Commission seeks feedback on commitments offered by Sanofi over possible anticompetitive conduct regarding the promotion of a flu vaccine for vulnerable patients
This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission invites comments on commitments offered by Sanofi to address competition concerns regarding a communication campaign that has possibly disparaged the only rival flu vaccine recommended for vulnerable patients with risk factors. The Commission’s investigation Sanofi, headquartered in France, is a multinational […]
Commission issues €11 billion in its seventh syndicated transaction of 2026
This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission has raised €11 billion of EU-Bonds in its 7th syndicated transaction for 2026. The dual-tranche transaction concerned a €6 billion new 5-year EU-Bond maturing on 13 October 2031, and a €5 billion tap of the 20-year EU-Bond maturing on 12 October […]
Commission greenlights Belgium’s fourth payment request for €567 million under NextGenerationEU
This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. Today, the European Commission positively assessed Belgium’s fourth payment request for €567 million under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), the centrepiece of NextGenerationEU. This is an important step in the delivery of the reforms and investments tied to this payment request, in the […]
Start-up to Scale-up: EIF, HBOR and Croatia scale up partnership to boost venture financing in the country
This article is published in association with European Investment Bank. Hrvatsku inačicu preuzmite ovdje Over the past eight years, the partnership between the European Investment Fund (EIF), the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds of the Republic of Croatia and the Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development (HBOR) has mobilised €270 million in public investment […]
Commission approves State aid for Romania’s investment and development bank
This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, Romanian measures for the national investment and development bank Banca de Investiții și Dezvoltare S.A. (‘BID’). In January 2023, the Commission approved a Romanian measure to set up BID with an initial capital of […]
EU launches Connectivity Agenda Platform to strengthen links between Europe and Central Asia through the Black Sea region and the South Caucasus
This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. Today, the European Commission launched the Connectivity Agenda Platform and concluded agreements with international financial institutions expected to mobilise up to €2 billion for strategic connectivity investments in the Black Sea region and the South Caucasus. The Platform was unveiled at a high-level ministerial […]
Commission greenlights Bulgaria’s fourth payment request under NextGenerationEU
This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. Today, the European Commission greenlighted Bulgaria’s fourth payment request under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), the centrepiece of NextGenerationEU. The Commission found that Bulgaria has satisfactorily completed 23 out of 26 milestones and targets set out in the Council Implementing Decision. The reforms and investments tied to this payment request […]
From saving sight to next-generation logistics: meet the 2026 EU Women Innovators
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. When Dr Katerina Spranger was a child, she came very close to losing her sight. “I had an accident and had to undergo emergency surgery,” she recalled. Precision is a key part of such procedures. Even a tiny error can […]
Teen scientists are tracking plastic pollution across Europe’s rivers
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Along a small stream in Spain, groups of teenagers are at work. One hovers around a black tarpaulin covered in wet pieces of plastic. Another stands on a small bridge, fishing with a net. Others sort small pieces of plastic, […]
From prosthetics to paper and AI: Europe’s innovation summit backs new tech
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. In a conference space at the edge of Brussels, networking reaches a crescendo as a DJ plays music in the background. On the floor, everyone is showcasing their work – from semiconductor chips to advanced renewable energy technologies and eco-friendly […]
Growing platelets on silk to keep blood supplies flowing
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Every day, hospitals rely on platelet transfusions to stop bleeding, support cancer treatment and help patients recover from surgery and serious illness. Yet one of medicine’s most essential blood products is also among its most fragile. Unlike red blood cells, […]
European Research Council awards €838 million to 319 top scientists to deliver groundbreaking discoveries
This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Research Council (ERC) has unveiled the winners of its 2025 Advanced Grants, awarding €838 million to 319 leading researchers across Europe. These prestigious grants empower senior scientists to pursue high-risk, high-reward research with the potential to deliver groundbreaking discoveries. Funded under the […]
Teen scientists are tracking plastic pollution across Europe’s rivers
This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Along a small stream in Spain, groups of teenagers are at work. One hovers around a black tarpaulin covered in wet pieces of plastic. Another stands on a small bridge, fishing with a net. Others sort small pieces of plastic, […]
