Euobserver.com

The possible compromise would delay triggering the new mechanism originally designed to police the rule of law in member states. Legal experts in capitals are "digesting" the draft, one EU diplomat said.

Switzerland has been letting Chinese agents from Beijing's Ministry of Public Security (MPS) secretly travel to the country to interrogate Chinese nationals that the Swiss wanted to deport, under the terms of a "readmission pact" covering the past five years, first published on Wednesday by Spanish NGO Safeguard Defenders. The MPS agents stayed on two-week missions paid for by Swiss taxpayers and produced classified reports for the Swiss government.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) said on Wednesday it had been the subject of a cyberattack. The EMA is currently concluding a scientific assessment for the approval of two Covid-19 vaccines, developed by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna. A conclusive opinion is expected within weeks. "The agency has swiftly launched a full investigation, in close cooperation with law enforcement and other relevant entities," EMA said in a statement.

The European Commission on Wednesday defended Fabrice Leggeri, the executive director of the EU's border and coast agency Frontex. Leggeri has been under scrutiny following allegations of pushbacks - with some MEPs demanding his resignation. Asked if they still had confidence in Leggeri, the EU's home affair commissioner Ylva Johansson responded "yes".

The EU's new mobility strategy aims to reduce transport's carbon footprint by 90 percent by 2050 - with the electrification of road transport, the use of biofuels and more high-speed rail traffic. But no ban on short-haul flights.

The European Commission has not ruled out allowing police access to encrypted services. Instead, it says a balance needs to be found to protect rights while at the same time offering some leeway to law enforcement.

Playing on euroscepticism has proven effective numerous times so far - but PiS is well aware that this strategy has its limits: Poles themselves are still very pro-EU.

Research by the London School of Economics forecasts that a no-deal Brexit could be three times as bad as the pandemic for the UK economy, writes mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, and the president of the Committee of the Regions.

Here is the unhappy truth: Europe's Southern neighbourhood is a security mess, and no-one is going to come to the rescue. The neighbourhood is Europe's geopolitical Achilles' heel.

UK prime minister Boris Johnson has said the EU is insisting on terms "no prime minister could accept" in trade talks, during questions in the House of Commons, the BBC reports. However, he also said "a good deal is still there to be done", ahead of post-Brexit deal negotiations with the European Commission president. He will have dinner with Ursula von der Leyen Wednesday evening.

Temperatures remain on course towards more than three degrees warming by the end of the century, the UN said on Wednesday. Their emission gap report found that "few G20 members have put words into action in terms of low-carbon rescue and recovery measures". However, a truly 'green recovery' could shave 25 percent off global emissions by 2030. Earth's average temperature has already risen over one degree Celsius.

France's foreign minister told his Turkish counterpart on Tuesday that a new, positive relationship with the EU could only happen if Ankara clarified its position on several subjects, Reuters reports. "On the eve of the European Council ... the minister recalled the French and European requirements for clarifications, which are a necessary condition for the resumption of a constructive relationship," French foreign ministry spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll said.

Four MEPs from Italy's anti-establishment party, the 5 Star Movement, are to join the Green group in the European Parliament (EP), boosting the number of its members from 69 to 73 when the move is formalised Wednesday, Politico reports. The Italians - Ignazio Corrao, Piernicola Pedicini, Eleonora Evi, and Rosa D'Amato - had backed Green positions against their own party. The 5 Star Movement is unattached to any EP group.

Brown bears, wolves, lynxes, and birds got the most money from the EU's 'Life' conservation fund between 1992 and 2018, according to a study published by Britain's Royal Society Tuesday, while insect and crustaceans, which are vital for ecosystems and more at risk of extinction, got almost zero. "There are also lots of 'charismatic' species in the invertebrate world," one of the researchers, Italy's Stefano Mammola, told The Guarduian.

German women earned, on average, 19 percent less than men in 2019, according to the Federal Statistics Office. The figure inched down from 20 percent the year before, but was still worse than the EU average of 15 percent. Women also earned 6 percent less than men in Germany in jobs with the same hours and qualifications as men. Estonia had the biggest EU unadjusted pay gap on 22 percent.

Germany and EU institutions have voiced dismay over Bulgaria's ongoing veto on North Macedonia accession talks.

The Brussels office of Transparency International says a new deal struck by all three EU institutions to expand a joint register of lobbyists has major shortcomings. The current register covers lobbyists working with the European Commission and the European Parliament. It is now set to also include the Council, representing member states. But Transparency International says the latest plan still fails to set out mandatory, minimum, lobby-transparency standards.

An internal report of the Dutch health ministry, leaked on Tuesday, says that the closing of bars and restaurants did not have an effect on the Covid-19 reproduction number, De Standaard writes. According to the report, people were mainly infected at home via unsafe contact. Earlier this week, representatives of bars, restaurants and hotels demonstrated in The Hague, asking for more support.

A German court on Tuesday told US carmaker Tesla to suspend clearing a forest near Berlin where the company was going to build its first European factory, after environmentalists warned about the impact that cutting down trees could have on hibernating snakes, Reuters reported. Tesla's permission depends on a conditional authorisation by local authorities, responsible for consulting environmental groups and the community. Locals have logged 414 complaints against Tesla.

It remains "totally uncertain" if Britain and the EU can reach a trade deal, as UK prime minister Boris Johnson and EU commission president Ursula von der Leyen are expected to meet later this week, German minister for Europe, Michael Roth, said on Tuesday. He added that there was no progress in talks on the main obstacles of level playing field, governance and fisheries.