Every Monday, the Research Trainees of the CERESE assess the news of the previous week. You can read their opinions below:

I like the news that, following a vote, the European Parliament has decided to start negotiations with the member states to adopt a new Regulation on Asylum and Migration between EU countries. The talks are expected to start at the beginning of the new year. The adoption of a new regulation on asylum and immigration is one of the main concerns of many EU countries, mainly the countries of the European south, which are under the greatest pressure from refugee and immigration flows. In the face of the refugee and immigration crisis that started in 2015 and is expected to increase in the future, due to climate change, solidarity between the countries of the union is the main issue of the negotiations. According to reports, approximately 880.000 asylum applications in total were submitted in EU countries in 2022.

I like the agreement of the G7 countries to accelerate the development of renewable energy. Member states acknowledged the need to reduce natural gas consumption as they seek to accelerate the phase-out of fossil fuels. In addition, they pledged to eliminate plastic pollution by 2040, mainly through the circular economy, reducing or eliminating single-use plastics and nonrecyclable plastics. The issues of renewable energy and energy security have become prominent since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

I dislike the new escalation between Armenia and Azerbaijan on 11 April. Tensions occurred in the Armenian border village of Tegh. Seven soldiers from both countries died, and there were expressed fears of a new armed conflict. Since 2020, the two countries have been in the middle of a war, with periods of a ceasefire, but skirmishes are constantly reported between the two sides. The international community has yet to respond to this conflict, condemning the region to a prolonged state of siege, with negative consequences for the protection of human rights and the living standards of citizens.

I dislike the raging conflict in Sudan. Sudan had been ruled by an uneasy alliance between the military and civilian groups since 2019. Now the military effectively took control after they dissolved the power-sharing government and declared a state of emergency. Sudan is no stranger to conflict, but this time the fighting is tearing apart the capital instead of a remote area. The nation lies in an unstable region bordering the Red Sea, the Sahel, and the Horn of Africa. The conflict is now rattling its neighbors and other countries for reasons ranging from concern about shared Nile waters and oil pipelines to the formation of a new government and a new humanitarian crisis in the making.