EU - European Council - Press releases

1. Zimbabwe: Council renews arms embargo and lifts travel bans and assets freeze

   The Council extended the restrictive measures on Zimbabwe until February 2027 maintaining the arms embargo, while lifting travel bans and asset freezes.

2. EU annual budget 2027: Council sets guidelines for next year's EU budget

   The Council today approved conclusions setting guidelines for the EU’s annual budget for 2027. The guidelines provide a political steer to the Commission in preparing the draft budget proposal for next year’s budget.

3. Economic governance: Council approves flexibility for Austria to increase defence spending

   The Council today activated the national escape clause for Austria under the stability and growth pact.  The measure will help Austria transition to higher defence spending at national level while ensuring debt sustainability.

4. Taxation: Council updates the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes

   Today, the Council added two countries - Turks and Caicos Islands and Viet Nam – to the EU list. At the same time, three countries - Fiji, Samoa and Trinidad and Tobago - were removed. Following this update, the list consists of 10 jurisdictions.

5. President Costa to travel to Oslo on 19 February 2026

   The President of the European Council, António Costa, will travel to Oslo this week for high-level meetings. The visit marks the strong momentum of the bilateral relations with Norway, one of the closest and most likeminded partners for the European Union.