The prices for oil and gas are climbing to ever-new record levels, while at the same time, many companies are losing business with Russia and Ukraine. At the informal summit in Versailles on Thursday and Friday, the EU heads of state and government will discuss how the European economy can be supported in the face […]
The European Union has significantly tightened punitive measures against Belarus. Member states agreed to largely ban exports of potash and other key exports because of the country’s involvement in the Russian attack on Ukraine. Around 70 percent of Belarusian exports are affected by the ban.The EU is thus significantly extending the trade restrictions imposed last […]
Valdis Dombrovskis was clear: “If Russia does not end its aggression, it will become a pariah state,” the EU Commission Vice President responsible for trade said yesterday. He said the EU and its partners are prepared to impose even tougher sanctions if necessary – even if that means less growth and higher inflation in the […]
The US, UK, and EU are significantly increasing the pressure on Russia’s banks. The US Treasury Department announced last night that it would also place the country’s two largest institutions, Sberbank and VTB, on the sanctions list and thus no longer allow them to conduct dollar-based transactions. In addition, Washington is freezing the US-related assets […]
This evening, the EU heads of state and government are meeting in person. Council President Charles Michel had invited them to a special summit at short notice – extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. The heads of state and government need to talk, and they want to send a signal of unity. The shock at […]
In a new report, the EU Commission warns of Europe’s strategic dependencies, including in cybersecurity: In the defense sector, “most of the hardware and software used is developed in the US and manufactured in China,” the authority writes in its study published yesterday. The EU is poorly positioned in this area, which creates dependencies on […]
Russia’s attack on Ukraine has begun. During the night, Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin had officially ordered a deployment of the Russian military in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions. However, Russian news agencies also report operations in other parts of the country. For example, there are landing operations by the Black Sea Fleet in the Sea […]
A new legal opinion warns of weaknesses in the planned Digital Markets Act (DMA). In its currently discussed version, the planned regulation offers several loopholes that would allow large digital companies to circumvent the rules, warns the Frankfurt-based law firm Schulte Rechtsanwälte in its expert opinion for the NGO Lobbycontrol.Specifically, the authors warn that the […]
Two leading members of the European Parliament have called for the EU Commission’s competition supervision to be significantly strengthened in terms of staff. In view of the growing number of tasks of the Directorate-General for Competition, at least 220 additional posts are needed in the Commission, the rapporteurs Andreas Schwab (EPP) and Eva Kaili (S&D) […]
The date for the next meeting of the Trade and Technology Council (TTC) between the US and the EU has been set: Both sides will meet on May 15 and 16 in France, as the two Commission Vice-Presidents Margrethe Vestager and Valdis Dombrovskis announced via Twitter. This is the second meeting of the TTC, the […]