Thank you, Madam President, dear Roberta,

Deputy-Minister Raouna, dear Marilena,

Honourable Members,

In the last plenary, we focused on the geopolitical shockwaves that Europe is facing and on our united response. But our power on the global stage depends greatly on our strength on the economic front. Competitiveness is not just the foundation of our prosperity but of our security, and ultimately of our democracies too. This is why competitiveness has been at the top of our agenda from day one. ...

The Council today formally approved new customs duty rules for items contained in small parcels entering the EU, largely via e-commerce. The new rules respond to the fact that such parcels currently enter the EU duty free, leading to unfair competition for EU sellers.

“As global e-commerce booms, EU customs rules must keep pace. Abolishing the out-of-date exemption for small parcels will help support EU business and shut down avenues for unscrupulous sellers. Now, we need to move forward decisiv...

Import tariffs imposed by other countries tend to lower euro area inflation and weaken growth. However, the sectors most exposed are also the most responsive to interest rate changes. This means that monetary policy can help offset disinflationary pressures and support activity.^[1]

The European Commission has sent a Statement of Objections to Meta, setting out its preliminary view that Meta breached EU antitrust rules by excluding third party Artificial Intelligence (‘AI’) assistants from accessing and interacting with users on WhatsApp. Meta’s conduct risks blocking competitors from entering or expanding in the rapidly growing market for AI assistants.

The Commission therefore intends to impose interim measures to prevent this policy change from causing serious and irrepa...

Speech by Piero Cipollone, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, at the event “The digital euro in Cyprus”

Nicosia, 6 February 2026

It is a pleasure to be in Cyprus today.

I would like to thank Governor Patsalides and the organisers for inviting me.

Cyprus’s Presidency comes at a pivotal moment for Europe. In a global environment defined by rapid change, strategic uncertainty and geopolitical tensions, the Presidency’s priority, “Autonomy through security and competitiveness”, captures Europ...

Submarine data cables, carrying 99% of intercontinental internet traffic, are essential for modern life and the European economy. As the EU faces increasing risks to this critical infrastructure, the European Commission is intensifying efforts to enhance its security and resilience. Today, it introduced a new Cable Security Toolbox of risk mitigating measures and a list of Cable Projects of European Interest (CPEIs). It also amended the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) – Digital Work Programme t...

Frankfurt am Main, 5 February 2026

Good afternoon, the Vice-President and I welcome you to our press conference.

We would like to begin by congratulating Bulgaria on joining the euro area on 1 January 2026. We also warmly welcome Dimitar Radev, the Governor of Българска народна банка (Bulgarian National Bank), to the Governing Council. Membership of the euro area has almost doubled since 1999 and is testimony to the attractiveness of the single currency and the enduring benefits of European inte...

Today, the European Union, the United States and Japan met during the Critical Minerals Ministerial meeting held in Washington, DC in which several EU member states also took part.

The European Union, the United States and Japan are now taking significant steps towards increasing their economic security and national security by jointly enhancing resilience in critical minerals supply chains. They have announced their intention to expedite cooperative efforts for a mutually beneficial Partnership...

Good morning to all.

Thank you, dear Ursula, for this special treat: to join your amazing team for a little while.

I’m here to talk about re-energizing Europe, why it matters, and how it can be done.

I loved being part of the Commission, and I love coming back home. Europe is a wonderful place—affluent, creative, fair. Home to the ancient cities of Athens and Rome but also to the makers of cutting-edge microchip machines and one in every two airliners worldwide.

Above all, it is home to the best...