Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. RULE OF LAW: SHRINKING SPACE, SHRINKING NGOS? "The rule of law is not negotiable -- it is the foundation of our European way of life" Ursula von der Leyen promised the Parliament when asking for a second mandate in 2024. Then why does a report from the Civil Liberties Union for Europe classify eleven Member States as 'Dismantlers' or 'Sliders' when it comes to the erosion of the rule of law? Only a few countries show progress on four indicators: the justice system, anti-corruption, media freedom and checks and balances. The group warns that steps to undermine the rule of law in the United States show how fast systems can be dismantled, and double standards and fragility have been exposed across…

Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. FIRST EU OWN GOAL AHEAD OF U.S. WORLD CUP After more than half a year of back and forths, MEPs finally caved in and approved the Agreement on Reciprocal, Fair, and Balanced Trade with the U.S., better known under the name of Trump's Turnberry golf resort in Scotland where it was announced last summer. Replacing the failed TTIP deal, the Turnberry agreement is no less controversial as it included explicit commitments from the EU to water down its sustainability reporting rules and help American companies exporting to Europe through 'flexibilities' on the EU's deforestation and carbon border tax legislation. Between last week's trade committee vote last week and this week's plenary vote, MEPs were promised that the rules would be suspended…

Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. EU SUMMIT: SHOW US THE MONEY We said it last week and even Politico agreed: Trump stole the Summit. Just read this op-ed by Enrico Letta, the eloquent social-democrat former Prime Minister of Italy now hiding in academics and at the prestigious Jacques Delors think tank. His brilliant report, Much More Than a Market, is long forgotten, as EU leaders have selectively interpreted the recommendations he and his colleague Mario Draghi made two years ago. Yes, we have a 28th regime proposal, captured by the U.S. venture capital-backed "EU-INC" campaign and published in the nick of time a day ahead of the EU Summit. In classic Brussels strategic thinking, it could fly as no one is really happy with it: it…

Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. TRUMP SIDELINES DRAGHI AT EU SUMMIT Disruption in the agenda of next week’s European Summit. EU leaders were initially meant to focus on the roadmap to implement the competitiveness recommendations discussed with Draghi and Letta at the Alden-Biesen castle in February, and hear back from the Commission on how they will advance the Savings and Investment Union strategy. But the economic fallout from Donald Trump’s military campaign in Iran has reshuffled priorities, pushing other files down the agenda. During a discussion among ambassadors on Wednesday, several participants stressed the need to maintain momentum on the competitiveness agenda. Yet the immediate focus has shifted to energy prices and broader economic repercussions. Ukraine could also return as an urgent topic for leaders with…

Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. MADE IN EUROPE... OR MADE WITH EUROPE? Earlier this week, the debate over Europe’s economic sovereignty resurfaced in Brussels. The Commission was preparing its long-awaited (or should we say, long-delayed) Industrial Accelerator Act, expected to introduce a form of “European preference” in strategic sectors. But even before its publication, rumour had it that the slogan had already evolved. What started as “Made in Europe” quietly became “Made with Europe”, reflecting internal divisions within the Commission over how far Brussels should go on economic protection. Countries with trade agreements with the EU would remain in the game, provided reciprocity is respected. By Wednesday, the verdict was in. Commission Executive VP Stéphane Séjourné presented what he called a “doctrinal shift” in EU industrial…

Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. MADE IN EUROPE NOW REALLY COMING NEXT WEEK The Commission’s “Made in Europe” moment is starting to look a little too messy. The Industrial Accelerator Act, meant to entrench a European preference in sectors like tech and green, was delayed once again (from January!) and is now expected next week, on 4 March. Officially, due to “ongoing discussions”. In reality, the College seems split on how far the European preference should go. For France, set to benefit most due to its control over key European industries, the sky is the limit. Germany however, is showing resistance, and pressure is not only coming from inside the Justus Lipsius building. Washington warned that Made in Europe would contradict the spirit of the July…

Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. EU-US trade agreement: we’re friends again Next week, the Parliament is set to vote on the EU-U.S. trade deal agreed last summer between the European Commission and Washington. After weeks of political tension including Trump’s Greenland occupation plans and fresh tariff threats, the file is back on track. The compromise hammered out by Parliament’s political groups adds safeguards: a sunset clause would see the agreement expire in March 2028 unless renewed, and a suspension mechanism could kick in if the US violates the terms. There’s also a safeguard for sensitive sectors, and an automatic penalty if Washington doesn’t follow through on its side of the steel commitments. As transatlantic trade is worth €1.68 trillion, it’s not a surprise that business groups…

Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. ELECTIONS: RELIEF IN PORTUGAL, POPULARITY TESTS AHEAD ELSEWHERE Last Sunday, Portugal gave everyone in Europe a sigh of relief as centre-left António José Seguro won the presidency by a wide margin over far-right leader André Ventura. The relief is real, even if Ventura still got 33% of the votes, cementing his party Chega as a long-term player rather than a passing protest. Elsewhere, politicians in the Netherlands are campaigning for local elections on 18 March, which risk being turned in a stress test of the new government minority government to be installed in two weeks. France, meanwhile, has municipal elections on 15 and 22 March which will give a first hint of the Rassemblement national’s chances of seeing Marine Le Pen…

Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. THE ONLY WAY IS UP FOR DRAGHI AND LETTA All eyes are on two former Italian Prime Ministers next week, as they will address EU government leaders at a special Summit at Alden Biesen castle, on the Flemish countryside. More than a year after the Draghi and Letta reports on competitiveness and the single market, national leaders are going to hear on Thursday that the funding gap to address Europe's green, digital and defence needs is much bigger than the 800 billion a year presented before. It is a public secret that Draghi is frustrated at the lack of progress on his recommendations, with only 10% of his report implemented according to the Draghi Observatory. Von der Leyen has used a…