Malta

A vessel with around 400 people on board is adrift between Greece and Malta and is taking on water, support service Alarm Phone said on Sunday, after a sharp rise of migrant boats crossing the Mediterranean from North Africa.

Many European countries are illegally returning migrants and asylum seekers, according to a report by the Council of Europe's anti-torture committee, which has identified a systematic policy of physical abuse of people trying to enter Europe.

Seventeen European Union countries plus Norway agreed on Monday to jointly procure ammunition to help Ukraine and to replenish their own stockpiles, the EU's European Defence Agency said.

Bulgaria has reduced its consumption of natural gas by almost a quarter in the last six months, announced the European Commission.

Greece achieved the second highest growth rate in the eurozone in the fourth quarter of 2022, compared to the same period in 2021, according to data published by Eurostat on Wednesday.

Greek annual inflation rate is projected to slow to 7.2% in January from 7.6% in December 2022, with the inflation rate in the eurozone projected to fall to 8.5% from 9.2% over the same months respectively, Eurostat said in its flash estimate report.

Skroutz is taking another step toward becoming the "Greek Amazon," as its online shopping platform, Skroutz Marketplace, is now able to ship products to all eurozone countries. It will soon have an English version too.

Cyprus banks have made progress, but more must be done for them to be on a par with other banks in the European Union and at their current level of development, according to a report by the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM) of the European Central Bank.

Roberta Metsola achieved a number of firsts when she was elected president of the European Parliament a year ago.

She was the first person from Malta, the smallest European Union country, to hold the job; the first woman in 20 years; and, at 43, the youngest president in the Parliament's history.

Tourism facilities in Cyprus, Greece and Malta have successfully reduced their use and disposal of single-use plastics via the SUPMed project, according to a statement from the Pancyprian Hoteliers Association (PASYXE).