Hungary and Poland growing apart over Russian energy

The Capitals brings you the latest news from across Europe, through on-the-ground reporting by EURACTIV’s media network. You can subscribe to the newsletter here.

Before you start reading today’s edition of the Capitals, feel free to have a look at the EURACTIV Media Network roundup where we look at how the EU is split on the Russian oil and gas ban.

Also watch our video report about The unseen risks for Ukrainian refugees.

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The Need for a European Plasma Donation Ecosystem

In the coming decade, more patients will need access to plasma-derived therapies. The revision of the EU BTC legislation is an opportunity to increase the plasma collection across EU, which is needed to manufacture plasma-derived therapies.

In today’s news from the Capitals:

WARSAW | BUDAPEST

Poland and Hungary teamed up in their fight against Brussels over their respective rule of law standoffs, but that unity has dwindled recently over Budapest’s close ties with Moscow which may become the bone of contention. Read more.

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EU PRESIDENCY

Disability ministers call for ‘more just and inclusive’ EU. The EU needs to take additional steps to ensure people with disabilities have greater access to jobs and rights across the bloc, Sophie Cluzel, the French Secretary of State in charge of people with disabilities, told her European counterparts in Paris on Wednesday. Read the full story.

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VIENNA

Austrian industry warns Russian gas embargo would be ‘catastrophic’. Sanctions on Russian gas would have a devastating effect on the Austrian economy, the country’s industry players who have so far backed the EU sanctions regime against Russia, said. Read more.

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BERLIN

Germany pledges more presence in Western Balkans. Germany has appointed its first special envoy to the region in an effort to “show more presence” in the Western Balkans and put their concerns high up on Berlin’s agenda, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock announced during a visit to Sarajevo on Thursday. Read more.

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PARIS

Emmanuel Macron wants to raise the retirement age to 65. Pensions reform will be one of the “priority” projects that President Emmanuel Macron intends to implement if elected to a second term, with the retirement age rising from 62 to 65. Read more. ///

THE HAGUE

Dutch to lodge 900 Ukrainian refugees in hotels, boats. The city of Amsterdam is offering 900 places on boats and in hotels this week to Ukrainian refugees escaping their war-torn country. Read more.

UK AND IRELAND

LONDON/DUBLIN

Ireland has escaped Brexit trade blow, say officials. According to government trade officials in Dublin, Ireland has not been as badly hit by Brexit trade disruption as had been initially feared. But despite fears it would incur the biggest economic losses of any EU country and see an economic hit of between 0.8% and 1% of its GDP, its trade volumes have been resilient. Read more.

NORDICS AND BALTICS

HELSINKI

Finland to power transport fuel from manure, other by-products. Finnish dairy producer Valio and energy company St1 are launching a biogas plant to produce renewable transport fuel in an effort to find new energy sources and improve the country’s self-sufficiency. Read more.

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STOCKHOLM

Swedish government to spend 2% of GDP on defence. Sweden will invest heavily in defence in a historic move that will bring military spending in line with NATO’s goal of 2% of GDP, according to an announcement by the government on Thursday. Read more.

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COPENHAGEN

Over 100 Danes already fighting Russia in Ukraine. Danes are showing great interest in fighting Russia in Ukraine, with 100 Danes already deployed on Ukrainian soil, the Ukrainian Ambassador to Copenhagen, Mykhailo Vydoinik, told Danske Radio (DR) in an interview. Read more.

EUROPE’S SOUTH

MADRID

Spanish far-right party VOX enters regional government for the first time. VOX, Spain’s ascending far-right party, is to form part of a regional government for the first time after striking a deal with the conservative People’s Party on Thursday, EURACTIV’s partner EFE reported. Read more.

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ATHENS

Greek PM says defence spending should be excluded from public deficit. Money invested in defence spending should not be part of the public deficit calculation, said Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. Read more.

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LISBON

Portuguese government approves reinforcement of subsidy for fuel purchases. The government approved on Thursday in a cabinet meeting the reinforcement of the financial subsidy for fuel purchases by citizens that in March is 40 cents per litre, up to a limit of 50 litres, a total of €20. Read more.

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ROME

Italy’s lower house approves new euthanasia law. A bill on euthanasia has been adopted by Italy’s lower house of parliament on Thursday, meaning the legislation will now move to the Senate. Read more.

