US: citizen as Somalia president

Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, a former prime minister, and a holder of the U.S. passport, won Somalia’s presidential election on Wednesday 8.02.2017. Voting took place at the international airport compound under tight security measures. The continuous threats from extremist group al-Shabab led to a decision to elect president by people’s representatives,  as follows  the Farmajo’s victory is…

EP: prolongs internal border checks

European Parliament Civil Liberties Committee MEPs will question Council and Commission representatives on Thursday about the decision once again to prolong internal border checks in place in five countries in the Schengen passport-free area for another three months, until mid-May. On Tuesday 7 February, following a proposal by the Commission, the Council agreed that Austria,…

Presidential elections in Mogadishu

Somali MPs are choosing a president under extra security on Wednesday, with roads closed and residents requested to remain indoors over fears of an attack on the capital by al-Shabaab. A protracted vote began on Wednesday after 14,000 elders and prominent regional figures chose 275 members of parliament and 54 senators, responsible to choose if…

Russia: Navalny barred from elections

Russia’s leading opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, has been found guilty of embezzlement, Russia media report. A judge was still reading the verdict in the city of Kirov, but news agencies said it was clear in his remarks that Mr Navalny had been convicted. Even a suspended sentence would bar the outspoken critic of President Putin…

Cabinda vs Angola over elections

  Separatist rebels from Cabinda have called to boycott parliamentary elections in Angola in August that are likely to be the most closely watched in decades as President Jose Eduardo dos Santos ends 38 years in power, as announced on radio last year. The Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (FLEC), which…

Pence to visit Brussels in February

The Prime Minister Charles Michel, confirmed this week that the US Vice-President Mike Pence will come to Brussels this month. The two men will meet on Sunday February 19th, over a working dinner given over to the bilateral relationship between Belgium and the US, as much as the institutions in Europe. On Thursday, the White…

Hungary for strict asylum rules

  Soon the Hungarian government will submit proposals to the EU to protect Europe’s borders by detaining asylum seekers for the entire period of their application procedure, according to the government’s chief spokesman, Zoltán Kovács. Kovács claimed Donald Trump’s election in the US was contributing to “a change of mood in Europe” that vindicated the…

UK citizens approve of May #Brexit plan

A majority of the UK citizens approve of the government’s approach to leaving the European Union, a poll indicated this week after the Prime Minister Theresa May declared her priorities for negotiations. May set out her concept for Brexit in a speech in mid-January, outlining agenda to leave the EU Single market in a definite…

Aliyev cancelled visit to Europarliament

  Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev has canceled a meeting with the European Parliament president in Brussels, where he held talks with EU officials on issues including a new partnership agreement between Baku and the European Union. My remarks to the press after meeting President Aliyev of Azerbaijan in Brussels today: https://t.co/0ABjP87AFU pic.twitter.com/CG3IGc25Ez — Charles Michel…

Will the Catalan Republic become an EU member state?

  Jordi SOLE, MEP, OPINION The emergence on new states in Europe is nothing new. In fact, many European states emerged at the end of the 20th century: from the Baltic States that regained independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union, through Czechoslovakia’s split that created the Czech Republic and Slovakia, to the breakup…