Welcome to Euractiv’s Tech Brief, your weekly update on all things digital in the EU.

Before talking about new sources of income for the EU budget – known as ‘own resources’ – the EU should assess the efficiency of its current spending, Fabrizia Lapecorella, the deputy secretary-general of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, said this week.

Calling for greater unity of the international community, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday (7 June) drew a parallel between the Allied D-Day landings in Normandy and Russia's war in Ukraine.

Lithium is a key component in the manufacturing of batteries for electric cars and was recently added to the EU’s list of critical raw materials considered essential for the manufacturing of electric car batteries, mobile phones, and laptop computers.

The European Commission said on Friday (7 June) that both Ukraine and Moldova are sufficiently ready for the formal opening of EU accession talks.

Russia alleged on Friday (7 June) that Ukraine had used US-supplied rockets to kill women and children in a region of southern Russia, and said that Washington was to blame.

Half of the world votes this year and growing polarisation, alienation, nationalist self-interest, and growing popularity of undemocratic leaders cast a worrying shadow. Democracy and the world find themselves in gridlock, writes Pedro Conceição.

Sinn Féin's ambitions of governing Ireland for the first time and advancing a bid for unity with Northern Ireland are facing a potentially huge setback in local and European elections on Friday (7 June) as their commanding poll advantage melts away.

French President Emmanuel Macron warned Thursday (6 June) that the EU risked being blocked by a big far-right presence in the European Parliament after this week's elections.

The speech by President of the European Commission and candidate of the European People's Party for a second term in office at the European Parliament, Ursula von der Leyen, was interrupted in Porto by dozens of demonstrators in support of the Palestinians.

In today’s edition of the Capitals, find out more about the many Bulgarians who believe in conspiracy theories, Spain joining South Africa's case against Israel before the ICJ, and so much more.

France will deliver Mirage 2000 fighter jets to Ukraine and train pilots over the next six months, according to President Emmanuel Macron, who made announcements on Thursday.

This week, together with Marco Scialdone, a lawyer and adjunct professor of law and management of digital content and services at the European University of Rome, we delve into the impact of the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA).

Russia and China, which hold veto powers in the UN Security Council, raised concerns on Thursday with a US draft resolution that would back a proposal - outlined by President Joe Biden - for a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas.

Failing to communicate the Green Deal properly was the current European Commission’s “biggest mistake”, Joanna Kamińska, an EU elections candidate for the Polish Greens, told Euractiv.

Regaining Romanian citienship could soon involve passing a compulsory language exam, according to a new government bill amending the country's citizenship law to stamp out potential abuses, which was submitted to parliament on Thursday.

The next EU Parliament needs to act quickly and decisively to end the crisis of child sexual abuse material found online, legislation for which has stalled, writes Sabine Saliba.  

Currently in Brussels, a new set of sanctions against Russia is being considered - the 14th round of sanctions since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in early 2022. There are no good ideas for new economic measures against the Kremlin, but this does not justify the pursuit of bad ideas, writes Naike Gruppioni.

Seventy per cent of Bulgarians believe in conspiracy theories while 37% have fallen foul of misinformation according to a recent survey.

Russia said on Thursday (6 June) it had detained a Frenchman suspected of gathering information about the Russian military, an incident French President Emmanuel Macron described as part of a campaign of disinformation by Moscow.