Tagged EU

12/01/2019

2019 is shaping up to be an exciting, if worrisome, year for Europe. While everything seems to be slowing down in preparation for the eventual hand-over of institutional positions, time never stands sti... Be More Curious...

OPINION — VOX: the ultra-right enters the political game in Spain

Alejandra Finotto

20/12/2018

Given the ascent of ultra-right political parties such as the “Rassemblement National” led by Le Pen in France, or the “Lega Nord” headed by Salvini in Italy, many were wondering why this kind of movement had not yet arrived in their neighboring countr... Be More Curious...

POLICY PAPER – European Populism Feels at Home in Moscow: the Italian Case

Vera Ventura

18/12/2018

Publications, Russia

With the recent rise of tensions in the Azov Sea, Russia-EU relations seem to have reached a new low after the Salisbury attack. However, some European political parties, and notably the so-called populis... Be More Curious...

COMMENTARY — As Soros University leaves Hungary, so does academic freedom

Elisa Telesca

15/12/2018

Inside Europe, Publications

On 3 December 2018, Hungary’s Central European University (CEU) declared that it has been forced out from its campus in Budapest by the far-right government of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. The decisi... Be More Curious...

Vocal Cast with Janez Jansa

Vera Ventura

13/12/2018

Vocal Cast

As part of our Vocal Cast series, we have talked to Janez Janša, former Prime Minister of Slovenia and leader of the opposition party SDS. Among many relevant issues, we have talked about the current debates on EU army, the migration issue, the cur... Be More Curious...

COMMENTARY — European army: a problematic dream?

Elisa Telesca

27/11/2018

Inside Europe, Publications

The concept of a European army has been widely discussed in the past years and particularly weeks, raising many questions about the possibility of such an idea becoming a reality. Where did the noti... Be More Curious...

EU duties on goods from Southeast Asia as a post-Brexit trade opportunity

Maria Chaplia

20/11/2018

Where the EU is walking the plank, the UK should be able to recognise and seize post-Brexit opportunities. On 6 November, the Italian government asked the European Commission to apply the “safeguard cla... Be More Curious...

Monday Talk with Georgios Katrougalos, Alternate FM of Greece

19/11/2018

Monday Talks

As part of our Monday Talks series, we have conducted an interview with Mr. Georgios Katrougalos, Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece to discuss the recent matters of relevance. Sergio Caliva: Let me start with the former Yugoslav Repu... Be More Curious...

The Internet of Things needs freedom, not government guidance

Bill Wirtz

07/11/2018

The Digital Single Market debate within the European Union is set to continue for years to come. Instead of planned policies, tech companies need freedom. The Internet of Things describes the usefuln... Be More Curious...

POLICY PAPER — The EU and the Western Balkans 6: a difficult wedding

Publications, Western Balkans

07/11/2018

The Balkan Region, and particularly the Western part closer to the EU, consisting of the so-called WB6 – Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia – has always had a fund... Be More Curious...

With basic income Europe can reduce poverty

Vladan Lausevic

28/10/2018

The idea of European citizenship still dominates, being the world’s only “real” post-national and non-state citizenship that provides an individual with freedoms, obligations, rights and a sense of community. At the same time, the EU citizenship st... Be More Curious...

What’s wrong with Ukraine banning two propaganda channels?

Marta Barandiy

27/10/2018

Beyond Europe

The Parliament of Ukraine has recently voted for a Resolution that proposes to shut down two national TV channels – NewsOne and 112 Ukraine. The MPs accuse them of spreading Russian chauvinist propagand... Be More Curious...

POLICY PAPER — Conflict in Cyprus: religion, ethnicity and natural gas pipelines

Xavier Palacios

24/10/2018

Publications

Religious and ethnic factors present in the Cypriot conflict have paved the wat for external actors to take part in this conflict, exposing the resolution of this conflict to the political interests of ... Be More Curious...

Are Counter Terrorism Measures Really Effective?

Yvonnemarie Antonoglou

21/10/2018

The Opinion

Looking back on the past 15 years, there is little doubt that the 9/11 attacks profoundly altered the landscape of international security. Over the last decade and a half, there has been a tremendous multiplication of counter terrorism measures, laws, ... Be More Curious...

Monday Talk with Henri Malosse on Citizen Engagement with EU Institutions

01/10/2018

Monday Talks

As part of our Monday Talks series, Vocal Europe interviewed Mr Henri Malosse, former President of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) and Honorary Chairman of Vocal Europe, on how to furt... Be More Curious...

