolia Russia is increasingly assertive in foreign and security policy, posing a challenge to the post-Cold War, rules-based international order. Following the annexation of Crimea, conflict with Ukraine and intervention in Syria, Russia stands accused of seeking to influence electoral outcomes in the...
Eastern Partnership: 2017 Brussels summit – Taking stock and new objectives
Written by Philippe Perchoc, © areporter / Fotolia On 24 November 2017, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine meet with the European Union (EU) in Brussels for the fifth Eastern Partnership (EaP) summit. A lot has been achieved since the Riga summit in 2015: association agreements (AA) and deep and comprehensive free trade...
Plenary round-up – Strasbourg, November I 2017
Written by Katarzyna Sochacka and Clare Ferguson, © European Union 2017 – Source : EP The key focal points of the November I plenary session included debates on the rule of law in Malta and Poland and on the ‘Paradise papers’ revelations. Members adopted, inter alia, their positions ahead of the 11th WTO Ministerial Conference and the...
Disinformation, ‘fake news’ and the EU’s response
Written by Naja Bentzen, © ommbeu / Fotolia The impact of the online spread of mis- and disinformation – including false news posing as factual stories – became increasingly visible in the context of the crisis in Ukraine, and gained notoriety as a global phenomenon during the 2016 presidential election campaign in the United States. Ahead of the...
The European Council: What makes it to the agenda and why?
Written by Izabela Bacian, The Leaders’ Agenda presented by European Council President Donald Tusk in October 2017 sets priorities for action at the European level for the coming two years. Interestingly, the Leaders’ Agenda is based on the Bratislava and Rome declarations informally adopted by the EU27 leaders, and not on the...
