Catch up with the most important stories from around Europe and beyond - latest news, breaking news, World, Business, Entertainment, Politics, Culture, Travel.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00 Turkey's main opposition takes the lead over President Erdogan's party in nationwide local
00:07 elections.
00:11 Celebrations in Bulgaria and Romania as visa-free travel in the Schengen zone officially begins.
00:24 Polling stations have closed and votes are being counted in Turkey's local elections.
00:29 Early results showed the main opposition party retaining control over key cities.
00:35 The election is seen as a test of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's popularity.
00:40 In Istanbul, the opposition Republican People's Party mayor Ekrem Ä°mamoÄŸlu is leading the
00:45 race.
00:48 Erdogan is backing former urbanization and environment minister Murat Kurum for the post.
00:54 The president's pick for mayor of the capital Ankara is trailing the incumbent.
01:00 Erdogan's AK Party has been trying to win back voters in Ankara and Istanbul, which
01:05 they lost to the opposition five years ago.
01:08 Some 61 million people were eligible to vote in the election.
01:13 Security was stepped up across the country to prevent violence.
01:17 However, fights in several cities resulted in the deaths of at least two people.
01:26 Passengers from Germany arriving at Sofia Airport were greeted with Bulgarian flags
01:31 as the country marks its accession to the EU's visa-free Schengen zone.
01:37 Its inclusion means travellers can move more freely throughout the bloc without border
01:42 checks.
01:44 Bulgarian government and EU representatives attended a ceremony at the airport to mark
01:49 the milestone.
01:50 Outgoing Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov described Bulgaria's inclusion as a historic moment.
01:58 For now, though, the visa-free travel is restricted to air and sea journeys.
02:04 A veto by Austria means the new status doesn't apply for land routes due to concerns of an
02:10 influx of refugees.
02:12 Meanwhile, Romania is also celebrating its entrance into the zone.
02:18 The two countries hope to become full Schengen members by the end of the year.
02:27 Fifteen years have passed since the last update of a treaty of the European Union.
02:32 Entering into force in 2009, the Treaty of Lisbon clarified the division of powers between
02:37 the EU and member states.
02:39 Since then, some have called for treaty changes in anticipation of the bloc's enlargement.
02:45 The EU needs to be made future-proof.
02:47 It has to become more agile.
02:49 It has to have more capacity to act, in particular if the EU is going to grow.
02:58 Institutional reforms would also aim to build on the EU's capacity to respond to contemporary
03:03 challenges.
03:04 We are dealing with a different international context and Europe needs to raise its capacity
03:11 to defend itself, to support Ukraine.
03:15 So the European Parliament, which gave the green light at the end of November to proposals
03:19 for reforming the treaties of the Union, proposed to create a defence union with military capabilities.
03:27 Proponents of reform argue the defence of the rule of law and democratic legitimacy
03:31 of the EU could also be strengthened.
03:35 One of the major weaknesses of the European Union has been over the past years that it
03:40 hasn't been able to protect the rule of law in all member states.
03:45 The expert recommends increasing budgetary conditions and improving Article 7 of the
03:49 Treaty of the European Union, which allows the suspension of a member state's voting
03:53 rights in the Council in the event of non-compliance with its fundamental values.
03:58 Triggered against Poland and Hungary, Article 7 never succeeded and has not yet achieved
04:02 its goal.
04:04 Digital and energy transitions, the fight against climate change and health crises are
04:08 all global challenges that require increased EU capacity for action, according to experts.
04:15 Europe needs to have a key role in improving global governance when dealing with climate
04:20 change.
04:22 When it comes to energy, experts and MEPs propose the creation of an integrated European
04:27 energy union to guarantee a stable, affordable and sustainable energy supply for Europeans.
04:34 And there are also calls for increased EU competence to ensure fair and impartial access
04:39 to healthcare within the EU or to conduct group procurement of vaccines.
04:44 However, opponents of these proposed reforms believe that these powers belong to member
04:48 states and many are calling for more national sovereignty.
04:51 [BLANK_AUDIO]