The Institut d'histoire sociale is organising a seminar entitled "L'Europe: cultures et politiques" on 24th June. The idea of European culture as well as the challenge made by communitarianism to the EU will be one of the main themes addressed. Jean-Dominique Giuliani, Chairman of the Robert Schuman Foundation and Magali Balent, Project Manager will be members of the panel of speakers. It is obligatory to enrol.

According to an INE estimate published on 5th June 2013, Portugal's GDP contracted by 0.4% in comparison with the previous quarter and by 4% over one year. This contraction can be notably explained by a contraction in domestic demand totalling 6.3% this quarter against 4.3% in the last quarter of 2012. The Portuguese Parliament approved a revised budget on 7th June forecasting further austerity measures to compensate for those rejected in April by the Constitutional Court and to enable the respect of the budgetary goals set by the international creditors. "This revised budget includes measures that will help us to respect the deficit goal of 5.5% of the GDP at the end of the year, " stressed the Finance Minister Vitor Gaspar. They notably plan for a reduction in the functioning budgets of all ministries, an extension of civil servants' working hours from 35 to 40 hours per week as well as an increase in their social contributions. The government also intends to do away with 30,000 civil servants' posts out of a total 700,000.

On 4th June 2013 the European Commission approved the introduction of anti-dumping taxes on solar panels from China. These taxes -which will be introduced progressively and which might reach 47.6% in two months time if the Commission does not come to an agreement with China - aim to protect European industry in the face of the low prices practiced by China. After this decision by the Commission the Chinese government declared that it was "firmly against" such taxes and the Chinese Trade Minister announced on 6th June 2013 to have launched an "anti-dumping, anti-subsidy procedure" targeting European wines and cars.

On 4th June 2013 Neven Mimica, candidate for the position of European Commissioner for Consumer Protection was auditionned by the European Parliament which invited him to speak on the EU's consumer policy and on his projects in this area. During his speech the future commissioner promised to focus on "the proposals concerning product safety, the monitoring of the markets and access to a basic bank account." After the three hour audition some MPs said they were unhappy with the "vague" answers given by the Croatian candidate. The final position of the Parliament will be voted on in plenary session in Strasbourg on 12th June.

Th 27 Justice and Interior Ministers agreed on 6th and 7th June 2013 on the general guidelines for the draft directive relative to the protection of the Union's financial interests (PFI). Based on these guidelines negotiations now have to start between the Council and Parliament. They then started a second debate on guidelines governing the European Account Preservation Order. They adopted conclusions relative to fundamental rights and the rule of law before being informed of the progress in EU accession to the European Convention of Human Rights. Finally they adopted the Union's new action plan on drugs for the period 2013-2016.

On 3rd and 4th June 2013 in Yekaterinburg during the 31st EU-Russia Summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin insisted on the boom in trade between the EU and Russia. The President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso declared that both parties had made "real progress as part of the new overall agreement between the EU and Russia". Both sides signed a new cooperation agreement on the control of drugs.

On 4th June an Egyptian court in Cairo convicted around forty Egyptian and foreign employees of an NGO including two members of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation to prison sentences for illegal work and illicit funding. The German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said he was "shocked" by the fate reserved for the Konrad Adenauer Foundation and its employees and promised to support the Foundation in its appeal trial. This conviction is "totally unacceptable from our point of view" and the sentences delivered "are completely out of proportion" criticised the German government's spokesperson, Steffen Seibert.

The Spanish head of government, Mariano Rajoy visited Brussels on 5th June 2013 together with some of his ministers. He notably spoke with the President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso. The two men agreed on the need to step up European integration and to continue implementing reforms both from a national and European point of view. Regarding Spain Mr Rajoy stressed that a great deal of progress has been achieved to correct the country's economic imbalances although a great deal still has to be done and that many reforms had been introduced since he entered office as head of government. He plans to reform the Spanish tax system next year and the retirement system at the end of the year.

On 7th June 2013 Hungary announced that it was going to withdraw two controversial amendments made previously to its Constitution with the aim of reassuring Brussels and to avoid possible European sanctions. Hungarian Foreign Minister Janos Martonyi declared during a press conference that a specific tax on the population to be implemented if Budapest had to pay a fine in the wake of the an EU infringement procedure was to be withdrawn from the Hungarian Constitution. Another contested modification - that of the right given to the president of the National Justice Office to transfer a trial over to a more conciliatory judge after the start of a trial - which is deemed to be an infringement of the principle of legal independence - is also to be removed from the Constitution.

