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Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine has laid bare the challenges facing the EU's defence industry as it tries to meet increased demand and ramp up production in the wake of a fundamentally changed security environment in Europe. The EU's defence industry comprises a number of large multinational companies, mid-caps and a large number of small and medium-sized enterprises. It faces a multitude of challenges, such as decades of under-investment, fragmentation, insufficient critical raw material ...

In response to Russia's full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine, which started in February 2022, the European Union (EU) and its Member States have provided unprecedented financial, military and humanitarian support to Ukraine. According to European Commission figures, Team Europe, consisting of the EU and its Member States, has made available around €193.5 billion in support to Ukraine. This support encompasses macro-financial assistance, financial support through the Ukraine Facility, humanitarian ...

Minors — under the age of 18 — may migrate in many different ways, through family reunification, moving in the hope of finding a better life, or through forced and traumatic migration caused by conflict, poverty or climate change. Overall, the number of minors in migration has been rising globally since the turn of the century. In 2020, there were an estimated 35.5 million international migrant minors globally, the largest number ever recorded. This is equivalent to around 1 in 66 minors worldwide ...

Towns and cities are home to nearly three quarters of the EU's population. Many EU cities and urban areas are vibrant spaces of economic growth and innovation. However, they also face complex challenges, such as tackling inequalities, addressing housing and demographic issues, building inclusive societies and responding to climate change and environmental degradation. Cities are at the forefront of implementing EU legislation in several policy areas, including cohesion, and have been demanding both ...

The Strategic Compass, adopted by the 27 EU Member States in March 2022 – only weeks after the onset of Russia's unjustified and unprovoked aggression against Ukraine – emphasised the need for robust partnerships in order for the EU to be able to achieve its objectives in the area of security and defence. Alongside 'acting' (operations), 'securing' (resilience) and 'investing', 'partnering' is one of the four main pillars of the Compass. The document itself outlines specific targets and deadlines ...

Online child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) and grooming practices (manipulation aimed at exploiting and abusing people), now increasingly targeting younger children, have been proliferating at an alarming rate. In 2024, more than 20.5 million reports of suspected online child sexual abuse materials were detected. Reports related to AI-generated CSAM saw a 1 325 % increase, rising from 4 700 in 2023 to 67 000 in 2024. Most activities detected were hosted in Europe. In response to this situation, on ...

Under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), the EU response to the COVID-19 crisis, Bulgaria is set to receive €6 174.1 million in grants, including €479.3 million under REPowerEU and €6 million from the Brexit Adjustment Reserve. Any additional financing must be covered by national or private co-funding. Bulgaria's national recovery and resilience plan (NRRP) corresponds to 10.1 % of its 2019 gross domestic product (GDP) (the RRF amounts to 5.2 % of EU-27 2019 GDP), the eighth-highest share ...

The first-ever European defence industrial strategy (EDIS) was adopted on 5 March 2024. As an immediate and central step to deliver the strategy, the Commission put forward a proposal for a European defence industry programme (EDIP) regulation, also on 5 March 2024. The EDIP seeks to achieve defence industrial readiness by bridging the gap between short-term emergency measures and a more structural, long-term approach. On 16 October 2025, the Council Presidency and European Parliament negotiators ...

Directive 2005/44/EC on harmonised river information services (RIS) on inland waterways ('RIS Directive') establishes rules on RIS to ensure the safety, efficiency and environmental protection of inland waterways in the EU. On 26 January 2024, the European Commission put forward a proposal to amend the RIS Directive with a view to addressing certain shortcomings. The amending directive should provide better-quality information, reduce efforts to collect basic information, reduce the need to re-register ...

As part of the European Union's budget for the 2028-2034 period, the European Commission presented a short proposal for a regulation establishing the European Fund for Regional Development (ERDF), including territorial cooperation (Interreg) and the Cohesion Fund (CF), and establishing conditions for the implementation of Union support to regional development from 2028 to 2034. However, support for regional and cohesion policy would be integrated into a larger fund (the 'Fund') that also covers areas ...