December 5, 08:25 AM • 8796 viewsDecember 4, 02:10 PM • 24137 viewsUkraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba will visit The Hague to take part in a ministerial conference on restoring justice in Ukraine and discuss the establishment of a Special Tribunal for the crime of Russian aggression against Ukraine.
Romania and Bulgaria have partially joined the Schengen area for air and sea travel, allowing free movement without document checks, but land border controls remain in place due to Austria's opposition on migration grounds.
China promises to import more high-quality goods and services from France amid ongoing trade tensions over the export of Chinese electric vehicles to Europe.
President Zelenskyy met with a delegation from the European Parliament's Renewal of Europe group to discuss military assistance, countering Russian propaganda, and Ukraine's integration into the EU, emphasizing the need to start accession talks during Belgium's EU presidency.
Ukraine has submitted proposals to Poland for the construction of the Krakowiec-Lviv-Brody-Rivne highway, and the project is already being discussed between the ministries and Polish businesses that are interested in it.
Ukraine and Poland agree on five steps to unblock the border, including restrictions on exports of Ukrainian agricultural products, an EU review of agricultural policy and transport, a ban on exports of Russian and Belarusian agricultural products to the EU, the creation of an anti-crisis headquarters, and permission to transit fuel across the border.
Poland will work to convene the first intergovernmental conference between the EU and Ukraine no later than June 2024, which will mark the start of negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the EU.
The EU law on critical raw materials is aimed at diversifying sources of supply of critical raw materials, not at confronting China, according to a European official.
Ukraine and Poland held governmental consultations in Warsaw to resolve issues such as the situation at the border and agricultural trade and to find mutually beneficial solutions through dialogue and compromise.
The EU postponed the decision to continue trade liberalization with Ukraine until the evening after talks on possible restrictions on imports of certain agricultural products.
Euroclear, which holds most of the Russian central bank's frozen assets in Europe, reportedly received permission to keep the profits earned on these assets in 2022 and 2023 instead of using the funds to support Ukraine's military efforts.
Ukraine will lose millions in potential profits due to new EU restrictions on duty-free imports of agricultural products from Ukraine, which take into account the reduced imports from the second half of 2021.
EU ambassadors will again try to approve the extension of the duty-free trade agreement with Ukraine with a compromise proposal to increase restrictions on imports of Ukrainian agricultural products to balance support for Ukraine and protection of EU farmers.
Belgian Agriculture Minister David Clarinval reported progress in meeting the demands of angry European farmers, but said the EU should continue to seek all possible solutions to calm their concerns about problems such as high commodity prices, extreme weather and low agricultural income.
Hungary will not extend the ban on imports of honey from Ukraine, as the previous ban did not have a positive impact on prices in the local market and caused losses to companies exporting honey to the EU, said the country's Minister of Agriculture Istvan Nagy.
The European Union rejected Russia's attempts to link Ukraine to the recent terrorist attack in Moscow, urging Russia not to use the attack as a pretext for escalating aggression against Ukraine or internal repression.
The Belgian presidency of the EU Council is working to find a compromise framework for renewing autonomous trade measures for Ukraine, with Italy proposing to extend the protection provisions until 2021 but exclude wheat, reducing the benefits for Ukraine from the original €2 billion to €1. 54 billion.
The European Commission proposes to raise tariffs on imports of grains, oilseeds and processed products from Russia and Belarus to the EU to prevent market destabilization, combat exports of misappropriated Ukrainian grain and deprive Russia of revenues it uses to finance its war against Ukraine.
The European Union plans to circumvent the EU Treaty's ban on arms purchases from its budget in order to increase military aid to Ukraine.
EU leaders have agreed to use money from frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine buy weapons, with the first €1 billion to be disbursed by July 1, reflecting the growing need due to the war in Ukraine.
The European Commission is preparing to impose tariffs on grain products from Belarus and Russia to prevent Russian grain from destabilizing the European market, stop Russia from profiting from exports to the EU, and ensure that illegally exported stolen Ukrainian grain does not enter the EU market.
The EU introduces new rules requiring social media platforms such as X, TikTok, Facebook, and others to take steps to mitigate election risks or face fines of up to 6% of their annual global turnover.
The Belgian Prime Minister welcomes the EU's proposal to use the proceeds of frozen Russian assets to buy weapons for Ukraine, calling it a reasonable way.
Five European countries-Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland and the Czech Republic - have called on the European Commission to ban grain imports from Russia and Belarus to prevent Russia from financing the war against Ukraine.
The EU emphasized its commitment to continue supporting Ukraine's energy sector by providing essential energy goods and equipment, promoting energy efficiency and accelerating the deployment of renewable energy sources.
During a meeting with the President of the European Council, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal emphasized the importance of adopting the draft negotiation framework for Ukraine's accession to the EU as soon as possible.
Ukraine has unveiled a plan of 69 reforms, including in the economic, judicial, and financial sectors, to implement the EU's Ukraine Fund program, which aims to accelerate Ukraine's integration into the European Union.
EU ambassadors failed to approve the extension of trade liberalization measures for Ukraine on the eve of the summit of the bloc's leaders, due to concerns of some countries about the impact on their agricultural markets, and will discuss the issue at their next meeting next week.
For more than two years of full-scale war with Russia, Ukraine has received 88 billion euros in aid from the EU and its member states.
Ukraine has submitted to the European Commission a government-approved plan for a 4-year, €50 billion EU support program, awaiting approval and full launch, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said during his visit to Brussels.
