United States

Germany

Poland

Norway

Slovenia

Belarus

Russia

Politics

Russia is releasing eight political prisoners and eight citizens of Western governments in exchange for eight Russian intelligence officers and cybercriminals in the largest prisoner exchange between Russia and the West since the Cold War, CBS reported on Aug. 1. 

Russia, U.S.: Largest Prisoner Exchange Since Cold War Releases 24 People

Luxembourg

Lithuania

Malta

Finland

Latvia

Czech Republic

Denmark

Greece

France

Estonia

Sweden

Belgium

Bulgaria

Portugal

Romania

Croatia

Cyprus

Austria

Slovakia

Netherlands

Spain

Italy

Ireland

Hungary

Environment, Science & Technology

Science & Technology

The European Commission recommended reducing the European Union's net greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2040 compared with 1990 levels, Reuters reported Feb. 6. 

EU: Brussels to Exclude Agriculture from 90% Emissions Reduction Target for 2040

Ukraine

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

European Union member states unanimously agreed to a 50 billion euro ($54 billion) financial support package for Ukraine as part of their joint budget through 2027, for which Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban lifted his veto on the initiative, Reuters reported Feb. 1.

EU, Ukraine: EU Leaders Unanimously Agree to New 50 Billion Euro Aid Package for Kyiv

Negotiators from EU member states and the European Parliament reached a preliminary agreement to overhaul the bloc's asylum and migration rules, Reuters reported on Dec. 20.

EU: Bloc's Institutions Reach Agreements on New Asylum and Migration Rules

The European Union is "unlikely" or "very unlikely" to meet most of its 2030 green objectives, according to the latest report by the European Environment Agency (EEA) published Dec. 18.

EU: Bloc to Miss Most of its 2030 Climate Goals

Georgia

The European Council voted to grant EU candidate status to Georgia, and both government officials and opposition politicians in Georgia praised the decision, Civil Georgia reported on Dec. 14. 

Georgia: European Commission Recommends Georgia for EU Candidate Status

United Kingdom

Economics

The European Union proposed a three-year delay for tariffs on electric vehicles (EVs) traded with the United Kingdom, which were originally set to enter into force in 2024 under the terms of the post-Brexit Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), Bloomberg reported Dec. 6.

EU, U.K.: Brussels Proposes Three-Year Delay to EV Tariffs in Trade with London

The European Parliament voted in favor of the EU Nature Restoration Law, the European Commission's proposal to restore degraded land and biodiversity within the bloc, with supporters of the law narrowly defeating an attempt by conservative groups to sink it, Euractiv reported on July 12.

EU: European Parliament Backs EU Nature Restoration Law by Narrow Margin

Assessments

Europe

Hungarian police officers check cars at the Nickelsdorf-Hegyeshalom border crossing on the Austrian-Hungarian border on March 18, 2020. 

Military & Security

Increasing levels of migration, terrorism activity and Russian aggression in Europe are driving Schengen countries to tighten their border controls, heralding a more spotty functioning of the passport-free travel zone.

Growing Border Controls Threaten Europe's Schengen Area

Snapshots

China

Members of the European Parliament take part in voting on the Artificial Intelligence Act during a plenary session at the European Parliament.

Cyber

The EU's recently negotiated Artificial Intelligence Act will bolster the European Union's dominance as a regulatory heavyweight in emerging technologies, yet anticipated enforcement challenges and stringent stipulations with the Act risk impeding AI innovation within the bloc.

EU Lawmakers Clinch Agreement on Artificial Intelligence Act 

Rail cars loaded with steel sit at the ThyssenKrupp Schwelgern steel plant on May 30, 2018 in Duisburg, Germany. 

The European Union and the United States will increase efforts to deconflict their trade and climate policies ahead of the upcoming U.S. presidential and EU parliamentary elections, but lingering disagreements will not allow for a complete respite of Trump-era tariffs on EU steel and aluminum.

EU-U.S. Steel and Aluminum Negotiations Make Limited Headway

Columns

On Security

North Macedonia

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Serbia

Albania

Montenegro

Kosovo

NATO soldiers patrol a roadblock set up by ethnic Serbs near Zubin Potok, a town in northern Kosovo, on Aug. 1, 2022. 

Social Issues

Despite ethnically-tinged tensions between Kosovo and Serbia that most recently made the news, there appear to be numerous restraints on a potential return to widespread regional conflict. 

The Risk of Another Balkans War, Part 1: Placing Recent Flashpoints in Context

Media

Podcasts

In this episode of RANE's Essential Geopolitics podcast, Adriano Bosoni, Stratfor senior Europe analyst at RANE, discusses why the country's priorities may not square with those of the European Union.

Essential Geopolitics: The Future of the Western Balkans and Their Push to Join the EU

A satellite image shows Europe at night.

Security

EU: Regional Blocs

The New Silk Road

Divided EU Foreign Policies

The U.S. and the Balance of Power

The move shows the White House remains committed to its security and economic engagements in the region, with an eye on countering China and Russia. 

The U.S. Ramps Up Financial Support to Central and Eastern Europe

European Disintegration

The Fight for Russia’s Borderlands

Leaders from the Western Balkans and the European Union are assembling in Italy to continue talks aimed at forging closer relations. But for some Balkan states targeted in the latest round of courting, the promise of EU membership may hold less sway than the charms of actual Russian investment.

Europe: Nations Courted With Funds and Promises in Show of Soft Power

Supply Chains

China in Transition

Despite its goal to foster integration throughout Eurasia, Beijing has so far emphasized bilateral or subregional agreements with its Belt and Road projects in Europe, an approach that has raised the suspicions of the bloc's central powers.

For China, All Roads (and Belts) Lead to Europe

China's Belt and Road Initiative

Austria is neither willing nor prepared to leave the European Union, even if a Euroskeptic wins the presidency.

The Limits to Austria's Euroskepticism

Reflections

The plan would probably immediately push Europe back to the panicked days of 2011-2012, when the eurozone was on the verge of a rapid unraveling.

Germany's Unsettling Plan for Southern Europe

Some members of the European Union want to expel Greece from the Schengen Agreement, but even if they do, it will not stem the influx of migrants to the Continent.

Greece: The Scapegoat of a Migrant Crisis

Syria

Turkey

Libya

Because EU policies have been difficult to agree on and enforce, individual countries are working to make themselves less attractive to migrants.

EU Members Take Unilateral Action on Migrant Flows

SITUATION REPORTS

Russia, U.S.: Largest Prisoner Exchange Since Cold War Releases 24 People

EU: Brussels to Exclude Agriculture from 90% Emissions Reduction Target for 2040

EU, Ukraine: EU Leaders Unanimously Agree to New 50 Billion Euro Aid Package for Kyiv

EU: Bloc's Institutions Reach Agreements on New Asylum and Migration Rules

EU: Bloc to Miss Most of its 2030 Climate Goals

Georgia: European Commission Recommends Georgia for EU Candidate Status

EU, U.K.: Brussels Proposes Three-Year Delay to EV Tariffs in Trade with London

EU: European Parliament Backs EU Nature Restoration Law by Narrow Margin

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