European Union

In today’s edition of the Capitals, find out more about Pfizer and Moderna having significantly raised vaccine prices for Germany in the middle of the pandemic, Slovenia introducing a new set of energy price caps, and so much more.

France could back an EU-wide target of 45% for renewable energies if the objectives assigned to each member state are weighted according to the carbon intensity of their electricity mix, according to Pascal Canfin, the chairman of the European Parliament's environment committee.

The Greek parliament will vote on Friday on a non-confidence motion filed by the main opposition Syriza party (EU Left) against centre-right New Democracy (EPP) after it was confirmed that secret services had put under surveillance a current minister, the...

Efforts to reduce fossil fuel use in transport overly concentrate on ramping up second-generation biofuels, neglecting synthetic fuels made with green electricity, according to a new study commissioned by green group Transport & Environment (T&E). 

Albania’s parliament held a special session on Thursday to commemorate the victims of the Holocaust on the occasion of International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust, in the presence of representatives from the Embassy of...

The international community has made mistakes in the Balkans but this will not be repeated with the establishment of the Association of Serb Municipalities in Kosovo, the EU’s special envoy to the Serbia-Kosovo dialogue, Miroslav Lajcak said on Thursday. Lajcak...

Bulgaria summoned its ambassador to North Macedonia, Angel Angelov, back to Sofia as tensions continue to simmer between the two countries. Following the assault of Macedonian-Bulgarian Hristian Pendikov in Ohrid, Sofia’s demands for constitutional change in North Macedonia to progress...

The government has introduced a new cap on natural gas prices in district heating systems for users such as schools and community health centres in what is yet another in a long series of price caps that have become the government's go-to tool to fight high energy prices.

The EU Council has found common ground on the secondary use of data, one of the most crucial aspects for gaining citizens' trust in the European Health Data Space (EHDS), according to a draft position obtained by EURACTIV.

The United States on Thursday (26 January) stepped up sanctions against the Wagner Group, labeling the Russian mercenary company fighting in Ukraine as a transnational criminal organization responsible for widespread human rights abuses.

The European Commission has decided to sue Slovakia in EU Court for failing to respect the EU directive on landfills with regard to a total of 21 decommissioned sites. Under the EU directive on landfills, member states were supposed to...

Transparency experts have urged MEPs to push for tougher internal reforms in the wake of the Qatargate scandal, noting that Qatar is not the only state to practice ‘chequebook diplomacy’. 

The two-day presidential election has gotten off to a shaky start on Friday, with the government’s Human Rights Commissioner, Klára Šimáčková Laurenčíková warning of “alarming” levels of disinformation surrounding the campaigns. Following the first election round that was held in...

Facemasks will no longer be mandatory on public transportation from 7 February, as Spain is one of the few remaining countries to impose the rule, three years after the start of the pandemic, Health Minister Carolina Darias said on Thursday....

Rasmus Paludan, who attracted international attention and jeopardised Sweden’s NATO bid by burning the Quran in front of the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm, declared his intention, as a dual Swedish-Danish citizen, to join the second-largest party, the strong far-right Sweden...

Interior Minister Gerhard Karner demanded more support from the European Commission to ensure better protection of the EU’s external borders at a meeting of EU interior ministers in Stockholm on Thursday. In view of rising migration figures, EU interior ministers...

The Nanterre public prosecution office in France started investigations against oil and gas giant TotalEnergies in December 2021 for allegedly misleading commercial practice, investigative media Mediapart revealed on Thursday.

Installing wind turbines, already tricky due to a law that has been in force since 2016, will be made even harder if an amendment the ruling PiS party is currently working on to trigger the release of frozen EU recovery funds is approved.

Two pandas China loaned to Finland five years ago could heavily impact trade relations between both countries if Helsinki does not find money to keep them, as the pandemic has dashed all hopes of the expensive animals becoming lucrative tourist...

Pharmaceutical companies Pfizer/Biotech and Moderna imposed significantly higher vaccine prices on Germany in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, documents obtained by German media show. Germany spent €13.1 billion on vaccines, according to public broadcasters NDR and WDR and daily...