European Union News

The Advanced Emergency Braking Systems (AEBS) and Lane Departure Warning Systems (LDWS) for commercial vehicles will be harmonised at international level following the agreement reached between the European Commission and its international partners.

The European Commission announced the EU's renewed financial support to Albania's reform efforts. The €81 million will fund projects to reform of the judiciary system, fight against organised crime, and the reform of the public administration system. In addition, infrastructure funding will contribute to constructing the Rrogozhina bypass, thus improving road transport and safety.

Jointly the European Youth Forum and the European Union organise a contest in order to invite four young Europeans to come to Oslo to attend the official Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony. The winners will be invited by the Presidents of the European Council, the European Commission and the European Parliament, to be part of the official delegation of the European Union that will travel to Oslo to receive this year's Peace Prize.

The SANDRA ('Seamless aeronautical networking through integrations of data links, radios and antennas') project, a new data link which is the connection between the Airborne Thematic Mapper (ATM) and ground systems, and co-funded by the Seventh Framework Programme for Research (FP7), will help cope with the demand in aircraft operations because the current systems are unable to process and provide flight information in real time in European airspace.

The directive which sets out minimum rights for victims, wherever they are in the EU will enter into force on 14 November. Member States now have three years to implement the provisions into their national laws.

The European Commission approved two EU funded programmes for a total value of €120 million for Egypt, to support job creation for unskilled workers, and to enhance the efficiency of the Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) system to better respond to the demands of the labour market and to the country's new socio-economic needs.

A special meeting held by the Environment Committee with the Climate Action Commissioner Connie Hedegaard in the European Parliament was focused in the progress towards a global deal to curb aviation emissions and proposals to delay the release of greenhouse gas allowances in the Emissions Trading System (ETS).

Leaders of the euro area welcomed the significant progress made towards a full staff level agreement between Greece and the Troika on updated programme conditionality. However, the Eurogroup also called on the Greek authorities to implement the few remaining prior actions as a matter of urgency so as to allow for a swift conclusion of the review. Moreover, in a meeting held in the European Parliament, MEPs stressed to the Spanish finance minister, Luis de Guindos, the need to develop a better policy mix in response to the crisis, with less focus on austerity measures and more on growth and investment.

The Europe-China Standardization Information Platform (CESIP) was launched as a one-stop-shop for market access information to help businesses internationalize and ultimately strengthen SME trade between Europe and China.

The allocation of €6 million by the European Commission will finance the establishment and initial functioning of the European Endowment for Democracy (EED), which was conceived in the framework of the renewed European Neighbourhood Policy. Its aim is to help promoting deep and sustainable democracy as well as respect for human rights and the rule of law.

The European Commission has as priority at the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT) annual meeting the Bluefin tuna. In addition to this, the EU will also continue to propose measures for the protection of sharks including porbeagle and shortfin mako and supporting comprehensive measures for the conservation of Blue and White Marlin.

The European Parliament announced that the negotiations on next year's EU budget were suspended on 10 November due to disagreement between Parliament and Council over possible solutions to counter the lack of remaining funds in the 2012 budget. Parliament and Council have until midnight on 13 November to reach an agreement.