Pro-EU forces to oust Polish conservatives: Exit polls

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In today’s news from the Capitals:

WARSAW

Exit polls from Sunday’s election in Poland suggest that the three opposition parties have a strong chance of forming a coalition government, although the conservative ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party came out on top, in a result that could prove decisive for the balance of power in the EU as the eight-year rule of the national-conservative PiS (affiliated with the European Conservatives and Reformists) could be about to come to an end. Read more.

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PARIS

French Communists want alternative to Mélenchon-driven left coalition. The French Communist Party is calling for a ‘new type of union’ between fellow left-wing parties in France, after radical left leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s La France Insoumise (LFI) found itself in hot water over its response to the recent Hamas attack on Israel. Read more.

France slams Russia’s ‘total cynicism’ on Hamas-Israel war. Russia reversing its position from calling for a ceasefire to not explicitly condemning Hamas and even sending messages of support has been criticised by The Élysée, which calls Russia’s behaviour a way to destabilise the West further. Read more.

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BERLIN

German opposition calls on Scholz to pressure Commission on migration. Germany’s conservative opposition is urging Chancellor Olaf Scholz to pressure the EU Commission to step up the protection of the EU’s external borders regarding funding and infrastructure. Read more.

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THE HAGUE

Israel-Palestine conflict casts shadow on Dutch Labour and Greens congress. The Dutch Labour (PvdA/S&D) and Green (GL/EU Greens) parties tried to show unity at their joint party conference on Saturday after cracks appeared following divergent reactions to the current crisis between Israel and Palestine. Read more.

Dutch companies fined for helping construct Crimea bridge. The Public Prosecutor’s Office fined four Dutch companies and eight individuals on Friday for violating sanctions by participating in the construction of Russia’s Crimean Bridge from 2014 to 2017. Read more.

EUROPE’S SOUTH

ATHENS

Greek progressives deal ruling New Democracy severe blow in local elections. The ruling centre-right New Democracy party (affiliated with the European People’s Party – EPP) lost the municipalities of Athens and Thessaloniki in the second round of Greece’s regional and municipal elections. Analysts now estimate that a new political landscape is emerging with the collaboration of progressive parties to be in the spotlight. Read more.

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LISBON

Portuguese president fears ‘very’ high’ costs of two wars. The world can withstand two wars simultaneously, but with “very high costs”, especially for the poorest, Portugal’s President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said on Sunday. Read more.

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ROME

Italy pressures Hamas to free hostages. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government is using Italy’s good relations with several Arab countries to persuade them to pressure Hamas to release the hostages, with a first meeting with Jordan’s King scheduled for Monday in Rome. Read more.

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MADRID

Podemos leader calls for protests against Israel’s ‘genocide’ in Gaza. Israel is carrying out a “planned genocide” in the Gaza Strip by leaving hundreds of thousands of people without water and electricity and demanding their evacuation without any security guarantees, stressed Ione Belarra, leader of the left-wing Unidas Podemos party, calling on Spanish citizens to take the matter to the streets. Read more.

EFA Catalan candidate wants ‘internal’ enlargement for EU’s ‘stateless nations’. The head of the European Free Alliance (EFA) list for the upcoming European elections, Raül Romeva, called on the European Union on Saturday to prepare for a possible future “internal enlargement” in which “stateless nations” of the current member states become independent and join the EU club. Read more.

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VALLETTA

Concerns over €200,000 a month consultants hired to ‘transition’ Malta’s failed airline. The Abu Dhabi-based consultancy company that will be paid €200,000 a month to transition the set-to-close Air Malta to a new carrier was previously and unsuccessfully engaged in restructuring and saving the airline. Meanwhile, their fees raise questions over EU state aid violations. Read more.

EASTERN EUROPE

PRAGUE

Czech Pirates warn of EU proposal threatening private online communications. The Czech Pirate Party, part of the country’s ruling coalition, has warned against the European Commission’s proposal aimed at curbing child sexual abuse online, claiming that it introduces blanket control over private online conversations. Read more.

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BRATISLAVA

More details about Russian interference in Slovakia’s election emerge. The technocratic Foreign Minister, Miroslav Wlachovský, has mentioned the expulsion of a person with “diplomatic cover” who tried to influence Slovakia’s election results in Russia’s favour, in what former defence minister Jaroslav Naď called “the tip of the iceberg”. Read more.

NEWS FROM THE BALKANS

TIRANA

Rama on EU enlargement promises: decision makers will be gone, replaced next year. The European Commission, Council and Parliament cannot make promises about enlargement, as next year, many of them will no longer be there, and it will not be their decision to take, said Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama in an interview. Read more.

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SOFIA

Bulgaria shocks Hungary Serbia with huge transit fees on Russian gas. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjártó have reacted strongly to Hungary’s decision to introduce new, huge transit fees of €10.2 per MW/h of natural gas passing through the Bulgarian extension of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline to Western Europe – the so-called “Balkan Stream”. Read more.

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BUCHAREST

Romania tries to get its citizens out of Gaza. Romania has initiated efforts to evacuate its citizens from the Gaza Strip, with some 200 Romanian nationals requesting assistance from the authorities in Bucharest to leave the area. Read more.

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BELGRADE

Kurti accused of lying to the EU and US. The director of the Serbian Office for Kosovo, Petar Petković, accused Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti of lying to the European Union and the United States but has not substantiated his claims. Read more.

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PRISTINA

Ex-US ambassador to Kosovo: Western approach to Serbia not working, time to reassess the dialogue. Efforts to coax Serbia into the arms of the West instead of China and Russia have not yielded results and it is time to wake up to a new approach, former US ambassador to Kosovo, Philip Kossnett, told Euractiv in an interview. Read more.

AGENDA:

EU: Eurogroup convenes to discuss Future of European capital and financial markets, euro summit; Ministers exchange views with U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen on global outlook, risks, and more;
Environment Council convenes to reach agreement on urban wastewater treatment directive, CO2 emission standards for heavy-duty vehicles, and more;
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen attends Berlin Process Summit, in Tirana, Albania;
Commission Vice President Margaritis Schinas on official visit in Banjul, The Gambia;
Germany: President Frank-Walter Steinmeier hosts Jordan’s King Abdullah II;
China: Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov visits;

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[Edited by Sarantis Michalopoulos, Daniel Eck, Alice Taylor, Sofia Stuart Leeson, Sofia Mandilara]