Analysis - Page 17 of 24

Uncertainty looms over new EU plan on migration

On Monday, 18 May, the EU Foreign and Defense Ministers agreed to establish a naval force, EUNAVFOR Med, to combat human smugglers operating off the coast of Libya. The force is part of the European Union’s response to the increasing number of irregular migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea in hope of finding a safe haven in one of the Union’s member states. It is expected to become operational next month and will be comprised of three stages, beginning with intelligence gathering, followed by “inspection and detection” and finally “neutralizing” traffickers’ facilities

EU condemns Egyptian court ruling for ex-president Morsi

In a statement posted on the EU’s External Action website late on Sunday, 17 May, Federica Mogherini, EU foreign policy chief, made it clear that the bloc stands firmly against the death penalty imposed on former Egyptian President Morsi and more than 100 of his supporters. In line with the EU’s policy on the death penalty, the standard response to all court rulings that deliver such a punishment says that it is cruel, inhumane and fails to act as a deterrent. On Saturday, 16 May, a court in Cairo ruled against the ex-president, sentencing him to death for his escape from prison in 2011, while being detained during protests that toppled his predecessor, Hosni Mubarak

European Commission introduces “Agenda on Migration”

On Wednesday, 13 May, the European Commission unveiled its highly anticipated plan to deal with the increasing number of migrants trying to reach the European shores. The long-awaited European Agenda on Migration made waves in the media with its system of immigration quotas and proposal for military action in the Mediterranean. The “immediate action” called for by the Commission establishes a set of measures to deter and dismantle traffickers’ networks, while also distributing the burden of resettling asylum seekers amongst EU member states. More details will continue to be presented on the various proposals, while the package will be discussed by the EU leaders at the upcoming European Council meeting in June

Unexpected results in Polish presidential election

Andrzej Duda pulled off a surprising upset over the incumbent Bronislaw Komorowski in the first round of the Polish presidential elections. According to the Polish Press Agency exit poll, the surge in support for the nationalist conservative candidate puts him in the lead with 34.8% of the vote. President Komorowski has been relegated to an unexpected second place after receiving only 32.2% of the total ballots cast. The two will meet again in the 24 May runoff since neither candidate managed to secure more than 50% of the vote. The results are all the more remarkable as opinion polls gave Mr. Komorowski a comfortable win over his contender

Clear victory for David Cameron in UK general election

The Conservatives’ sweep to victory in the 7 May general election means that a triumphant David Cameron will be back at 10 Downing Street without much hassle and without relying on a coalition partner to form the next government. The Tories’ 331 seats give him an outright majority, the first of its kind in over two decades. The Labour Party suffered a humiliating defeat and the Liberal Democrats were crushed beyond anybody’s expectation. In response to such a dismal outcome both Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg stepped down as party leaders, followed by Nigel Farage of the UK Independence Party, another underperformer in this year’s general elections

Electoral reform for more political stability in Italy

On Monday, 4 May, the Italian Parliament voted on legislation aimed at reforming the country’s electoral system. The overhaul, proposed by Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, seeks to put an end to a fragmented political scene that has ushered in four different governments since the beginning of this decade. A jubilant ruling coalition welcomed the Parliament’s approval of the bill by a vote of 334 to 61. Soon after the secret ballot came to a close and the votes were counted, an enraptured Renzi tweeted: “Commitment kept, promise fulfilled.” “Mission accomplished”, stated Reform Minister Elena Boschi

Brussels raises the growth forecast for the Eurozone thanks to a boost from the ECB

The European Commission has upped its growth forecasts for the Eurozone and the entire EU after noting the positive effects of the European Central Bank (ECB) debt purchase programme; cheaper oil prices, and the depreciation of the euro. However, this economic improvement will not be uniform across all the member states. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the 19 euro members will be up this year by 1.5%, two tenths higher than estimated in February by the EU executive. For the 28 countries in the European Union, the Commission also revised forecasts upwards by one decimal point to 1.8%

Hungarian PM raises eyebrows after talk of reinstating the death penalty

On 28 April, Prime Minister Viktor Orban came out in favour of reinstating the death penalty. “The death penalty should be put on the agenda in Hungary,” the Hungarian leader boldly stated. “Hungary will stop at nothing when it comes to protecting its citizens.” The statement quickly drew criticism from both home and abroad with a harsh reproval from the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Junker. He called on the Hungarian leader to respect the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union which forbids the death penalty in all of its member states

Europe’s Digital Single Market discussed in Riga

Big businesses, international organizations, and academics attended in hundreds this week’s Summit in Riga to discuss ways to digitalize the current European single market. The Multilingual Digital Single Market Summit was held between 27 and 29 April and was inaugurated by the Latvian Foreign Minister, Edgars Rinkēvičs, who spoke of the importance of preserving Internet as a “neutral, single, and un-fragmented network of networks”. The Summit’s participants agreed to an open letter to the European Commission indicating that an infrastructure to address multilinguism is essential

Conclusions of the 17th EU-Ukraine Summit

If you blinked you might have missed it. The 17th EU-Ukraine Summit in Kiev has come and gone without too much fuss. Little media coverage, few analyses, only a joint statement and Donald Tusk’s Tweeter feed to remind us that Ukraine and the European Union have met for the very first time under the new Association Agreement. It is also the first Summit to take place after Viktor Yanukovych was ousted from power more than a year ago. The importance and outcome of the Summit remain by no means secondary. If anything, resuming this high-level bilateral meeting signals a less volatile, albeit still dangerous situation in Eastern Ukraine