Nato and the EU have declined to publicly criticise Turkey's involvement in the Armenia-Azerbaijan warfare despite Armenia's personal appeal.

The three key sticking points in negotiations remain: fair competition, access to each others fishing waters, and the rules that will govern the future relations deal.

EU agriculture ministers at around 4am on Wednesday reached a common position on the bloc's farming policy post-2020, including ring-fencing part of the CAP budget for initiatives that protect the environment - but with much flexibility for member states.

Muslim NGOs targeted by the France's retaliatory response to the brutal murder of a schoolteacher claim the government is labelling "innocent Muslims as 'Islamists" just to be able to say that they are doing something".

The European Court of Justice is currently facing a major question: can religious freedom coexist with animal welfare? The decision of whether religious slaughter can continue is expected in a matter of weeks.

On Tuesday, MEPs and diplomats made little progress on legislation linking EU funds to respect for the rule of law, but the German EU presidency insisted that "differences narrowed down".