Following the Ministerial meeting of the International Contact Group (ICG) on 17 September, in particular the decision of the Group to work for improving electoral conditions in Venezuela, two EEAS officials travelled to Caracas, Venezuela last week. The aim of the visit was to discuss directly the situation in the country and reiterate the EU’s position that electoral conditions now in place do not allow for fair, democratic, competitive elections on 6th of December. The mission underlined the EU position for a peaceful, democratic, Venezuelan-owned solution to the country’s crisis.

In Europe and in the world, all minds are focused on actions to tackle the outbreak of COVID-19 and mitigate the effects of the crisis. The European Union works on all fronts to support these efforts. We take this opportunity to thank all those who are working tirelessly to contain the pandemic and care for those in need, anywhere in the world.

The initiative, which is being implemented within the framework of the AGRO-INNOVA project, is geared towards agricultural producers and workers in the field as well as those involved in distribution, transportation, agroindustry operations, supply centers, wholesale markets and local fairs.

As the coronavirus pandemic spreads around the world, the European Union and its Member States have observed cyber threats and malicious cyber activities targeting essential operators in Member States and their international partners, including in the healthcare sector. Since the beginning of the pandemic, significant phishing and malware distribution campaigns, scanning activities and distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks have been detected, some affecting critical infrastructures that are essential to managing this crisis.

Humanitarian situation in Venezuela
Press statement by Belgium, Estonia, France, Germany and Poland

The EU members of the Security Council reiterate their concerns about the sharply deteriorating crisis in Venezuela and its destabilizing effects across the region, including its severe humanitarian consequences.

The EU's collective action will focus on addressing the immediate health crisis and resulting humanitarian needs, strengthening partner countries' health, water and sanitation systems and their research and preparedness capacities to deal with the pandemic, as well as mitigating the socioeconomic impact. To underpin these actions, the EU will secure financial support to partner countries amounting to more than €15.6 billion from existing external action resources.

Counterfeit goods sold during the corona crisis do not meet the required quality standards and pose a real threat to public health and safety. People who buy these fake products have a false sense of security, while they are in fact left unprotected against the virus. Therefore, we should not only go after the criminals behind these scams but also, through prevention work, inform potential victims who are putting themselves and others at risk by using such fake goods.

Cybercriminals have been among the most adept at exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic for the various scams and attacks they carry out. With a record number of potential victims staying at home and using online services across the European Union (EU) during the pandemic, the ways for cybercriminals seeking to exploit emerging opportunities and vulnerabilities have multiplied.

El Centro Internacional CIDOB de Barcelona señala que puede ser que la crisis del coronavirus sea sólo un bache en el camino de las dinámicas internacionales durante las últimas décadas. Quizá, tras un periodo de hibernación de las principales economías internacionales, la vida vuelva a la normalidad, los planes de estímulo capeen el temporal y el mundo vuelva a ser plano e híperconectado. Sin embargo, el coronavirus puede ser también un punto de inflexión en la era de la globalización. 

The report provides an overview of how criminals adapt their misdeeds to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is based on information Europol receives from the EU Member States on a 24/7 basis and intends to support Member States’ law enforcement authorities in their work.