The European Parliament gave its consent to the EU-Ukraine Association agreement, which includes a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (DCFTA), on Tuesday in Strasbourg. At the same time, the Agreement was also ratified by the Ukrainian Parliament in Kiev. The deal will establish a deep political association and economic integration between the EU and Ukraine and provide for mutual free market access. MEPs backed the agreement with 535 votes in favour, 127 against and 35 abstentions. "Through this ratification, Ukraine's...

The European Commission published today a report on its ambitious science and technology Flagships. The report draws the lessons from setting up the first two such Flagships, Graphene and the Human Brain Project, each representing an investment of EUR 1 billion. It also sets out the future working arrangements for the two Flagships underway. European Commission Vice President @NeelieKroesEU said: "The Human Brain Project and the Graphene Flagships have the potential to revolutionise science, boost industry and improve peoples’ lives...

Jyrki KATAINEN - Vice-President of the European Commission and member of the Commission responsible for Economic and Monetary Affairs and the Euro  at Euro 50 Conference | Lisbon, 15 September 2014 Today, we have brought together a group of experts and distinguished professionals who have no doubt watched developments related to the establishment of the Banking Union with a careful, critical, and constructive eye. During the course of the day, panel sessions will provide the opportunity to analyse the merits...

EU manufacturing possesses a number of competitive strengths that should be leveraged to promote economic growth, despite the current difficult economic environment. This is the conclusion of the two reports on industrial competitiveness released by the Commission. However to ensure that growth does not stall, the EU and Member States urgently need to address a number of areas of concern: investment, access to finance, public administration, access to foreign markets, innovation and energy prices. European Commissioner for Industry and Entrepreneurship Ferdinando...

What do small and medium sized enterprises in Europe need from future EU policy? This is the core question of a consultation the Commission launched today to help upgrade the EU's Small Business Act (SBA). The SBA - a wide-ranging set of measures designed to make life easier for small companies - has already proved to be a good basis for SME policy. As it is built upon the exchange of best practices, support for internationalisation and entrepreneurship as well...

The European Council decided today to elect Donald Tusk as President of the European Council, and to appoint Federica Mogherini as High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. The President of the European Council is elected for the period from 1 December 2014 until 31 May 2017. The mandate of two and a half years of the President of the European Council is renewable once. Donald Tusk was also appointed President of the Euro Summit, for...

Starting today, President-elect Jean-Claude Juncker will interview each Member State's candidate for Commissioner, before taking a final decision and communicating the list of Commissioners-designate to the Council of the European Union. The purpose of these interviews will be to determine each candidate's ability to serve as a European Commissioner, particularly in light of Article 17(3) of the Treaty on European Union (TEU), which states that: "The members of the Commission shall be chosen on the ground of their general competence...