Euractiv.com

Polish-German relations appear to have hit a low point after Warsaw refused to help Berlin arrest a Ukrainian citizen living in Poland suspected of causing the Nord Stream 2 explosion, with Prime Minister Donald Tusk unexpectedly telling Germany to remain quiet.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov on Tuesday (20 August) inspected Chechen troops and volunteers readying to fight Ukraine, the Kremlin said, in what was Putin's first trip in 13 years to the North Caucasus republic.

Ukrainian MPs passed a law banning the activities of a Russia-linked branch of the Orthodox church, paving the way for a historic rupture with an institution that Kyiv has accused of complicity in Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

As member states call on the EU Commission to enforce the Union's external borders, the EU's border agency, Frontex, has launched tenders for around €400 million worth of equipment, including the purchase of drones and other surveillance technology.

Railways are the most environmentally sustainable mode of transport, compared to cars or planes, yet, they remain chronically underfunded and underdeveloped in Europe. High prices, complex booking systems, and a lack of cross-border coordination are just some of the problems making it harder for Europeans to consider trains a reliable and safe option.

The new rising star of the Spanish far right, Alvise Pérez, is using the stabbing of an 11-year-old boy in central Spain last Sunday to spread racist and xenophobic messages against immigrants, especially those of African origin.

The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) approved changes to Meta’s commitments regarding how it uses the data from customers using advertising, the authority announced on Tuesday (20 August).

Sweden’s national epidemiologist does not rule out the possibility of more cases of the new strain of mpox reaching Sweden. Contact tracing has been activated and containment plans have been prepared.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen attended the official groundbreaking ceremony for Taiwanese firm TSMC's Dresden plant on Tuesday (20 August) after the institution she heads announced a €5 billion state aid scheme for the facility - a sign that the EU is redoubling its efforts to boost the bloc's domestic semiconductor production.

The European Union has officially tasked Czechia to use revenues from frozen Russian assets to fund the next ammunition supply for Ukraine, Czech Defence Minister Jana Černochová said on Tuesday (20 August).

The European Commission announced on Tuesday (20 August) that import volumes of Ukrainian honey had exceeded the limit fixed in the regulation setting trade benefits for Kyiv, triggering the reintroduction of tariff quotas.

The European Commission lowered its proposed tariffs on China-made electric vehicles (EVs) on Tuesday (20 August) and offered one of the clearest signals yet that it was open to resolving the long-running trade dispute through negotiations, in a move that could ease flaring trade tensions between Brussels and Beijing.

Just ten EU countries have submitted their long-term climate action plans to Brussels, with Austria being the most recent, as large countries like Germany and Spain continue to disregard the June 2024 deadline.

President Joe Biden cemented the Democratic Party's elevation of Kamala Harris to lead the fight for the White House against Republican Donald Trump with a convention speech on Monday (19 August).

In today’s edition of the Capitals, find out more about an alleged leftist plot to investigate Meloni's sister, Slovakia's ice hockey team reinstating players competing in the Russian KHL, and so much more.

Nicaragua on Monday (19 August) shuttered 1,500 NGOs, bringing to more than 5,000 the number of such entities scrapped in a crackdown on opponents by President Daniel Ortega.

A European Commission deadline for Hungary to respond to questions about the easing of entry requirements for Russian and Belarusian nationals expired on Monday (19 August).

Cyprus will propose former agriculture minister Costas Kadis as a new EU commissioner, the government in Nicosia announced on Monday (19 August).

Two German warships await orders from Berlin, their commander said, to determine whether next month they will be the first German naval vessels in decades to pass through the Taiwan Strait, drawing a rebuke from Beijing.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday (19 August) his country's assault on Russia's Kursk region showed that Kremlin threats of retaliation were a bluff, and he urged Kyiv's allies to loosen curbs on using foreign-supplied weapons.