President Radev handed over a mandate to the second-largest political force in Parliament, There Is Such a People (TISP), to form a government, following GERB-UDF failed to find coalition partners and secure a majority. The party immediately returned it as they would not like to enter into any coalitions with
Despite the significant increase in China’s contribution to the Serbian economy in the last decade, EU countries’ investments in Serbia largely outperform those of the Asian economic powerhouse. Here’s how FDI from China is influencing Belgrades’ trade priorities, but outstanding questions over Serbia’s 5G rollout could make
Croatia’s prime minister says a soon-to-be constructed bridge ensures his country’s borders. Set for completion in October, the Pelješac Bridge, which is being built by the China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC), will allow travelers to go to the southern part of Croatia without having to cross a
While Czechia has shown signs of interest in growing trade and cooperation with China, at the same time Prague is the loudest critic of Huawei in the region and is likely to continue to follow Brussels’ lead related to any further US-China trade disputes. 5G: A voice critical of Huawei
After an agreed takeover deal for Hungarian insurance company Aegon, a blocking of the transaction between Dutch Aegon and VIG in Austria has led to diplomatic tensions with Austria, the Netherlands, and the EU. Both Austria and the Netherlands have issued complaints about Hungary restricting the free flow of capital
On 22 April, Ford Europe announced it would invest USD 300 million in Romania to build new light commercial vehicles in its Craiova plant starting from 2023. The Romanian investment was announced weeks after Ford having disclosed it would turn its factory in Cologne, Germany into its European EV automotive
Similar to its welcoming approach to Russia, Hungary’s government is greeting Chinese economic and trade interests with open arms – despite openly expressed concerns by its allies in Brussels and the West. 5G: whose technology? Despite pressure from the US not to do so, Hungary has welcomed Huawei’s participation
A global trade war between the US and China may turn Central & Eastern Europe (CEE) into a battleground. The region, which has become a springboard for Chinese expansion, is now torn between its political and security allegiances to the US and its hunger for fresh capital. In the last
The incumbent Bulgarian leader, Boyko Borissov, and his party, GERB, stumbled in the elections that took place on 4 April. For the prime minister, this meant losing his grip on the government after almost a decade of ruling the poorest EU member state. Three weeks after the inconclusive elections, the
Hungary will be among the first countries to hand in its Recovery Plan in Brussels, said Gergely Gulyás of the prime minister’s office in a radio interview. According to him, Hungary will spend most of the money on developing the healthcare sector and on emission reduction projects, targeting the
In an op-ed for Euobserver, Attila Steiner, secretary of state for circular economy, energy and climate at the Ministry of Innovation and Technology describes Hungary’s position in the climate politics with the following sentence: “If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em’ – and when you do so, try to
According to an audit by the European Commission, the Agrofert business empire of Czech prime minister, Andrej Babis, has broken conflict of interest rules through his control of company trust funds and could be forced to pay back EU subsidies it had received after 2017. A report by EU auditors
The Hungarian government has published a 432-page program with details on 68 investments to be implemented from the EU’s HUF 5.9 trillion recovery program. Interestingly, the government plans to devote 51% of the total sum to environmental protection goals, compared to the mandatory minimum of 37%. It will
Sustainable-bond issuance surged to a record high in the first quarter as more countries and companies looked to tap into growing demand from investors across the globe. Environmental concerns have risen for many investors in recent years as the world steps up its transition to a low-carbon economy, while the
After 14 hours of negotiations concluded Wednesday in the early hours, representatives of the member states agreed to cut emissions 55% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. Europe aims to become climate neutral by 2050, and by reaching an agreement they found a legally binding way to enshrine that objective
651,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines will be donated from the European Union’s joint procurement to vaccinate healthcare workers in six countries in the western Balkans. The announcement comes weeks after China and Russia distributed millions of doses of their domestic jabs in the region. “With this initiative, we
Despite 150,000 Russian troops having grouped along Ukraine’s border, the largest deployment ever seen there, EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said this week that the European Union is not preparing any new sanctions against Moscow, even though Kyiv is calling for a new round of economic sanctions.
Given the countries’ geographical proximity to one another, Slovak-Russian relations are a mixed bag, characterized by energy dependence on the one hand, and low-level trade on the other. Their luke-warm ties are underpinned by Bratislava’s sometimes firm, sometimes flexible stance toward Moscow. Slovakia was formerly a part of Czechoslovakia
Russian energy ties in Serbia and Moscow’s support to Belgrade vis a vis Kosovo add up to Serbia not intending to give up on its partnership with Russia very easily, despite its keenness on moving ahead with EU accession talks. But Serbia’s president appears to be getting closer
Within the EU, Romania is a hardliner against Russia, and a country almost immune to Russian pressure in Eastern Europe. New developments, especially the election of a new, pro-Romanian president in Moldova, raise the risk of further deterioration of Russo-Romanian relations, which have never been seamless. Romania was one of
Moscow has used Hungary as a gateway to the EU and consistently uses Russian finances to maintain the goodwill of the Orbán government. During the decades of the Cold War, Hungary was heavily dependent on the Soviet Union, both economically and politically. However, this has changed following the political transition
Historically, Warsaw has maintained the strongest stance against Russia’s efforts to gain political and economic influence, although it’s Poland’s 12th most important trading partner. Regardless of the government composition in Warsaw, Poland is resolute in its antipathy towards Moscow and views it as a threat. Poland was
Despite its historical dominance in Eastern Europe and geopolitical proximity to the EU, Russia remains a low-key trading partner for Europe, except when it comes to energy. Relations between Moscow and most EU member countries are best characterized as pragmatic, with both sides looking for mutual benefits and avoiding major
As a clean-burning fuel, hydrogen is considered a key element in the EU strategy for decarbonizing Europe’s economy. At a conference last week dedicated to the topic, European energy ministers said that to draw investment for things like hydrogen production and distribution, the industry needs predictability, meaning that a
Changes to how multinational companies and giant tech firms are taxed globally may be on the horizon, resulting in a curbing of investment in lower corporate tax jurisdictions. In the wake of the US Treasury secretary’s recent proposal to introduce a global corporate tax rate, now finance ministers from