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In today’s news from the Capitals:
BERLIN
As the USA and Norway reap unprecedented profits from surging energy prices, EU countries are complaining more loudly and are preparing to send the European Commission forward to negotiate a better deal, voluntarily or not.
The European energy crisis has caused energy prices to spike. While Russia, the cause of the crisis, was one of the largest beneficiaries, EU allies, primarily the USA and Norway, are reaping extreme windfall profits as they fill the gap Russia left behind. Read more.
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EU INSTITUTIONS
EU Commission postponed AI treaty negotiations with further delays in sight. The European Commission has managed to postpone discussions on the Council of Europe’s treaty on Artificial Intelligence, with a view to obtaining a mandate to negotiate on behalf of the EU. Further delays might still follow as the bloc tries to get its act together. Read more.
Leading German Green slams Berlin’s €200bn mega aid package. Key figures from the German Greens are calling on the EU to adopt a mechanism that would complement the German gas price cap after Berlin announced it would take on more debt to fund a massive €200 billion aid programme. Read more.
‘European Political Community’ takes shape in face of Russia’s war. Leaders of 44 European countries are set to gather in Prague on Thursday (6 October) for their inaugural summit of the European Political Community (EPC), a new format searching for a purpose as multiple crises hit the continent. Read more.
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BERLIN
German push for Spain to join ‘European Skyshield’ amid Russia war. Spain and other EU members joining a Berlin-led European and NATO-integrated anti-aircraft defence system were rumoured to be on the agenda of the German-Hispanic Summit on Wednesday in A Coruña. Read more.
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PARIS
France has low judicial efficiency compared to EU neighbours. France lags on budget, personnel, and case resolution times relative to its EU counterparts, a European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) report found on Wednesday. Read more.
TotalEnergies boss says oil price cap will boost Putin. The head of French energy major TotalEnergies said Wednesday (5 October) that a possible price cap on Russian oil over the Ukraine war would benefit Russian President Vladimir Putin. Read more.
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VIENNA
Austria revamps public media funding. The public funding of media will be updated to foster more diversity and transparency, the Austrian government announced on Wednesday, in a move that comes after years of criticism over the allocation of public money to media. Read more.
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BRUSSELS
Room for improvement in Belgium’s Justice budget, says CEPEJ. Belgium is far from its German or Dutch neighbours, and below the Council of Europe median in terms of the share of GDP it allocates to the budget for the judicial system, a CEPEJ report published on Wednesday says. Read more.
UK AND IRELAND
LONDON
NI talks to resume after EU-UK relations thaw. Ministers have confirmed that talks between UK, EU and Irish officials are set to resume this week to finally resolve the long-standing dispute in the implementation of the Brexit deal in Northern Ireland. Read more.
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DUBLIN
Irish transport system must become less car-dependent, OECD. Ireland’s transport system is overly car-dependent, impeding progress towards emissions-reduction targets, an OECD report has said. Read more.
NORDICS AND BALTICS
COPENHAGEN
Danish PM called snap elections following mink-gate scandal. Early elections will be held on 1 November, Social Democrat Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announced on Wednesday following threats of a non-confidence vote from a supporting party over a scandal involving the culling of several million mink. Read more.
EUROPE’S SOUTH
ATHENS
RSF on mission to Greece amid press freedom ‘terrible setbacks’. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) will visit Greece between 9-11 October to discuss the critical situation of press freedom, which has put the conservative New Democracy (EPP) government to the test. Read more.
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MADRID
Spanish PM urges Macron to honour his commitment to gas interconnections. French President Emmanuel Macron was urged by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to fulfil his commitments to energy network connections between the Iberian Peninsula and the rest of the EU, including a future Midcat pipeline. Read more.
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LISBON
Ukraine joins Iberian bid to host 2030 World Cup finals. Ukraine will join Portugal and Spain in their bid to host the final stages of the FIFA World Cup in 2030, the federations of the two Iberian countries announced on Wednesday. Read more.
VISEGRAD
WARSAW
Poland wants NATO nuclear weapons at home. Poland wants to take part in the Nuclear Sharing program and may receive nuclear weapons from the United States, although, as the Polish president stresses, this is far from being realised. Read more.
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PRAGUE
War in Ukraine unlocked Czech arms industry potential, defence minister. Czech Defence Minister Jana Černochová (ODS, ECR) met with representatives of the Czech arms industry on Wednesday and told journalists that the Czech Republic could become an arms superpower because of the war in Ukraine. Read more.
NEWS FROM THE BALKANS
SOFIA
Pro-Russian politician in spat with Bulgarian journalists. The leader of the radical pro-Russian party “Vazrazhdane” Kostadin Kostadinov tried to expel journalists from a press conference in Sofia on Wednesday. Read more.
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BUCHAREST
Romania caps prices of wood for heating. The Romanian government set a maximum price for firewood, wood briquettes and pellets, as winter draws in and heating costs continue to soar.
The maximum price will be 400 lei (€80) per cubic metre for firewood, 1,500 lei per metric ton for wood briquettes, and 2,000 lei per ton for wood pellets for all end customers. The government wants to protect citizens from “unjustified price increases” for products used to heat homes. The measures provided will apply until 31 March 2023.
(Bogdan Neagu | EURACTIV.ro)
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LJUBLJANA
Slovenia’s unemployment at all-time low, but trend likely to reverse. Slovenia’s jobless total dropped to the lowest level since the country gained independence in June 1991, Employment Service data shows. Read more.
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BELGRADE
Serbia has enough gas but seeks to diversify. Serbia has enough gas reserves to go through two months of a ‘worst case scenario’ but is looking to diversify its supply and move away from dependence on Russia, officials have said. Read more.
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PRISTINA
Kosovo customs point opens in Albanian port. Kosovo-bound customs goods are now being processed in the Port of Durres in Albania, following an agreement signed between the two countries earlier this year. Read more.
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TIRANA
Albania ploughs ahead with crypto exchange regulation. The Albanian Financial Supervision Authority approved a licensing regime for cryptocurrency exchanges, a first for the region, strengthening a crypto law passed in 2020. Read more.
Agenda
- EU: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen participates in the Meeting of the European Political Community;
- Vice-President Schinas receives Mr Aleksandr Ceferin, President of UEFA;
- Commissioner Schmit in Helsinki, Finland: meets Ms Hanna Sarkkinen, Minister of Social Affairs and Health, worker organisations, NGOs; visits Ohjaamo – One-Stop Guidance Centre for Youth; visits Y-Foundation on Housing First;
- Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski participates in Rural Inspiration Awards Ceremony and official launch of the European CAP Network, Brussels;
- France: Government presents energy saving plans, closed by the Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne;
- Spain: Inauguration of SNCF’s low-cost Ouigo train service between Madrid and Valencia;
- Carles Puigdemont’s pro-independence party votes on whether to stay in regional government;
- Portugal: Bank of Portugal revises its economic forecast for 2022;
- Norway: Government presents draft budget for 2023;
- Czech Republic: European Political Community first summit meeting;
- Ukraine: IAEA chief Rafael Grossi visits;
- US: IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva delivers her curtain raiser speech ahead of the annual meetings;
- Australia: Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky addresses Lowy Institute think tank by live video link;
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[Edited by Sarantis Michalopoulos, Vlad Makszimov, Daniel Eck, Zoran Radosavljevic, Alice Taylor, Sofia Stuart Leeson]
Source: euractiv.com
