The fifth edition of the unique Permanent Atlas of the European Union provides a comprehensive and easily accessible overview of the European Union, the euro area and each of its 27 Member States. It is available in hard copy on our website and in bookshops, or in English as a digital version.

In response to the economic and social consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic, the EU has set up a €672.5 billion recovery fund, called the Recovery and Resilience Facility, for Member States in the form of grants and loans. 22 plans have so far been approved by the Commission, and 20 countries have already received the planned pre-financing, including Romania on 2 December. On 3 December, responding to Spain, the Commission for the first time positively assessed a request for disbursement from a country that had met a series of targets. The Commission has so far not approved the Hungarian and Polish plans due to breaches of the rule of law. The Foundation provides an interactive map of the plans country by country, showing amounts, timetables and priorities.

In Germany, unvaccinated people are no longer allowed to enter bars, restaurants, cultural venues and non-essential shops. In Portugal, a negative test is mandatory for everyone to enter bars and restaurants and some major events. In Belgium, the school holidays have been brought forward to 20 December, indoor events are limited to 200 people and masks are compulsory in enclosed areas from the age of 6. In Italy, unvaccinated people cannot enter bars, restaurants, theatres and cinemas, and a health pass is mandatory for all employees. To follow the evolution of the situation and to keep track of the measures in place in the EU Member States, the Foundation offers you a complete map of the various provisions in force. An indispensable, regularly updated resource.

As part of the preparations for the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the Europeum Institute, the French Institute in Prague and the Foundation organised a videoconference on 30 November on the theme of belonging and the common identity of Europeans.

In 2021, through its proposals and its active presence in European debates, the Foundation participated in the necessary development of common policies. While France will hold the presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2022, the Foundation will step up its efforts to raise awareness of the European project and will continue its strategy of influence in Brussels, Strasbourg and within the Member States. Now more than ever, it needs your support to continue its activities.

The Foundation is organising a videoconference on 13 December on European economic policy with François Villeroy de Galhau, Governor of the Banque de France. Alain Lamassoure, Chairman of the Foundation's Scientific Committee, will be taking part. The debate will be moderated by Jean-Dominique Giuliani.

The EU adopted new sanctions on 2 December against 17 individuals and 11 entities in Belarus who were involved in inciting and organising illegal crossings of the EU border. The day before, the Commission proposed temporary measures to help Latvia, Lithuania and Poland deal with the influx of migrants at their borders with Belarus. To follow the latest developments in the crisis opened by the rigged presidential election of August 2020 and the repression of the democratic opposition, the Foundation offers you a chronology of events and links to European responses and initiatives.

The Commission decided on 2 December to impose a total fine of €344.4 million on Barclays, RBS, HSBC, USB and Credit Suisse for violating EU law on anti-competitive practices. The Commission alleges that the banks entered into agreements that allowed them to knowingly buy and sell currency in the market.

The ministers for sport, culture, education and youth met in Brussels on 29 and 30 November. They encouraged better access to films, notably by broadcasting them in European languages, and called on political actors to implement the new European Bauhaus. They discussed how to promote openness, merit and human rights in sports organisations and competitions. They also adopted conclusions on hybrid education, to take into account the lessons learned from the pandemic.

The Council and the Parliament reached an agreement on 30 November on the Data Governance Act. The text aims to better regulate the re-use of protected public data such as trade secrets or personal data, and to increase trust in data transfer and sharing. The agreement includes the use of data sharing services to create a secure environment for both businesses and consumers, who will have more control over how their data is used.

On 2 December, the Council finally adopted the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) for the period 2023-2027. The aim is to ensure a sustainable future for European farmers through greener agriculture and to allow farm workers to enjoy adequate employment conditions.

The Energy Ministers, meeting on 2 December, discussed rising energy prices and possible measures to regulate prices and protect consumers. The Telecommunications Ministers, on 3 December, adopted their position on the harmonisation of cybersecurity rules through the new "SRI 2" directive aimed at strengthening cybersecurity and resilience measures in the Union.

Meeting on 6 December, the Eurogroup discussed the Commission's proposal for a recommendation on the economic policy of the euro area for 2022. It discussed the economic and budgetary situation of the euro area Member States, as well as the twelfth enhanced surveillance report on Greece, and adopted the work programme for the first half of next year. In addition, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) presented the results of its annual review of the euro area economy.

On 6 December, employment and social affairs ministers called for an adequate EU minimum wage and pay transparency to help close the gender pay gap. They called on Member States to ensure that artificial intelligence (AI) promotes transparency and gender equality when used in recruitment, and to strengthen policies to help people enter and re-enter the labour market quickly.

