You’re reading Rapporteur on Thursday 12 March. This is Nicoletta Ionta, joined by Eddy Wax, as we make our way back to Brussels from Strasbourg.

Need-to-knows:

🟢 Brussels drafts new security masterplan amid rising tensions

🟢 Exclusive: Italians account for 45% of applicants in EU hiring competition

🟢 Hungary sends disputed delegation to Ukraine for pipeline talks

It was in Limassol, sitting on a row of blue chairs under the Cypriot sun, that I watched Ursula von der Leyen float the idea of a sweeping new EU security strategy. Just a few kilometres away lies the British base at RAF Akrotiri – now within reach of Iranian missiles.

Europe is once again staring at instability on its southern doorstep, prompting some capitals to move military assets in recent weeks to help shield Nicosia.

The Commission president’s announcement set security diplomats asking what an EU “security strategy” should look like.

The timing isn’t accidental. Since Donald Trump’s return to the White House last year, Washington has been rattling Brussels with tariff threats while reminding Europeans – loudly – that defence should probably be their responsibility.

This week, the EU’s diplomatic arm, the European External Action Service, started consulting capitals on the strategy’s content, my colleague Charles Cohen and I reported. The document, mostly made up of questions, asks countries what should go in and, perhaps more importantly, how the initiative should be framed.

Officials are also seeking opinions on which “priority areas” warrant expansion of existing instruments and how the bloc can “better leverage” its security and defence partnerships.

A final version of the strategy was tentatively planned for the first half of 2026, though one EU official told Euractiv there’s still debate over whether it should land before or after NATO’s summit in Ankara 2026 on 7-8 July. EU ambassadors are due to discuss the issue on Friday.

It may all hinge on how far the Commission is willing to go. One option is to reinterpret existing competences through a “security lens.” A more ambitious path would nudge the EU executive deeper into areas national governments still guard jealously as sovereign.

One diplomat said the scoping paper hints at a “360-degree approach” to security, echoing language used in the Commission’s Defence Readiness 2030 roadmap unveiled last year. In practice, the strategy could bring together defence, resilience, supply chains and other policy areas that can plausibly be framed as security issues.

The risk, of course, is that Brussels ends up producing another glossy strategy while much of the Strategic Compass – endorsed by EU capitals in 2022 – continues to gather dust, a reminder of the bloc’s tendency to write new plans instead of delivering on the last.

Italians rush for EU jobs

Nearly 80,000 applicants for the EU’s latest generalist exam, which offers a lifelong civil service career, are Italian, according to an internal breakdown seen by Rapporteur.

Six years after the previous intake, the bloc’s careers office confirmed on Wednesday that 174,922 candidates had applied, far exceeding the 60,000 initially expected when applications opened in February. Italians account for 45% of applicants.

"Nationality based competitions and/or quotas would avoid all of this," said one EU diplomat. Read the full story by Eddy and Magnus Lund Nielsen.

Pipeline tensions escalate

Hungary said on Wednesday it had sent a delegation to Ukraine for talks on the Druzhba pipeline, which transports Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia. Ukraine said the delegation was not official.

Budapest and Bratislava accuse Kyiv of delaying the reopening of the pipeline that pumps Russian oil to the two landlocked states. Ukraine says the pipeline was damaged by Russian strikes in January.

The dispute has given Robert Fico leverage in EU negotiations. He has threatened to join Viktor Orbán in blocking a €90 billion loan package for Kyiv and holding up new sanctions on Russia until oil flows resume.

Countries eye closer ties to the Commission

Ten EU countries are exploring a special cooperation arrangement between the Council and the European Commission, according to four diplomats.

The idea emerged during an ambassadors’ meeting last month held without the Commission’s participation, partly in response to the institution’s increasingly close relationship with the European Parliament, voted through by MEPs on Wednesday. Several sources told Rapporteur the proposal was exploratory at this stage.

The Council has previously warned it could even take legal action over the interinstitutional deal between the Parliament and the Commission, arguing it risks upsetting the EU’s delicate institutional “balance” of power.

Migration fight in Parliament

Just days after the civil liberties committee approved the “return hubs” legislation with a broad centre-right to far-right majority, centre-left and left-wing groups are considering a procedural challenge to whether Parliament can open negotiations with the Council.

Such a move could push the file to a plenary vote. However, the negotiating mandate must first be formally announced in plenary – a step that had not yet taken place and could occur as early as today, according to two parliamentary sources.

