Russia

The Stability Pact marks a crucial shift in the EU’s attitude towards the Balkans. Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Jadranko Prlic explains its significance

THE EU’s new foreign policy chief Javier Solana will concentrate on boosting the Union’s ability to deal with humanitarian emergencies such as that in East Timor when he takes office next month.

IF RECENT declarations by leaders of some of the world’s richest countries are to be believed, the planet will be a much greener place after the Millennium Round trade negotiations.

George Robertson, the battle-hardened British defence secretary and confirmed pro-European, will take over at NATO at a crucial time for those working to forge a defence policy for Europe.

President-designate Romano Prodi promised to allocate jobs in his new Commission team on the basis of skills and experience. This at-a-glance guide to the nominees assesses why they were chosen for particular jobs and what approach they are likely to take.

WHEN Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma meets Finnish Premier Paavo Lipponen and Acting Commission President Manuel Marín at next week’s EU-Ukraine summit, he will be looking for clear signs that his country’s future lies ever closer to the Union.

EU transport ministers agreed at a meeting last month to provide 40 million euro for preparatory work on a European satellite navigation system known as Galileo. German policy advisor Daniel Höltgen explains the system’s benefits and how it fits into EU transport policy.

THE European Commission will next week call for talks to be launched with Russia and the US on developing a new generation of navigation satellites to be used by commercial aircraft, trucks and other transport operators.

EU DAIRY farmers are steeling themselves to fight planned cuts in spending on the milk sector which could drive down prices next year.

EU GOVERNMENTS’ efforts to end territorial conflicts in the Caucasian states could be undermined by plans to cut the EU’s Tacis aid programme for former Soviet countries, warn European Commission officials.

THE Finnish government is doubly blessed by the timing of its presidency of the EU, even though the resignation of European Commission President Jacques Santer’s team and the election of a new Parliament may take some of the gloss off the first three months.

THE Kosovo conflict has slowed down, but not derailed, one of the flagships of Finland’s six-month presidency of the Union.

FINNISH Environment Minister Satu Hassi has ambitious plans for the next six months.

EU GOVERNMENTS are planning to cut back spending on international cooperation projects to find the money needed to pay for rebuilding Kosovo.

FOR many European industries, the euro crept in six months ago and caused a couple of sleepless nights for accounting and information technology staff.

Europe’s banks are on a roller-coaster ride as a wave of consolidation engulfs the industry.

WHEN more than 70 countries agreed to liberalise their financial services sectors in 1997, many thought it would usher in a brave new world of market opening and increased investments.

EU TRANSPORT ministers did not reach agreement on a package of proposals aimed at luring traffic off crowded roads and on to railways after German Transport Minister Franz Münterfering failed to convince his French counterpart to support the measures. The German presidency had made the issue a policy priority, but ran into trouble from French Transport Minister Jean-Claude Gayssot, who argued that the plan would cause financial damage to Europe’s railway network.

Friday 18 June

EU TREASURY chiefs are set to release only a small fraction of the funding requested by the European Commission for an ambitious new satellite navigation system.

THE EU summit in Cologne was dominated by the announcement that the Yugoslavian government had accepted terms for a peace plan for Kosovo. German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder said it was a “great day” for Europe, including the people of Yugoslavia, and Union leaders expressed hopes that the NATO bombings could be halted within a few days.

A BRIGHT new star is set to light up the Brussels diplomatic scene.

THIS month’s meeting of EU foreign ministers underlined how deeply divided the international community remains over how to end the crisis in Kosovo.

THE huge task which will face EU governments in bringing post-war stability to the Balkans will be underlined in a sobering European Commission report set to be unveiled next week.