Romania and Bulgaria have reached an agreement with Austria to join the European Schengen area of free movement by sea and air in March 2024, the Romanian government said Wednesday (27 December).

Tributes from across Europe poured in for Jacques Delors, a former EU Commission chief who played an instrumental role in European integration, following his death on Wednesday (27 December) at 98.

The death toll in the Gaza strip on Wednesday (27 December) surpassed 21,000 since 7 October, according to official figures from the Health Ministry, with some 195 deaths in the last 24 hours.

Wolfgang Schaeuble, who served as a member of the German parliament for over half a century, has died aged 81, ending one of Germany's longest political careers in which he helped secure his country's place at the heart of Europe.

Spain opposes using the European Union's anti-piracy naval force to protect merchant ships in the Red Sea from the Yemeni Houthi militia, but it is willing to consider the creation of a different mission to tackle the problem, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Wednesday (27 December).

One person was killed after Russian forces sent dozens of attack drones over Ukraine in their latest overnight air strike, Ukrainian authorities said on Wednesday.

A dispute in Poland over control of public media deepened this week, as a body dominated by the former nationalist government designated a new television boss despite the current administration having appointed somebody else to the role.

Russia will soon deploy its newest howitzers to its Northern Military District which borders Finland and Norway, the head of the Rostec state defence conglomerate said in remarks published on Wednesday (27 December).

Ukraine struck a large Russian landing warship in Crimea with cruise missiles in an attack that could hinder any Russian attempt to seize more Ukrainian territory along the Black Sea coast.

What 2023 brought for the EU's health policy was a mixed bag, with progress on key EU-level files such as the European Health Data Space (EHDS) and pharmaceutical revision taking place alongside national laws and controversies that echoed throughout Brussels.

Israel's war on Hamas will last months, Israel's military chief said, as a string of incidents outside the Gaza Strip highlighted the risk of the conflict spreading.

Serbia's biggest opposition coalition said Tuesday (26 December) it will boycott election re-runs in parts of the country, after more than a week of protests against alleged electoral fraud.

The Turkish parliament's foreign affairs commission approved Sweden's NATO membership bid on Tuesday (26 December) in a key step towards enlarging the Western bloc after 19 months of delays in which Ankara demanded security-related concessions from Stockholm.

Russia said on Monda (25 December) foreign-backed forces were trying to foment trouble in Serbia, where protests continue for a second week after an election earlier this month that international monitors said was unfair.

A plane carrying 276 Indian passengers took off on Monday (25 December) for Mumbai, the French interior ministry's local office said, after it was grounded for four days pending investigation into possible human trafficking.