Slovaks are being called to the polls on 29 February to renew the 150-member parliament, in an atmosphere of protest against the political class accused of corruption and threats to vote in favour of the nationalists. According to the latest survey, the Social Democracy Directorate (SMER-SD), the party of former Prime Minister Robert Fico and outgoing Prime Minister Peter Pellegrin, would come out ahead with 17% of the vote. The Party of Ordinary People and Independent Personalities-New Majority (OL'aNO-NOVA) are due to win 13.3%, the right-wing extremists of the People's Party-Our Slovakia (LSNS), 12.2%, and Progressive Slovakia/Civil Democracy Assembly, 9.3%.

The failures of certain merger projects such as Alstom/Siemens call into question the inadequacy, or even obsolescence, of European competition law and its place in relation to other public policy objectives. Should a rebalancing not be carried out between competition policy and industrial policy so that the objectives of the latter can be deployed? On behalf of the Foundation, Bruno Deffains, Olivier d'Ormesson and Thomas Perroud propose several avenues for reform.

On 16 February in Brussels, European Council President Charles Michel, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and High Representative Josep Borrell met representatives of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Northern Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia in Brussels to prepare for the EU-Western Balkans Summit in May in Zagreb. A few days after the publication of the Commission's proposals to reform the enlargement process, Charles Michel stressed the need to deepen strategic cooperation on issues such as climate change, multilateralism and foreign policy.

On 13 February the Commission presented its winter economic forecasts for 2020 and 2021. It forecasts stable growth for the euro area, at 1.2% in 2020 and 2021, and slightly lower growth for the Union, at 1.4% in 2020 and 2021, compared with 1.5% in 2019. Trade tensions between the United States and China, unrest in Latin America, geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and uncertainty about the future relationship with the United Kingdom explain the revision of the forecasts. However, the Commission notes that the European economy could benefit from more expansionary fiscal policies and the positive spill-over effects of more favourable financing conditions in the euro area.

In a resolution adopted on 12 February, Parliament called on the European Central Bank to step up its ecological ambitions and to meet growing financial technological challenges. MEPs, who debated the ECB's priorities with its President Christine Lagarde, called on the institution to continue to increase the overall money supply and to pursue its preparatory efforts to ensure the stability of the Union's financial markets following the UK's withdrawal from the EU.

The Health Ministers meeting on 13 February called on all Member States to step up their coordination and exchange of information, in cooperation with the Commission and specialised European agencies, so that all necessary measures can be taken to limit the epidemic of the coronavirus, known as COVID-19. They called for cooperation in research to develop a vaccine against the disease.

Foreign ministers decided on 17 February to launch a naval, air and satellite operation in the Mediterranean to enforce the arms embargo on Libya and continue to combat the smuggling of migrants, and to train the Libyan coastguard. They discussed strategic priorities in relations with Africa, examined the situation in the Middle East, Venezuela and the Sahel, and were briefed on the informal EU-Western Balkans meeting held on 16 February. They also received the Indian Foreign Minister to prepare for the EU-India Summit scheduled for 13 March in Brussels.

The Governor of Central Macedonia in Greece, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, was elected on 12 February as President of the European Committee of the Regions for a two-and-a-half year term. The members of the Committee of the Regions also elected the President of the Regional Government of the Azores in Portugal, Vasco Ilídio Alves Cordeiro, as First Vice-President.

On 12 February, the Bundestag, the lower house of the German Parliament, approved the first research and technology contract of the SCAF (Future Air Combat System) programme for a period of 18 months (Phase 1A). The contract, awarded to Dassault Aviation, is worth €155 million and will be financed equally by France and Germany. The next major stage of the programme will be the integration of Spain. This first contract should lead the manufacturers to a second, even more ambitious contract.

On 13 February, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson reshuffled his government. The portfolios of Northern Ireland, the Environment and the Economy changed hands, while the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Home Affairs and Justice remain in office. Finance Minister Sajid Javid surprised everyone by resigning, and was replaced by Budget Minister Rishi Sunak.

The Parliament of Northern Macedonia ratified the NATO accession protocol on 11 February. The 114 parliamentarians present voted in favour, none voted against or abstained. So far, all NATO members have ratified the accession of Northern Macedonia with the exception of Spain.

The Council of Europe Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA) published a report on 11 February assessing the implementation of the Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings, ratified by the Czech Republic in 2017. The report highlights the initiatives taken by the country in this area but calls on the authorities not to make the identification of victims of trafficking and the assistance provided to victims conditional to the opening of criminal proceedings. It calls for greater efforts to identify victims of trafficking for labour exploitation at an early stage, as well as victims among asylum-seekers and persons in administrative detention.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled on 13 February that Spain had not violated the European Convention on Human Rights when it sent back to Morocco two Malian and Ivorian nationals who were trying to cross the fences of Melilla, a Spanish enclave in Morocco. The Court found that the two men had placed themselves in a situation of illegality by deciding not to use existing legal channels for regular access to Spanish territory.

Meeting on 12 and 13 February, NATO Defence Ministers agreed in principle to an enhanced NATO training mission in Iraq. As a first step, some of the training activities currently being conducted by the global coalition against Daesh will be resumed. They have also begun to reflect on a possible expansion of the Alliance's missions in the Middle East. In addition, they discussed the challenge linked to the development of new Russian missiles and noted the progress made towards fairer burden-sharing within the Alliance.

In a report published on 13 February, the OECD notes that Ireland needs to be prepared to face pressure on its budget and external risks against the backdrop of Brexit. Despite a growth forecast above 3% for 2020 and 2021, the country faces an ageing population, which could increase public spending. The OECD is advising the country to find new sources of income and to address the shortage of skilled labour. Another important change for the Irish economy might come from the introduction of new international tax rules.

The European Union recorded a surplus of €23.4 billion in December 2019, compared with +€14.8 billion in December 2018, Eurostat estimates on 14 February. The euro area recorded a surplus of €23.1 billion in trade in goods with the rest of the world in December 2019, compared with +€16.3 billion in December 2018.

According to the annual report of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) published on 14 February, global military spending in 2019 rose by 4% overall, the highest increase in ten years. The two biggest military budgets are the United States ($685 billion) and China ($181 billion). US spending increased by $53.4 billion, representing one seventh of the world defence budget. The United Kingdom is sixth, France seventh and Germany ninth.

The exhibition "Caravaggio - Bernini, the Baroque in Rome" is on display at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, until 7 June. Nearly 80 masterpieces by the two artists are on show. Paintings by Nicolas Poussin, Ludovico Carrache, Annibale Carrache, Guido Reni and Giovanni Baglione can also be seen.