Reporting Europe

BRUSSELS | In front of a small tree, just a stone’s throw from the magnificent European Parliament building is Martin Pigeon adjusting the sound on his early model portable microphone. His French accent shines through when he starts speaking to his audience; “this tree was planted a couple of years ago by SEAP, the...
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  By Jesper Ernlund Lassen: The EU-Commissions handling of faulty articles meets different opinions from experts, professionals and a European Parliamentarian. The EU-Commission daily has all European news monitored by an external company in Paris. News about the EU is then being forwarded to Brussels where it is being assessed, if there are direct...
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Greece does not only have to worry about its failing economy, every day hundreds of illegal immigrants come into the country. But is it Greece or the European Union who has the responsibility to stop this immigration?  In 2010 more than 128.000 illegal immigrants came into Greece. That was more than 80 percent of...
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Turkey’s EU-admission case is one of the most controversial, as well as one of the most exciting and interesting ones. Even though the country is trying to meet the criteria that the EU requires for admission, there are still some points that need to be improved, polished, or worked forward. Due to the complexity...
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Right now the EU is pushing for a viable successor to the Kyoto Protocol at the COP17 conference in Durban. But a new deal on climate action is highly unlikely, says commissioner, and the EU cannot save the climate alone. “The EU is ready. The world is not waiting for the European Union to...
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Brussels, what about Brussels? What is so special about it, isn’t it just the capital of Belgium, a small country in Europe about to get a government to end 535 days without one. An un-informed person may talk that way. However, beyond being the capital of Belgium, Brussels is also the seat of power...
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Brussels remains untouched by the Occupy movement, as protestors are absent, and the EU is turning a blind eye to demonstrations across the continent. It’s been almost two months since the occupy movement took to European streets, and two months of silence from the European Union. Tim Noonan, Director of Communications at the International...
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In the corridors of power works a former priest and a former political activist that today is a pirate. Follow two Swedish members of the parliament at a normal day in Brussels.
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The 6th annual European Forum on the Rights of the Child was held in Brussels last week, on the 23rdof November. The key actors from European Institutions, EU Member States, and Ombudspersons for children, international organisations and NGOs were sharing their experiences and ideas, exchanging views and providing examples of the best practices of...
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Business and industry has a strangle-hold on the world’s climate efforts. To avert a humanitarian catastrophe we need ambitous climate policy, but the veto of business stand in the way.
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  BRUSSELS – The EU is running out of Dutch interpreters. If nothing is done, many Dutch interpreting booths might by 2020  remain silent.
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  Brussels Dec. 4–It’s hard but humorous to imagine world leaders getting together to play computer games.  Yet that’s what EU and US leaders were doing in early November, when they decided to simulate their cyber-defense capabilities and test their skills.  Unfortunately, neither side saw it necessary to use computers when training for a...
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Since 2002, countries such as Montenegro have been able to use the Euro as their currency despite not officially being a member of the European Union, whereas countries such as Lithuania, an official member of the EU, hasn’t been granted Eurozone status. By Liam Gascoigne and Peter Sharples Despite Montenegro recently being given the...
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On Thursday, October 20th, Ukraine and the EU finalized the technical negotiations on the creation of the deep and comprehensive free trade area, even though the EU had cancelled the visit of the president of Ukraine Victor Yanukovych, which was planned to be held on the same day. Yanukovych was not welcome in Brussels...
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After the independence from the Republic of Yugoslavia, Bosnia and Herzegovina had to go through one of the darkest periods in recent European history. Now twenty years on the country is aspiring to become a member of the European Union.   Bosnia and Herzegovina broke out of the former Republic of Yugoslavia in 1992. It...
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Another year has passed in the membership negotiations between the EU Commission and the Turkish government. But as the negotiations drags on, the Anatolian country is drifting slowly away from its European neighbors. “The Turkish government and the Turks in general are increasingly indifferent towards the question of membership of the European Union, compared...
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When the European Union was discussing what to put in a proposed constitution, the three pillars suggested were Christianity, Judaism and humanism. Although the pillars (and the constitution) were eventually turned down the idea is still very much alive. In a community where the top players (Britain, France and Germany) carry out policies considered...
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By Carlos Encinas and Wyatt McCall. The Little Northern European Island is the EU’s Key Step for the Arctic. The melting Arctic is more than a problem, it’s also soon to be a hot spot of economic eruption.  Where once was ice, there now churns liquid assets.  Where once only the bravest of explorers...
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ENLARGEMENT Iceland was shaken, and this time it was not because the eruption of a volcano.The financial crisis spread all over the world at the end of 2008 and Iceland was close to becoming its first victim. The country was at the edge of collapse and suddenly the people put their prayers to the EU....
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EU Enlargement: Albania’s future is within the European Union. If only its leaders concurred.


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