The Brussels Times

Young Belgians born in 2008 have until 15 October to apply for a free Interrail pass through the European Commission's DiscoverEU programme. For Brussels student Valentine, 19, the opportunity came at just the right time. Valentine travelled alone through seven European countries this summer, saying that the initiative became an opportunity to discover new cultures, meet people and experience the freedom of travelling independently.

Belgium is known for its horrible traffic, yet the country subsidises car use through a highly popular system of company cars. Why is it so hard to change this scheme? "I would rather swallow a lightbulb than abolish company cars." It’s a quote that Sammy Mahdi, the leader of the Flemish centre-right government party CD&V (Christian Democrats), said during a conference a few weeks ago.

The European Commission has approved two merger cases — a new logistics joint venture in central Europe and a US deal in automotive parts — after finding neither would raise competition concerns. Posco Flow Europe D.o.o. of Slovenia and LX Pantos Poland Sp. z o.o. of Poland have been cleared to create a joint venture focused mainly on logistics and supply-chain management services in Poland and the wider central European region, the European Commission said in a release on Friday.

The EU will grant Armenia temporary trade preferences for two years from 10 October to support Armenian exporters after Russia imposed trade restrictions. The measures will temporarily liberalise almost 80% of Armenian exports to the EU, including almost all exports of fresh fruit, vegetables and flowers affected by the Russian restrictions, the European Commission announced on Friday. They will also cover more than 91% of exports of beverages and spirits.

The European Commission has selected 46 new “Strategic Projects” across 16 EU countries to increase the bloc’s supply of critical raw materials used in technologies such as batteries, defence equipment and permanent magnets.

Eurozone finance ministers have discussed how to protect vulnerable households from higher energy prices while keeping public finances on track. Energy prices have returned to “elevated levels” since the end of August, affecting fuels including diesel and jet fuel, Eurogroup President Kyriakos Pierrakakis said after the Eurogroup meeting on 8 October. Developments in the Middle East and Russia’s war against Ukraine were cited as external risks to Europe’s energy supply and prices, he added.

EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos attended the inauguration of a new section of the Halkali–Kapikule railway in Edirne on Friday, a project backed by €275 million in EU grant funding. The newly opened Çerkezköy–Kapıkule stretch is part of a rail link between Istanbul and the border with Bulgaria, the European Commission announced.

Carlo Comporti has been formally appointed by the EU member states as chair of the European Securities and Markets Authority, taking up the post on 1 November 2026. His term will run for five years and may be extended once, the Council of the EU said in a statement on Friday. Comporti is currently a commissioner at Italy’s companies and stock exchange commission, CONSOB, and sits on ESMA’s board of supervisors and management board.

EU governments have approved a package of new laws designed to simplify defence procurement, speed up permits and make it easier to invest in the EU’s defence industry. The measures form part of the EU’s “Omnibus V” simplification package and cover procurement rules, permit-granting, reporting and cross-border cooperation, the Council of the EU said in a statement on Friday.

France has been cleared by the European Commission to provide up to €40.5 million in state-backed loans to transport, agriculture, fishery and aquaculture companies facing higher fuel costs linked to the Middle East crisis. The support is split into €23.3 million for transport firms and €17.2 million for agricultural, fishery and aquaculture businesses, the Commission reported on Friday.