Main results Catalan, Basque and Galician The Council discussed a request by Spain to include Catalan, Basque and Galician in Regulation No 1/1958, which governs the EU’s language regime. The request was notified to the Council presidency on 17 August 2023, in a letter by Spain’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, the European Union and Cooperation. Currently, the […]
New EU law to modernise judicial cooperation in terrorism cases
The Council gave on 18 september its final green light on a new EU law that will boost the digital information exchange in terrorism cases between national authorities and Eurojust. Thanks to a more efficient exchange on investigations and the prosecution of terrorist offences, member state authorities and EU agencies will all have access to […]
Iran: Council lists four more individuals and six entities over serious human rights violations
The Council has imposed a tenth package of restrictive measures on four individuals and six entities responsible for serious human rights violations in Iran. That package follows the High Represenative’s declaration on behalf of the European Union to mark the anniversary of the killing of Mahsa Amini on 16 September 2022, while in custody of the Iranian […]
EU condemns illegitimate “elections” in occupied territories of Ukraine
On 8-10 September, regional and local elections were organised in Russia and illegally also in the territories of Ukraine that Russia has temporarily occupied. The European Union strongly condemns the holding of these illegitimate so-called “elections” in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the City of Sevastopol and in parts of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia […]
Council will sign agreement with Albania on Frontex cooperation
The Council adopted a decision to sign an agreement with Albania on operational activities carried out by the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex). The agreement will allow the organisation of joint operations and the deployment of Frontex border management teams in Albania. The deployment of Frontex teams will be subject to the country’s […]
EU leaders discuss Ukraine, migration and economy at European Council on June 29-30
EU leaders discussed continued support for Ukraine, notably sustainable military and financial support, and how to boost long-term economic strength and resilience in the EU. They also discussed migration, the EU-China relationship and external relations. The EU leaders were joined by NATO Secretary-General, Jens Stoltenberg, for a working lunch to discuss EU-NATO cooperation and Euro-Atlantic security. The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, addressed […]
Council adopts EU rules on crypto-assets market
The EU brings crypto-assets, crypto-assets issuers and crypto-asset service providers under a regulatory framework. Setting an EU level legal framework for this sector for the first time, the Council adopted a regulation on markets in crypto-assets (MiCA). MiCA will protect investors by increasing transparency and putting in place a comprehensive framework for issuers and service providers including compliance […]
Council adopts new rules to cut deforestation worldwide
The Council gave the final go-ahead to a regulation that aims to minimise the risk of deforestation and forest degradation associated with products that are placed on or exported from the EU market. The EU is a large consumer and trader of commodities and products that play a substantial part in deforestation. The new rules […]
Council and European Parliament agree to protect geographical indications for artisanal and industrial products
The Council and the European Parliament reached today a provisional deal on the regulation for geographical indication protection for craft and industrial products. Once this regulation is finally approved, geographical indications (GIs), which up to now were used mainly for foods and beverages, will be enlarged to industrial products whose qualities are essentially linked to the […]