VISEGRAD

BUDAPEST

Fidesz candidate Novák elected first female Hungarian president. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s candidate, ex-family minister Katalin Novák was chosen as Hungary’s head of state for the next five years by the ruling Fidesz-dominated parliament on Thursday, Telex reported. Read more.

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PRAGUE

Czechia pushes for “energy mix freedom” once again. Nuclear-forward Czech Republic has been pushing for EU countries to have “energy mix freedom” for many years, this time in the wording of the Versailles Declaration focused on decreasing energy dependency on Russia. Read more.

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BRATISLAVA

Slovakia backs Russian energy import ban, despite dire consequences. Slovakia will support the ban of Russian energy commodities imports, Slovak Prime Minister Eduard Heger (OĽaNO) said in Versailles on Thursday. However, consequences will be dire, the country’s Economic Minister Richard Sulík (SaS) warned. Read more.

NEWS FROM THE BALKANS

BUCHAREST

Petrol stations monitored after high pricing spree. Romanian authorities have launched extensive checks on fuel retailers, which they suspect have raised pump prices artificially. Read more.

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SOFIA

Famous Bulgarian pro-Russian businessman and politician sentenced to prison. Businessman and leader of the pro-Russian populist Volya party, Veselin Mareshki, was sentenced to prison for four years over an extortion case that has been going on for eight years. The sentence is not final and can be appealed to the Supreme Court. Read more.

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ZAGREB

Spy Chief: No direct threat to Croatia and its citizens. There is no direct threat to Croatia, and its citizens from the armed conflict in Ukraine, Croatia’s Security and Intelligence Agency (SOA) director Daniel Markić said on Wednesday. Read more.

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LJUBLJANA

Momentum gathering in Slovenia for return of fuel price regulation. Momentum is gathering in Slovenia for a return of administered prices as the cost of petrol continues to soar, despite the country being late to fuel price liberalisation, taking until 2020 to remove price controls fully. Read more.

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BELGRADE

Do not take the Kremlin’s threats of nuclear war seriously, says former Russian FM. Russia’s former minister of foreign affairs Andrei Kozyrev, who was in office from 1991 to 1996, has stated that people should not take seriously the threats of nuclear war made by the Kremlin because the country’s top officials are well aware that the use of nuclear arms would spell not just the end of Russia but the world as a whole. Read more.

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SARAJEVO | BERLIN

Baerbock: No money for separatists. Germany will resolutely insist on preserving peace and security in Bosnia and Herzegovina, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said in Sarajevo, adding that there would be no financial and investment support to those who work on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s disintegration. Read more.

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SKOPJE

North Macedonia government sends changes to VAT law to parliament. The government on Thursday sent amendments to the Law on Value Added Tax and Law on Excise Tax to the Parliament, noting they should be adopted quickly to ensure a decrease of retail prices of fuels and oil derivatives. Read more.

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TIRANA

Albanian President calls for citizen assistance amid inflation. Albanian President Ilir Meta has called on the government to lower oil prices and prepare a package to help families that are struggling financially because of inflation. Read more.

AGENDA:

EU/France: Informal EU summit in Versailles continues on economy, finance, defence.
NATO chief Stoltenberg, EU chief diplomat Borrell and Enlargement Commissioner Varhelyi take part in Antalya Diplomacy Forum.
Germany: Agriculture CommissionerWojciechowski attends extraordinary G7 agriculture ministers’ meeting in Berlin.
Spain: A plane chartered by the Spanish Ministry of Defence arrives Friday in Madrid from Ukraine with around 30 child cancer patients, and their families. They will receive free treatment in Spain.
Poland: Transport Commissioner Adina Vălean visits the refugee reception point at the Polish-Ukrainian border.
Bulgaria: President Rumen Radev will visit a base of the Bulgarian Red Cross in Ruse (on the border between Bulgaria and Romania), where refugees from Ukraine entering Bulgaria are going for consultation and help, as well as a crisis centre, where some of them are staying.
Romania: US vice-president Kamala Harris visits Romania. She will meet President Klaus Iohannis and prime minister Nicolae Ciuca.
Croatia: The chairs of the Croatian Chamber of Agriculture cattle-breeders committees hold a meeting to discuss the effects of the crisis on cattle-breeding.
Serbia: German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock visiting Belgrade within a tour of the region.