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The European news you deserve to read. Welcome to The Capitals by EURACTIV.
In today’s news from the Capitals:
Good morning from VIENNA,
Austria’s vehemence at the last meeting of the EU leaders to not leave Western Balkan club hopefuls behind as Brussels accepted Ukraine and Moldova’s candidacy bids has contributed to the positive momentum for the region long stuck in the bloc waiting room, Austrian Federal Minister for the EU and Constitution, Karoline Edtstadler told EURACTIV in an interview. Read more.
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EU INSTITUTIONS
EU health chief calls countries to step up COVID measures ahead of autumn. Amid a tripling of new COVID-19 cases in the past six weeks, the EU’s Health Commissioner called on member states to step up preventative public health measures in preparation for colder months, in a letter obtained by EURACTIV dated Monday. Read more.
European Commission sued for violating EU’s data protection rules. The European Commission is to face a lawsuit over allegations it is violating its own data protection rules when transferring citizens’ personal data from one of its websites to the United States. Read more.
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BERLIN
Saxony prime minister calls to ‘freeze’ conflict in Ukraine. The Prime Minister of the German state of Saxony, Michael Kretschmer, called for peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia and stated that the ongoing conflict should be “frozen”. Read more.
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VIENNA
Austria sees increased support for tackling soaring food prices. Intervention to achieve price reductions on basic foodstuffs is gaining political momentum as calls for uniform national measures to counter increasing inflation gain steam. Read more.
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PARIS
French left demands minister’s resignation following ‘homophobic’ comments. Several left-wing politicians called for the resignation of local government minister Caroline Cayeux on Tuesday after she allegedly made homophobic comments, for which she has apologised. Read more.
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THE HAGUE
Climate change is creating hotter days, says Dutch scientist. Hot days are already getting hotter due to climate change, said Karin van der Wiel, climate scientist from the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI), Dutch media NL Times reported. Read more.
UK AND IRELAND
LONDON
UK leadership race: And then there were three. Three candidates remain in the Conservative party leadership race after Kemi Badenoch was the latest candidate to be eliminated, and the 357 Conservative MPs will decide on the final two on Wednesday, starting a six-week campaign for support from the 150,000 party members. Read more.
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DUBLIN
Ireland suspends visa-free travel for refugees from 20 European countries. Dublin has tightened its immigration policy by temporarily blocking visa-free travel to the country for refugees arriving from 20 European states. Read more.
NORDICS AND BALTICS
HELSINKI
Finnish energy company will not fund Uniper. After being grilled by the parliament’s Commerce Committee on Tuesday, the Ownership Steering minister Tytti Tuppurainen, from the Social Democratic Party, was adamant that the Finnish energy company Fortum will not inject more capital into its German subsidiary Uniper. Read more.
EUROPE’S SOUTH
ATHENS | ROME
Wildfires’ nightmare returns to Еurope’s south, burns homes. Wildfires raged throughout Europe’s south, while the Greek capital is surrounded by flames visible from all over the Attica basin as the fire in Penteli has reached unmanageable proportions. Read more.
Mayor: Landmark investment to give Athens ‘green breath’, new tourists. An €8 billion investment project touted as Europe’s largest coastal park is expected to create a “smart” city within Greece’s capital and offer a much-needed green push, the mayor of Ellinikon, the site of the project, told EURACTIV Greece in an interview. Read more.
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MADRID
Experts predict stagflation for Spanish economy in 2023. The Spanish economy will slow next year, fuelled by the international energy crisis and record high inflation levels resulting from the war in Ukraine, a study by the Spanish economic foundation Funcas predicts. Read more.
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LISBON
EU should develop water management policy, says Portuguese agriculture minister. The EU should develop a water management tool similar to the one created for energy to safeguard agricultural production, Portugal’s Agriculture Minister Maria do Céu Antunes argued in Brussels. Read more.
