Articles Archive

Ireland is taking over the presidency of the EU Council—one of its most difficult tasks will be negotiating the next seven-year financial framework. Martin Vokálek, executive director of EUROPEUM Institute and head of its Brussels office, commented on the matter for CNN Prima News.

The annual conference on Ukraine’s postwar reconstruction is taking place in Gdańsk, Poland. The prime minister of the war-torn country expects more than 160 agreements worth over 240 billion crowns to be signed there. What significance does this conference have for Ukraine’s future reconstruction? And is signing more than 160 agreements even a realistic scenario? Filip Křenek, a Research Associate Fellow at EUROPEUM Institute, provided commentary for the Headline program.

One of the key topics at the upcoming European Council summit will be the issue of the trade imbalance with China. EU leaders, however, do not want to say this out loud—the word “China” does not appear even once in the draft conclusions of the summit. According to Martin Vokálek, executive director of EUROPEUM Institute, the European Union has not yet reached the stage where it would label Beijing as an outright enemy.

The leaders of China and North Korea reaffirmed their countries’ mutual support this week. Xi Jinping traveled to meet Kim Jong-un after a long seven-year hiatus, during which Pyongyang, among other things, provided direct military aid to Russia in the war in Ukraine. With whom does Kim’s regime now “get along” best? In the 5:59 podcast, Tereza Novotná, a Research Associate Fellow at EUROPEUM Institute, shared her insights on the topic.

The European Commission has given the Czech Republic one month to explain Prime Minister Andrej Babiš’s conflict of interest. Agriculture Minister Martin Šebestyán claims that this does not concern agricultural subsidies. Martin Vokálek, Executive Director of EUROPEUM Institute and head of Brussels office, warns: if the European Commission does not reimburse Agrofert’s subsidies, we will all pay for it out of our own taxes.

In theory, the European Union should be one large market where companies can reach customers just as easily as if they were operating within a single country. The reality, however, is different. What can be done about it? Filip Křenek, an analyst at EUROPEUM Institute, answered this question in the Ranní Brífink of Hospodářské noviny.

Viktor Daněk, Deputy Executive Director and Head of the Prague Office of EUROPEUM Institute, spoke about the so-called “28th Regime”—uniform rules for doing business across the EU—on the program on Czech TV.

Read an article from co-author Tereza Novotná, Senior Associate Research Fellow at EUROPEUM Institute, where she examines the growing relationship between NATO and South Korea within an increasingly fragmented global security environment.

The U.S. could raise tariffs on European car imports this week. Donald Trump has been threatening such a move on social media. According to him, the EU is not complying with the trade agreement he negotiated with the President of the European Commission last year in Scotland. An interview with Filip Křenek, an analyst at EUROPEUM Institute, for iRozhlas.cz.

Péter Magyar won the Hungarian parliamentary elections by a landslide, and Viktor Orbán is stepping down as prime minister after fifteen years. For Andrej Babiš, this means the loss of a key ally. Martin Vokálek, Executive Director of EUROPEUM Institute and Head of the Brussels Office, commented on the future of these relations for update eu.

Smaller vehicles are given greater weight in the calculations. These “emissions credits” for small electric vehicles allow manufacturers to retain a larger share of combustion-engine or hybrid cars. You can find whole article here.

Sunday’s parliamentary elections in Hungary marked a turning point; the end of the Orbán era is redrawing the European map. What does the loss of an ally mean for Andrej Babiš, and what are the implications of Péter Magyar’s victory for the European Union? Martin Vokálek, Executive Director and Head of the Brussels Office of EUROPEUM Institute, commented for Seznam Zprávy.