The nightmare for Cyprus started in March 2013. The country’s banking sector faced a sudden squeeze. The two biggest players – Bank of Cyprus and Marfin Laiki Bank – were in danger of a collapse which…
We are still waiting to hear whether the UK government will rule in that all tobacco products should be placed in standardised packaging. Jane Ellison, the under secretary of state for public health, has…
Rebuilding Greece’s economy – a Sisyphean task?
Mopic via shutterstock
The Greek economy, after five years of recession, has nearly reached the top of the hill it has been climbing. But there is a real threat that in just a few months it will roll back down again. Like Sisyphus…
Italian politics has been rocked by a scandal in the country’s capital. Politicians stand accused of working within a pervasive and wide-reaching criminal network dubbed “Mafia Capitale” to skim money…
Andreas Scheuer, secretary general of the German party considering proposals for make migrants speak German at home and in public.
Sven Hoppe/EPA
A proposal in Germany to make all migrants speak German in public and at home has ignited a heated debate about immigration and language. The proposals come from the German Christlich-Soziale Union (CSU…
Italy has been experiencing a resurgence of xenophobia recently. Migrants and Roma have been violently attacked by gangs, and people claiming to be “ordinary citizens” have organised marches in racially…
The Rubik’s Cube has confounded millions of people, including myself since discovering it in my uncle’s house as a child. And now the iconic three-dimensional puzzle has been the subject of an EU ruling…
Moldova has gone to the polls in a vote seen as crucial for determining the country’s future direction. Preliminary results indicate that the pro-European parties together achieved about 44% of the vote…
Eunice Goes, Richmond American International University
As prime minister David Cameron works on the finishing touches of his much-awaited speech on Europe and immigration he is under considerable pressure from his backbenchers and some frontbenchers to signal…
A soldier stands guard in Sevastapol, now under Russian control since the annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in developments that some fear mark the start of a second Cold War.
EPA/Zurab Kurtsikidze
Bloodshed in Europe and the Middle East against the backdrop of a breakdown in the dialogue between major powers is of enormous concern. The world is on the brink of a new Cold War, some are even saying…
While the world watched European science in action, the EC’s top scientist lost her job.
EPA
The past week saw two significant events in European science. You know about the first one: the triumphant Rosetta mission which landed a probe on a comet. But the other event was less publicised, and…
The sense of a distinct identity is what drives Catalans to continue pushing for independence despite the obstacles.
Aleksandra Hadzelek
On the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, another milestone in European history took place: the Catalan vote on independence. Downgraded from an official referendum – which would be illegal…
The heart of the matter. The container port at Long Beach.
sunslate
Efforts to build a more effective trading regime between Europe and the USA can reasonably be called positive, both for growth and the ease of doing business. Currently, however, negotiations include proposals…
Wrinkles in the EU plan to drive innovation?
Giampaolo Squarcina
The European Union might just have made a historically important statement of intent, aimed at laying the foundations to boost investment in the EU as a driver of full recovery and long-term growth. That’s…
Berlin must be overjoyed at Cameron’s latest EU row.
Andrew Winning/PA
How can we understand David Cameron’s surprise and anger at the extra levy of €2.1bn (£1.7bn) on Britain’s contribution to the EU’s budget other than as a result of incompetence or lack of communication…
Just what British politics needed: a new row over Europe. The revelation that the UK is expected to make a one-off payment of €2.1bn (£1.7bn) towards the European budget by December is probably the last…
Bulgaria’s parties fought for East and West in this month’s election.
EPA
Plamen Ralchev, University of National and World Economy
As part of our series on Russia’s relations with its European neighbours, we put the spotlight on Bulgaria. The country’s old tensions over commitments to East or West have come to the fore over the Ukraine…
On the lash in Germany, 500 years ago.
Barthel Beham, ‘Village Fair’ (German single-leaf woodcut, c. 1530).
Autumn is awash with alcohol, and not just because of the new vintage. Oktoberfest plays a part, too, the 16-day festival in Munich that we associate with massive beer mugs and plenty of debauchery. Its…
Angela Merkel has thus far closed her eyes to the need for more spending, at her country’s peril.
Reuters
There’s growing pressure on Germany to spend more to support Europe – and for good reason. But it’s proving to be a hard sell to the country’s leaders. Germany’s budget is balanced and the government insists…
Romanian president welcoming NATO secretary general to Bucharest earlier this year.
EPA
In this fifth part of our series on the countries along Russia’s borders, we turn to south-east Europe. As Romania specialist Tom Gallagher explains, the Ukraine affair has made Bucharest distinctly uneasy…