Western Balkans – While the EU-Western Balkans summit in Brussels on Wednesday (18 December) is not expected to produce concrete results, the meeting is seen as a sign that the region will be a priority of the EU's new leadership.
Labour market – Skills shortages risk becoming entrenched in the EU economy, the European Commission warned on Wednesday (18 December), citing historically high job vacancy rates, a lack of digital aptitude, and stagnant levels of participation in adult training programmes.
Artificial Intelligence – Two leading MEPs (Renew, S&D) want extended consultation periods and more detailed provisions in the Code of Practice (CoP) for general-purpose artificial intelligence (GPAI). The CoP details how providers of GPAI systems like ChatGPT can comply with the EU's AI Act.
Transatlantic relations – Ahead of the European Council on 19-20 December, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called for a pragmatic EU approach toward Donald Trump's administration and a stronger EU role in NATO that would match America's.
Energy and transport – An Eastern European alliance on Tuesday (17 December) pushed to delay the EU’s planned CO2 price on heating and road transport fuels during a meeting of environment ministers in Brussels.
Around Europe
Ireland – Ireland's Data Protection Commission (DPC) slapped Meta with a €251 million fine on Tuesday (17 December) for failure to comply with the EU's data privacy regulation (GDPR), according to a press release.
Romania – The Bucharest Court of Appeal sentenced a Romanian man, Alexandru Pișcan, to five years in prison for sharing military intelligence with the Russian embassy in Bucharest.
Portugal – Miguel Albuquerque, the head of Madeira's regional government (PDS/EPP), fell due to a motion of censure, ending almost a decade in office and four electoral victories.
Kosovo, Serbia – The chief negotiators of Serbia and Kosovo reached an agreement on Tuesday (17 December) in Brussels to implement a declaration aimed at resolving the fate of more than 1,600 still missing people following the 1990s conflict.
