EUROPEAN UNION

Stephanie Caprini traveled to Athens, Greece just days before the recent riots. Upon returning to the States, she regrets that she lacked the cultural awareness that it takes to be present in a city that she now understands she was merely passing through.

The United Nations and European Union are working to push Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to halt violence.

A cultural “war” has erupted between Greece and its neighbor Macedonia over plans to construct a giant bronze statue of Alexander the Great in Skopje, the Macedonian capital.

George Papandreou, the embattled Prime Minister of Greece, has offered to resign to pave the way for a national unity government, according to various sources, as the Athens parliament prepares to enact more unpopular austerity measures.

Public discontent over the Spanish government’s severe austerity program has led to a bizarre spectacle in the northeastern city of Barcelona where at least 2,000 protesters tried to block the Catalan parliament to expression their anger over local budget cuts and job losses.

Demonstrations against a new austerity program were disrupted by clashes between police and protestors

US auto major Ford Motors will invest €812 million, or $1.2 billion, for its plant in the Valencia region of eastern Spain.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has short-listed two candidates, Christine Lagarde and Agustin Carstens, for its next Managing Director.

Talks about a second bailout for Greece are getting closer to a conclusion as the European Commission pushes for a voluntary debt swap, media reported.

The new chief executive of bailed out British bank Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE: LYG) is planning to cut another 15,000 jobs, on top of the 28,000 positions the bank has already eliminated since it merged with HBOS in early 2009.

The German government said it supports the Benghazi-based Libyan rebel group, the National Transitional Council, as the legitimate representatives of the Libyan people.

The European Central Bank needs to ensure recent oil and commodity price rises do not trigger inflationary problems, the bank's President Jean-Claude Trichet said on Monday, days after signaling a July interest rate hike.

Turkey's efforts in improving ties with its neighbors in the Middle East over the past decade may witness a challenge in the unabated unrest in Syria that may force a rethinking of its foreign policy, now that Sunday's election is out of the way.

105,000 Christians Killed Every Year

The Netherlands on Friday backed Germany over the participation of the private sector in a new bailout package for debt-laden Greece, an issue that has set Berlin on a collision course with the European Central Bank.

While Syrian pour across the border into Turkey to escape the armies of Assad, the Turks already have their hands full with a crucial national election this weekend. The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) of Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan is expected to score an easy victory.

Fifteen years after its civil war ended, Croatia prepares to be the EU's 28th member state.

The former Irish finance minister Brian Lenihan has died from pancreatic cancer.

European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said on Friday countries that had not undertaken far-reaching structural reforms faced weak growth after the financial crisis.

The Netherlands said it will postpone until next year any decision on allowing Bulgaria and Romania into the Schengen zone (which would allow for passport-free travel between the Schengen states).

The top candidate to run the International Monetary Fund, French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde, said she backed a bigger say for China at the Fund while making clear that the euro zone crisis would be a priority if she wins the job.