Belgium

BRUSSELS, December 16. /TASS/: Permanent representatives of the 27 member states of the European Union agreed on a six-month extension of economic sanctions against Russia, which expire on January 31, 2021, a source in the delegation of one of the European countries in the EU Council told TASS.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU competition regulators cleared on Monday a 30-billion-euro ($36.5 billion) Dutch scheme to support projects reducing greenhouse gas emissions, saying it would contribute to the EU’s environmental objectives without hurting competition.

The scheme Stimulering Duurzame Energieproductie (SDE++) will run until 2025. Beneficiaries will be selected, the support level set, and the aid allocated, through competitive bidding processes, the European Commission said in a statement.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union is “fully dedicated” to clinching a post-Brexit trade deal before Britain’s transition out of the bloc ends on Dec. 31, the European Commission said on Monday.

“We’re of course aware that time is short. The more time that goes by the less likely it is that we will have a deal in place on the first of January, that’s just a statement of fact,” Commission spokesman Daniel Ferrie told a news briefing.

BRUSSELS (AP) — Teetering on the brink of a no-deal Brexit departure, Britain and the European Union stepped back from the void Sunday and agreed to continue trade talks, although both downplayed the chances of success.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen ditched a self-imposed deadline and promised to “go the extra mile” to clinch a post-Brexit trade agreement that would avert New Year’s chaos and costs for cross-border commerce.

BRUSSELS, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) -- European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Sunday that the European Union (EU) and UK negotiating teams have been mandated to continue the post-Brexit trade talks.

After a "constructive and useful phone call" with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, von der Leyen said it remains to be seen if an agreement can be reached even "at this late stage."

On Wednesday, both EU and UK leaders have set the deadline for a trade deal decision by the end of this weekend.

12 Dec 2020; MEMO:  The European Union (EU) council has decided to impose sanctions on Turkish officials and entities involved in gas drillings in the East Mediterranean, and has deferred arms embargos and tariffs after discussions with the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and the US, news agencies reported on Friday.

The Guardian divulged that the decision came after heated discussions during the two-day summit of the leaders of the 27 EU member states.

Brussels, Dec 11 (AP-PTI) European Union leaders early Friday gave the green light for the expansion of sanctions against Turkey over its exploration of gas reserves in Mediterranean waters claimed by EU members Greece and Cyprus.

Regrettably, Turkey has engaged in unilateral actions and provocations and escalated its rhetoric against the EU, EU member states and European leaders, they said in a statement from their summit in Brussels.

BRUSSELS, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- The leaders of the 27 European Union (EU) member states on Thursday reached an agreement on the EU long-term budget and recovery fund, paving way for the implementation of the recovery package totaling over 1.8 trillion euros (2.19 trillion U.S. dollars) to tackle the socio-economic consequences of COVID-19 pandemic.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union foreign ministers evaluated grounds on Monday for sanctions against Turkey over a Mediterranean gas dispute before the bloc’s leaders decide at a summit on Dec. 10-11 whether to make good on their threat to impose punitive measures.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said his country would not “bow down to threats and blackmail” but repeated his call for negotiations over the conflicting claims to continental shelves and rights to potential energy resources.

BRUSSELS, Dec. 7 (Xinhua) -- The globe has experienced the hottest November on record, the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service said in a report on Monday.

After analyzing surface and air temperatures, the service managed by the European Commission found that November 2020 was 0.8 degree Celcius warmer than the average for 1981-2010, 0.1 degree Celcius above the previous record.