Presserum 

Afghan women, Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny and Bolivia’s former interim president Jeanine Áñez were shortlisted for the 2021 Sakharov Prize on Thursday.

All of the EP’s 20 standing committees and two subcommittees held their constitutive meetings on Wednesday to elect their chair and vice-chairs.

The Foreign Affairs and International Trade Committees will vote on whether to give their consent to the trade and cooperation agreement between the EU and the UK on Thursday.

Members on the Foreign Affairs and International Trade Committees will debate the new EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement on Thursday at 10.00 CET.

The respect of human rights and the rule of law in Turkey in the aftermath of the failed coup attempt will be a crucial test for the state of the country’s democracy, said Foreign Affairs Committee MEPs on Tuesday. They assessed the results of last week’s fact-finding mission to Turkey by the committee chair and rapporteur and stressed the need for constant monitoring.

Statement of the Chairs of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Delegation for relations with Afghanistan on the terrorist attack at the Kabul airport

The award ceremony for this year’s Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, conferred upon Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny, will be held on 15 December at noon.

Europe must provide humanitarian aid, and reach unity on handling migration, according to MEPs speaking at an extraordinary meeting on Thursday morning.

Foreign Affairs Committee says the EU must push back against Russia’s aggressive policies while laying groundwork for cooperation with a future democratic country.

Belarusian political prisoners Ales Bialatski, Eduard Lobau and Mykola Statkevich, US spying whistleblower Edward Snowden and Pakistani campaigner for girls' education Malala Yousafzai are the shortlisted finalists for this year's Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. The laureate will be announced on 10 October, and the €50,000 prize will be awarded in Strasbourg on 20 November.

The award ceremony for this year’s Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, conferred upon the Belarusian democratic opposition, will be held on 16 December.

EU-Turkey cooperation on migration should be uncoupled from the EU accession negotiating process, say Foreign Affairs Committee MEPs in a repor voted on Tuesday. MEP praise Turkey for hosting the largest refugee population in the world, and note that it remains a "key strategic partner for the EU" but nonetheless call for progress on rule of law and fundamental values and "a more structured and frequent political dialogue on key thematic issues".

Foreign Affairs MEPs call for a dedicated budget and more tools to strengthen foreign and defence policies and make the EU a credible and strong global player.

The Restorers, Marielle Franco, Claudelice Silva dos Santos, Chief Raoni and Ilham Tohti were shortlisted for the 2019 Sakharov Prize on Tuesday.

After the dramatic developments of the last days and hours, leading MEPs issued the following statement on Monday.

Ministers outlined the priorities of the French Presidency of the Council of the EU to parliamentary committees, in a series of meetings.

Foreign Affairs Committee and Security and Defence Subcommittee MEPs will travel to Ukraine from 30 January to 2 February to gather information on the current crisis.

Following events unfolding in Afghanistan, MEPs will meet on Thursday morning to debate the latest developments with High Representative Josep Borrell.

Foreign Affairs and Trade MEPs welcome the new EU-UK agreement as a good deal but demand proper parliamentary scrutiny powers and full access to information.

MEPs will be presented with the nominees for this year’s Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in a joint committee meeting on Monday afternoon.