Is climate change set for a comeback as a top EU priority, after a deadly summer of record-breaking heatwaves across Europe?
The fight against global warming is expected to feature prominently in a key policy speech by EU chief Ursula von der Leyen this month, after two years critics say were marked by major environmental rollbacks.
With Europe barely emerging from a sweltering summer, climate would have been hard to ignore in the normally sprawling "State of the European Union" address -- a yearly speech setting out political priorities for the next 12 months.
Scientists have shown that recurring heatwaves are a clear marker of global warming, primarily caused by burning coal, oil and gas -- and warn they are set to become more frequent, longer and more intense.
But after years as a leading EU cause, climate concerns have taken the backseat to defence and industry goals over the past couple of years -- to the frustration of environmentalists.