Commission seeks feedback on commitments offered by Sanofi over possible anticompetitive conduct regarding the promotion of a flu vaccine for vulnerable patients
This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission invites comments on commitments offered by Sanofi to address competition concerns regarding a communication campaign that has possibly disparaged the only rival flu vaccine recommended for vulnerable patients with risk factors. The Commission’s investigation Sanofi, headquartered in France, is a multinational […]
US-Iran war: Renewed attacks in Strait of Hormuz prompts another global energy alert
This article is published in association with United Nations. Renewed attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz unsettled energy markets on Wednesday and prompted calls from the UN maritime agency, IMO, for “maximum restraint and de-escalation”. Amid reports that three merchant vessels were hit along with Iranian targets, IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez condemned “reckless attacks” […]
When AI hurts people, who’s to blame? Global experts grapple with accountability
This article is published in association with United Nations. Who is legally responsible when Artificial Intelligence causes harm? The issue took centre stage on Tuesday – day two of the first ever UN summit on AI governance, where leading experts warned of mounting evidence of human rights violations linked to the revolutionary technology. “Across 11 Global […]
Occupied Palestinian Territory: Aid restrictions in Gaza, ‘senseless’ infant deaths in the West Bank
This article is published in association with United Nations. Ongoing restrictions and closures of border crossings continue to hamper delivery of critical supplies into the Gaza Strip, amid mounting concern for children there and in the West Bank, the United Nations said on Monday. UN teams in Gaza continued to collect food and fuel from the Kerem […]
Heat, Flood, Fire: The Climate Crisis and the Body
This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Ms. Sadia Khalid, a Scientist-Physician (MBBS, MD) at Tallinn University of Technologye. She is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view on […]
Civilian dangers multiply as drones transform Ukraine’s battlefield
This article is published in association with United Nations. As drones reshape the battlefield in Ukraine, they are also creating new and increasingly complex dangers for civilians, threatening recovery efforts, agriculture and global food security long after the fighting ends. “The battlespace has become a lot deeper, a lot wider and a lot more lethal,” Paul […]
Venezuela’s earthquake-hit hospitals pushed to the brink as disease risk grows
This article is published in association with United Nations. A week after earthquakes tore through northern Venezuela, hospitals in La Guaira are buckling under the weight of the disaster – and the risk of disease outbreaks in shelters is rising fast. An assessment by the UN-backed Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) found that all eight health […]
Venezuela earthquake disaster: needs ‘skyrocketing’, say relief agencies
This article is published in association with United Nations. In Venezuela, a rescue operation in La Guaira has succeeded in getting a toddler out alive from under the rubble, six days since the double-earthquake disaster. The miraculous story of the three-year-old’s rescue in the worst-hit northern region came as tens of thousands of people remained without […]
Despite record $100 million shortfall, Palestine relief agency still ‘a critical platform’ for Gaza recovery
This article is published in association with United Nations. The UN agency serving 5.9 million Palestine refugees, UNRWA, continues to strive to deliver on its mandate while facing an unprecedented $100 million budget shortfall, a gap it hopes to narrow during Tuesday’s pledging conference at UN Headquarters. Operating primarily on voluntary donations since its inception in the […]
UN details humanitarian toll of strikes on Ukrainian power industry
This article is published in association with United Nations. Missile and drone attacks killed at least a dozen civilians in Russia and Ukraine over the weekend as both countries continue to launch long-range drone strikes. Tweet URL Ukrainian authorities reported eight civilians killed and 35 others wounded in Russian attacks on the city of Dnipro on […]
Venezuela earthquakes leave 680,000 children in need of assistance: UNICEF
This article is published in association with United Nations. Some 680,000 children are among the 1.8 million people in need of humanitarian assistance following the earthquakes that struck Venezuela on 24 June, the UN child rights agency UNICEF reported on Sunday as rescue efforts continue. Damage to hospitals, schools, and water systems is exacerbating the situation for affected families, […]
Europe heatwave breaks records as UN agencies ramp up health warnings
This article is published in association with United Nations. Climate and Environment As a record-breaking heatwave grips large parts of Europe, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), national weather services and partners are mobilising heat-health action plans for millions of people facing dangerous temperatures. The extreme heat is also impacting economic activities, infrastructure, agriculture and ecosystems, the UN weather […]
Stranded Hormuz seafarers begin mass evacuation operation
