Until 3 January 2027, the Kröller-Müller Museum in the Netherlands is hosting an exhibition devoted to Vincent van Gogh. For the first time since 1984, this exhibition brings together all 88 of the artist's paintings held in the museum's collection. Organised around the themes of faith, hope and love, the exhibition explores the painter's artistic and spiritual journey and highlights how these three theological virtues influenced his life and work.

The Lumière Festival is taking place in Lyon until 18 October. Devoted to heritage cinema, it is offering around 450 film screenings. Each screening is introduced by an actor, a filmmaker, a critic or a member of the festival team. The Lumière Prize is awarded each year to a figure from the world of cinema in recognition of their life's work. In 2026, it was awarded to Joel and Ethan Coen.

On 6 October, MEPs approved the new programme, known as AGILE, for innovation in the defence sector. With a budget of €115 million, this programme aims to provide financial support to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), start-ups and growth-stage companies developing emerging and disruptive defence technologies. The Council formally adopted it on 12 October.

On 7 October, the European Commission disbursed €1.24 billion to Ukraine as part of the 'defence' component of the €90 billion support loan. This funding will finance the purchase of drones, drone interceptors, drone munitions and missiles produced by Ukrainian companies. Of the total loan, €60 billion is earmarked for defence and €30 billion for budgetary support for the period 2026–2027. For 2026, €28.3 billion is to be disbursed to strengthen the country's defence industrial capabilities. Further disbursements under this component are expected in the coming weeks.

On 12 October, in response to Russia's ongoing and escalating aggression against Ukraine, and in particular its recent brutal military campaign deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure and causing severe suffering to the civilian population, the Council adopted further restrictive measures against 1,569 individuals and entities belonging to the Russian military-industrial complex. The list adopted includes 826 Russian companies and 743 individuals holding the position of CEO within those companies. On 8 October, the Council extended for one year, until 9 October 2027, the individual restrictive measures targeting 80 natural persons and 20 entities responsible for Russia's destabilising actions abroad, including information manipulation and interference activities.

On 8 October, the four astronauts from the εpsilon mission, including the Frenchwoman Sophie Adenot, returned to Earth after spending nearly eight months in space aboard the International Space Station (ISS). During this mission, Sophie Adenot became the first Frenchwoman to carry out a spacewalk (EVA), completing three in total. They must now undergo a recovery programme to allow their bodies to readjust to Earth's gravity.

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham travelled to Berlin on 8 October to launch a joint initiative with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to combat sabotage and cyber-attacks. The strategic partnership announced between London and Berlin will enable the sharing of information and facilitate the coordination of surveillance and deterrence measures to strengthen Europe's resilience in the face of hybrid threats. This first meeting between the two heads of government marks the formal ratification of the Kensington Treaty agreed in 2025 and forms part of a broader "renewal" of relations between the United Kingdom and the European Union.

On 8 and 9 October, the Ministers for the Economy and Finance of the eurozone countries, followed by those of the EU, reviewed progress on the capital markets union and discussed the effectiveness and efficiency of public finances. They examined the impact of developments in the energy markets on the economy. On 9 October, the ministers agreed on the negotiating positions regarding key new measures designed to strengthen the EU's capital markets. These new rules will represent a major step forward in mobilising private savings to invest in innovative businesses, finance growth and strengthen the EU's overall global competitiveness. They removed Vietnam and Panama from the EU's list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes.

On 6 October, MEPs adopted two legislative resolutions aimed at adapting and simplifying the European Union's economic governance framework. The first text provides for amendments to the regulations governing budgetary procedures and the monitoring of deficits in euro area Member States, with a view to aligning them with the Union's revised economic governance framework and simplifying their implementation. The second resolution concerns the adaptation of the rules on economic and budgetary surveillance of euro area Member States that are experiencing, or are at risk of experiencing, serious difficulties with regard to financial stability. On 6 October, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a regulation aimed at speeding up the development of European standards and improving the Union's competitiveness.

On 10 October, the Irish Presidency of the Council set out its position on the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for 2028–2034, which represents a compromise between the Commission's proposal and the Member States' demands ahead of the European Council meeting on 15 and 16 October. The proposal reduces the Commission's proposal by 140 billion. It also provides for national allocations under cohesion policies and the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) to be maintained at current levels. It announced that an agreement had been reached on the EU's own resources, which would generate €55 billion per year. This position will be subject to further negotiations. Against this backdrop, the European Court of Auditors published its annual report on 8 October.

Public and private debt is rising everywhere, in the United States as well as in China, whilst criticism often focuses on Italy or France. Debt is not a moral failing but a management issue, one that can be rectified: the real challenge is that of growth. The gap between Europe and the United States stems mainly from stronger growth across the Atlantic, driven by risk-tolerant stock market financing and a culture of entrepreneurship and the acceptance of failure. To repay debts and preserve the European social model, we would therefore need to revise budgetary rules currently considered Malthusian, pursue a more active monetary policy, and deregulate without destabilizing the markets.

On 5 October, the 10th meeting of the Association Council between the European Union and Moldova took place. Discussions focused on the progress of Moldova's accession process to the European Union. Whilst the EU emphasised the need to continue efforts to strengthen the independence, impartiality and professionalism of the Moldovan judiciary, it welcomed the progress made on reforms. To this end, the Commission has disbursed €157 million to Moldova. This brings the total EU funding to Moldova under this heading to approximately €661 million.

Victoria Martín de la Torre has published a monograph entitled 'Schuman's lessons for today's Europe: Intercultural Dialogue to build transnational communities'. The book revisits the foundations of European integration to shed new light on the concept of community. The book offers a fresh interpretation of Schuman's vision and a practical path towards building, in the 21st century, transnational communities capable of tackling polarisation and uncertainty.