Belgium

BRUSSELS/ANKARA (Reuters) - After a five-year hiatus marked by grievances over their rival claims to Mediterranean waters, Turkey resumes talks with Greece on Monday in the first test of its hopes to reverse deteriorating relations with the European Union.

While diplomats say that rebuilding trust will be a hard slog, the talks follow Turkey’s decision to stop its search for gas in disputed waters which angered Greece and Cyprus and a cooling of rhetoric around Ankara’s wider disputes with the EU.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union’s chief executive hailed on Wednesday as a new dawn Joe Biden’s term as U.S. president but warned that the bloc would strive to regulate American technology companies, calling for global standards.

“After four long years, Europe has a friend in the White House,” Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said, who welcomed outgoing President Donald Trump’s ban on Twitter.

But she added: “This kind of decision must be taken in accordance with laws and rules ...not by an arbitrary decision in the power of Silicon Valley CEOs.”

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union hailed Joe Biden’s inauguration later on Wednesday as U.S. president as a “new dawn” for Europe and the United States, while insisting U.S. technology companies should be regulated to stop the “dark forces” of hate speech online.

The EU and the United States are the world’s top trading powers, along with China, and have close cultural, historical, business and defence ties, but Donald Trump sought to sideline the EU, championing Britain’s departure from the bloc.

19 Jan 2021; MEMO: The European Union has imposed sanctions on Syria's foreign minister following his recent appointment to the role. Faisal Mekdad was added to the EU sanctions and restrictions list applicable to the Syrian regime after a decision by the European Council on Friday. He is now subject to a travel ban and having his assets frozen.

BRUSSELS, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- The European Union (EU) plans to start raising and allocating in the next few months the main part of the 750-billion-euro (906-billion-U.S.-dollar) recovery fund, designed to bail out the bloc's economies hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, EU Commissioner for Economy Paolo Gentiloni said Monday.

He told reporters following a Eurogroup ministerial meeting that the roll-out of the Recovery and Resilience Facility, the bulk of the massive fund, would be key to address the imbalances and inequalities that were deepened by the public health crisis.

BRUSSELS, Jan 13 (NNN-Prensa Latina) — The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Tuesday urged the European Union (EU) to show greater gestures of solidarity with migrants, and condemned the forced returns of undocumented immigrants by some EU member states.

In a statement, the UNHCR Representative for Community Alliance Affairs Gonzalo Vargas Llosa highlighted the need for the 27 EU member states to help save lives, protect these people and find some solutions to halt forced displacement.

BRUSSELS, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- Lawmakers of the European Union (EU) on Monday demanded to be involved in the implementation and monitoring of the trade agreement between the EU and the United Kingdom (UK).

At their first discussion of the EU-UK trade deal, concluded on Dec. 24, the MEPs sitting on the International Trade Committee welcomed that the deal had avoided a no-deal scenario which would have spelt disaster for citizens and companies.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Belgium’s death toll from coronavirus infections, one of the highest per capita in the world, has breached the 20,000 mark, according to official data published on Sunday.

The country, home to the headquarters of the European Union and NATO, has played down comparisons that show it to be one of the world’s worst hit by the pandemic, but virologists point to some missteps and systemic problems. A country divided by language, Belgium gives regions substantial autonomy and has nine health ministers.

BRUSSELS, Jan 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The European Union (EU) is “highly concerned” over Iran’s decision to start enriching uranium with 20 percent purity, a spokesperson said.

Peter Stano, a spokesperson for the bloc’s external action service, said at the European Commission’s daily briefing that Iran’s decision was “regrettable.”

BRUSSELS, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) -- President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen called for a peaceful transition of power in the United States on Wednesday night, as violence erupted at the U.S. Capitol during a massive protest against the results of the 2020 presidential election.

"Peaceful transition of power is at the core," Von der Leyen tweeted. "Joe Biden won the election."