Belgium

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union’s foreign policy chief insisted on Wednesday that the 27-nation bloc must have a bigger role to play alongside Washington and Moscow to defuse the West’s standoff with Russia over Ukraine.

In the diplomatic flurry surrounding the Russian military buildup on Ukraine’s border the EU has largely been a bystander. This highlights a deeper frustration in Brussels: even though the EU is a massive global economic powerhouse, its strategic geopolitical footprint remains disproportionately small.

BRUSSELS, January 4. / TASS /: The alliance has confirmed that the NATO-Russia Council meeting will take place on January 12, calling on Moscow to consider "NATO’s concerns about Russia’s actions," the NATO official told TASS on Tuesday.

BRUSSELS, Jan 4 (Reuters) - NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has scheduled a special meeting of allied ambassadors and top Russian officials for next week as both sides seek dialogue to prevent open conflict over Ukraine, a NATO official said on Tuesday.

Alarmed by Russia's military build-up along Ukraine's border, the Western military alliance has been seeking a meeting of the NATO-Russia Council for months but the forum seemed in jeopardy after an espionage dispute in October.

BRUSSELS, Dec 30 (APP): Ambassador of Pakistan to Belgium, Luxembourg and the European Union, Zaheer A. Janjua, on Thursday held the 12th monthly Khuli Katchery in virtual format with Pakistani diaspora in Belgium and Luxembourg.

During the meeting, the Ambassador conveyed greetings on the occasion of Christmas, Jinnah Day and New Year to the participants and hoped that new year would be a harbinger of peace and happiness for all Pakistanis as well as the global community.

BRUSSELS, December 28. /TASS/: Delaying the certification of Nord Stream 2 is not a problem for Russia, but for European consumers, Russia's Permanent Representative to the EU Vladimir Chizhov told TASS.

BRUSSELS (AP) — In a setback for the Belgian government, an advisory body on Tuesday suspended a Cabinet-ordered closure of part of the cultural sector — saying that new coronavirus restrictions imposed on theaters are unreasonable.

Under new restrictions that took effect Sunday, movie houses, concert halls and art centers were ordered to shut their doors. Some stayed open in protest. The order came despite the assessment of the scientific committee advising the government that going to such places poses no extra risk to public health.

BRUSSELS, December 26. /TASS/: NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has come out with an initiative to call a Russia-NATO Council meeting on January 12, 2022 when a NATO Military Committee will meet in Brussels, the alliance’s press service told TASS on Sunday.

"The NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has decided to convene a meeting of the NATO-Russia Council on 12 January 2022 in his capacity as the Chair of the NATO-Russia Council. We are in contact with Russia as regards the meeting," the press service said.

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union’s executive arm proposed measures Wednesday to better detect shell companies that do not carry out any real economic activities to prevent them from receiving tax advantages and crack down on their tax abuse.

The European Commission said the directive, which needs to be approved by the bloc’s 27 member nations, would help national authorities identify shell companies through a filtering system, analyzing criteria such as income, transactions and management.

Dec 21 (Reuters) - The European Commission on Tuesday adopted rules that will make the European Union COVID-19 certificate valid for travel nine months after the completion of the primary vaccination schedule.

The proposal comes as several EU states introduce additional requirements on travellers in a bid to reduce the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant. EU Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders told Reuters the EU Commission was against additional requirements, and was assessing the measures.

BRUSSELS, Dec 20 (Reuters) - Novavax (NVAX.O) is expected to start delivering its COVID-19 vaccines to the European Union in the first quarter of 2022, an EU source said, as experts for the region's drug regulator met on Monday to decide whether to approve the shot.

The EU Commission had no immediate comment and the U.S. biotech company was not immediately available for comment. The EU source declined to be identified because they were not authorised to speak to the media.