The European Commission is to review its research agenda to reflect EU-wide policy changes following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. 

A new batch of unapproved drafts of Horizon Europe work programmes obtained by Science|Business reveals details about upcoming funding calls for climate research, improving research excellence in poorer EU countries and strengthening research infrastructures.

EU research ministers signed a declaration laying out common principles and values for international cooperation in research and innovation in Marseille on Monday, but these rules arrive as the rapid pace of geopolitical change threatens to render them useless in selecting scientific collaborators from outside the EU.

Projects in jeopardy as EU revokes millions in grant offers after failure of trade talks

Discussions are underway in Brussels over whether Russia should be cut out of future Horizon Europe projects after president Vladimir Putin recognised two separatist-held parts of Ukraine as sovereign states and requested permission from parliament to send in troops on a mission.

France is now working with the European Commission and science and university associations to push for a new system of evaluating research in Europe, launching the Paris Call on research assessment.

Disagreements persist over the use of lump sum funding in Horizon Europe, as the European Commission gears up for broader implementation over the next couple of years. At a meeting organised by the European Parliament's panel for the future of science and technology (STOA), Horizon Europe rapporteur Christian Ehler MEP debated the pros and cons of lump sum funding, with policymakers in the Commission. Meanwhile, research stakeholders continue to call for caution and a slower rollout of the new system.

A number of national research organisations have been taken aback by the urgency of a request by the European Commission to appoint representatives to negotiate a new research assessment system in Europe.

The EU urgently needs better intelligence about China's science and technology system to avoid being taken advantage of, warns a new report.

What are the main six debates to watch this year in European research policy?

Horizon Europe Missions will reach full steam this year. The €1.9 billion two-year plan for the missions saw the light of day last autumn, with the European Commission launching the first calls in the last weeks of 2021.

The EU's proposed artificial intelligence act fails to fully take into account the recent rise of an ultra-powerful new type of AI, meaning the legislation will rapidly become obsolete as the technology is deployed in novel and unexpected ways. Foundation models trained on gargantuan amounts of data by the world's biggest tech companies, and then adapted to a wide range of tasks, are poised to become the infrastructure on which other applications are built.

First impressions of Horizon Europe are in, as the research world gets to grips with the €95.5B research programme.

Europe needs to build eleven new international research labs at a cost of €4.16 billion, according to the latest roadmap from the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI), published on 7 Dec., as the European Commission called for a review of funding sources for the shared facilities.

Academic mobility has long been trumpeted as the secret to forming international research networks, but support has led to one-way flows. Now, the EU is considering how to balance out the movement of researchers around the bloc.

This year's budget waltz is over. After months of haggling, MEPs scored a last-minute deal last night on the 2022 budget, convincing member states to allocate some extra cash to Horizon Europe, though in the end the increase was far lower than the European Parliament was bidding for.

Switzerland should agree to a timeline for ironing out broader political disagreements with the EU, the European Commission announced on Monday, signaling a long road ahead for Swiss association to Horizon Europe.

After years of bickering, Washington and Brussels appear to be patching up a disagreement over American researchers participating in the EU's big R&D programmes.

Results from some of the innovative EU-funded research that help us to better understand the major political issues of the day and provide recommendations for policymakers, citizens and other organisations to better respond to the threats facing European democracy.

Universities in Europe 'strongly regret' that finalisation of association is still elusive 10 months after Brexit agreement.

More than 80% of scientific papers stemming from Horizon 2020 funded projects were published in open access journals, according to the European Commission in a new report.

The European People's Party (EPP) is calling on the Commission and member states to fund emergency placements for Afghan researchers and academics at European higher education and research institutions. One of the EPP's lead MEPs, Christian Ehler, said scientists in Afghanistan risk being persecuted by the Taliban, after the islamist group took over the country when the US military and its allies pulled out.

Switzerland will be excluded from Horizon Europe for at least two years, fears Yves Flückiger, president of the country's university association, swissuniversities and rector of the University of Geneva.

Hoping to put pandemic-related delays behind it, Brussels is getting back to R&I policy-making.

After a fumbling start, the European Union overtook the United States in vaccinations last month.

With 70% of the EU population now fully vaccinated, European universities are planning to welcome students back to lecture halls and seminar rooms for the 2021-22 academic year, after long months of disruption and distance learning.

New research points to growing participation of Western Balkans researchers in EU academic exchange programmes, as the EU takes steps to welcome countries in the region as associate members of the Horizon Europe.