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In today's news from The Capitals :
BERLIN
As part of the agreement on a major package of German defense and infrastructure spending, the Greens managed to write targeted spending into the country's constitution with reference to climate neutrality. Read more.
SOUTH OF EUROPE
ATHENS
Greece's energy genius in trouble after 'serious mistake' Greek Deputy Energy Minister Nikos Tsafos is under attack and his political future is being tested after social media posts in which he appeared to side with his country's largest neighbour, Turkey. Read more.
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ROME
EPP MP's assistant arrested in Italy on Belgian warrant. Italian authorities today arrested Lucia Simeone, an assistant to EPP MP Fulvio Martusciello, on a European arrest warrant issued by Belgian prosecutors. Read more.
US tariffs: What's at stake for Italy? Proposed US tariffs could cost Italy 50,000 jobs and up to €60 billion, warned Pierpaolo Bombardieri, leader of the UIL, one of Italy's largest trade unions. Speaking at an AI event in Milan on Thursday, he highlighted the serious risks for key industries, especially the agri-food sector, which exports €8 billion annually, and the wine industry, which sends €2 billion worth of produce to the US alone.
Italian wine producers are particularly concerned because Trump’s proposed tariffs could have a major impact on exports. Bombardieri called for a strong, unified EU response to protect these sectors and prevent a major economic downturn. He called on both the Italian government and Brussels to take immediate diplomatic action.
Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani was in Brussels, where he met with EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič. Tajani stressed that the EU must take a firm stance to avoid escalation and keep the dialogue with the US open. He also outlined Italy’s plan to boost exports to emerging markets, which he will present to the Italian Senate today.
(Alessia Peretti | Euractiv.it)
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LISBON
Portugal: President dissolves parliament, calls snap elections. Portugal's president has signed a decree dissolving parliament and calling snap legislative elections for May 18, formally announcing his statement made on March 13. Read more.
EAST EUROPE
WARSAW
Poland considering new tax on big tech companies, says deputy PM. Poland's digital ministry is working on a potential tax on big tech companies, Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski (New Left, S&D) told Euractiv, while Prime Minister Donald Tusk said it was not yet clear whether Poland would introduce it. Read more.
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BUDAPEST
Commission 'will not hesitate' to react to Hungarian gay pride ban The European Commission will not hesitate to react to Hungarian legislation banning gay pride parades and allowing police to use facial recognition software to track participants, Commission spokesman Thomas Renier told Euractiv. Read more.
NEWS FROM THE BALKANS
SOFIA
EU court imposes sanctions on Bulgaria for delay in adopting directive. The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has fined Bulgaria €1.59 million for delaying the transposition of the Clean and Energy Efficient Vehicles Directive by 885 days.
Sofia tried to argue before the Court of Justice of the European Union that it was objectively impossible for it to ensure the transposition of the Directive. The country claimed that political instability and the Covid pandemic were the reasons for the delay, but the court did not accept these arguments.
Old story. In September 2021, the European Commission officially notified Bulgaria that the transposition deadline had expired. By April 2022, Bulgaria had still not notified Brussels and was given two months to comply.
Twenty months after the deadline, the Commission found that Bulgaria had not fully taken the required measures and had not communicated them, which led to legal proceedings.
Bulgaria completed its final transposition on 5 January 2024. The Commission withdrew its request for periodic penalty payments, but retained the one-off penalty of €1.59 million.
(Krassen Nikolov | Euractiv.bg)
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BUCHAREST
Romanian farmers are calling on the interim president to ease the EU ban on neonicotinoids . Ramona Duminiciu, president of EcoRuralis, one of the associations that has sued the Romanian state over annual exemptions for neonicotinoids – substances banned in the EU since 2018 – says the situation exposes the “disarray” in pesticide regulation. Read more.
AGENDAS:
- EU : Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maroš Šefčovič receives President of the European Economic and Social Committee Oliver Röpke;
- Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius delivers a speech at the conference “Ukraine and Us. Where Do We Go from Here?” in Berlin, Germany; Delivers a speech at an event dedicated to the White Paper on the Future of European Defence;
- Commissioner for Intergenerational Justice, Youth, Culture and Sport Glenn Micallef meets with UN Under-Secretary-General for Policy Guy Ryder;
- Commissioner for Environment, Water Sustainability and a Competitive Circular Economy Jessica Roswall meets with the Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Qu Dongyu in Rome, Italy.
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[Edited by Vas Panagiotopoulos, Charles Shumsky, Daniel Ek, Sofia Mandilar]
Source: Source
