In Photos: 2018, A Year of Discord in Europe

From Brexit to Russia’s ties with the West, 2018 has a been a year of discord in Europe.

Major events in Europe in 2018

(Photo: AP/Altered by The Quint)

As 2018 draws to a close, Europe is no closer to knowing the final outcome of Brexit, and Russia's ties with the West show no sign of improving.

In this Saturday, 24 November 2018 file photo, a demonstrator waves the French flag on a burning barricade on the Champs-Elysees avenue during a demonstration against the rising fuel taxes in Paris. 

The streets of France have seen violent protests as "yellow vest" demonstrations have morphed from anger at a fuel tax hike to general discontent with French President Emmanuel Macron's government. Protesters in Paris have torched cars, set fire to barricades and even vandalised one of the country's most sacred monuments, the Arc de Triomphe, to demand more help for the country's financially struggling families.

In this Wednesday, 20 June, 2018 file photo, a man in a passing taxi shouts his disagreement at anti-Brexit, pro-EU supporters protesting backstop by the Houses of Parliament in London. 

The European Union and Britain reached a deal on Brexit, but British Prime Minister Theresa May's government is under threat as many lawmakers have vowed to vote down the agreement in Parliament. London has seen anti-Brexit protests, with demonstrators dressed in colourful costumes calling for a second referendum on the question of Britain's relationship with the EU.

In this Wednesday, 21 February 2018 file photo, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker looks at his watch at the end of a media conference at EU headquarters in Brussels. 

Officials in Britain and the EU, including European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, are looking at their watches as the clock ticks down to 29 March, the day Britain is due to officially exit the bloc.

In this Wednesday, 3 October 2018 file photo, Conservative Party Leader and Prime Minister Theresa May dances as she arrives on stage to address delegates during a speech at the Conservative Party Conference at the ICC, in Birmingham, England. 

May has tried to lift the spirits of her Conservative Party, even poking a bit of fun at herself by doing a robotic dance as she waltzed onstage at the Tory party conference in October.

Previously, May's dancing at an event in Africa drew ridicule in the media.

In this Saturday, 19 May 2018 file photo Meghan Markle and Britain’s Prince Harry stand on the steps of St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle following their wedding in Windsor, near London, England. 

The British royal family also gave the UK public a bit of respite from Brexit, with Prince Harry marrying American actress Meghan Markle in a ceremony at Windsor Castle.

In this Tuesday, 25 September 2018 file photo, German Chancellor Angela Merkel walks through a corridor of the Reichstag building during a Christian Union parties faction meeting in Berlin. 

In Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel announced that she wouldn't be a candidate in the country's next election, which is due in 2021 but could come earlier.

In this Monday, 30 July 2018 file photo, people wait in a queue to cast their vote at a polling station in Harare, Zimbabwe. Zimbabweans on Monday voted in their first election without Robert Mugabe on the ballot, a contest that could bring international legitimacy and investment or signal more stagnation if the vote is seriously flawed.

Major political change reached Africa as well, with Zimbabweans voting in July in their first election without former President Robert Mugabe on the ballot.

In this early Saturday, 5 May 2018 file photo, the moon rises above a huge pile of discarded life vests and dinghies used by migrants and refugees crossing from the nearby Turkish coast, at a dump on the island of Lesbos. More than a million refugees and migrants traveled to the Greek islands and onto Europe during the 2015-16 refugee crisis. Arrival numbers have again swelled in recent weeks. 

Europe witnessed another year of migrants making dangerous journeys across the Mediterranean to try to reach EU nations. Despite the fact that far fewer migrants arrived in 2018 than the previous year, aid workers have been stretched, scrambling to rescue asylum-seekers who often set out in unseaworthy boats run by smuggling gangs.

But the images of rescue boats packed with exhausted migrants in orange life vests have done little to unite EU nations, with many arguing among themselves over which country should take them in.

In this Thursday, 1 March 2018 file photo, journalists watch as Russian President Vladimir Putin gives his annual state of the nation address in Manezh in Moscow, Russia. Putin set a slew of ambitious economic goals, vowing to boost living standards, improve health care and education and build modern infrastructure in a state-of-the-nation address.

Russian President Vladimir Putin gave his annual state of the nation address in March, days before a nerve agent attack on a Russian ex-spy in Britain turned the West even more against Moscow

The Russian government, which denies any involvement in the nerve agent attack, went on to display its military might by hosting major military exercises in September that included China.

In this Tuesday, 14 August 2018 file photo, cars are blocked on the Morandi highway bridge after a section of it collapsed, in Genoa, northern Italy. A large section of the bridge collapsed over an industrial area in the Italian city of Genova during a sudden and violent storm, leaving vehicles crushed in rubble below.

In Italy, a bridge collapsed in Genoa during a sudden, violent storm in August, killing 43 people. It led to calls for safety checks of all major bridges around Italy.

(Published in an arrangement with the Associated Press.)