Bulgaria’s Economy Faces Slowdown and Rising Debt: EU Forecast Signals Trouble Ahead
The European Commission has revised its outlook for the Bulgarian economy, projecting a slowdown in growth over the next few years
EU leaders are set to discuss the possibility of deploying European troops to Ukraine as part of security guarantees following the end of the war. This will take place during an unscheduled European Council meeting in Brussels on 6 March. According to an EU official who spoke to European Pravda on condition of anonymity, this will be the first concrete discussion on the matter.
The talks will focus on planning for the potential deployment of EU forces in Ukraine after the war or a ceasefire is reached. However, no decision can be made until the political context is clearer, and the format of a peace settlement is defined. So far, only a few EU member states have publicly stated their positions on whether they would be willing to send troops as part of security guarantees.
While the deployment of EU forces cannot be finalized yet, the European official emphasized that providing security guarantees to Ukraine starts with supporting its Armed Forces and bolstering the country’s defense capabilities. The latest proposed conclusions for the 6 March summit reflect this, marking support for Ukraine's military as the first level of security guarantees.
Despite this, Hungary continues to threaten to block any reference to military support for Ukraine in the summit’s final statement. The EU also anticipates that a pro-Russian faction within the Union may disrupt key decisions during the meeting, complicating the approval of a final agreement.
Poland’s prime minister Donald Tusk has described the recent explosion on a key railway route between Warsaw and Lublin as “an unprecedented act of sabotage aimed at the security of the Polish state and its citizens.”
The European Commission has temporarily halted the preliminary assessment of Bulgaria’s request for the third payment under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has reaffirmed that the most efficient way to fund Ukraine is by using the profits from frozen Russian assets to back a new loan
France is set to mark the 10th anniversary of the November 13, 2015 terror attacks in Paris, in which over 130 people were killed and more than 400 were injured
The European Commission is pushing for an EU-wide handling fee on small packages purchased from Chinese online platforms such as Shein, Temu, and Alibaba
The European Commission has identified Spain, Italy, Greece, and Cyprus as countries “under migratory pressure,” opening the way for the relocation of asylum seekers to other EU member states
Bulgaria's Strategic Role in the EU's Drone Wall Defense Initiative
When Politics Means Violence