Bulgaria has answered Commission President’s request and submitted two candidacies for EU Commissioner. Von der Leyen’s decision should be based on the candidate’s integrity, and not according to political favoritism, writes Yordan Terziyski.

Two US researchers say they have identified the probable deployment site in Russia of the 9M370 Burevestnik, a new nuclear-powered, nuclear-armed cruise missile touted by President Vladimir Putin as "invincible."

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen has made her first picks for her top team, with the key economy vice-president job going to Italy's far-right nominee, German newspaper Die Welt reported Tuesday (3 September).

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) secured one-third of the vote in East Germany’s elections on Sunday, prompting parties across the political spectrum to rule out coalitions with the extremist group. However, enforcing a domestic cordon sanitaire could result in unlikely alliances and fuel discontent among voters.

Germany’s progressive parties bear significant responsibility for the historic surge in support for the far-right AfD in Sunday’s state elections in eastern Germany, Manon Aubry, the French co-chair of the Left Group in the European Parliament, told Euractiv in an interview on Monday (2 September).

Turkey will be the first NATO member to request membership of the BRICS economic bloc spearheaded by the leaders of Russia and China, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, agencies reported.

A rescue mission for an oil tanker still ablaze after being attacked by Houthi rebels off the coast of Yemen last month, is about to begin, the European Union's Red Sea naval mission said late Monday (2 September).

Delays in the disbursement of the European Union’s multibillion-euro Covid-19 recovery fund are severely hampering member states’ ability to rebound from the pandemic, according to a study released on Monday (2 September) by the European Court of Auditors (ECA).

Olive oil prices in the EU reached record highs last January, surging by up to 50% compared to the previous year and leading to significant changes in consumers’ choices. 

Following the nomination of Romanian Roxana Mînzatu, Belgium has also put forward a female candidate, 45-year-old Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib as European Commissioner.

The recent electoral success of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in the German states of Thuringia and Saxony has sparked a range of reactions from politicians across the European Union.

When Ukraine launched its incursion into Russian territory in the Kursk Oblast on 6 August, many Western analysts said this was some sort of fireworks – it makes a hell of an impression, but it doesn’t last long. One expert we quoted called it “a footnote”.

The Spanish State is leaving the Canary Islands “abandoned” in the face of the current serious migratory crisis it is facing, the president of the Spanish autonomous region, Fernando Clavijo, said on Monday, while assuring that his government is mulling taking legal action against the government.

MEP Roxana Mînzatu (PSD/S&D) was on Monday officially nominated by the Romanian government for the position of European Commissioner of an apparently "relevant" portfolio, Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu announced at a press conference.

Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr is meeting with Portugal's centre-right government on Monday to formally signal his company's interest in the privatisation of state-owned carrier TAP, according to three sources with knowledge of the matter.

A law proposing that Russian citizens and entities be banned from buying property in Finland to minimise the security risk in times of crisis has been put forward by the Finnish Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen on Monday (2 September).

The EU is a far cry from the targets set out in the EU Biodiversity Strategy 2030, with marine protected areas (MPAs) providing limited protection against human activities such as bottom fishing, according to a recent scientific study, while the Commission blames the Member States.

In today’s edition of the Capitals, find out more about the US-Bulgarian citizen arrested in Sofia for burning the Russian flag, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen saying central Europe is key for EU defence, and so much more.

At least 47 people, including five children, were injured on Sunday (1 September) after Russian missiles struck a shopping mall and events complex in Ukraine's northeastern city of Kharkiv, officials said.

Romania's Ministry of Agriculture is working on an emergency decree to limit the markup on Romanian food products to 20%.