-EU-Turkey relations
Turkey鈥檚 European Union membership accession talks will continue, according to EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini last week, underlining Ankara鈥檚 role as a partner in the region.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her center-left rival Martin Schulz clashed over the country鈥� Turkey policy in a televised debate last Sunday night, with Schulz making a surprise proposal to halt Ankara鈥檚 EU membership talks and freeze its pre-accession funds.
Merkel said that she would propose debating Turkey relations at the European Council meeting in October.
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-Brexit
The European Commission last week set out its principles for a political dialogue on Ireland and Northern Ireland in the Brexit negotiations. The Commission鈥檚 paper states that the Good Friday Agreement should continue to be protected and strengthened in all its parts after the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union. The continuation of the Common Travel Area, which facilitates the interaction of people in Ireland and the U.K. should also be recognized.
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-Dieselgate
EU consumer authorities and the European Commission sent a joint letter to the CEO of Volkswagen urging the group to swiftly repair all cars affected by the "dieselgate" scandal.
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-Migration
The Commission published the seventh report on progress made in the implementation of the EU-Turkey Statement and its fifteenth progress report on the EU's emergency relocation and resettlement schemes, providing an updated state of play and assessing the actions taken so far.
The Commission called on all parties to sustain and further accelerate the good progress made in managing irregular migration flows, protecting the EU external borders and supporting the frontline member states under pressure.
According to the report, the EU-Turkey Statement continues to deliver concrete results and play a key role in ensuring effective management of migratory flows along the Eastern Mediterranean route. Despite a slight increase in arrivals during the summer, consistent with the seasonal trends observed for the same period in 2016, the number of daily crossings from Turkey to the Greek islands remained low since the last report with an average of 75 arrivals per day.
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-EU court decisions
The European Court of Justice dismissed actions brought by Slovakia and Hungary against the provisional mechanism for the mandatory relocation of asylum seekers. The Court stated that the mechanism actually contributes to enabling Greece and Italy to deal with the impact of the 2015 migration crisis and is proportionate.
The European Court of Justice ordered that the EU鈥檚 fine on Intel be re-examined by the General Court. The European Commission imposed a 鈧�1.06 billion fine on Intel for the abuse of its dominant position.
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-This week
The President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, will deliver his State of the Union address at the European Parliament (EP) on Wednesday. He is expected to make remarks on EU-Turkey relations. Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) will discuss ways to shape the EU's future in a debate with Juncker.
EP sessions and committee meetings will be held in Strasbourg this week. MEPs will discuss the latest developments in Turkey and the future of EU-Turkey relations with Mogherini on Tuesday. They are likely to reiterate their July call for the EU to suspend accession talks.
Following the recent contamination of eggs with the insecticide Fipronil, MEPs will quiz the Commission and the Council on measures taken so far to ensure food safety on Tuesday. They will also discuss how to improve the functioning of the EU鈥檚 rapid alert system for food and feed and restore consumer trust.
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