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The European news you deserve to read. Welcome to The Capitals by EURACTIV.
In today’s news from the Capitals:
HELSINKI
Finnish President Sauli Niinistö has criticised the EU for not being a “genuine” union, adding that “a clear and more swift reaction” to the current situation in Ukraine had been expected. Read more.
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BERLIN
German government to be sued over ‘unconstitutional’ spending. Germany’s conservative opposition is bringing the government to court over extra spending on climate action, it was announced after a €60 billion budgetary package was adopted in parliament. Read more.
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PARIS
Macron to call Putin to discuss Ukraine crisis. French President Emmanuel Macron and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin are set to hold a telephone call Friday morning to discuss the ongoing crisis over Ukraine. Read more.
UK AND IRELAND
DUBLIN
Irish fishing industry meets Russian ambassador over planned naval exercises. Representatives of Ireland’s fishing industry have been issued with an “absolute guarantee” by Russia’s ambassador that their work will not be impacted by Russian naval exercises scheduled for next week. Read more.
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BELFAST | LONDON
Unionists set their own NI Protocol deadline. The Democratic Unionist Party has set its own 21 February deadline for the EU and UK government to resolve the long-running dispute over the Northern Ireland Brexit protocol. Read more.
EUROPE’S SOUTH
ATHENS
Leftist main opposition files motion of censure against conservative government. The leftist main opposition Syriza party has filed a motion of censure against the government, saying the ruling conservative New Democracy party is “dangerous” for the country following a catastrophic snowstorm that paralysed the country. Read more.
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MADRID
Eighteen migrants disappear following botched rescue operation, says NGO. Eighteen migrants went missing Tuesday as more than 400 were rescued trying to reach the Canary Islands through the so-called Atlantic route to Europe, Canariasahora and EURACTIV’s partner EFE reported. Read more.
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Spain ended 2021 with record job creation. Spain ended 2021 with 840,700 new jobs, the highest figure since 2005, and 615,900 fewer unemployed, leaving the unemployment rate at 13.3%, the lowest level since 2008. Read more.
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ROME
Italian leaders commemorate Holocaust memorial. The anniversary of the Holocaust “does not only require us to remember the millions of dead, the mourning and the suffering of so many innocent victims, including many Italian ones. But invites us to prevent and combat, today and in the future, every seed of racism, anti-Semitism, discrimination and intolerance”, said president Sergio Mattarella on Thursday on Holocaust Memorial Day.
“Today, we remember the horror of anti-Semitism and renew our collective commitment to oppose any attempt to erase memory. Remembering is a commitment for the present, a foundation for the future,” said Prime Minister Mario Draghi.
(Eleonora Vasques | EURACTIV.com)
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LISBON
Portugal and Ukraine have ‘relationship of excellence’, says FM. Portugal and Ukraine have a “relationship of excellence”, said Portugal’s Foreign Minister, Augusto Santos Silva, marking 30 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Read more.
VISEGRAD
PRAGUE
Czech cyber experts warn athletes of Chinese espionage. The National Cyber and Information Security Agency (NUKIB) and Military Intelligence have recommended athletes participating in the Beijing Winter Olympic Games to protect their personal data, EURACTIV Czech Republic’s media partner Aktuálně.cz reports. Read more.
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BUDAPEST
Hungary planning to positions itself on the French-Russian nuclear axis. A relatively unknown new state company is allegedly involved in preparing big investments and working on the construction of a Hungarian-French-Russian nuclear axis, as well as reportedly considering the construction of a training and research reactor, Telex reported. Read more.
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BRATISLAVA
NATO mulls sending troops to Slovakia despite government’s reluctance. NATO is evaluating whether to send a 1,000-strong battlegroup and to support possible deployment in Slovakia, Foreign Minister Ivan Korčok (SaS) confirmed. However, other high-ranking members of the governing coalition believe that approval of such an offer is currently unfeasible. According to unnamed government sources, the coalition fears disapproval from the public and subsequent protests. Read more.
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WARSAW
Polish parliament adopts Ukraine resolution despite opposition from Confederation party. Parliament’s lower chamber has adopted a resolution expressing support for Ukraine but failed to pass it with enthusiasm due to the opposition of the rightist Confederation party. Read more.
NEWS FROM THE BALKANS
BUCHAREST
Romanian energy producer moves from coal to natural gas. Romanian power producer CE Oltenia has applied for financing to invest in two gas-powered plants one day after Romania obtained the European Commission’s greenlight for a massive restructuring aid package. Read more.