As Europeans, we are living in a unique experiment that we should be proud of

Vladan Lausevic

30/09/2018

Five years ago Croatia became EU's 28th member-state. The accession process was seen as in important step for the Balkan region and the “Ex-Yugoslav area” to become Europeanized. One interesting thin... Be More Curious...

Land-swap deal: ideal solution or Pandora’s box?

18/09/2018

Western Balkans

Despite the declared intentions of both the Kosovar and Serbian governments to achieve the land-swap deal, which would allegedly contribute to the detente of their bilateral relations and more generally to the regional stability, the announcement of it... Be More Curious...

Juncker’s State of the Union Speech: Time for European Sovereignty

12/09/2018

This morning was marked by the annual State of the Union speech to the European Parliament by the President of the European Commission in Strasbourg. Jean-Claude Juncker spoke for the fourth and last ti... Be More Curious...

EESC — Youth, digital and cooperation as pills to foster the European spirit

12/09/2018

After the Commission’s adoption of the “Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on specific provisions for the European territorial cooperation goal (Interreg)”, on the 7... Be More Curious...

Can Macron still create a political cataclysm for the European election?

10/09/2018

With the European elections coming up in 2019, Emmanuel Macron’s possibilities to change the political landscape at the European level seem to not be as easy as expected. The last week of August was marked by the resignation of Nicolas Hulot, the quite... Be More Curious...

Can a Bavarian Make Europe Great Again?

Christina Cigir

07/09/2018

As the 2019 elections for the European Union’s commission president approach, the ongoing talks about an ideal candidate has granted its attention to leader of the European People’s Party, Manfred Weber... Be More Curious...

Here’s a question consumers should ask the European Commission

Bill Wirtz

28/08/2018

Consumer have a lot of demands towards the European Commission, but one key question really needs to be asked. It's a question of trust. There is this truism that says that you only notice what you are ... Be More Curious...

Four countries, one threat

Ana-Maria Caminski

22/08/2018

On the chessboard of the world, every pawn seems to be an important pawn. Especially when the stake of the game is the expansion of the political power by gaining of the old sphere of influence and the new ones. In February-March 2014, Peninsula Crimea... Be More Curious...

The terrorist attack, hybrid war, and the chess-player thinking

Ana-Maria Caminski

06/08/2018

The Opinion

Aterrorist attack took place on 14 July 2016, in France. This day should have been a celebration day for so many people and has transformed up to the night into a funeral day, a terrifying day. When a w... Be More Curious...

Will the Salvini-effect spread to Europe?

Valeria Mingardi

31/07/2018

The new Italian government, result of an extenuatingly long negotiating process between the League and the Five Star Movement (M5S), has been now in office for the past two months. Even though the role ... Be More Curious...

Can cyber attacks cause a major war?

Valeria Mingardi

30/07/2018

In the last two decades, the world has seen a rapid digitalization of services, both in civil society and state functions, thanks to the Internet and to the world wide web. As much as this is considered a positive evolution in terms of connectivity, this s... Be More Curious...

NATO Summit: The Atlantic Drift

Bartolome T. Carvajal

19/07/2018

Since he took office, President Trump has called on European NATO members to increase their military spending, in order to fulfil the pledge of 2% of national GDP assigned to defence, made during th... Be More Curious...

Catalonia — the growing role of the EU

Bartolome T. Carvajal

17/07/2018

Last Thursday, the State court of the northern Schleswig-Holstein formally accepted the petition made by Spain, through a European Arrest Warrant (EAW), to extradite Carles Puigdemont. The former presid... Be More Curious...

Theresa May’s “turmoil”

Giles Marshall

12/07/2018

Donald Trump performed his usual pre-international meeting diplomacy this week, when he had a go at his allies and commended an authoritarian former enemy. If you’re a NATO ally, you got the full Trump abuse treatment. If you’re Vladimir Putin, you got... Be More Curious...

US divorces Europe

10/07/2018

Viktors Domburs is an expert on the Baltic Countries and a political commentator. Europe is in the anticipation of NATO summit which will take place on June, 11-12 in Brussels. Before this meeting the Pentag... Be More Curious...

Could the Chequers Summit be the Brexit Breakthrough that Theresa May Needs?

10/07/2018

The new “Facilitated Customs Arrangement” that has been conceived by Theresa May may be seen as a success for the embattled Prime Minster. The result of the make-or-break Chequers cabinet meeting on 6 June ... Be More Curious...

Poland’s dilemma: Euro-scepticism and US cooperation

06/07/2018

As Poland is more and more on the conservative side and becoming a tenacious partner in European discussions, it seems, however, that it is open to a deeper cooperation with the United States. Since 2015 and the coming into power of the nationalist-cons... Be More Curious...