This article is published in association with United Nations. As the UN International Maritime Organization (IMO) released more details of its plan to evacuate more than 11,000 seafarers stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, one mariner caught up in the emergency has described the ever-present fear of coming under attack. “You don’t know when the war […]World News in Brief: UN launches Hormuz evacuation plan, UNICEF youth champion killed in Gaza, Lebanon ceasefire ‘largely holding’
This article is published in association with United Nations. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) will begin implementing an evacuation plan for more than 11,000 seafarers stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, the UN agency announced on Tuesday. The development follows months of hardship and distress for thousands of innocent seafarers and comes on the heels of […]
Climate crisis: UN chief lays out solutions blueprint for clean energy transition
This article is published in association with United Nations. As a deadly heatwave continued to grip Europe on Tuesday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres issued an impassioned appeal for more ambitious global action on climate change caused by fossil fuels, to prevent irreversible damage. In a major keynote speech at London Climate Action Week, the UN chief […]
Libya’s political process regains momentum, but window for action is narrowing, UN envoy warns
This article is published in association with United Nations. Libya has been mired in political dysfunction since the collapse of Muammar Gaddafi’s regime in 2011, which shattered State institutions and triggered recurring struggles over legitimacy and power. The country’s current stalemate pits the UN-recognised Government of National Unity in the capital Tripoli against eastern-based authorities backed […]
World Refugee Day: UN calls for renewed commitment and solidarity
This article is published in association with United Nations. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees has called on the international community to strengthen support for the nearly 42 million people worldwide who have fled their home countries to escape conflict, violence or persecution. Barham Salih highlighted the contributions refugees make to their host communities as workers, students, neighbours, […]
US makes $1 billion contribution to UN child rights and food agencies
This article is published in association with United Nations. Two United Nations agencies have together welcomed more than $1 billion in assistance from the United States to support their operations targeting millions of children and hungry families in more than 40 countries. This week the US State Department announced a more than $800 million contribution to the […]
‘Darkest chapter’: Record child violations in 2025, with national forces leading the way
This article is published in association with United Nations. For the first time, soldiers and Government forces were responsible for more grave violations against children in armed conflict than non-State armed groups – and 2025 set a grim new record for the total number of child victims. The findings come in the annual UN report on Children and Armed […]
Triple climate threats affect nearly half the world’s children
This article is published in association with United Nations. Drought, extreme heat and heatwaves are the most prevalent trio of hazards endangering millions of children globally, warned a newly released climate report by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF). About 1.1 billion children now face at least three overlapping climate hazards, threatening their health, education and survival, […]
Ukraine: Latest Russian attack kills civilians, damages cultural landmark
This article is published in association with United Nations. eral civilians were killed and dozens more were injured in the latest wave of overnight attacks in Ukraine that targeted the capital Kyiv, the city of Kharkiv and the country’s history and cultural heritage, the United Nations said on Monday. The Russian strikes damaged homes, schools and […]
Guterres welcomes US-Iran peace deal as ‘critical step’ toward ending conflict
This article is published in association with United Nations. UN Secretary General António Guterres welcomed on Sunday a new peace deal between the United States and Iran, calling it a “critical step” toward ending the conflict. According to a statement issued by his Spokesman, the agreement provides for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, the reopening of […]
Three seafarers killed in Hormuz strike as UN warns of widening fallout
This article is published in association with United Nations. Three Indian seafarers were killed in an attack on an oil tanker near the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, as renewed hostilities in one of the world’s most critical shipping corridors once again heightened concern over food security, fuel prices and broken global supply chains. The latest […]
Refugee numbers drop for first time in a decade, but millions remain trapped
This article is published in association with United Nations. Global forced displacement has decreased for the first time in a decade, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) reported on Thursday, though the figure remains unacceptably high and tens of millions of people are still trapped in prolonged exile with little prospect of rebuilding their lives. UNHCR‘s flagship […]
