I guess the only thing standing between today‘s agreement and the EP having to sue the Commission again over premature release of funds is…hope?

Good @politico.eu piece about releasing EU funds to Hungary with my quotes based on research co-published with Princeton's Prof Kim Scheppele at @verfassungsblog.de (verfassungsblog.de/unfreezing-e...) & @jeppjournal.bsky.social (www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....). www.politico.eu/article/magy...

Confirmed to me by President Zelenskyy's office and Ukraine's Air Force: Russia overnight launched an "Oreshnik" intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) capable of carrying multiple conventional or nuclear warheads.

Politicisation and urgency leading to shortcuts in the legislative process. The pros & cons of the Omnibus approach will need to be assessed in the long term, but this goes on the cons list.

🇪🇺🏳️‍🌈⚖️🇭🇺 A legal earthquake - CJEU finds Hungary to have violated EU law on multiple counts with its anti-LGBT+ legislation (as expected) but also for the first time in history, in an EU law-reshaping precedent, finds Hungary to violate Art 2 TEU in a self-standing manner.

To the point.

for sure, congratulations to magyar. but the real heroes imo are those in civil society & journalism & rank-and-file opposition & academia who have fought against the disintegration of rule of law, the weaponization of the courts/media, & so much more for so long. 🇭🇺

A Russian drone struck an ambulance in Sumy region during the ceasefire, wounding three medics, after a prior attack killed an evacuation team carrying wounded soldiers. #Ukraine

The Orbán government is once again using authoritarian tactics to target our journalist Szabolcs Panyi, whose reporting exposes truths inconvenient to the regime.

Great to see the new Framework Agreement being put into the wider context of interinstitutional dynamics. And I would love to see the keyword „bicameral“ appear more often in other articles about EU governance as well.

As EU governments look to spend more on #defence to better deter security threats from Russia & others, a lack of public support for the spending trade-offs involved risks triggering a political backlash. New @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social paper by @armida.bsky.social Read here: buff.ly/CqgCMt8

That was always the risk in going for the solution based on EU debt rather than using the Russian assets. The assets would have required QMV, the debt needs unanimity regardless of the fact that it would be carried out by enhanced cooperation. France et al knew that risk and went for it anyway.

The sense of optimism present at our workshop in Chișinău really left a lasting impression on me. All of the knowledge & experience is there, Western experts (or even policymakers) just need to pay attention. dgap.org/en/research/publications/countering-hybrid-threats

2 important rule of law related opinions today with one by AG Capeta the most important as it more broadly concerns undue politicisation of EU’s rule of law toolbox with enforcement or lack thereof dependent on (disguised) reasons of political expediency democracyinstitute.ceu.edu/articles/lau...

New paper in our @dgap.org project "European Zeitenwende": insights about different perspectives on European defence from Northeast to Southwest. Authors @aagilli.bsky.social, @nicolekoenig.bsky.social & Margarita Šešelgytė argue for strategic empathy +operational solidarity dgap.org/en/research/...

NGOs are being blacklisted in the open by Orban's Soviet-style "SPO" and yet the @vonderleyen.ec.europa.eu @ec.europa.eu has repeatedly - and irresponsibly IMO - failed to apply for interim measures in its pending infringement action @tinekestrik.bsky.social @michaelmcgratheu.bsky.social

Institutions matter:

In diesen Tagen, in denen Kyjiw in Teilen kollabiert, wächst in mir eine Furcht: dass die Worte, die wir aus der Ukraine in den Westen schicken, verhallen. Ich habe einen sehr persönlichen Leitartikel geschrieben, aus einer Stadt am Rande der humanitären Katastrophe: www.zeit.de/2026/05/kyji...

In Odesa russia struck an apartment building, killing at least 3 people‼️ The search and rescue operation is still underway.

We're currently on season 10 of "don't underestimate the European Parliament"

Trump's Greenland narrative is almost a 1:1 copy of Putin's Crimea narrative: "It belonged to us in the past. Stupid leaders gave it away for no good reason. Now we want it back. We need it for our security. We need to protect it. It will be best for the people who live there."

Parliament says Commission’s ‘Democracy Shield’ against disinformation too weak

a footnote to this discussion is that the EP acquired the power to request these opinions from the CJEU only in 2003, along with the general power to request the annulment of EU legislation

Reflections on the European Council decision to borrow €90 billion and lend it to Ukraine. Tl; dr: Ukraine benefits, but not enough; Putin & Trump will be encouraged; the EU & individual member-states have shown that it’s still too easy to intimidate them. 🧵1/13

💥Pro-Russian far-right leader George Simion may have lost Romania’s presidential race, but the online campaign machine behind his rise helped Karol Nawrocki win in Poland—and is now powering the populist Law and Justice’s comeback push. Check out our new investigation & follow @vsquare.bsky.social!

