The Newsletter n°711 — 11 avr. 2016
La Lettre
Corinne Deloy, Pascale Joannin
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11 April 2016
The Dutch rejected the Association Treaty between the European Union and Ukraine on 6th April in a consultative referendum. Only 38.41% voted "yes" in the popular consultation in which only 32.2% of the Dutch went to ballot. This "unique" situation raises both legal and political questions.
Foundation
3rd edition of the Atlas of the European Union
11 April 2016
The third edition of the Atlas of the European Union is a work of reference that presents the Union, its institutions, each of its 28 Member States and a new feature - the overseas territories via their history, culture and their version of reality.
Migration
Migration: Frontex analysis 2016
10 April 2016
On 5th April Frontex published a risk analysis for 2016 reviewing the migratory phenomenon in 2015 and highlighting the major challenges to be met on the EU's external borders in the future.
European Border Guard
10 April 2016
On 6th April since the Council now has its position regarding the European Border Guard negotiations can start with Parliament.
Proposals for the management of migration
10 April 2016
On 6th April the Commission presented measures to improve the management of the migratory crisis which include a reform of the European asylum and information systems together with a regulation to establish an entry/exit system.
Drop in the number of asylum seekers in Germany
10 April 2016
Germany has noted a decline of two-thirds in the number of new asylum seekers with around 20,000 people registered in March against 60,000 the previous month announced the German Home Affairs Minister Thomas de Maizière.
Financial Crisis
COSME Agreement between the EIF and the Société Générale
11 April 2016
On 4th April the EIF (European Investment Fund) and the Société Générale signed an agreement to finance 250 million € targeting 14,000 SMEs in France.
Cyprus joins the coordination of economic policies
10 April 2016
On 7th April the Commission announced that after having finished the three year economic adjustment programme Cyprus had joined the coordination of economic policies.
Meeting of the G7 Foreign Affairs Ministers
11 April 2016
On 11th April in the so-called "Hiroshima Declaration" the heads of diplomacy from the countries of the G7 advocated a world "free of nuclear arms."
Counter/Terrorism
Increase in armed forces staff
10 April 2016
French President François Hollande decided on 6th April to cancel the destruction of 10,000 jobs in the armed forces and to create 800 additional posts over the next three years in order to rise to the terrorist threat.
Agreement between Europol and the FBI
11 April 2016
The FBI and Europol announced on 7th April that they had signed a reciprocal agreement to step up the joint fight to counter foreign terrorist fighters.
Commission
Single VAT area in the EU
10 April 2016
On 7th April the European Commission adopted an action plan on VAT called "Towards a single VAT area in the Union."
Security: the EU steps up its response to hybrid threats
10 April 2016
The European Commission and the High Representative adopted a common framework on 6th April to counter hybrid threats and to strengthen the resilience of the EU, its member states and its partners.
Council
Conclusions on Agriculture and Fisheries
11 April 2016
On 11th April the Agriculture and Fisheries Ministers agreed on additional measures for European agriculture. They adopted measures to strengthen countries that produce timber and also the management of fisheries partnerships with third countries.
Extension of restrictive measures in Iran against a humanitarian backdrop
1 January 1970
On 11th April the Council decided to extend its restrictive measures against 82 people and one organisation for a further year due the humanitarian situation in Iran.
Diplomacy
EU-Chile Trade Agreement on Organic Products
11 April 2016
On 7th April the European Commission announced the conclusion of an agreement with Chile on the trade of organic products.
Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the EU and Malaysia
11 April 2016
On 6th April the EU and Malaysia signed a partnership and cooperation agreement after five years of negotiation. Malaysia is the EU's second biggest trade partner within ASEAN.
Progress in the EU/Mercosur trade agreement
11 April 2016
On 8th April the Commissioner for External Trade, Cecilia Malmström and the Foreign Minister of Uruguay Rodolfo Nin Novoa agreed on the next stages in the negotiations on the EU/Mercosur agreement.
Germany
Meeting between the German Chancellor, the ILO, OECD, IMF, WTO, and the World Bank
10 April 2016
The German Chancellor and the leaders of five international organisations called on 5th April for the introduction of long term, rigorous, structural reforms to stimulate world economic growth.
Angel Merkel meets the Armenian President
10 April 2016
German Chancellor Angela Merkel met Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan on 6th April to discuss bilateral relations and the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
France
Franco-German Council of Ministers
10 April 2016
François Hollande and Angela Merkel presided over the 18th Council of Franco-German Ministers in Metz on 7th April. The meeting was dominated by issues associated with offshore accounts, the refugee crisis, the fight to counter terrorism and economic revival.
Italy
Official signature of the purchase of 28 Eurofighter planes by Kuwait
10 April 2016
Kuwait and Finmeccanica signed a contract on 5th April for the delivery of 28 Eurofighter Typhoon planes.
The Netherlands
The Dutch reject the Association Agreement with Ukraine
10 April 2016
61.1% of the Dutch rejected the European Association Agreement with Ukraine during a consultative referendum on 6th April.
