Analysis - Page 18 of 24

Eurogroup talks stall as Greece dithers on its promises

At the Eurogroup meeting on Friday, 24 April, all eyes were on Greece. The embattled Eurozone country got hammered for backtracking on much needed fiscal reforms. Eurogroup officials stated that such measures are vital in helping the Greek government secure its debt repayments. Without the remaining €7.2 billion in the bailout package, Greece will run out of money in a matter of weeks. The stark warning came as Mr. Varoufakis, Greece’s Finance Minister, tried to calm fears over his country’s ability to raise

Emergency EU Summit Adopts Measures After Tragedies in the Mediterranean

The deaths of nearly 800 migrants fleeing violence and political turmoil in search of safety on European shores, which took place over a month after Ms. Mogherini’s remarks in New York, prompted an emergency EU summit of the heads of state and government in Brussels on Thursday, 23 April. But the meeting is already drawing criticism as many accuse the EU of providing a quick military response to a problem that begs a comprehensive foreign policy and humanitarian solution. The leaders in Brussels agreed that Europe’s “immediate priority” is to prevent additional carnage in the Mediterranean

EU leaders react to migrants’ deaths

Shaken by some 1,000 migrant deaths in the Mediterranean in the past few days, while trying to cross through irregular ways into Europe, the EU’s foreign and home affairs ministers agreed today in Luxembourg to a ten point action plan to avoid such tragedies happening in the future. The plan foresees more resources for the joint operations Poseidon and Triton carried out within the mandate of Frontex, setting up a joint task force to identify human trafficking and smuggling networks, and sharing the responsibility of refugee resettlement among EU countries

“Make in India” Modi tells Europe

On his first official trip to Europe, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited France and Germany from 10 to 14 April. His charm offensive had a central economic rationale, promoting India as an attractive investment and technology transfer destination through his “Make in India” campaign. Interesting to note that Mr. Modi’s European purchases, especially of the Rafele jet fighters, means that developing and poor India is supporting developed France with an injection of hard-earned cash

The EU accuses Google of abusing its dominant position and opens up an investigation on Android

After five years of research, the European Commission has today accused Google of abusing its dominant position by promoting its products in Internet searches, where it control 90% of the market share in Europe. In parallel, the Commission has formally opened an antitrust investigation against Google’s Android mobile operating system, including its applications and services. This opens up a new front against Google, which could affect its aspirations of gaining ground in the mobile market.

EU Meets its Southern Neighbourhood Countries

The Spanish Foreign Minister, the Latvian Foreign Minister, and the EU foreign policy chief co-hosted an Informal Ministerial meeting with representatives of Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine and Jordan, who declared their support for fighting terrorism and curbing irregular migration, two top priorities of the EU’s collaboration with its neighbours south of the Mediterranean Sea. The meeting was part of a series of consultations that the EU initiated with European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) countries to review its strategy of collaborations.

Iran nuclear deal reached

Following negotiations over several years, and a marathon session from 26 March to 2 April 2015, the six world powers (China, France, Germany, Russia, UK, US) plus the EU reached agreement with Iran on key parameters for ensuring that Iran’s nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes only. A Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) will now be drafted, on the basis of the agreed parameters, by 30 June 2015 and implemented thereafter. The successful outcome of the negotiations was hailed as a “historic understanding” and a “good deal” by US President Obama.

Turkish President visits Slovenia, Slovakia and Romania

Turkey’s diplomatic relations with Slovenia, Slovakia and Romania have seen a boost this week as President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan paid official visits to the three countries. Turkey’s accession to the EU, bilateral trade and the fight against ISIL / ISIS were among the issues discussed between Mr. Erdoğan and the respective country leaders. Mr. Erdoğan’s visit had to be cut short because of terrorist incidents in Istanbul.

The SSM promises tough but fair treatment of banks

In the European Parliament the head of the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM) for the Eurozone banks has committed herself to restraining financial institutions and closely monitoring the models they use to calculate risks. Danièle Nouy has given assurances that “we will be a demanding supervisor, however at all times we shall strive to make our action fair and impartial.” The SMM just published its first report that has overseen more than 6,000 banks in the region since last November.

Road safety in Europe – Commission releases review

Preventing death, injury and disability caused by road accidents has been a serious preoccupation of the EC. The goal is to halve the number of deaths by 2020, as compared to 2010. The EC review released on 24 March 2015, however, reports a decrease of just 1% in road fatalities in 2014 compared to the previous year, when the decline had been 8%. The number of deaths varies greatly from one country to another.