Is Germany again dragging its feet and undermining a "simple" solution to the Ukraine financing problem, instead pushing the ubercomplex reparations loan? It's a tempting eurocrisis reflex that if only there were a will in Berlin, there would be a better way. But there isn't. Here is why:

The EU’s proposed Reparations Loan – using immobilised Russian assets to support Ukraine – raises major legal and financial questions. PETER VAN ELSUWEGE analyses the risks, Belgium’s objections, and what’s at stake ahead of the December European Council. verfassungsblog.de/on-the-legal...

⚖️ Passionate about the #RuleofLaw? We are hiring a Research Officer to join our team in Berlin! If you have: a strong legal background; a deep understanding of the EU’s Rule of Law landscape; and experience working with media, policymakers or social media then apply before Dec 19 👉 bit.ly/48H2QT5

Europeans lull themselves into the belief that Trump is unpredictable. This is strangly reassuring, but wrong. The #NSS is only the latest confirmation that Europe is, at best, alone. My piece @ForeignPolicy foreignpolicy.com/2025/12/05/n...

Good to see @europarl.europa.eu refer to principle of solidarity in its resolution on Hungary calling for triggering of Art. 7(2) TEU. With @dimitrispieker.bsky.social and Ulrich Karpenstein, we argued that new Art. 7 procedure should be initiated against HU based on breaches of solidarity in CFSP

🗳️Again, a 2/3 majority backed the report condemning the Orbán government’s rule-of-law violations in the EP: 415 in favour, 193 against, 28 abstentions. As the abstentions aren’t counted in the tally, the 2/3 majority stands, just as it did 7 years ago with the @judithsargentini.bsky.social report

At least one EU institution has its priorities straight. The EP has been consistent on this since 2018

At long last, some enforcement by Commission re Slovakia's backsliding with letter of formal notice sent yesterday for breach of several fundamental principles of EU law, particularly the principles of primacy, autonomy, effectiveness and uniform application of EU law ec.europa.eu/commission/p...

Orbán’s hateful policies have real personal consequences. This is especially the case for Hungarian LGBTQIA+ people, who have been scapegoated by the Orbán government and are being portrayed as a threat to children – an implication that is simply wrong and disgusting.

🎙️ In our new podcast, @jakubjaraczewski.bsky.social examines the progress of undoing the consequences of eight years of illiberal rule in Poland, and the challenges that lie ahead. 🇵🇱🇵🇱🧑‍⚖️ 🎧 Listen to it now: 👉 tinyurl.com/2ywn387b

Today’s Omnibus vote has rolled over an already perforated cordon sanitaire in the European Parliament. For the first time, the EPP sided with far-right groups on a file key to the Commission’s agenda. Make no mistake: this was no accident and it’s unclear whether the centrist coalition can recover🧵

Lethargy has become Europe’s strategic flaw, writes Nicu Popescu @ecfreuropeansec.bsky.social https://bit.ly/4p6XIhI

‼️The EP's patience has run out. In a resolution to be adopted today, the LIBE Committee states that the EU Council (=Member States) itself is violating the rule of law by delaying further action against #Hungary under Article 7 procedure 🧵

While the European Council in Brussels took the spotlight, this week's events in Strasbourg should set off alarm bells. The European Parliament slamming the brakes on the first “Omnibus” package isn’t just a hiccup – it’s a symptom of strain in the EU’s democratic engine. A thread 🧵

The more I think about it, the more outrageous I find this. Hungary, which increasingly blocks or frustrates an effective EU foreign and security policy, is now the second largest recipient of EU defence loans. In absolute terms it is second only to France, in relation to GDP to Latvia.

Looking for a student/project assistant to support the Eastern Partnership Think Tank Network at @dgap.org . Work on #EU policy, #Ukraine, #enlargement & regional shifts. Tasks: newsletter, website, events. DM me if interested or share! dgap.org/de/dgap/jobs..., dgap.org/de/dgap/jobs...

Those who call the shots and those who call out the big shots? :) @ Kiel International Seapower Symposium 2025 @alanderminna.bsky.social @sophiewitte.bsky.social @salisbot.bsky.social

7 years of Article 7 proceedings & media coverage still inaccurate: Today's (toothless) hearing i) not about whether to strip Orban of its EU voting rights - sanctioning arm of Art 7 not activated and ii) not about moving to the sanctioning arm of the procedure verfassungsblog.de/is-article-7...