EUROPEAN COMMISSION
DAILY NEWS
Brussels, 27 May 2025
EU Member States endorse €150 billion SAFE defence loan package to boost European defence capabilities
The European Commission welcomes today's agreement in the Council of the EU on the Security for Action for Europe (SAFE) Instrument. As proposed in the ReArm Europe Plan / Readiness 2030, the Commission will raise up to €150 billion on the capital markets, providing financial levers to EU Member States to ramp up the investments in key defence areas like air missile defence, drones, or strategic enablers.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission said: “Exceptional times require exceptional measures. I welcome today's agreement on SAFE, our Defence Industrial Readiness Loan instrument, as a critical step forward. Europe must now assume a greater share of responsibility for its own security and defence. With SAFE, we are not only investing in cutting-edge capabilities for our Union, for Ukraine, and for the entire continent; we are also strengthening the European defence technological and industrial base. This is about readiness. This is about resilience. And it is about creating a truly European market for defence. Europe is stepping up — with purpose, with unity, and with a clear roadmap toward Readiness 2030.”
Andrius Kubilius, Commissioner for Defence & Space said: "The approval of the SAFE defence loan instrument is a crucial step forward in strengthening Europe's security and defence readiness. I welcome this agreement by our Member States — it sends a clear signal that Europe is ready to invest in its own defence, resilience, and industrial base. Together, Member States can now also buy with Ukraine, for Ukraine and in Ukraine. This is not just a financial instrument; it is a political commitment to a safer, more capable, and more united Europe."
Member States now have six months from the entry into force of the Regulation to submit their initial national plans, which the Commission will then assess.
More information is available in a press release online.
(For more information: Thomas Regnier — Tel.: + 32 2 299 10 99; Marine Strauss — Tel.: + 32 2 298 91 03)
Commission opens investigations to safeguard minors from pornographic content under the Digital Services Act
The DSA aims to ensure a safer environment online for minors, in this context, the Commission has opened formal proceedings against Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX, and XVideos for suspected breaches of the Digital Services Act (DSA).
Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, said: "The online space should be a safe environment for children to learn and connect. Our priority is to protect minors and allow them to navigate safely online. Together with the Digital Service Coordinators in the Member States we are determined to tackle any potential harm to young online users."
In parallel, Member States, coming together in the European Board for Digital Services, are taking a coordinated action against smaller pornographic platforms. These actions will reinforce the Commission's effort to protect minors from harmful content online, both as regards very large adult platforms supervised by the Commission and smaller ones that fall under the supervision of the Digital Services Coordinators.
(For more information: Thomas Regnier - Tel.: +32 2 29 91099; Patricia Poropat - Tel.: +32 2 29 80485)
Commission supports the partnership to accelerate mpox testing in Africa
The Commission, through the Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA), is supporting the Partnership to Accelerate mpox Testing in Africa, with €9.4 million. This will strengthen mpox detection and monitoring, while also supporting innovative tests.
This support will also help procure at least 150,000 diagnostic tests and deliver 5000 mpox genome sequences, that will help to understand the spread and the evolution of the virus. It will increase local and regional capabilities in sample collection, transport, testing and sequencing and as well as supporting large-size procurement schemes. We will support innovation by funding locally developed mpox tests and clinical validation of such tests.
The funds will be managed by a Consortium led by Africa Centre for Disease Control, with the Africa Society for Laboratory Medicine, from 1 June 2025 until 31 May 2028.
Hadja Lahbib, Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management, said: “While vaccines and therapeutics are important medical countermeasures, only a holistic approach can fully contain and end an outbreak. Diagnostics are essential for the prompt detection, isolation and early treatment of cases, while sequencing is critical to monitor viral evolutions that can result in more serious, deadly or infective variants. Our support is also strengthening EU health security, reducing the risks related to cases importation and cross-border spillovers. We remain committed to targeting mpox and reducing such cross-border threat to health.”
The funding is part of HERA's support to the African continent for the 2024-2025 mpox outbreak, which also included the direct purchase and donation of 200,000 doses of vaccines and the coordination of the EU Member States vaccine donations numbering over 400,000.
(For more information: Eva Hrnčířová – Tel.: +32 2 298 84 33; Daniel Puglisi - Tel.: +32 2 296 91 40)
36,000 18-year-olds will be able to discover Europe by rail, with support from the European Commission
Almost 36,000 young people will have the opportunity to travel across Europe for free between 1 July 2025 and 30 September 2026.
Glenn Micallef, Commissioner for Intergenerational Fairness, Youth, Culture and Sport, said: “DiscoverEU continues to open doors for young people across Europe, not just to new places, but to new perspectives. With each round, we see a strong and steady interest from young Europeans in this part of the Erasmus+ programme who are eager to connect, explore, and grow. In a time when Europe faces many challenges, this kind of curiosity, openness and engagement is more important than ever. Erasmus+ and DiscoverEU are helping build the next generation of active, informed citizens.”
These young people had applied for DiscoverEU in April 2025. The application was open to people born between 1 July 2006 and 30 June 2007, from both EU Member States and Erasmus+ associated countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Türkiye).
The young people will travel primarily by rail. Special arrangements have been set up for those from islands, outermost regions, and remote areas. The participants will receive a DiscoverEU travel pass as well as a European Youth Card, which grants access to accommodation, food, local transport, discounts on cultural visits and more. They will also benefit from pre-travel info sessions and DiscoverEU Meet-ups across Europe.
Since 2018, over 1.6 million young people have applied for 390,000 travel passes. More information on the figures per country are available online.
(For more information: Eva Hrnčířová – Tel.: +32 2 298 84 33; Anna Gray – Tel.: +32 2 298 08 73)
The Commission approves a new geographical indication from Spain
The Commission has approved the addition of ‘Miel de Asturias' to the register of Protected Geographical Indications (PGI).
‘Miel de Asturias' is a honey that is made exclusively in Asturias, in northern Spain, from plants found in that region. It is characterised by an amber colour that ranges from light to very dark, a dense texture, and intense aromas and flavours. Today's beekeepers still use the ancestral practices that result in unique honeys, which have been passed down through generations. The use of traditional methods, combined with an extensive knowledge of the local environment, enables the beekeepers to obtain different varieties of high-quality honey.
This new designation joins the more than 3,659 protected names already listed in the eAmbrosia database. More information is available on the Quality Policy pages.
(For more information: Balazs Ujvari - Tel.: +32 2 295 45 78; Thérèse Lerebours - Tel.: +32 2 296 33 03)