Where are Europe’s Christian democrats?

03/07/2018

The politics of migration have triggered a resurgence of identity based appeals to the European populous. The political right, in particular, uses Christian values and heritage as a rallying cry against soc... Be More Curious...

The Putin club is growing but who will benefit more?

Alessio Tardivo

21/06/2018

Russia

In recent days, Angela Merkel’s visit in Sochi to meet President Vladimir Putin, followed by Emmanuel Macron’s flight to St. Pietersburg to meet the former KGB lieutenant recently elected President for the ... Be More Curious...

Iran, Oil and the Destabilisation of the Middle East

Paul Monaghan

21/06/2018

Iran

Oil prices have increased sharply following President Trump’s unilateral decision to withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and to reimpose the "highest level" of economic sanctions on Iran, one of the world’s most important oil produ... Be More Curious...

Eduard KUKAN on Serbia and the EU Accession Process

21/06/2018

As part of Vocal Europe’s research series on the Western Balkans, Eduard Kukan, Chair of European Parliament Delegation to Serbia, shares his take on the recent state of the relations between Serbia and the EU ... Be More Curious...

Alojz PETERLE on the Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)

21/06/2018

As part of Vocal Europe’s research series on the Western Balkans, Alojz Peterle, Chair of European Parliament Delegation to Macedonia (FYROM), shares his take on the recent state of the relations between Macedo... Be More Curious...

Andre De MUNTER on the countries in the Western Balkans

21/06/2018

As part of Vocal Europe’s research series on the Western Balkans, Andre De Munter, Policy Analyst at the European Parliament, shares his take on the recent state of the relations between he countries in the Western Balkans and the EU at the panel organized by ... Be More Curious...

Corina STRATULAT on the countries in the Western Balkans

21/06/2018

As part of Vocal Europe’s research series on the Western Balkans, Corina STRATULAT, Senior Policy Analyst at European Policy Centre, shares her take on the recent state of the relations between he countries in ... Be More Curious...

H.E. Mrs. Suela JANINA on the Republic of Albania and the EU

21/06/2018

As part of Vocal Europe’s research series on the Western Balkans,H.E. Mrs. Suela JANINA, Ambassador of the Republic of Albania to the EU, shares her take on the recent state of the relations between Albania and... Be More Curious...

Toby VOGEL on the Western Balkans and the EU Accession Process

21/06/2018

As part of Vocal Europe’s research series on the Western Balkans, Toby VOGEL, Policy Analyst at Center for European Policy Studies, shares his take on the recent state of the relations between the countries in the Western Balkans and the EU at a panel organize... Be More Curious...

Clive Rumbold (EEAS) on the Western Balkans and the EU

21/06/2018

As part of Vocal Europe’s research series on the Western Balkans, Clive Rumbold, Deputy Head of Western Balkans Division at European External Action Service, shares his take on the recent state of the relations... Be More Curious...

The statistic, protection of personal data, and the single digital market

Ana-Maria Caminski

17/06/2018

25 May 2018. This day will enter with certainty in history. After two years, the proposal for reforming the old Directive 95/46/EC (‛Data Protection Directive’) and the Police Directive was finally adopted... Be More Curious...

Increased role and sovereignty for urban areas — a key to handle migration crisis

Vladan Lausevic

09/06/2018

Away forward for Europe to handle the challenges and opportunities around immigration would be the increased role and sovereignty for urban areas, in both smaller and larger cities. The local level of governance is a place where most of the interaction... Be More Curious...

How Fisheries Could Be Sustainable, and Profitable

24/05/2018

This article was published in cooperation with Red Flag. The ocean covers seven tenths of the earth’s surface, and yet unlike land it largely remains a wilderness, with little of it cultivated or sensibly ma... Be More Curious...

What Does Brexit Mean For Coffee?

Joseph Hammond

19/05/2018

An unlikely result of Britain’s decision to leave the European Union is that a cup of Joe may become a little more expensive at chain cafés but cheaper for those who brew at home. That’s the prediction ... Be More Curious...

Automation as a threat in a globalised Europe

Arnau Perello

02/05/2018

Calamity - or something very close to it – will come upon millions of European citizens in the next decade. Their quality of life, measured by nearly every Eurostat indicator, will decline sharply. Distress will expand like a pandemic, from the richest to ... Be More Curious...

Ready to save EUr day

Leonardo Veneziani

21/04/2018

In the real world, unfortunately, there are no superheroes to save the day. When the destiny of the European Union and its achieved level of integration - what is called the acquis in the Eurolanguage - is ... Be More Curious...

The EU Remains Unprepared for the Next Migration Crisis

18/04/2018