Europe Iceland Artist Ásta Fanney Sigurðardóttir will represent Iceland at the Venice Biennale in 2026; also a poet and musician, she often mixes her disciplines to create complex works mirroring the complexity of contemporary times
Europe Portugal Judicial Police has dismantled what it said was the largest industrial cocaine extraction, processing and packaging laboratory in Europe, during an operation in the west of Portugal, detaining seven people and seizing around 1.500 kilograms of drugs
Europe Romania Constitutional Court has annulled the country's presidential elections, including the first round and the runoff initially scheduled for today between candidates Călin Georgescu and Elena Lasconi; it is a first-ever in a stable democracy
Europe Greece The Central Union of Municipalities of Greece has declared its 'absolute and complete opposition' to a draft law providing for the mandatory merger of local water and sewerage services, arguing that this project undermines governance and local autonomy
Europe Finland The Swedish People's Party in Espoo announced the formation of a multicultural committee with the aim of involving immigrants and non-native Finnish or Swedish speakers in local and national politics
Europe Malta Emissions from domestic transport, buildings, agriculture, small industry and waste in Malta have increased by more than 30% since 2005, the highest increase in the EU, according to data Data
Europe Montenegro Total foreign trade amounted to €3,88 billion in January-October 2024, or +3,1% compared to the same period last year; Serbia emerged Montenegro's most significant trading partner, according to preliminary data from Monstat
Europe Switzerland First physical and commercially usable quantum computer was inaugurated at Uptown Basel competence centre in Arlesheim; it will be available to companies, academic institutions and start-ups in areas such as simulation, optimisation and machine learning
Europe Albania National laws may be compliant with international standards but weak oversight, corruption and cash economies hamper an effective battle against money-laundering, says new report on illicit finance in the Western Balkans
Europe Austria The Austrian statistical office reported that the country's GDP contracted for the sixth consecutive quarter in the July-September period, continuing the recessive trend that began in Q2 2023
Europe Latvia Banks and their branches in Latvia will have to pay a solidarity contribution - 60% of excess profits - over the next three years after a new law on bank super-profits will be introduced next year
Europe Luxembourg A pilot project for the deployment of additional police officers on the streets of Luxembourg's two largest cities will soon be extended to Differdange
Europe Lithuania The new cabinet will be formed without the Ministers of the Environment and Justice after Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda signed a decree approving the move