Tag: Eastern Europe

A concerted push by France and Britain to lift the EU’s arms embargo on Syria to help rebels fight the regime of Bashar al-Assad is set to dominate the second day of an EU summit in Brussels today (15 March). Discussions will focus on the bloc's complicated relations with Russia, which opposes the resumption of weapons deliveries, saying it would be illegal.

The parliamentary elections in Ukraine on 28 October seem to illustrate that the EU is loosing its grip on its most important partner in the region, write Guillaume Van der Loo and Peter Van Elsuwege.

Countries in Eastern Europe have until now shown remarkable economic resilience, after being hit harder by the 2008–2009. But their economic future relies on a new model of growth, argues Jana Grittersova.

Eastern and central European countries face disappointment with capitalism on a par with their previous disillusion with communism as western European banks continue to pull back from investment in the territory. The EurActiv network reports.

While accepting the need for a "fundamentally redesigned" European Neighbourhood Policy in light of the Arab revolutions, European People's Party MEPs argue for a continued focus on the EU's East European neighbours. They propose numerous measures for the bloc's Eastern partners including increased funding, more comprehensive free trade agreements and visa liberalisation.

A leading Polish MEP today (2 May) spoke out strongly against Dutch plans to expel EU citizens who make "disproportionate claims" on the social benefit system in the Netherlands, or who have committed "very serious or repeated offences".

A visa action plan adopted at the recent EU-Ukraine summit is a success for Kyiv, but the hardest task will be meeting the European Union's expectations on democracy, tackling corruption and the rule of law, writes Marta Jaroszewicz from Polish think-tank the Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW) in a February commentary.

Cash shortages and uncertainty over energy prices are delaying or cutting back nuclear power projects across Central and South-Eastern Europe, threatening energy supply and a push to abandon polluting coal.

With the Hungarian EU presidency in the first half of 2011, followed by the Polish in the second half, the Union will live a "Central Europe Presidency year," Hungarian Foreign Minister János Martonyi said.

The eight East European countries that joined the EU in 2004 are bouncing back more quickly from the economic crisis than their Western neighbours, but Bulgaria and Romania, which joined three years later, are not out of the woods yet, according to the latest statistics. The EurActiv network gives a round-up of the situation.

Struggling with budgetary pressure at home, Hungary and Bulgaria have nationalised their pre-funded pension schemes and excluded the cost of the reforms from their public debt figures, triggering a row with the European Commission. EurActiv's network reports.

On his first visit to Brussels, Polish President Bronisław Komorowski stressed his continued backing for European assistance to poorer regions and farmers ahead of EU budget talks later this year.

Poland appears to have changed its policy of unconditional support for Georgia against Russian intimidation, a recent interview given by the country's president suggests. Warsaw has also reportedly abandoned hope of securing the position of EU Ambassador to Tbilisi, the Polish press reports.

The EU's Eastern European newcomers, who still need to catch up with the rest of the Union in terms of economic and social development, face an uphill battle to attain the 'climate targets' laid out in the bloc's 'Europe 2020' strategy, a round-up of articles from the EurActiv media network reveals.

The inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the EU halved in 2009 and particularly declined in the new member states – where the foreign sector is economically vital, writes the Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies in an analysis of FDI in 20 Central, East and South-East European countries based on the latest update of its database.

Rising electricity prices are increasing the use of wood for heating in South Eastern Europe to alarming levels, posing a serious threat to health and the environment, experts warned.

Eastern EU countries have either rejected or dismissed as irrelevant a planned EU target to reduce poverty, proposed by the European Commission under a ten-year economic plan called 'Europe 2020'. The EurActiv network reports.

A prolonged deterioration of economic prospects could undermine public support for reform ahead of political elections in many of the EU's ten Central and East European member states, warns the latest World Bank report on the economic situation in the 'EU 10'.

Ukrainian citizens face a "Visa Berlin Wall" when trying to enter the EU and the visa requirement procedures of European consulates are similar to those in communist Russia, Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Kostyantyn Yeliseyev told EurActiv Germany in an interview.

Prime ministers from Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary – the so-called Visegrad group – are meeting this morning (25 March) ahead of a two-day EU summit in Brussels to hammer out common positions on the EU's future diplomatic service and economic issues.

The green building market in Romania is growing fast and investors and developers are beginning to see the value of sustainable construction, Steven Borncamp, CEO of the Romania Green Building Council (RoGBC), told EurActiv Romania in an interview.

The World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and fund manager CRG Capital said today (11 January) they had launched a fund to buy toxic assets in Central and Eastern Europe hit by the global financial crisis.

Guy Verhofstadt, leader of the liberal group in the European Parliament, yesterday (26 November) proposed that East European countries which are still outside the euro zone should immediately adopt the EU's single currency as legal tender as protection against the crisis.

Four East European commissioners are finding themselves in competition after their countries expressed preferences for the energy and enlargement portfolios in the next European Commission.