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You can’t solve a problem with what caused it. While nuclear remains expensive and gas prices soar, more investments in these energies will only lock Europeans into high energy bills. WeMove Europe asks parliamentarians to use the upcoming vote on the energy taxonomy to exclude gas and nuclear. Continue Reading >>
In today’s news from the Capitals:
While Americans and Europeans are still split on whether to treat China as a security ‘threat’ or ‘challenge’, the gap is closing as allies try to agree on NATO’s new long-term strategic document, set for the first time to mention Beijing. Read more.
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EUROPEAN SPECIAL REPORT
Bratislava readies 2030 city plan after dramatic tourism drop during pandemic. Following massive losses in tourism due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Slovak capital Bratislava’s local authorities are now preparing the “2030 city plan” to re-attract personnel who left and help the sector stand on its own feet again in a new reality. Read more.
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PARIS
French EU minister calls for ‘positive signal’ to Ukraine’s EU bid. Being open to Ukraine’s bid to join the European Union is necessary, French EU Minister Clément Beaune said after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited Kyiv. Read more.
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BERLIN
Berlin props up nationalised Gazprom subsidiary with €10 billion loan. German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said he could not speculate on how high the loan from the KfW state investment bank to keep Gazprom Germania from insolvency would end up being, but sources place the figure in the region of €10 billion. Read the full story.
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VIENNA
Austrian sets out bigger than expected anti-inflation aid package. The Austrian government has tabled on Tuesday a set of measures to combat soaring prices, including an income tax bracket adjustment and a higher-than-expected ‘climate bonus’ of €500 per person. Read more.
UK AND IRELAND
EDINBURGH
Scottish leader sets out fresh plans for independence from UK. Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon on Tuesday announced plans for a “different and better vision” of an independent Scotland after unveiling a paper on Scottish independence that would set the scene for the debate on the second referendum. Read more.
NORDICS AND BALTICS
HELSINKI
Finland welcomes Europe’s most powerful supercomputer. LUMI, the most powerful supercomputer in Europe and the third most powerful in the world, was inaugurated in Kajaani, some 500 kilometres north of Helsinki. Read more.
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VILNIUS
Lithuania to make big military purchase from France. Lithuania will purchase 18 new-generation 155mm Caesar MarktII self-propelled wheeled howitzers worth up to €150 million from France, Lithuania’s national defence ministry has announced. Read more.
EUROPE’S SOUTH
ATHENS
Greek socialist leader says NATO chief is ‘Erdogan’s ambassador’.The leader of Greek socialist Pasok party lashed out against NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg after the latter described the new tensions between Greece and Turkey as “disagreements” and called for dialogue between the two countries.
“He [Stoltenberg] cannot be both Erdogan’s Ambassador and NATO Secretary-General”, Nikos Androulakis said. Read more.
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ROME
Draghi, von der Leyen scout Eastern Mediterranean alternatives to Russian gas. Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi is on a two-day visit to Israel and Palestine with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, where the two leaders discussed gas, wheat, and the war in Ukraine. Read more.
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MADRID
Spain resumes world’s largest migration operation with Morocco. Spain will resume Operation Crossing the Strait for three months on Wednesday, following a two-year closure due to the pandemic and a diplomatic crisis with Morocco. Read more.
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LISBON
Portuguese PM calls on EU to give Ukraine aid, not debate bloc entry. The European Union should focus on providing immediate support to Ukraine rather than debating its EU accession, Prime Minister António Costa on Tuesday. Read more.
VISEGRAD
BRATISLAVA
Facebook suspends Slovak politician’s page after US pressure. The page of Slovak opposition member Ľuboš Blaha (Smer-SD) was suspended by Facebook due to “repeated violations of policies regarding the hate speech” after a group of US congressmen pressured the company to act against hate speech in Slovakia. Read more.
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BUDAPEST
Fidesz prepares to halve opposition financial support. The monthly subsidies of the opposition parties would be almost halved, while the two governing parties would have around €5 million (HUF 2 billion) less money to spend under the bill that Fidesz MEPs will present next week. Read more.
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WARSAW
Poland wants to subsidise coal to prevent price speculation. The Polish government wants to subsidise coal for household and housing cooperatives amid rising coal prices and shortages caused by the Russian coal embargo, Energy Minister Anna Moskwa announced Tuesday. Read more.
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PRAGUE
Czech MEPs, business concerned over taxonomy vote. Attempts in the European Parliament to block the EU taxonomy and legislation listing gas and nuclear energy among “sustainable” investments have sparked heated debate among Czech lawmakers who say it could harm the energy security of Europe. Read more.
NEWS FROM THE BALKANS
SOFIA
Bulgarian PM needs seven MPs to save government. Prime Minister Kiril Petkov is trying to persuade seven deputies outside the ruling coalition to support him to save his government after the populist party ‘There Are Such People’ announced its withdrawal. Read more.
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BUCHAREST
Russia is NATO’s main antagonist, says Romanian president. In its future Strategic Concept, NATO needs to depict the new security situation as adequately and realistically as possible, starting with identifying Russia as NATO’s main threat, President Klaus Iohannis said on Tuesday. Read more.
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LJUBLJANA
Slovenian students to receive digital vouchers. Tens of thousands of students in Slovenia will receive coupons worth €150 to purchase computer hardware as part of efforts to improve digital literacy. Read more.
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BELGRADE
Serbia faces potato shortage and soaring prices. The price of potatoes in Serbia rose 193% since 2021 due to last year’s drought and large-scale imports, which discouraged domestic production, Guča-based Agro-Mobile company director Ratko Vukićević said on Tuesday. Read more.
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SARAJEVO
Dodik urges meeting of Serb, Croat, Turkish presidents on Bosnia. Bosnian Serb secessionist leader Milorad Dodik met with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu in Istanbul on Tuesday to discuss political and economic cooperation. Read more.
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PRISTINA
Kosovo to sign energy supply deal to Serb-majority municipalities. Kosovo is poised to sign an agreement with Serbia to supply energy to the Serb-majority municipalities of North Mitrovica, Zubin Potok, Zvecan and Leposavic. Read more.
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TIRANA | PODGORICA
Albanian and Montenegrin PMs first in region to visit Kyiv. Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama and Prime Minister of Montenegro Dritan Abazovic departed for Kyiv earlier on Tuesday, where they will meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Read more.
AGENDA
- EU: NATO defence ministers meet ahead of the Madrid summit.
- Foreign Affairs Council (Trade).
- European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen travels to Egypt and Jordan.
- Neighbourhood and Enlargement Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi holds a video conference call with Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanishyna and receives Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) and Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) delegation.
- EU Chief Diplomat Josep Borrell addresses a session of the United Nations Security Council.
- France: President Emmanuel Macron in Romania and Moldova.
- Sweden: Parliament votes on a new budget.
- Denmark: WHO Europe press briefing on monkeypox.
- Greece: Appeal trial of Greek neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn.
- Czech Republic: Czech government presents the EU presidency logo and priorities.
- Ukraine: UN war crimes investigators hold a press conference.
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[Edited by Sarantis Michalopoulos, Vlad Makszimov, Daniel Eck, Benjamin Fox, Zoran Radosavljevic, Alice Taylor, Sofia Stuart Leeson, Eleonora Vasques]
Source: euractiv.com
