Leaders from the EU and Western Balkans are meeting in Brussels on 17th December 2025.
Chaired by Council President AntĂłnio Costa, the meeting will highlight and reaffirm the robust strategic relationship between the EU and the Western Balkans as well as the advantages it provides to citizens.
The President of the European Council, along with the President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will represent the EU at the gathering, while High Representative Kaja Kallas will also attend.
Following the summit, a declaration from the EU-Western Balkans summit will be released, and the Western Balkan partners are anticipated to align with it. This livestream will cover the press conference following the summit.
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Source: United Kingdom UK Parliament (video statements)
Secretary of State at Department of Health and Social Care, Rt Hon Wes Streeting MP, will be questioned on the work of the Department by members of the Health and Social Care Committee.
Source: United Kingdom UK Parliament (video statements)
Prime Minister’s Question Time, also referred to as PMQs, takes place every Wednesday the House of Commons sits. It gives MPs the chance to put questions to the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer MP, or a nominated minister.
In most cases, the session starts with a routine ‘open question’ from an MP about the Prime Minister’s engagements. MPs can then ask supplementary questions on any subject, often one of current political significance.
The Leader of the Opposition, Kemi Badenoch MP, asks six questions and the leader of the second largest opposition party asks two. If another minister takes the place of the Prime Minister, opposition parties will usually nominate a shadow minister to ask the questions.
Want to find out more about what’s happening in the House of Commons this week? Follow the House of Commons on:
Source: United Kingdom UK Parliament (video statements)
Watch PMQs with British Sign Language (BSL) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yU0oKVJzdXs
Prime Minister’s Question Time, also referred to as PMQs, takes place every Wednesday the House of Commons sits. It gives MPs the chance to put questions to the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer MP, or a nominated minister.
In most cases, the session starts with a routine ‘open question’ from an MP about the Prime Minister’s engagements. MPs can then ask supplementary questions on any subject, often one of current political significance.
The Leader of the Opposition, Kemi Badenoch MP, asks six questions and the leader of the second largest opposition party asks two. If another minister takes the place of the Prime Minister, opposition parties will usually nominate a shadow minister to ask the questions.
Want to find out more about what’s happening in the House of Commons this week? Follow the House of Commons on:
On 17 December, two Galileo satellites will be launched on Ariane 6 from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana in the 14th operational launch of the Galileo programme. These satellites will improve the precision, availability and robustness of the Galileo system by adding spares to guarantee the system can always provide a navigation signal for users worldwide. This will be Galileo’s first launch on Ariane 6 and the fifth launch of Europe’s heavy-lift launcher.
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“On 11 December, the Israeli cabinet decided to approve or regularize 19 settlements in the occupied West Bank,” a senior UN official told the Security Council, warning that settlement activity this year has reached record levels.
Briefing the Council, Ramiz Alakbarov, the UN Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, said the decision included the settlements of Ganim and Kadim in the northern West Bank, which had been evacuated by Israel in 2005. He said that “in 2025, settlement advancement reached its highest level since UN tracking began in 2017,” urging Israel to abide by its obligations under international law, and recalling the International Court of Justice advisory opinion of 19 July 2024, which obliges Israel “to cease all new settlement activities, evacuate settlers, and end its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory promptly.”
Alakbarov also raised concerns over developments in East Jerusalem, telling Council members that “on 8 December, Israeli authorities forcibly entered the UNRWA compound in East Jerusalem, seizing property and replacing the UN flag with an Israeli flag.” He recalled that the Secretary-General strongly condemned these actions and emphasized that the “compound remains United Nations premises and is inviolable and immune from any other form of interference.”
Turning to the humanitarian situation, Alakbarov said UN winterization efforts were underway, “distributing tents, blankets and other essential supplies, reaching people where they are.” However, he warned that “conditions remain dire, and the risk of hypothermia is increasing with the onset of winter weather,” confirming that the first hypothermia-related death of a two-week-old newborn boy from Khan Younis, was confirmed earlier today.
