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Vojvodina’s health secretary Zoran Gojkovic said on Monday (20 April) that reporters’ questions were not the reason why journalists had been banned from attending news conferences on the COVID-19 pandemic in Serbia, as their safety was the government’s prime concern....

Serbia dropped three places in the 2020 World Press Freedom Index, according to the ranking published by the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on Tuesday (21 April). After the country ranked 90th in 2019, it has now fallen to the 93rd...

Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte prepared Italians for a longer lockdown Tuesday (21 April) despite a second successive drop in the number of registered coronavirus cases.

After 2,000 seasonal Romanian workers crowded at Cluj-Napoca airport to fly to Germany while the pandemic was in full swing in both countries just two weeks ago, these same workers are now complaining about their working conditions. Workers have said...

The Bulgarian national bank has sent a letter to the European Central Bank (ECB) to negotiate a swap line (a temporary reciprocal currency arrangement between central banks) worth several billion euros, Finance Minister Vladislav Goranov announced on Tuesday (21 April)....

The Polish government is set to present a third set of measures to fight the fallout of the COVID-19 crisis by the end of the week. The new “shield” is meant to introduce subsidies for apartment renters, special solutions for local...

After a 28-year-old pregnant refugee tested positive for COVID-19 Greek authorities found that in total 150 refugees out of 475 were infected with the virus in the Kranidi refugee hostel in Peloponnese. Meanwhile, Greece has activated the EU Civil Protection...

These are the only measures that can “responsibly” be lifted, Prime Minister Mark Rutte stated in a press conference Tuesday night (21 April). All other “intelligent lockdown” rules were extended until at least 20 May, while all events including professional...

While restaurants, cafes, bars and other non-essential shops and business will remain shut and free movement will continue to be limited until 3 May at least, the Belgian government is exploring ways to gradually lift the lockdown measures with several...

Finland recorded its first two first same-sex adoptions as a male couple and a female couple adopted infants three years after the country’s reformed Marriage Act, which made it possible for same-sex couples to marry and adopt. The two adoptions,...

The European Commission's Green Deal chief, Frans Timmermans, assured EU lawmakers on Tuesday (21 April) that "every euro" spent on economic recovery measures after the COVID-19 crisis would be linked to the green and digital transitions. EURACTIV Germany reports.

An increasing number of Germany’s 16 states have decided to begin enforcing mandatory mask-wearing on public transport and in shops. Saxony was the first state to introduce such regulations, coming into effect on Monday (20 April). Bavaria also announced their...

Creating debt without planning how to pay it would not be credible, Iratxe García, the leader of the Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament, stated in a letter sent to EU leaders ahead of the 23 April EU Summit....

Differences among EU countries look set to stymie any major decisions on tackling the long-term economic impact of the crisis at a summit later this week. In a letter Tuesday inviting the 27 leaders to the videoconference, EU Council President...

The European Union's chief climate official said on Tuesday (21 April) there could be green conditions attached to any car scrappage schemes set up by the bloc to revive vehicle demand following the coronavirus pandemic.

The management of COVID-19 cases seems to be working more on the basis of Darwin's well-known theory of natural selection, where the strong survive, rather than on any European strategy, writes Bashkim Smakaj.

Dozens of migrants, including many single-parent families, accomodated at a hostel in southern Greece tested positive for the coronavirus on Tuesday (21 April) as the government prepared for a gradual easing of a broad lockdown from 27 April.

The UN General Assembly has demanded equal access for any future COVID-19 vaccine but its seeming unanimity was a fluke. The United States in fact opposed the resolution but acted too late to stop it, diplomats say.

The Spanish government announced on Tuesday (21 April) that children under the age of 14 will be allowed to accompany adults on essential errands, allowing youngsters – and politicians – a long-awaited breath of fresh air. EURACTIV's partner EFE reports.

The UK government’s decision to opt-out of an EU procurement scheme for urgently needed medical equipment to cope with the coronavirus crisis was a “political decision”.