Europe in Review 2014

PHOTOSSERIES euobserver EDITORIAL ADDRESS EUobserver Magaz<strong>in</strong>e Rue Belliard 18b 1040 Bruxelles Belgium contact@euobs.com Editor Lisbeth Kirk Editorial contributors Honor Mahony, Andrew Rettman, Peter Teffer, Valent<strong>in</strong>a Pop and Ben Fox Danish prime m<strong>in</strong>ister Helle Thorn<strong>in</strong>g -Schmidt (c) jokes with former EU council president Herman Van Rompuy (r) and former EU commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso. For a time she was <strong>in</strong> the runn<strong>in</strong>g to succeed Van Rompuy. Photo: The Council of the <strong>Europe</strong>an Union ARTICLE LAYOUT ADVERTISING EUobserver Magaz<strong>in</strong>e Rue Montoyer 18B 1000 Brussels Belgium Filip Lugovic fl@euobs.com Daniele Castaldelli dc@euobs.com PRINT Drukkerij Van der Poorten n.v. WELCOME to The New Year to a new Photo: EUobserver EUOBSERVER Uwe Corsepius (l), secretary-general of the <strong>Europe</strong>an Council, speak<strong>in</strong>g with Donald Tusk on the day, 30 August, the Polish PM was selected to become president of the EU Council. Tusk started the job on 1 December. Photo: The Council of the <strong>Europe</strong>an Union DISTRIBUTION EUobserver Magaz<strong>in</strong>e Rue Montoyer 18B 1000 Brussels Belgium Meg Chang mc@euobs.com PRICE PER COPY €4,75 + postage, excl vat / discounts on larger purchases PUBLISHER EUobserver.com ASBL www.euobserver.com MAKING SENSE OF THE EU EUobserver is an <strong>in</strong>dependent onl<strong>in</strong>e newspaper which values free th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g and pla<strong>in</strong> speech. We aim to support <strong>Europe</strong>an democracy by giv<strong>in</strong>g people the <strong>in</strong>formation they need to hold the EU establishment to account. HIGH QUALITY JOURNALISM EUobserver is a non-profit organisation established <strong>in</strong> Brussels <strong>in</strong> 2000. It is f<strong>in</strong>ancially and editorially <strong>in</strong>dependent of the EU <strong>in</strong>stitutions. Our team of experienced journalists file daily news reports from the EU capital and do <strong>in</strong>-depth <strong>in</strong>vestigations on topics of special <strong>in</strong>terest. If you want EUobserver to look <strong>in</strong>to a specific issue, please contact our editors. We protect our sources. Cover photo © <strong>Europe</strong>an People’s Party We are tak<strong>in</strong>g two big leaps <strong>in</strong> 2015: Beyond Brussels and Premium Content. By Lisbeth Kirk BEYOND BRUSSELS The EU is more than just Brussels. You need to know what the EU <strong>in</strong>stitutions are do<strong>in</strong>g. But you also need to know what it means <strong>in</strong> reality. This is why EUobserver is <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g its coverage of <strong>Europe</strong> beyond Brussels. <strong>Europe</strong>ans should get to know each other better for democracy to work properly. We’ll keep writ<strong>in</strong>g quality news and <strong>in</strong>vestigative reports from the EU capital. We’ll keep offer<strong>in</strong>g our site as a venue for serious debate. But <strong>in</strong> 2015, EUobserver is expand<strong>in</strong>g with a new team of correspondents who will file on-the-ground reports and analysis from the EU member states. PREMIUM CONTENT How can we do all this for free? The fact is we can’t and we don’t. For the past 14 years, EUobserver has been f<strong>in</strong>anced by a mix of advertisers, <strong>in</strong>come from EUl<strong>in</strong>ked projects, and <strong>in</strong>dependent foundations. Our staff has contributed their hard work. But we also need you - our readers. This is why we’re launch<strong>in</strong>g Premium Content. From 2015 we offer <strong>in</strong>dividual readers: full access to all our first-class stories and full access to our archives for an <strong>in</strong>troductory price of €75/year. Normal price €150/year. There is no democracy without free press. But free press comes at a price. Become part of EUobserver by show<strong>in</strong>g your support. Email subscriptions@euobserver.com for questions and <strong>in</strong>formation. German chancellor Angela Merkel shares some thoughts with EPP president Joseph Daul <strong>in</strong> July. The centre-right political family won the most seats <strong>in</strong> the <strong>Europe</strong>an elections <strong>in</strong> May. Photo: EPP Former EU foreign policy chief Cather<strong>in</strong>e Ashton (l) shak<strong>in</strong>g hands with Federica Mogher<strong>in</strong>i at a summit <strong>in</strong> Brussels <strong>in</strong> March. Mogher<strong>in</strong>i was still the Italian foreign m<strong>in</strong>ister at the time, but would succeed Ashton by the end of the year. Photo: The Council of the <strong>Europe</strong>an Union In January <strong>2014</strong> Russian president Vladimir Put<strong>in</strong> attended an EU-Russia summit - two months later he annexed Crimea. Put<strong>in</strong> is flanked by former EU Council chief Herman van Rompuy (l). Photo: The Council of the <strong>Europe</strong>an Union 02 ––––– <strong>Europe</strong> <strong>in</strong> review <strong>2014</strong> <strong>Europe</strong> <strong>in</strong> review <strong>2014</strong> ––––– 03