Russia has banned the import of all fresh vegetables from the European Union because of the E. coli outbreak centred on Germany. The country’s chief medical officer said EU-produced vegetables would be seized across Russia. More than 1,500 people have been infected by enterohaemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC), which can cause the deadly haemolytic-uraemic syndrome (HUS). Seventeen people have died... 

Several nationalist and anti-immigration parties have become the most popular in their countries, topping recent opinion polls in France, Austria and Finland. France’s Front National, Austria’s Freedom Party and Finland’s True Finns have all headed voters’ surveys in recent weeks. In March, Marine Le Pen’s party received 23 per cent in a poll of voting intentions for 2012’s presidential... 

Viktor Orban, Prime Minister of Hungary Hungary has recently adopted a new constitution whose many provisions openly contradict the current secular and liberal foundations of the European Union and the Council of Europe. Some parts of the document resemble a political bomb. The discussion of the basic law of the country was commenced in Hungary last year at the initiative of Prime Minister Viktor Orban.... 

Spain’s unemployment rate has hit 21.3% for the first time in nearly 13 years, official figures have shown. There were 4,612,700 people unemployed in the country at the end of March, the national statistics agency INE said. Spain’s jobless rate has risen sharply during the economic downturn and is the highest in the eurozone. Meanwhile, official European Union (EU) figures showed that... 

Sarkozy and Berlusconi are demanding European deportation pacts with the countries of revolutionary north Africa to send migrants home. Sarkozy and Berlusconi want passport-free travel within the EU suspended as north African migrants flee north. France and Italy have thrown down the gauntlet over Europe’s system of passport-free travel, saying a crisis of immigration sparked by the Arab spring... 

France seems to have questioned one of the fundamental EU principles – freedom of movement within the EU. The possibility of revising the Schengen agreement by French was on the agenda in connection with the influx of refugees from North Africa, particularly from Tunisia. The discussion about a possible withdrawal of France from the Schengen area is the key point of the leader of the ultra-right... 

Up to 30,000 people chant anti-EU slogans in Zagreb’s main square. Up to 30,000 Croats took to the streets of the capital Zagreb over the weekend to protest against the jailing of two generals for war crimes in the Balkans wars on Friday. Ante Gotovina and Mladen Markac are considered national heroes in Croatia. General Gotovina was jailed by the war crimes tribunal in The Hague for 24 years,... 

Italian foreign minister Franco Frattini on Tuesday said comments made by a fellow minister about dropping out of the European Union were made during the heat of the moment amid a spat over illegal immigration. “I don’t think he said anything about leaving Europe. He expressed strong disappointment , irritation and anger. Europe is and will be an extraordinary opportunity for us,”... 

Top of the EU's list to cut climate change emissions is a target of 'zero' for the number of petrol and diesel-driven cars and lorries in the EU's future cities. The European Commission on Monday unveiled a “single European transport area” aimed at enforcing “a profound shift in transport patterns for passengers” by 2050. The plan also envisages an end to cheap... 

U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates. Western officials continue to emphasize an “all options on the table” military attitude toward the Gaddhafi regime in Libya, though it seems there is still enough resistance to the immediate attack called for by some top officials to keep it from actually happening. Still, the moves continue to be in that direction, as Secretary of Defense Robert Gates noted... 

The wave of immigration follows the January revolution in Tunisia. Nearly 350 Tunisians have arrived on the Italian island of Lampedusa, after a week in which poor weather had interrupted the flow of people fleeing the country. “Overnight, we escorted a boat with 347 people on board, including four women,” said the island’s coast guard. The last landing from Tunisia was on February 23, when around... 

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO, is holding an extraordinary session on Friday to discuss the situation in Libya, amid reports of a possible military intervention in the Arab country. The Secretary General of NATO, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, made the announcement yesterday in Budapest, where he was meeting with the ministers of defense of the European Union. Normally, the NATO Council would... 

Nicolas Sarkozy of France pays five-six-hour short visit to Turkey as a President of G-20. Turkish “CnnTurk” news service informs that Sarkozy gave interview to a famous Turkish journalist and columnist Mehmet Ali Birand before his visit to Turkey. Turkish journalist was granted a unique chance to address written questions to the French President, who answered them again in a written form. “CnnTurk”... 

Tunisian immigrants are guarded by policemen upon arrival on the Italian island of Lampedusa. Italy faced criticism in the European Union on Thursday (24 February) for raising the alarm about a potential wave of refugees from Libya, with several governments saying Rome’s calls for help in dealing with migrants were exaggerated. EU justice ministers were meeting in Brussels yesterday to weigh... 

Human rights activists say Greek detention camps are full The Greek border with Turkey is among the most popular destinations for illegal immigrants to the European Union. Now a Greek minister says the country wants to build a 206-kilometer fence to keep them out. Greece is planning to build a fence along its border with Turkey to keep out illegal immigrants, Citizen Protection Minister Christos Papoutsis...