This Week in Arts & Culture — Brussels (#29, 2026)
Commission annual report on EU budget; ECA confirms clean accounts; Amendments to Collines Rhodaniennes and Coteaux de l’Auxois PGIs adopted; Council meets Moldova.
October 05, 2026 to October 11, 2026
Commission annual report on EU budget; ECA confirms clean accounts; Amendments to Collines Rhodaniennes and Coteaux de l’Auxois PGIs adopted; Council meets Moldova.
📋 In This Week's Newsletter
• 🇪🇺 European Commission
• ⚖️ EU Legislation
• 🤝 EU Council
European Commission
ECA Annual Report Confirms Clean Bill of Health for EU Budget 2025
On 7 October 2026, the European Commission welcomed the Court of Auditors' Annual Report, which gave the EU's 2025 accounts a clean bill of health for the nineteenth consecutive year. The ECA confirmed the accuracy of EU revenue collection and noted an estimated error rate in spending of 3.8%, similar to the previous year. In 2025, the EU budget contributed €88.3 billion for Ukraine support and €12.9 billion to research and innovation, resulting in over 22,500 scientific publications and support for over 10,000 SMEs. The EU budget also allocated €3.3 billion for affordable housing, €14.5 billion for climate adaptation, and €53.2 billion through the Common Agricultural Policy. In the security and defence sector, 63 projects received over €1 billion in EU funding, and the European Defence Fund awarded around €1 billion for defence R&D. The Commission highlighted the introduction of the SUMMA financial system and ongoing review of the EU anti-fraud architecture, with results to be presented by the end of 2026.
EU Legislation (Official Journal)
PGI Amendment: Collines Rhodaniennes
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/2226, adopted on 29 September 2026, approves a Union amendment to the product specification of the protected geographical indication ‘Collines Rhodaniennes’. This follows Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 and entered into force twenty days after publication in the Official Journal (OJ L, 2026-10-06, CELEX: 32026R2226). No opposition was received for the amendment.
PGI Amendment: Coteaux de l’Auxois
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/2224, adopted on 29 September 2026, approves a Union amendment to the product specification of the protected geographical indication ‘Coteaux de l’Auxois’. The amendment is pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 and applies from the twentieth day after publication in the Official Journal (OJ L, 2026-10-05, CELEX: 32026R2224). No statements of opposition were received.
EU Council
10th EU–Republic of Moldova Association Council Convened in Brussels
The 10th EU–Republic of Moldova Association Council was held in Brussels on 5 October 2026. The session addressed ongoing bilateral cooperation under the Association Agreement.
