July 24, 2014
France’s Mistral warships seem to be off the tableAs Greek daily To Vima and the FT have been reporting, there is a draft going around of the EU options paper on possible further sanctions on Russia that will be discussed at today’s meeting of EU amb…
Posted by Open Europe blog team
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arms embargo, EU-Russia relations, France, russia, sanctions, UK;, Ukraine |
(l-r) The foreign ministers of Italy, Spain and FranceEU foreign ministers will meet tomorrow to discuss what to do with Russia in light of last week’s MH17 plane crash, where almost 300 people lost their lives. The option of moving to tougher ‘Stage 3…
Posted by Open Europe blog team
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EU foreign ministers, EU top jobs, France, germany, italy, putin, russia, sanctions, Spain, UK;, Ukraine |
July 17, 2014
Yesterday’s European Council summit ended without an agreement on the remaining EU top jobs. However, something interesting still came out of the meeting.A socialist (and a woman?) for next EU foreign policy chiefEU leaders appear to have established t…
Posted by Open Europe blog team
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EU top jobs, EUCO, European Council, France, germany, Hollande, italy, Merkel, Mogherini, Poland, Renzi, Tusk |
In a recent briefing, we stressed that David Cameron needs to pick a ‘heavy-hitter’ as UK’s next European Commissioner if he wants to secure a key portfolio for the UK. Our point is reinforced by a quick look at the candidates being (more or …
Posted by Open Europe blog team
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Cameron, Dijsselbloem, EU reform, European Commission, France, germany, italy, Katainen, Merkel, Moscovici, Oettinger, Poland, Spain, UK; |
July 4, 2014
The Bundesbank attacks Renzi: “He tells us what to do”. This is today’s front page headline of Italian daily La Repubblica. According to Italian media, Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann yesterday had a go at Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi for tel…
Posted by Open Europe blog team
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EU fiscal rules, european parliament, flexibility, France, germany, italy, juncker, Merkel, Renzi, Spain, Stability and Growth Pact |
Nicolas Sarkozy has been detained for questioning by the French judicial police this morning, over allegations of influence-peddling (trafic d’influence). No formal charges have been brought so far, but prosecutors are investigating whether Sarkozy had…
Posted by Open Europe blog team
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Chirac, France, French politics, Front National, Le Pen, Sarkozy |
June 27, 2014
We have been following the post-summit press conferences of EU leaders. Here is a round-up of the highlights, starting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel: MOST IMPORTANT POINTS FROM #MERKEL #EUCO PRESSER: (1/3) “Ever closer union” does not mean one-…
Posted by Open Europe blog team
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#EUReform, Cameron, EUCO, european parliament, France, germany, Hollande, italy, Merkel, Poland, Renzi, spitzenkandidaten, Tusk, UK; |
June 25, 2014
As we anticipated on our blog last week, the discussion over Jean-Claude Juncker’s appointment as next European Commission President has in part turned into a debate over whether the EU’s fiscal rules – enshrined in the Stability and Growth Pact – shou…
Posted by Open Europe blog team
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EU reform, EUCO, European Council, France, germany, Hollande, italy, Merkel, Renzi, Stability and Growth Pact |
The appointment of Jean-Claude Juncker as next European Commission President is often boiled down to a stand-off between David Cameron and Angela Merkel. And it looks increasingly likely that there will be a vote on Juncker as early as at nex…
Posted by Open Europe blog team
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EP2014, EU reform, European Commission, France, germany, Hollande, italy, juncker, Merkel, Renzi |
The European Commission has just released its latest round of country-specific recommendations (the Commission’s advice on how the country can boost economic growth and maintain stable public finances).As with the broader economic state of the eurozo…
Posted by Open Europe blog team
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European Commission, European Semester, France, germany, Hollande, italy, Merkel, Olli Rehn, Rajoy, Renzi, Spain |
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