European Green Deal The Council had an exchange of views on the European Green Deal.  Environment and climate ministers worked on the concrete steps needed to be taken so that the EU reaches its climate neutrality objective by 2050. Ministers discussed priority areas, encouraged a more resource efficient economy, and voiced out support for a just transition to climate neutrality. EU's climate long-term strategy submission to the UN The Council adopted the EU's submission to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) on...

Following the publication of a €10 million call in January, the Commission has secured an additional €37.5 million for urgently needed research on COVID-19 vaccine development, treatment and diagnostics. This action is part of the coordinated EU response to the public health threat of COVID-19. With the additional amount from the Horizon 2020 programme, the Commission is scaling up the emergency call launched in January to fight the COVID-19 outbreak to €47.5 million. This allowed to select 17 projects involving 136 research teams from across the...

Keynote speech by President Charles Michel at the Centre for European Policy Studies Thank you for the warm welcome. It’s a special pleasure to be here with you this afternoon and I am delighted that it has been possible for this event to go ahead. I have full confidence in the Belgian authorities in this kind of situation. CEPS is doing great work, work which is above all very helpful in the efforts to regularly let fresh air into the world...

On 25-27 February 2020, EU Ambassador to the U.S. Stavros Lambrinidis visited northern California. Upon his arrival to San Francisco, Ambassador Lambrinidis was greeted by European Consuls General at the German Residence -- German Consul General Hans-Ulrich Südbeck currently serves as EU Local Chair. There are now twelve European Consulates in San Francisco since the opening of an Estonian Consulate a few weeks ago.  Ambassador Lambrinidis was then received by Governor Gavin Newsom in Sacramento. During their meeting, they discussed the close...

On the occasion of the World Wildlife Day, the European Commission launched today in Monaco a new global coalition for biodiversity. With this communication campaign, the Commission is calling for stronger mobilisation in raising awareness about the need to protect biodiversity. Ahead of the crucial CoP 15 meeting of the Convention on Biological Diversity in October 2020, the Commission is turning to all national parks, aquariums, botanic gardens, zoos, science and natural history museums to join forces and boost public awareness about the...