Latvia

Romanians and Bulgarians spend the largest part of their monthly income on food compared to the other countries in the European Union, with Romanians ranking first at 23.7 %, and Bulgarians following closely behind at second with 18.9%, indicate data from Eurostat for 2022, cited by the newspaper "Adevărul".

The poor performance of the Greek judicial system in administering justice and all that entails for citizens' rights, the economy and investments are, experts stress, directly related to its incomplete digitalization, lagging behind the EU and many other countries.

Three Bulgarians are now sought by Russian authorities for their alleged involvement in the conflict in Ukraine, as revealed by the database of wanted persons accessed by Mediazona, a Russian news website.

He also emphasized that Berlin is within range of Russian missiles stationed in the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.

Recent Eurostat data unveils a concerning trend in the European Union's energy landscape, highlighting an increase in fossil fuel dependence from 69.9% in 2021 to 70.9% in 2022. Notably, Bulgaria sees a 2.8 percentage point rise, contributing to this shift.

NATO is increasing its military presence in the Atlantic and Arctic regions. This is the first phase of the major military exercise "Steadfast Defender 2024", which will last until mid-March. From mid-February to the end of May, military personnel from the Arctic and the Eastern Flank will also be trained. Nearly 90,000 military personnel are participating in the exercise.

The countdown is under way to unveil the 2024 class of the European Young Leaders (EYL40). Motivated by the urgent need to tackle the increasing disconnect between citizens and policymakers, and to rebuild the trust that is vital to democracies, Friends of Europe launched the EYL40 leadership programme in 2012. The EYL40 Class of 2024 will be unveiled on 22 January.

Day 688 of the invasion of Ukraine. Summary of key events in the last 24 hours:

Latvia has declared its intention to forcibly deport over 1,200 Russian citizens who have reportedly failed to formalize their legal status in the Baltic country. This decision, announced via the national radio of Latvia and reported by TASS, comes as a consequence of these individuals not having applied for any form of residence permit in the country by November 30.

The reason for initiating the procedure is because they did not transfer all the provisions of the directive on seasonal workers in a completely correct way. The aim of this directive is to ensure fair and transparent rules for the admission of seasonal workers from third countries to the EU.