The European Union: European Sky Shield Initiative

12 September 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Editorial, European Union Reading Time:  6 minutes

Flag_of_Europe European Sky Shield Initiative (ESSI) is a project to build a ground-based integrated European air defense system which includes anti-ballistic missile capability. As of July 2023, nineteen European states participate in the initiative. ESSI is part of the Common Security and Defense Policy and as such is designed to complement and relieve the burden on NATO.   read more…

Europa Nostra

28 June 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, European Union, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  5 minutes

Europa Nostra flag in Gulbene © Raul Kern/cc-by-sa-3.0

Europa Nostra flag in Gulbene © Raul Kern/cc-by-sa-3.0

Europa Nostra (Italian for “Our Europe”) is a pan-European Federation for Cultural Heritage, representing citizens’ organisations that work on safeguarding Europe’s cultural and natural heritage. It is the voice of this movement to relevant international bodies, in particular the European Union, the Council of Europe and UNESCO. It has consultative status with UNESCO and is recognised as an NGO partner.   read more…

European Political Community (EPC)

3 June 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, European Union Reading Time:  7 minutes

European Political Community © EPCMoldova

European Political Community © EPCMoldova

The European Political Community (EPC) is an intergovernmental forum for political and strategic discussions about the future of Europe, established in 2022 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The group first met in October 2022 in Prague, with participants from 44 European countries, as well as the Presidents of the European Council and the European Commission.   read more…

The European Union: European Universities initiative

31 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, European Union, Universities, Colleges, Academies Reading Time:  5 minutes

© European Union

© European Union

At the 2017 Gothenburg Summit, European Union (EU) leaders outlined a vision for education and culture. In its December 2017 Conclusions, the European Council called on EU Member States, the Council and the Commission to take forward a number of initiatives, including   read more…

The European Union: Artificial Intelligence Act

28 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, European Union Reading Time:  32 minutes

Flag_of_Europe (Latest update: 27 August 2023) The Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act) is a regulation proposed on 21 April 2021 by the European Commission which aims to introduce a common regulatory and legal framework for artificial intelligence. Its scope encompasses all sectors (except for military), and to all types of artificial intelligence. As a piece of product regulation, the proposal does not confer rights on individuals, but regulates the providers of artificial intelligence systems, and entities making use of them in a professional capacity.   read more…

EU Global Gateway

19 March 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, European Union Reading Time:  7 minutes

© European Commission/cc-by-4.0

© European Commission/cc-by-4.0

The Global Gateway Initiative is a worldwide strategy by the European Union to invest in infrastructure projects and establish economic partnerships, based on certain principles. The project was initiated by the EU Commission, under the leadership of Ursula von der Leyen. It is part of the current plans for European strategic autonomy, and establishing bigger, more democratic and more sustainable trade networks for Europe and its partners. The initiative is also seen as an alternative or rivalry to the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative, which EU leaders heavily criticised because of human rights abuse concerns and economic risks, disadvantages and a one-sided trade relation. The EU wants to encourage links, and not dependencies, according to Ursula von der Leyen. As of December 2022, Global Gateway has been criticized for failing to provide concrete details on projects and drawing heavily on already-existing programmes.   read more…

The European Union: European Neighbourhood Policy

8 January 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Editorial, European Union Reading Time:  11 minutes

Flag_of_Europe The European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) is a foreign relations instrument of the European Union (EU) which seeks to tie those countries to the east and south of the European territory of the EU to the Union. These countries, primarily developing countries, include some who seek to one day become either a member state of the European Union, or more closely integrated with the European Union. The ENP does not apply to neighbours of the EU’s outermost regions, specifically France‘s territories in South America, but only to those countries close to EU member states’ territories in mainland Europe.   read more…

The European Union and the European Political Community

9 October 2022 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Editorial, European Union Reading Time:  6 minutes

Flag of Europe

Flag of Europe

The European Political Community (EPC) is a platform for political and strategic discussions about the future of Europe, established in 2022. The group first met in October 2022 in Prague, with participants from 44 European countries, as well as the President of the European Council and the President of the European Commission.   read more…

The European Union: Europe Day

8 May 2022 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Editorial, European Union Reading Time:  8 minutes

Europe Day 2009 in Strasbourg © flickr.com - Francois Schnell/cc-by-2.0

Europe Day 2009 in Strasbourg © flickr.com – Francois Schnell/cc-by-2.0

Europe Day is a day celebrating “peace and unity in Europe” celebrated on 5 May by the Council of Europe and on 9 May by the European Union. The first recognition of Europe Day was by the Council of Europe, introduced in 1964. The European Union later started to celebrate its own European Day in commemoration of the 1950 Schuman Declaration which first proposed the European Coal and Steel Community, leading it to be referred to by some as “Schuman Day” or “Day of the united Europe”. Both days are celebrated by displaying the Flag of Europe. The Council of Europe was founded on 5 May 1949, and hence it chose that day for its celebrations when it established the holiday in 1964.   read more…

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