If announced, the challenge could be put to a vote during the Brussels plenary at the end of the month, provided the Conference of Presidents – Parliament’s governing body – schedules it when it meets tomorrow.

Liberal MEP Malik Azmani will remain rapporteur on the file, his office confirmed to Rapporteur, despite being sidelined after right-wing groups agreed on an alternative compromise text that overrode his report and shifted negotiations further to the right.

Budget skirmish over abortion funding

Lawmakers have delayed a vote on the EU’s 2027 budget guidelines after pressure, notably from the Socialists, amid fears that progress on the “My Voice, My Choice” abortion initiative could be undermined. The proposal aims to improve access to safe abortion.

The clash comes after the Commission signalled this month that ESF+ funds could be used to cover travel or accommodation costs for individuals required to seek abortion care abroad.

The hard-right ECR has tabled an amendment stating that European Social Fund Plus resources should fund “exclusively” healthcare as defined under the EU cross-border healthcare directive – language that would effectively exclude abortion. My colleague Thomas Mangin has the full story.

CANFIN–GOTINK SHUFFLE: Renew lawmaker Pascal Canfin is moving from health to trade, becoming a full member of Parliament’s international trade committee (INTA). He will swap roles with fellow liberal Jérémy Decerle, who joins the public health committee (SANT). Canfin is expected to focus on China- and Taiwan-related files as a standing rapporteur. EPP lawmaker Dirk Gotink will also take up a seat on INTA, taking over from Jessika van Leeuwen following her move to the ECR group.

SUPER RATS: As ‘super rats’ begin to outsmart toxic bait, campaigners are urging the EU to shift towards fertility control. Contraceptive baits could offer a more humane way to curb populations, but would require Commission authorisation during the planned 2027 revision of the biocidal products regulation. Read the full story by Florent Servia.

BERLIN 🇩🇪

Germany will release part of its strategic oil reserves after the International Energy Agency urged members to deploy 400 million barrels to counter price spikes linked to the Middle East war, Economy Minister Katherina Reiche said. Berlin will also restrict petrol stations to one price rise per day. Oil markets remain volatile amid uncertainty over access to the Strait of Hormuz.

– Christina Zhao

PARIS 🇫🇷

Emmanuel Macron urged Israel to renounce a ground offensive in Lebanon and called on Hezbollah to “immediately” halt attacks after speaking with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun. Fighting has intensified since Hezbollah struck Israel following the killing of Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Israel has expanded air raids and deployed troops near the border. Lebanese authorities say 634 people, including 91 children, have been killed.

– Christina Zhao

MADRID 🇪🇸

The European Commission has referred Spain to the EU’s top court for failing to implement two VAT directives intended to ease the fiscal burden on small businesses. Brussels will seek financial sanctions, warning the delay risks double taxation. Madrid has said it does not plan to use an optional exemption, while business groups argue the inaction undermines competitiveness.

– Inés Fernández-Pontes

ATHENS 🇬🇷

Greece will cap profit margins on fuel and supermarket goods for three months to curb unjustified price rises linked to turmoil in the Strait of Hormuz, Kyriakos Mitsotakis said. Heating oil and diesel have jumped sharply, according to market monitors. Authorities will step up inspections to prevent profiteering as energy market volatility begins to filter into consumer prices.

– Sarantis Michalopoulos

BRUSSELS 🇧🇪

Belgian broadcaster RTBF reported that federal judicial police have obtained a video claiming responsibility for this week’s attack on a synagogue in Liège. Security was tightened at Jewish community sites across Belgium in the aftermath. The federal prosecutor’s office told RTBF that forensic analysis was underway to verify the footage and trace its origin.

– Nicoletta Ionta

PRISTINA 🇽🇰

A draft European Parliament report on Kosovo described 2025 as a “lost year,” citing prolonged political stalemate that left the country without a government for much of the period. Rapporteur Riho Terras said progress on the rule of law and anti-corruption was limited, while media freedom rankings slipped. The report backs lifting EU measures and urges countries in the bloc that do not recognise Kosovo to move towards recognition.

– Bronwyn Jones

Drone attacks tied to Iran and Hezbollah have revived debate in Cyprus over potential NATO membership, but President Nikos Christodoulides acknowledges that Turkey would almost certainly veto any application while the island remains divided. With parliamentary elections looming, critics say the renewed focus on NATO reflects domestic political positioning as much as shifting regional security concerns.

Contributors: Charles Cohen, Sofía Sánchez Manzanaro

Editors: Christina Zhao, Sofia Mandilara