The launch of the first two satellites of the EU's Galileo global navigation system has hit a snag, but experts remain optimistic. And more news from Brussels.

The News: Galileo launch delayed - but not by much

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The launch of the first two satellites of the  Galileo navigation system has been delayed

The postponement came after a fault was  detected while refuelling the third stage.

The important thing is that  the whole organisation is in place,

our teams are working very hard,  they're very motivated.

So they'll have to remain under pressure  for another day. But that's all.

It's the first time a Russian Soyuz rocket  has been launched in the west

and it may signal a new era of cooperation.

and it will take a while  before the whole system is functioning.

We hope that by 2014  we'll have 18 satellites in place,

which will be enough  for the system to function,

and then by 2017, 2018 or 2019  the rest will be there.

EU Finance Ministers will have to work  on that and we must get a grip on the crisis.

With a cost so far in excess of €5 billion,

Galileo has been criticised for delays  and being over budget.

But in a world increasingly dependent  on such systems,

I think there's something like €90 billion  over the next few years

to the benefit of the EU economy,  and that's why this is necessary.

Two more satellites go up next year then,  once they're working,

more will follow at the rate of eight a year.

A brief delay shouldn't make  a lot of difference.

A contentious 5% increase is on the table  for the EU's Budget 2014-2020.

EU countries wish to limit it to 2% in line  with current austerity measures.

In a conference, EU officials,  national MPs and civil society

discussed the need  for closer EU integration.

Nominees for the 2011 Sakharov Prize  for Freedom of Thought include:

five Arab Spring activists,  a Belarusian journalist and activist,

and the Colombian  San José de Apartadó Peace Community.

The money is on the Arab Spring to win  after losing out on the Nobel Peace Prize.

But they must wait until  October 27 to find out.

This is a good  and long-awaited day for Libya.

Gaddafi has inflicted enough suffering  on the Libyan people.

MEP Malika Benarab-Attou  was meeting an EU counsellor to Tripoli

when she received the news  of Gaddafi's capture.

The fact that Gaddafi and Sirte, the last  pro-Gaddafi bastion, have fallen

means that a state must  now begin to be built.

I believe that as Europeans we can play  an important role, if the Libyans ask us to.