VISEGRAD
BUDAPEST
Hungary eyes resolve of EU rule of law dispute by summer’s end. Hungarian officials are in Brussels this week to negotiate with the European Commission over longstanding rule of law and democracy concerns, with Budapest ‘optimistic’ the biggest hurdle standing in the way of billions of euros can be cleared before the end of summer. Read more.
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WARSAW
European Parliament’s delegation audits Poland’s EU fund spending. The delegation of the European Parliament budgetary control committee (CONT) began its visit to Poland on Tuesday to make sure that the Polish government is managing the EU money correctly before it gets the first tranche of recovery money. Read more.
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PRAGUE
Czechia offers fourth COVID-19 vaccine jab. Vaccination centres in the Czech Republic are now offering the fourth COVID-19 shot to anyone over 18, which has led to high interest in Prague’s centres and even short queues. Read more.
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BRATISLAVA
Slovakia signs framework deal for EU structural investment spending. The European Commission has adopted the Slovak Partnership agreement, a key document for launching investments as part of the bloc’s Cohesion Policy between 2023 and 2027. Read more.
NEWS FROM THE BALKANS
SOFIA
Bulgaria had no investigation into high-level corruption in 2021. The prosecutor’s office did not initiate a single investigation into corruption at the highest levels of government in 2021, despite US sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Act, the annual report of the non-governmental organisation Anti-Corruption Fund presented on Tuesday. Read more.
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ZAGREB
Croatia air traffic controllers to strike over staffing, pay. Croatia’s air traffic controllers will go on strike from 7:00 on Thursday, citing being overworked and understaffed, Croatian newspaper Jutarnji List reported, heralding potential trouble at the peak of Croatia’s summer tourist season. Read more.
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BELGRADE
Population census in Serbia to be conducted in October. Around 20,000 people, including 15,000 enumerators and 2,200 instructors, will be engaged in a population census, which will be conducted in Serbia from 1 to 31 October, representatives of the Serbian Statistical Office told reporters on Tuesday. Read more.
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SKOPJE
North Macedonia puts on brave face despite expected ambushes on its EU path. North Macedonia’s prime minister put on a brave face on Tuesday (19 July) at the official opening of his country’s long-delayed EU accession talks, as unrest grows at home and a nationalist movement threatens to upend the process. Read more.
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TIRANA
Rule of law looms large as Albania takes first steps toward EU membership.The challenging issues of the rule of law will be addressed head-on in Albania’s EU accession negotiation, the European Commission said on Tuesday as the Western Balkan country took its first step on the long road toward EU membership. Read more.
Italy ploughs hundreds of millions into Albania, Western Balkans. The Italian government, through the Italian Development Cooperation Agency (AICS), is ploughing some €260 million into Albania and the region, particularly in areas such as the rule of law and economy. Read more.
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Agenda
- EU: Meeting of the College of Commissioners.
- European Commission unveils EU energy plan to get through winter.
- High Representative Josep Borrell participates in the Ukraine Defence Contact Group video conference.
- Informal meeting of competitiveness ministers.
- UK: Conservative MP’s final vote to agree on shortlist of two candidates to succeed Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
- Portugal: State of the Nation debate in Parliament.
- Italy: Prime Minister Mario Draghi addresses Parliament on the government crisis.
- Prime Minister Draghi is expected to address the Senate at 9:30 a.m., while a vote of confidence is planned for the evening. On Thursday he is expected to speak before the Chamber.
- Cyprus: Self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus marks the 48th anniversary of the Turkish invasion of Cyprus.
- Serbia: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi is visiting Serbia until 21 July
- Morocco: Moroccan Association of Human Rights (AMDH) presents a report on Nador-Melilla border deaths.
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[Edited by Sarantis Michalopoulos, Vlad Makszimov, Daniel Eck, Benjamin Fox, Zoran Radosavljevic, Alice Taylor, Eleonora Vasques, Sofia Stuart Leeson]
Source: euractiv.com
