Global Europe
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Dispatches from Kyiv’s liberated outskirts: Picking up the pieces after Russian occupation
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Ukraine: ‘We have already paid for our EU membership with blood’
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Global Europe Brief: Will Turkey be a stumbling block for NATO enlargement?
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EU reputation at stake as Hungary continues to block Russia sanctions
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MEP: Sweden’s NATO policy ‘not democratically responsible’
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With Nordics set to join NATO, Estonia wants to close Baltic security gaps
Global Europe Brief: Russia’s history games backfire, bring Poland and Ukraine even closer
Welcome to EURACTIV’s Global Europe Brief, your weekly update on the EU from a global perspective. You can subscribe to receive our newsletter here. In this week’s edition: Ukraine reconstruction, NATO path and enlargement priorities. When Russia invaded Ukraine, history has...
Erdogan conditions support for Nordic nations’ NATO bids
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Saturday (21 May) said Turkey would not look "positively" on Sweden and Finland's NATO bids unless its terror-related concerns were addressed, despite broad support from other allies including the United States.
Zelenskyy warns only diplomacy can end war, rejects alternative to EU enlargement
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned only a diplomatic breakthrough rather than an outright military victory can end Russia's war on his country, while pushing its case for EU membership.
Germany and Italy approved Russian gas payments after nod from Brussels
Germany and Italy told companies they could open ruble accounts to keep buying Russian gas without breaching sanctions against Moscow following discussions with the European Union, sources said.
Siege ends at Ukraine’s Mariupol steelworks, Russia seeks control of Donbas
The last Ukrainian forces holed up in Mariupol's smashed Azovstal steelworks surrendered on Friday (20 May), Russia's defense ministry said, ending the most destructive siege of the war as Moscow fought to cement control over the Donbas region.
Rethinking the EU’s role in European collective defence
The EU’s response to the war in Ukraine shows that there is space for a European security provider in addition to NATO. The key issue is how NATO and the EU can complement each other, argue Lucia Retter and Stephanie Pezard.
What Europe’s next steps should be after Russia’s aggression against Ukraine
Europe must realise that with the current criminal Russian regime, it will not be possible to restore relations with Moscow even when the war in Ukraine ends, writes Urmas Paet. MEP Urmas Paet (Renew) is Vice-Chair of the European Parliament’s...
Struggling in Ukraine, Russia paves way to sign up over-40s for army
In a sign of Russia's urgent need to bolster its war effort in Ukraine, parliament said on Friday (20 May) it would consider a bill to allow Russians over 40 and foreigners over 30 to sign up for the military.
The Brief – Borrell gets his hearing for the defence
When the EU’s chief diplomat, Josep Borrell, concluded the bloc’s first defence policy review, more than 18 months ago, he warned that “European defence suffers from fragmentation, duplication and insufficient operational engagement.”
Namibia comes to Europe to sell its sunshine
As Europe struggles to decarbonise its economy and wean itself off Russian oil and gas, one of the world's sunniest and most arid nations is pitching itself to the continent as an answer to its problems.
EU exploring ways to use Russian oligarchs’ frozen assets to rebuild Ukraine
The European Union is looking into ways of using the frozen assets of Russian oligarchs to fund the reconstruction of Ukraine after the war, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Thursday (19 May).
Davos returns under Ukraine cloud after Covid break
The world's political and business elite will hobnob in Davos next week after a two-year break caused by Covid, with the Ukraine war set to dominate the exclusive Swiss mountain summit.Editor's picks
Blinken accuses Russia of using food as a weapon in Ukraine
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Russia on Thursday (19 May) of using food as a weapon in Ukraine by holding "hostage" supplies for not just Ukrainians, but also millions around the world.
Former economy minister: Ukraine needs grants, not loans
In an interview with EURACTIV, the former Ukrainian economy minister and current advisor to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Tymofiy Mylovanov welcomed EU help but called for the use of grants instead of loans since an over-indebted Ukraine would scare off private investors and make reconstruction more difficult.
Tajikistan detains 114 over clashes in troubled region
Police in Tajikistan said Thursday (19 May) over 100 people were arrested in a "counter-terror operation" after fatal clashes roiled an eastern region that the authoritarian regime has long struggled to control.
US aims to arm Ukraine with advanced anti-ship missiles to fight Russian blockade
The White House is working to put advanced anti-ship missiles in the hands of Ukrainian fighters to help defeat Russia's naval blockade, officials said, amid concerns more powerful weapons that could sink Russian warships would intensify the conflict.
G7 agree on $18.4 billion to keep Ukraine running, ready with more
The Group of Seven's financial leaders agreed on $18.4 billion to help Ukraine pay its bills in coming months and said they were ready to stand by Kyiv throughout its war with Russia and do more if needed.
EU-accession of Western Balkans ‘top of the agenda’ in Germany
Germany has made the EU integration of the Western Balkans a top priority for the government as their accession is geopolitically important for the EU, German chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Thursday evening (19 May). Since the Russian war of...
Top US, Russian generals speak for first time since Ukraine invasion
The top US military officer, General Mark Milley, spoke by telephone with Russia's Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov, the Pentagon said on Thursday (19 May), the first conversation between the two since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February.
The Brief – The fall of Azov
The surrender of the Azov battalion in Mariupol is a milestone in Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine. In terms of what will follow, there are two options.
EU’s ‘solidarity lanes’ will not ‘significantly’ help Ukraine export, says Ukrainian MP
The recently announced EU measures to help Ukraine export grain despite the Russian blockade of its seaports are not enough as they will be mostly based on the country's obsolete railways, a Ukrainian lawmaker has told the European Parliament.
Russia uses new laser weapons in Ukraine, Zelenskyy mocks ‘wonder weapon’
Russia on Wednesday (18 May) said it was using a new generation of powerful lasers in Ukraine to burn up drones, deploying some of Moscow's secret weapons to counter a flood of Western arms.
Borrell: Togo attack ‘shows terrorism is spreading’
Around 15 assailants were killed during a "terrorist" attack last week in the north of Togo that also left eight soldiers dead, a minister said Wednesday (18 May).