The upcoming EU election was meant to be a shining example of the Europeanisation of democracy. But with the once-promising lead candidate system dying a slow death, it seems the elections will be a purely national race in each EU country.

The Catalan pro-independence party has threatened to withdraw its support for Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s socialist party if they do not a pass “comprehensive” amnesty law to pardon all offences committed by Catalan separatist forces between 2012 and 2023.

Germany’s TÜV Nord Group is launching the world’s "first and only comprehensive certification" scheme for critical raw materials along the entire value chain – from exploration to extraction and processing, up to the final product.

The centre-right European People’s Party, liberal Renew, Socialists and Democrats, Greens, and national-conservative ECR all urged EU leaders to agree on further financial aid for Ukraine’s defence efforts during the extraordinary European Council summit starting on Thursday (1 February). 

The European Commission presented on Wednesday (31 January) new recommendations on vaccine-preventable cancers setting targets for member states to boost human papillomaviruses (HPV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccination.  

EU leaders meeting in Brussels on Thursday (1 February) are likely to propose holding an annual debate on a planned €50 billion Ukraine aid package, but without the possibility of a yearly veto, in a bid to overcome opposition from Hungary, according to draft summit conclusions.

European NGOs have tested the blood of the EU’s political top brass and found several banned “forever chemicals”, upping the pressure on Brussels to put the bloc’s chemical regulation back on the agenda.

France’s freshly-appointed Gabriel Attal vowed to take down bureaucracy and regulatory weight in a large-scale speech on Tuesday (30 January), joining a growing call across the EU to cut back on red tape.

With one in three women having experienced physical or sexual violence in the EU, awareness-raising and in-community training is key to helping those at risk access support, with various projects being rolled out across Europe.

Russian anti-war candidate Boris Nadezhdin said on Wednesday (31 January) he had submitted 105,000 signatures of support to the Central Election Commission (CEC), technically enough to challenge incumbent Vladimir Putin in the March presidential election.

The gap between official and real-world car emissions has grown by 80% in the past five years, despite advanced testing procedures in place to prevent such a discrepancy, a new study has found.

The French National Assembly approved a bill on Tuesday night (30 January) to enshrine in the Constitution a law that “guarantees freedom" for women to have access to abortion.

NATO countries are priming their citizens to be ready for the next global conflict between the great powers. Once unthinkable, the idea of a third world war seems closer than ever, writes Maurizio Geri.

With the previous foundations of the EU’s approach to global health dating back to 2010, the European Commission’s presentation of the EU Global Health Strategy on 30 November 2022 was much needed.

Over the past weeks, several European political parties have circulated draft versions of their manifestos for the upcoming EU elections on 6-9 June. Euractiv walks you through the implications for energy and environment policy.

In today’s edition of the Capitals, find out more about French President Emmanuel Macron reiterating his call for EU sovereignty on his two-day trip to Sweden, images of an Italian teacher chained in a Hungarian court sparking debate, and so much more.

An envoy for UN Secretary General António Guterres started contacts on divided Cyprus on Tuesday (30 January), seeking to break years of stalemate in peace talks.

In the face of an escalating packaging waste crisis, European citizens and circular businesses are still eagerly waiting for the EU institutions to finally deliver credible rules to stop the growth of throwaway packing, writes Marco Musso.

New automation technology being pushed by plane makers will boost their bottom line at the expense of safety, the head of the European pilots’ union told Euractiv, whilst criticising the EU aviation regulator as overly close to business.

The European Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (ALDE) seeks to “complete” the EU’s Single Market by boosting harmonization and having the European Parliament scrutinise the implementation of legislation, according to a draft electoral manifesto seen by Euractiv.