EU will assess Ukraine's membership bid 'diligently'

Former German chancellor Gerhard Schröder and Austria's ex-foreign minister Karin Kneissl should be blacklisted if they don't step down from top Russian state-owned companies, while EU countries should sanctions Europeans who take key jobs at Russian state firms.

In a debate between energy commissioner Kadri Simson and MEPs, some lawmakers called for a stronger response to Russian energy aggression.

The leader of the Catalan government, Pere Aragonès, denounced the use of the Israeli-made Pegasus spyware against Catalan politicians and MEPs during a visit to Brussels.

A Joint Investigation Team combines prosecutors, police and judges from different countries who come together under the coordination of Eurojust to synchronise cross-border investigations —with a track record of achieving results: from the Bataclan attacks to the MH17 investigation.

The French EU presidency is pressing to make some last-minute headway on the EU's migration and asylum reform but is still meeting resistance from a handful of member states.

Prices of cereals, fertilisers, and oilseed have shot up drastically in several European markets due to Russia's war on Ukraine, prompting some member states to seek EU aid.