Euobserver.com

The European Union has vaccinated 70 percent of its adult population with one shot. "The EU has kept its word and delivered," said EU Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen. However, only 57 percent of adult Europeans are fully-vaccinated.

The European Commission has put on hold a legal threat against the United Kingdom over a dispute on cross-border trade into and out of post-Brexit Northern Ireland. The move came after the UK called for a "standstill". The EU launched the legal proceedings against the UK in March, for having made changes to the Northern Ireland trade arrangements, which had been agreed to last year.

Researchers at the Dutch-based Transnational Institute linked the shipment of European arms to conflicts around the world with the forced displacement of at least one million people.

Mark Gitenstein is the new US ambassador to the European Union. President Joe Biden appointed Gitenstein, a long-time ally, on Tuesday. Gitenstein will be tasked to revitalise relations with the EU following a chill under former president Donald Trump. A lawyer by training, Gitenstein had also served as US ambassador to Romania under former US president Barack Obama.

After Brexit, the UK ceased to be a member of the Lugano Convention, an international treaty which governs cross-border civil and commercial legal disputes. In May, the European Commission published an opinion calling for the UK's re-application to be rejected.

The EU called on Tuesday on Lebanon political leaders to form a government without delay, following the nomination of businessman Najib Mikati as prime minister. "It is now of crucial importance that a credible and accountable government is formed in Lebanon without delay, one that is able to address the severe economic and social crises the country is facing," the EU said in a statement.

The US decided not to lift travel restrictions for visiting EU nationals, given the spike in Covid-19 infections.

At least 57 migrants died in a shipwreck off the Libya coast on Monday, according to the UN's International Organization for Migration. "According to survivors brought to shore by fishermen and the coast guard, at least 20 women and two children were among those who drowned," said IOM spokesperson Safa Msehli, in a tweet.

The European Commission has requested 23 EU member states - including France, Italy, Spain and Poland - to explain their delay in transposing EU copyright rules into national law, as the deadline for enacting EU rules was 7 June 2021. The EU executive sent on Monday letters of formal notice, the first step of infringement proceedings, to the group of countries. They have now two months to respond.

The European Commission and national consumer authorities, led by Dutch and Belgian agencies, asked Google on Monday to be more transparent in the way it presents search results of flights and hotels, making clear when payments influence such rankings. Google Flights and Google Hotels results are expected to display final prices, including fees or taxes. The multinational is expected to communicate improvements within two months.

The EU on Monday urged Tunisian authorities to respect the country's rule of law, after the president sacked the government and shut down the parliament with the help of the army, Reuters reported. "We call on all Tunisian actors to respect the constitution, its institutions and the rule of law," an EU commission spokesperson said, urging authorities to avoid any further violence to preserve the stability of the country.

Hundreds of Hungarians took the streets of Budapest on Monday to protest against the alleged surveillance carried out by their government with the Israeli-made Pegasus spyware, according to Reuters. Journalists, businessmen, lawyers and critics of the Viktor Orban government were among those targeted for surveillance. Hungarian prosecutors have opened an inquiry into the allegations. During the protests, some chanted "Victator" - referring to the prime minister.

China said on Monday that the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM), unveiled by the European Commission earlier this month, violates international trade rules and undermines global prosperity, Reuters reported. "CBAM is essentially a unilateral measure to extend the climate change issue to the trade sector," a ministry of ecology and environment spokesman said. As the world's main manufacturer of steel and cement, China could face high border tariffs.

Russian authorities have blocked access to the website of opposition figure Alexei Navalny, and his allies, ahead of the country's parliamentary election in September, The Guardian reported. Russia's state communications watchdog, Roskomnadzor, argued the internet sites were being "used for propaganda" of extremist groups. Russian president Vladimir Putin introduced constitutional changes in 2020 to stay in power until 2036. Navalny was arrested in January, after recovering from a poisoning attempt.

Comedians, businessmen and other outsiders – think of Edward Snowden, Slawi Trifonow (the TV star who won the Bulgarian elections recently), or Donald Trump – try to disrupt power, pretending to expose political elites. Why is this happening?

Hundreds of documented cases of pushbacks of migrants and asylum seekers tell the story of a European Union whose member states seem to resort to increasingly degrading and inhuman practices in the management of its external borders.

The surge of Covid-19 cases due to the spread of the more contagious Delta variant has prompted a debate in Germany over whether people who have not yet been vaccinated should face restrictions - after other countries made similar moves.

The funeral of a Roma man killed while in Czech police custody was held over the weekend. Stanislav Tomáš died after a Czech police officer kneeled on his neck, in scenes reminiscent of the murder of George Floyd by a US police officer in Minneapolis. Tomáš passed away 19 June, while being rushed to the hospital. The police have denied wrongdoing.

The number of civilians killed and injured in Afghanistan since 1 May has reached a record high, says the United Nations in a report. The number of civilian casualties during May and June was 2,392 (783 killed and 1,609 injured) – the highest for those months since the UN recording keeping began in 2009. The first six months saw the casualties increase by 47 percent, compared to 2020.

Tunisia's president Kais Saied has suspended the parliament and dismissed the prime minister following protests over how the government has handled Covid-19. "We have taken these decisions...until social peace returns to Tunisia and until we save the state," said Saied, in a televised address. The country is also suffering from a deep economic crisis and disillusionment over the Arab Spring.