On 5th June 2013 the head of the Italian government Enrico Letta declared that he was allowing 18 months for the completion of institutional reforms in Italy. "18 months is the deadline I have set myself, I promised parliament and if there is no final result I shall pay the price," he maintained. The draft bill adopted by the Council of Ministers sets a calendar that lays out stages, the last of which is due to fall in October 2014. However it does not give any detail of the reforms that are to be prepared by a "Committee of Experts" and a "Committee of 40". The "Commission of Experts" comprises 35 people, mainly university professors in law and political science and it will play a purely consultative role. The "Committee of 40" comprises members of the Constitutional Affairs Committee from the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies.

On 5th June 2013 the European Commission and the European Central Bank (ECB) published their convergence reports for Latvia which assess whether the country meets the necessary conditions for the adoption of the single currency. The two institutions gave their greenlight for Latvia's entry into the euro zone on January 1st 2014. However the ECB notably warns against "inflation" linked to the high volatility of consumer prices observed over the last ten years. It also points to the high volume of foreign savings in the banks which may pose a "threat to financial stability". The report will be submitted to the European Parliament and the euro zone governments. The latter will decide formally about this membership during a meeting planned for July.

On the occasion of the event organised to celebrate the contribution made by SME's to the British economy, Prime Minister David Cameron declared on 5th June that all recommendations included in a recent report on businesses would be implemented. These recommendations notably aim to facilitate the creation of SMEs by enabling entrepreneurs to receive more advice and aid and by removing some red-tape.

On 5th June 2013 former Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa and two co-accused were convicted of corruption in the "Patria Trial", a tank armaments contract with Finland. The Court of Ljubljana said that Mr Jansa had been sentenced to two years in prison. However the sentence is not yet final and the defence has indicated that it will appeal at a higher level. The former Prime Minister was convicted of corruption for the signature in 2006 of the biggest arms deal ever made by the country totalling 278 million euros with the Finnish company Patria .

During the Euro-Arctic Summit on 3rd and 4th June 2013 the Finnish, Icelandic, Russian and Norwegian Prime Ministers as well as the Swedish and Danish Foreign Ministers, together with the European Commission's Vice-President said they wanted to guarantee the economic and social development of the region's competitiveness within Europe. A declaration re-iterating the principles of Euro-Arctic Cooperation and supporting the strengthening of this - notably in the economic, trade, educational and transport areas was adopted.

The fourth European supply vessel of the International Space Station was sent into space on 5th June 2013 on board Ariane 5. Lift off took place at the Guianese space centre. The ATV-4, christened 'Albert Einstein', will reach the ISS, with link-up being planned for 15th June. By that time the teams in the control centre will have to monitor the ATV trajectory. The ATV-4 provides astronauts with material, food as well as fuel and oxygen.

The Defence Ministers of NATO countries who met in Brussels on 4th and 5th June 2013 talked about cyber defence and examined the projects to reform Georgia in terms of defence. With their counterparts who contribute to the ISAF (International Security and Assistance Force) which operates in Afghanistan, they approved the detailed idea of the new mission that NATO will lead in Afghanistan in order to train, advise and help the Afghan security forces after 2014.

The IMF reduced its growth forecast for Germany on 3rd June 2013 from 0.6% to 0.3% this year, but it forecasts that Europe's biggest economy will recover in the second semester 2013. Although recovery in activity is expected in the second half of the year "thanks to sound domestic fundamentals", "growth in 2013 is due to be weak", stressed the economists at the IMF. "The continued weakness of investments is impeding greater recovery, mainly because of the uncertainty surrounding perspectives and policy in the euro zone in spite of the progress already achieved," explained the IMF, adding that this also weighed on German exports in the region.

According to a publication by Eurostat on 7th June 2013 foreign workers comprised 7% of all employees in the EU in 2012. This study also shows that the unemployment rate is lower amongst nationals than amongst foreign citizens, especially amongst those from non-EU Member States.

On 3rd June 2013 the International Labour Organisation (ILO) published a report on work in the world in 2013. Most emerging and developing countries experienced a rise in employment and a reduction in inequalities of income. However as far as world unemployment is concerned the ILO is forecasting a rise form 200 million to 208 million in 2015. Inequalities in income in the advanced economies have increased over the last two years.

The exhibition "Le Grand Atelier du Midi", launched as part of the Marseilles-Provence 2013 European Capital of Culture, will be taking place from 13th June to 13th October 2013. Designed in two parts this exhibition is being presented at the Longchamp Palace in Marseilles and at the Granet Museum of Aix-en-Provence. The exhibition in Aix has been designed around Paul Cezanne and the one in Marseilles focuses on the influence of Vincent van Gogh. Nearly 200 works are on show, with artists as diverse as Paul Signac, Georges Braque, Claude Monet and Henri Matisse, which try to show how the "Midi" was a fabulous laboratory for the conception of modern painting.