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SOFIA
Bulgarian anticorruption commission investigates minister of interior. The Commission for Combating Corruption and Confiscation of Illegally Acquired Property is leading an investigation against Interior Minister Boyko Rashkov, it was announced during a parliamentary hearing of the president of the Commission Sotir Tsatsarov. Read more.
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ZAGREB
Croatia’s green party wants country to focus on conflict prevention. Opposition parties in the Croatian parliament debated the possible sending of Croatian troops to Ukraine following the president’s statements about the crisis that provoked strong reactions. Sandra Benčić of the Green-Left Bloc said her group would vote against sending Croatian troops. Read more.
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LJUBLJANA
Concern about proposed changes to Slovenia’s criminal code. The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) has joined a growing chorus of Slovenian stakeholders in expressing concern about proposed changes to the Slovenian criminal code that it says risked undermining the effectiveness of the EPPO. Read more.
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BELGRADE
Serbian Ombudsman demands removal of textbook denying minority languages. The Serbian ombudsman requested the education ministry on Thursday to remove from the curriculum, by the start of the next school year, the Serbian language textbook for the eighth grade of elementary school, in which the existence of the Croatian, Bosniak and Montenegrin languages is denied. Read more.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic accused of ‘bribing voters’. The president of the ‘Black and White’ (Crno na Belo) movement in Serbia, law professor Vladimir Vuletić, said he would file criminal charges against Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vučić, for what he described as “bribing voters” ahead of the 3 April elections. Read more.
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ZAGREB | SARAJEVO
Croatia gives Mostar hospital €5.3 million to curb pandemic. Croatia will give the Mostar University Hospital in Bosnia and Herzegovina 40 million kuna or €5.3 million this year to help deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, the government decided on Thursday. Read more.
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SARAJEVO
SDP rejects BiH election reform. The Social Democratic Party (SDP) will not take part in Election Law reform talks as long as the country’s state institutions are blocked and until anti-Dayton Peace Agreement, secessionist decisions by the country’s Republika Srpska entity are abolished, party leader Nermin Nikšić announced. Read more.
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SKOPJE
North Macedonia invests in modernisation of air navigation system. The government is investing over €11 million in the modernisation of Air Navigation Service Provider of North Macedonia (M-NAV) to enable more efficient operation of the Air Traffic Control and more efficient air traffic in the country, Transport and Communications Minister Blagoj Bočvarski said.
The modernisation plan includes constructing a new building, procurement of new radars, new communication equipment, and a new ATM system that will increase capacity and provide more efficient and safer air traffic, the government said in a statement.
The new facility will be built on an area of 1,200 square metres, Fahrudin Hamidi, executive director of M-NAV, said in the statement. (Željko Trkanjec | EURACTIV.hr)
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PODGORICA
Montenegro’s foreign trade amounted to €2.94 billion in 2021. Last year, Montenegro’s foreign trade amounted to €2.94 billion, a growth of 19% compared to the same period of the previous year, preliminary data from Monstat, the country’s statistical office, shows.
The value of exports of goods was €437 million, and import was about €2.5 billion. Compared to last year’s same period, exports increased by 19.4%, while imports increased by 19%.
The main trading partners in exports were: Serbia (€107.3 million), Switzerland (€50.7 million) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (€33.4 million).
Serbia (€500.8 million), China (€245.2 million) and Germany (€231.2 million) were the biggest import partners.
(Željko Trkanjec | EURACTIV.hr)
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PRISTINA
Borrell pressures Kosovo ahead of EU–led Serbia dialogue. The EU’s chief diplomat, Josep Borrell, has accused Kosovo of stalling dialogue with Serbia designed to normalise relations. Read more.
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TIRANA
Albanian government falls short of giving Vjosa River maximum protection. The Albanian government has announced that the decision to designate the Vjosa River as a natural park has come into force. This falls short of the maximum level of protection afforded by declaring it as a National Park. Read more.
AGENDA:
- Germany: Health Minister Karl Lauterbach and RKI president Lothar Wieler hold press conference on Covid-19.
- France: French President Emmanuel Macron holds a telephone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
- Lithuania: Four Danish fighter jets arrive to reinforce NATO mission amid Ukraine tensions.
- Spain: ‘Defending Europe’ summit of European far-right parties.
- Croatia: Parliament will on a package of seven laws for social welfare reform.
- Serbia: President Aleksandar Vučić to meet with European Parliament representatives for the Serbian pre-election inter-party dialogue Tanja Fajon, Knut Fleckenstein and Eduard Kukan.
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[Edited by Sarantis Michalopoulos, Alexandra Brzozowski, Daniel Eck, Benjamin Fox, Zoran Radosavljevic, Alice Taylor]
Source: euractiv.com
