Volkswagen used software to alter emissions illegally, according to the European advocate-general on Thursday. The German carmaker installed devices that could detect when the car would be subjected to testing - which would then distort parameters to show lower emissions.

Russia invited even more French VIPs than previously reported to whitewash its dirty elections last weekend.

Last week, a majority in the European Parliament voted in favour of creating a new EU ethics body, covering MEPs and the European Commission. German Green MEP Daniel Freund, who spearheaded the report, says negotiations are likely to start soon.

NGO watchdogs have slammed the MEP leading the energy committee's work on the controversial revision of EU rules for funding major energy projects for refusing to disclose his meetings with gas lobbyists, ahead of a crucial vote next week.

In a new study, the World Health Organization found air pollution is even more damaging to human health than previously thought.

Europe is no longer an Indo-Pacific power. It will not become an Indo-Pacific power. And if it keeps overreaching its geopolitical ambitions, Europe might lose its credibility as a power - entirely.

At least five MEPs and several minor politicians from EU states, many of them French, have spent the past few days in Russia peddling propaganda that its elections were free and fair.

The report also showed that Europeans consider EU institutions to be more likely, than their own governments, to be in a Cold War with China and Russia, alongside Washington.

Spain wants to discuss the current energy price spike at the next EU summit in October, and called on the European Commission to provide member states with guidance on how to react to current record gas and electricity prices.

New polling found Dutch voters have rapidly started losing trust in all levels of government. 15 percent of those surveyed have "lost all confidence" in the government. The loss of trust does not extend to prime minister Mark Rutte.

There is one female leader in European history whom Merkel resembles much more than the fiery, authoritarian Catherine the Great, who once staged a coup with her lover against her husband. Instead, it is the Habsburg empress Maria-Theresia.

More than 55 agreements between Israel, the UAE and Bahrain are currently underway. These lay the foundation for practical cooperation in almost all fields including: finance, communications, economy, culture, tourism, taxation, investment protection, freedom of movement, water, agriculture and energy.

Poland has confirmed the first fatalities among people trying to enter the EU via Belarus, as the onset of cold weather heightens risk.

Phil Hogan, the former European commissioner for trade, was this month hired by US-law firm DLA Piper, where he will work out of the Brussels office. Critics say the hire poses questions on weak EU ethics oversight rules on lobbying.