To mark the 500th anniversary of Ferdinand I of Habsburg's accession to the Bohemian throne, Prague Castle is exhibiting the Bohemian Crown Jewels until 28 September. Forged in 1347 for the coronation of Charles IV, King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor, the Crown of St Wenceslas and its jewels are symbols of Czech identity.

The Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan, a leading figure in contemporary art, is the winner of the 2026 Nationalgalerie Prize. With the exhibition "Night", Berlin's Neue Nationalgalerie is presenting the artist's first major exhibition in Germany. Selected for this prize by an international jury, the artist is showcasing a collection that brings together landmark works from his past as well as recent creations. The exhibition will run until 7 March 2027.

On 10 September, in the presence of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced a new phase of the strategic partnership between the two countries. Thus, in addition to recent partnerships between key companies in the Ukrainian and Canadian defence sectors concerning the procurement and production of drones, the Canadian government will invest nearly 370 million Canadian dollars to strengthen Ukraine's long-term security. It will provide funding of over 600 million Canadian dollars to support Ukraine's energy security and reconstruction, and will provide an additional 6 million Canadian dollars in aid to facilitate the repatriation of Ukrainian children forcibly displaced by Russia.

On 10 and 11 September, the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Alain Berset, held talks with the Latvian President, Edgars Rinkēvičs, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Baiba Braže, and the Speaker of the Parliament (Saeima), Daiga Mieriņa. Alain Berset emphasised that Latvia's experience in combating hybrid threats is invaluable in building a common European response. He also attended the Riga Conference, where he spoke about Ukraine's future as a pillar of European security. Finally, he visited the NATO Centre of Excellence for Strategic Communications, where discussions focused on possible synergies between NATO's expertise and that of the Council of Europe.

The International Space Summit took place in Paris on 9 and 10 September. Nearly 120 foreign delegations were present for the occasion. Whilst the French President emphasised the need to fully embrace "European preference", the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, highlighted the importance of IRIS², a European initiative aimed at deploying a European satellite constellation to provide Europe with "an autonomous and resilient connectivity capability". According to the Élysée Palace, around 50 contracts and agreements were signed during the summit, with a total value announced at approximately €20 billion.

On 8 September, the foreign ministers of Canada, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the United Kingdom and Sweden decided to establish and/or uphold, at the European level, import restrictions on goods produced by Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which are deemed illegal under international law. In a joint statement, the aforementioned states urged the Israeli government to cease all settlement expansion and renewed their commitment to a lasting peace enabling "Israel and a sovereign, democratic and viable Palestinian state to recognise one another and live side by side in peace and security within secure and internationally recognised borders."

On 10 September, the European Commission adopted a communication on the outermost regions of the European Union, namely French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, Réunion, Saint Martin (France), the Azores, Madeira (Portugal) and the Canary Islands (Spain). In it, the Commission sets out a new strategic vision for these regions, with a view to boosting their socio-economic development. The communication is accompanied by a regulatory package comprising several legislative proposals aimed at adapting certain European rules to the challenges faced by these territories. In particular, exemptions and derogations are envisaged in the areas of taxation, forestry, agriculture, fisheries and migration.

From 7 to 11 September, the heads of German diplomatic missions met in Berlin for the annual ambassadors' conference. On 10 September, Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul spoke on the perception abroad of German foreign and security policy. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte attended the conference – the first time a NATO chief has done so. The Minister urged the ambassadors to actively advocate, in their host countries, for increased support for Ukraine, noting that Germany is now Kyiv's largest bilateral supporter. This year, Germany has invested €124.7 billion in 'hard' defence capabilities, representing around 2.7 per cent of its GDP. This figure is expected to reach at least 3.5 per cent by 2029, amounting to more than €150 billion.

On 13 and 14 September, Finland hosted the Arctic Summit, bringing together European Union leaders in Rovaniemi. The aim of the summit is to strengthen the Union's common strategic approach to the Arctic, a region whose geopolitical importance is growing rapidly. In light of current geopolitical tensions, European Union leaders now wish to focus more on peace and security, as well as on economic activity in the region.

On 10 September, the Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) announced a 25 basis point increase in the ECB's three key interest rates, with effect from 16 September. The deposit facility rate was thus raised to 2.5 per cent, the main refinancing operations rate to 2.65 per cent and the marginal lending facility rate to 2.9 per cent. The increase is attributed in particular to inflationary pressures linked to the conflict in the Middle East. The inflation forecast remained unchanged at 3 per cent for 2026, 2.5 per cent for 2027 and 2.3 per cent for 2028. As for economic growth, the forecast stands at 0.9 per cent in 2026, 1.4 per cent in 2027 and 1.5 per cent in 2028.

On 9 September, the European Court of Auditors published a report on the REPowerEU plan. Since the plan was adopted in May 2022, the European Union has significantly reduced its dependence on Russian fossil fuels. However, the Court highlights a significant shortfall in investment. Of the additional €300 billion estimated by the Commission in 2022 as being necessary to meet the REPowerEU targets by 2030, only €54.3 billion (18 per cent) had been committed by April 2026. It highlights insufficient progress in the development of renewable energy and cross-border interconnections, as well as inadequate monitoring and steering of the plan's implementation. It calls on the Commission and the Member States to better coordinate their plans, to bridge the funding gap and to strengthen the monitoring of the REPowerEU targets.

Faced with geopolitical tensions and the weakening of traditional alliances, the European Union must strengthen its autonomy and its capacity for action. This involves accelerating economic, financial and political integration, modernising its governance and responding more effectively to external challenges. The challenge is to enable Europe to assert itself more strongly in an increasingly unstable and competitive international context.

On 10 September, the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) published a report providing an overview of recent trends in asylum in the European Union, as well as in Switzerland and Norway. The number of applications for international protection received in the first half of 2026 stood at 332,000, which is 17 per cent lower than in the same period the previous year. France received the highest number of applications, followed by Italy, Spain and Germany. Together, these four countries accounted for around three-quarters of the applications received. The recognition rate at first instance during the first six months of the year stood at less than a third.