European Union

Externalisation is increasingly seen as a lever for solving the EU’s migration issues, yet poses serious legal, ethical and practical problems. 

How do the results affect the work of the newly elected European Parliament? What are the opportunities and risks? What are the key priorities for the Greens/EFA? What challenges can be identified with regard to the composition and agenda of the new European Commission? What impact did the election have in individual member states, particularly in Germany, France and Poland? With: Terry Reintke, lead candidate of the European Green Party and Bündnis 90/Die Grünen; Co-Chair of the Greens/EFA Group; Roderick Kefferpütz, Director, EU office, Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung Brussels; Marc Berthold, Director, Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung Paris; Joanna Maria Stolarek, Director, Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung Warsaw. Moderation:  Eva van de Rakt, Head of European Union and North America Division, Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, Berlin.

As part of an EU Democracy research project funded by the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung European Union office, Sophie Pornschlegel interviewed European Commission Vice-President for Values and Transparency, Věra Jourová, during the summer break of the European Commission. In their conversation, Vice-President Jourová reflected on five years of efforts to safeguard democracy, human rights and the rule of law in the EU, amid increasing threats against democracy and a shifting geopolitical context, not least due to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. 

Already within its first few weeks, Hungary’s EU Council presidency has managed to outrage many international commentators. Still, there are indications that Viktor Orbán’s six-month gig in Brussels aims to be first and foremost a PR stunt to sell the Hungarian prime minister and his ideas to the European public. In Europe, this mission is supported by the Mathias Corvinus Collegium, Hungary’s principal “talent promotion institution”. 

For the Hlas party, whose candidates won big in elections to the national legislature and the presidency in Slovakia, harsh anti-EU rhetoric and disinformation was a new tactic in the elections to the EP –  the wrong one, as it turned out.

The far-right Rassemblement National has surprisingly suffered a defeat in the French snap parliamentary elections - there is great relief in the country itself and also in the EU. However, forming a government could be complicated and take time, with France facing a phase of political paralysis. Marc Berthold, Director of the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung's office in Paris, explains in this interview which constellations are possible and to what extent France's position in the EU could change.

Violence against women is particularly alarming, as one in three women have been subjected to physical or sexual violence. In this article, lawyer Ekaterini Georgiadou provides an unparalleled critical review of the legislative framework for gender-based violence in Greece. She examines the provisions of the Istanbul Convention and the severe concerns reflected in GREVIO's evaluation report about the implementation of the Convention in Greece. Furthermore, she focuses in particular on the newly adopted EU Directive on combating violence against women, which Member States are obliged to transpose into their national law within three years.

The NATO Summit in Washington, DC, from 9 to 11 July 2024, will not extend an invitation to Ukraine to become a member. The defence community can nevertheless send a clear signal that it will provide Ukraine with lasting support against Russia's war of attrition.