In the framework of the European Peace Facility, the Council validated support measures for several countries to enhance their domestic resilience by improving their operational capabilities. The countries concerned are Ukraine (€31 million), Georgia (€12.75 million), Moldova (€7 million) and Mali (€24 million). The Council specified that the use of this aid must comply with the rules of international law.

EU leaders met with their Latin American and Caribbean counterparts on 2 December. They expressed their wish to increase their cooperation in the fight against pandemics, climate change and biodiversity loss. They recalled the importance of preventing future diseases, the convergence of rules facilitating digital innovation and the preservation of human rights and fundamental freedoms.

Representatives from the EU and the Western Balkans met from 1 to 3 December in Slovenia for an annual ministerial forum on justice and home affairs. They expressed their willingness to strengthen their cooperation through the transfer of information, in particular on migration flows, the fight against terrorism and organised crime.

In a joint statement issued on 3 December, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and EU High Representative Josep Borell reiterated their partnership and commitment to transatlantic security. They stated that the European Union and the United States shared common strategic challenges and recalled the importance of coordinated and complementary action. Discussions will take place in early 2022 to allow for closer cooperation between the two powers on security and defence.

According to an analysis published by the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) on 2 December, approximately 71,200 asylum applications were lodged in the EU and Schengen countries in September, an increase of one quarter compared to August and the highest figure since November 2016. In particular, 72% of applications were made by Afghans. Following the arrival of the Taliban in Kabul, Afghanistan is now the number one country of origin of asylum seekers, replacing Syria which had been the leading country of origin for seven years until last July.

French President Emmanuel Macron visited the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Saudi Arabia on 3 and 4 December. He focused on cooperation on climate and global issues, especially during the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2022. During the visit, France and the Emirates signed a contract for the sale of 80 Rafale aircraft, and Saudi Arabia signed a contract for the purchase of 26 Airbus helicopters.

In a report published on 30 November, the Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures and the Financing of Terrorism (Moneyval) recognised Lithuania's efforts to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. Nevertheless, there are still deficiencies for which its legislation has been judged "partially compliant" by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). Lithuania will have to report to MONEYVAL in 2023 on further progress.

The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe has called on Turkey to release philanthropist and patron Osman Kavala and announced its intention to refer the case to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) at its February meeting. In December 2019, the ECHR ruled that O. Kavala's detention was not based on sufficient incriminating evidence and demanded his immediate release.

On 2 December, on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the Council of Europe Convention on counterfeiting of medical products and similar crimes threatening public health (MEDICRIME), the Committee of Ministers called on states that have not yet done so to sign and ratify the Convention. While the Covid-19 pandemic has intensified drug trafficking, the MEDICRIME Convention allows for international co-operation between national authorities as well as effective prosecution of offenders to combat counterfeit vaccines or falsified medical products. The Convention has so far been signed by 18 states.

The Musée Maillol in Paris is presenting a retrospective of Steve McCurry's photographs from 9 December to 29 May 2022. For the first time in Paris, 150 large-format photographs trace 40 years of his career around the world.

The Centre for Contemporary Art Deichtorhallen in Hamburg is dedicating a retrospective exhibition to Tomi Ungerer until 24 April 2022 to mark the 90th anniversary of the French painter and cartoonist's death in 2019. More than 400 works are presented in an exhibition entitled "It's a question of freedom".

The Prague Contemporary Art Fair is celebrating its 20th anniversary from 7 to 12 December and is presenting 190 original works of art from around the world.

Until 17 April 2022, the Centre Pompidou in Málaga is presenting a monograph on the work of French visual artist Sophie Calle. The exhibition highlights almost forty years of creation through photographs, embroidered texts, visual and sound works that illustrate the themes that are dear to the artist, such as intimacy, love relationships and absence.

The work of artist and photographer Ada Zielinska is on display at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Wroclaw from 9 December to 7 March 2022. The artist uses the social and economic gap between Poland and Italy in the 1980s to give a distorted version of the ideal of life on the Italian coast.

The European film festival ArteKino, organised by the channel Arte, is taking place online until 31 December. Twelve European films available in French, German, English, Spanish, Polish and Italian will be judged by public votes.

Exhibited on the gates of the Quai d'Orsay throughout the month of December, photographs reveal the importance of cafés as places of life and creation, but also of debates, gatherings of friends and meetings. A symbol of European culture, it is in cafés that the greatest European literary, cultural and artistic movements were born. Through the presentation of some of the most mythical cafés in Europe, the exhibition also traces the history of the formation of the great political, resistance and reflection movements of the last centuries.