Section: European Parliamentary Research Service Blog (EU)
Plenary round-up – Strasbourg, October I 2017
Written by Katarzyna Sochacka, EU negotiator Michel Barnier presents the state of play of the Brexit negotiations in plenary. © European Union 2017 – Source : EP The adoption of Parliament’s resolution on the state of play of the Brexit negotiations was one of the main points of the October I plenary session, as was a debate on the...
North Korea [What Think Tanks are thinking]
Written by Marcin Grajewski, © Onur / Fotolia North Korea has stepped up its nuclear plans with the underground detonation of a hydrogen bomb and tests of its first suspected Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs), moves perceived as a major threat to global security. Speaking at the United Nations General Assembly on 19 September, U.S....
How the EU budget is spent: Instrument for Nuclear Safety Cooperation
Written by Matthew Parry, © alona_s / Fotolia In the early 1990s, following the fall of the Berlin Wall and the disintegration of the USSR, the EU began to provide support via its TACIS programme for structural adjustment and reform in 11 post-Soviet and post-communist countries. One form of support was for countries grappling with a Soviet-era...
Next steps in the debate on the future of Europe
Written by Aidan Christie, A clearer view of the European Commission’s vision of the future of Europe should be one outcome of the 2017 State of the Union speech by President Jean-Claude Juncker. Set to take place in the European Parliament’s plenary session of 13 September, this year’s annual set-piece is to be a key moment in...
Ukraine and the EU [What Think Tanks are thinking]
Written by Marcin Grajewski, © alexlmx / Fotolia Relations between the European Union and Ukraine have been improving since the Maidan protests ousted President Viktor Yanukovych in 2014, leading to the election a pro-Western Petro Poroshenko as Head of State. At their meeting on 12-13 July, EU and Ukraine leaders welcomed the completion of the...
Russia and security [What Think Tanks are thinking]
Written by Marcin Grajewski, Relations between the European Union and Russia remain strained after the EU extended its sanctions against the country late in June until 31 January 2018, citing a lack of progress in the implementation of the Minsk agreements aimed to end of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. Russia’s annexation of Crimea and its...
EP Plenary Session July: Parliament continues efforts to promote democracy and sustainability
Written by Clare Ferguson, New faces and old friends – Parliament continues to encourage the democratic process European Union, EP – 2015 There is a sense of an ending around this month’s plenary session, as European leaders say a final farewell to that quintessential citizen of Europe, Helmut Kohl, the personification of German...
Outcome of European Council meeting of 22-23 June 2017
Written by Ralf Drachenberg and Suzana Anghel, Copyright: European Union The main results of the European Council meeting of 22-23 June 2017 include the ‘historic step’ of agreeing to set up ‘permanent structured cooperation’ in European defence, the commitment to implement the Paris Agreement on climate change in all its aspects, and...
How the EU budget is spent: Macro-financial assistance
Written by Ana Claudia Alfieri, © Comugnero Silvana / Fotolia One important European Union (EU) objective is to achieve macroeconomic and political stability in its neighbourhood by ‘developing a zone of shared stability, security, and prosperity’ through a set of policies that help to bring candidate, potential candidate, and neighbourhood...
Outlook for the European Council meeting on 22-23 June 2017 and the European Council (Article 50) meeting on 22 June 2017
Written by Susanna Tenhunen and Suzana Anghel, Shutterstock At their meeting on 22-23 June 2017, EU leaders will focus on internal security, including, most probably, the fight against terrorism, as well as external security, when they will assess progress made in European defence cooperation. They will also review progress on deepening and...