UK
Issues at stake in the UK remaining in the EU
11 April 2016
On 6th April British Prime Minister David Cameron announced the dispatch of a brochure on the issues at stake in the referendum.
Iceland
Appointment of a new Prime Minister in Iceland
10 April 2016
Icelandic Fisheries and Agriculture Minister Sigurdur Ingi Johannsson was appointed Prime Minister on 6th April in replacement of Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson - until the next general elections that are planned for the autumn.
Kosovo
New President of Kosovo
10 April 2016
Hashim Thaçi was sworn in on 7th April as President of Kosovo by Parliament during a session that was boycotted by the opposition.
Ukraine
Resignation of Prime Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk
11 April 2016
Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk announced on 10th April that he had resigned from his post. He is due to be replaced by the present leader of Parliament Volodymyr Groïssman.
OSCE
Ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh
11 April 2016
The Minsk Group on Nagorno-Karabakh within the OSCE co-chaired by France, the USA and Russia met on 5th April to discuss the rise in fighting in this region disputed by Azerbaijan and Armenia.
Council of Europe
Visit by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe of Poland
10 April 2016
The Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjoern Jagland visited Poland on 4th and 5th April to discuss the crisis regarding the Constitutional Tribunal and the public media with Polish President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Beata Szydlo.
Companies and human rights
10 April 2016
On 4th April the Commissioner for Human Rights at the Council of Europe, Muižnieks declared that businesses had to assume their responsibilities in terms of protecting human rights.
Studies/Reports
Panama Papers
11 April 2016
An international consortium of investigative journalists (ICIJ) accessed 11.5 million documents that reveal that assets belonging to some of the most important people in the world have been hidden in opaque tax havens.
Rise in world military spending
10 April 2016
World military spending totalled nearly 1,700 billion $ in 2015 i.e. a rise of 1% in real terms in comparison with 2014 according to new data issued by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) published on 5th April.
Report on the drugs market in the Union
10 April 2016
On 5th April the EMCDDA (European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction) published the 2016 report on the EU's drugs market.
2015 ECB Annual Report
10 April 2016
On 7th April the European Central Bank published its annual report reviewing the economic, monetary and financial situation of the euro zone in 2015.
Justice Scoreboard in the EU
11 April 2016
On 11th April the Commission published the Justice Scoreboard in the EU which enables a comparison on the efficacy, quality and independence of the respective legal systems in force in the Member States.
Culture
"Napoleon on Saint Helen's" in Paris
11 April 2016
On 24th July the Army Museum in Paris is running an exhibition "Napoléon à Sainte-Hélène. La conquête de la mémoire" and offers the public an opportunity to see nearly 240 works on show for the first time in France together with the furniture that surrounded the Emperor during his exile.
European Film Days in the Czech Republic
11 April 2016
The European Film Days are taking place in Prague from 7th to 16th April, in Brno from 14th to 18th April and from 20th to 24th April in other towns across the Czech Republic.
"Self-portraits, from Rembrandt to the selfie" Lyon
11 April 2016
Until 26th June 2016 the Fine Arts Museum of Lyon is hosting the exhibition "Self-portraits, from Rembrandt to the Selfie" featuring the various approaches to the self-portrait from the 16th to 21st century.
Conceptual Art in Britain 1964-1979
11 April 2016
From 12th April to 29th August the Tate Britain London is hosting the exhibition "Conceptual Art in Britain 1964-79" covering development in British art over this period.
Bourges Spring
11 April 2016
The Bourges Spring that is taking place from 12th to 17th April is hosting dozens of artists of all types.
Film Festival of Istanbul
11 April 2016
Until 17th April the 35th Film Festival of Istanbul is taking place offering more than 200 international cinema productions.
Gauguin Exhibition in Copenhagen
11 April 2016
From 15th April to 28th August 2016 the Glyptothèque Ny Carlsberg of Copenhagen is hosting an exhibition "Gauguin's Worlds" which covers Paul Gauguin's artistic development from 1848 to 1903.
Agenda
11th April
Agriculture and Fisheries Council (Luxembourg)
11th to 14th April
Plenary Session of the European Parliament (Strasbourg)
14th and 15th April
Meeting of G20 Foreign Affairs Ministers and Central Bank governors (Washington DC)
18th and 19th April
"Foreign Affairs" Council (Luxembourg)
Newsletter Archives
Europe in a fragmented global economy: making the most of the single market and competition policy
European Defence and Russia
Cyprus: 20 years of membership of the European Union, between singularities and a theatre of geopolitical oppositions.
Review of the 9th Legislature of the European Parliament
What to take away from the European law on artificial intelligence
The Editors of the Newsletter :
Charles de Marcilly, Helen Levy ,Rodolphe Baron, Angéline Garde, Emma Giraud,Morgane Mounier, Laura Zani
N°ISSN : 2729-6482
Editor-in-Chief :
Eric Maurice
Director of Publication :
Pascale Joannin
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