The adoption of the European Union Climate law has set an ambitious emission reduction target for 2030 while confirming the climate neutrality objective for 2050. According to the IPCC scenarios, keeping global warming below 1.5°C requires that global anthropogenic net emissions should be zero by around 2050. Secondly, meeting this goal requires the deployment of CDR, which can happen by means of bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) and removals in the agriculture, forestry and other land use (AFOLU) sector. The IPCC defines CDR as "anthropogenic activities removing CO2 from the atmosphere and durably storing it in geological, terrestrial, or ocean reservoirs, or in products".
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The two general objectives of the CPR revision are to (1) achieve a well-functioning single market for construction products and to (2) contribute to the objectives of the green and digital transition, particularly the modern, resource-efficient and competitive economy. This is an initiative within the Regulatory Fitness Programme (REFIT) as the proposal aligns with the aims of the REFIT programme, which are to make the EU laws simpler, more targeted and easier to comply with.
EU Heads of State or Government, meeting in Versailles on 11 March, committed to “bolster European defence capabilities” in light of the Russian military aggression against Ukraine. They agreed to: 1) increase defence expenditures; 2) step up cooperation through joint projects; 3) close shortfalls and meet capability objectives; 4) boost innovation including through civil/military synergies; and 5) strengthen and develop our defence industry, including SMEs. Moreover, they invited “the Commission, in coordination with the European Defence Agency, to put forward an analysis of the defence investment gaps by mid-May and to propose any further initiative necessary to strengthen the European defence industrial and technological base.” The tasking was also integrated in the Strategic Compass on Security and Defence adopted by the Council and endorsed by the European Council in March 2022.
Under the European Green Deal, the Commission committed to present, in 2021, a proposal for more stringent air pollutant emissions standards for combustion-engine vehicles. The latest standards are Euro 6 for light-duty vehicles (cars and vans), and Euro VI for heavy-duty vehicles (trucks, buses and coaches).
Steel is one of Europe's essential strategic sectors and plays a vital role in providing products and services to a wide-range of Europe’s industrial ecosystems.
Achieving the digital transition is a fundamental challenge for the European Union in order to maintain a high level of business competitiveness. Winning this challenge is also decisive for global competition, for what could be defined as the maintenance of "digital sovereignty".
This opinion will look into how digital sovereignty is critical for the EU to reach digital targets and could be a game changer in the single market. Digital sovereignty would help boost the EU's potential strengths and address strategic weaknesses in the tech sphere. It would also widen the use of open markets and supply chains to avoid an over-reliance on proprietary systems.