EU Council

The European Union is pressing ahead with plans to build a homegrown payment system, reducing reliance on US-dominated card networks like Visa and Mastercard. The initiative, promoted by the Council of the EU, aims to give Europe strategic autonomy over financial infrastructure, ensure cheaper transactions within the bloc, and protect against geopolitical shocks. The push has drawn wide attention and debate about cost, practicality and whether a European scheme can win over consumers and merchants.

European Union institutions are debating the creation of a payment system made in Europe, an effort to reduce dependence on US-owned card networks such as Visa and Mastercard. The Council of the EU has highlighted the question publicly, drawing significant attention as the EU moves forward with the digital euro project and weighs strategic autonomy in financial infrastructure.

The Council of Europe's anti-corruption body GRECO has published compliance summaries evaluating how Denmark, Hungary, Türkiye and Ukraine are meeting its anti-corruption recommendations. The reports assess each country's progress on issues such as judicial independence, transparency and the prevention of corruption among elected officials. Hungary and Türkiye have repeatedly drawn criticism in past evaluations, while Ukraine's compliance is closely watched amid its EU accession bid.

The Council of the European Union has moved to strengthen the EU's architecture for responding to threats in space. The step is part of broader European efforts to protect satellites and space infrastructure that underpin communications, navigation and security. The announcement comes as concerns grow over anti-satellite weapons, space debris and the vulnerability of critical orbital assets.

The Atlantic Council argues Europe needs a new strategy to counter Russian grey zone aggression, meaning hostile actions below the threshold of open war such as sabotage, disinformation and cyberattacks. The analysis, published on its Ukraine Alert blog, warns that current responses are inadequate and calls for a coordinated European approach to these destabilising tactics amid the ongoing war in Ukraine.

The Atlantic Council argues that Europe lacks an adequate response to Russia's grey zone tactics, such as sabotage, disinformation, cyberattacks and other deniable actions below the threshold of open war. The think tank calls for a new European strategy to deter and counter these operations, prompting debate over how NATO and EU members should coordinate their defenses against hybrid threats.

The Council of Europe presented an updated version of its Rule of Law Checklist to the European Parliament. The checklist is a practical tool used to assess how well states uphold the rule of law, covering areas such as independence of the judiciary and protection of fundamental rights. The presentation signals continued cooperation between the two institutions on rule-of-law monitoring.

EU member states have agreed a common negotiating position on the next Multiannual Financial Framework's support for the fisheries sector covering 2028-2034. The Council will now negotiate with the European Parliament and the European Commission over how future funding for fishing communities, fleet measures and sustainable fisheries will be structured under the next long-term EU budget.