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In today’s news from the Capitals:
It would not be wise for Ukraine to attack Russian territory with weapons it received from the West should it successfully push out Russian forces, said German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Thursday, as many Germans increasingly fear this scenario may well play out. Read more.
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EU INSTITUTIONS
Lawyer says lifting MEP Kaili’s immunity was ‘illegal’. Greek lawyer Spyros Pappas has filed an appeal to the General Court of the EU against the European Public Prosecutor’s decision to request the lifting of the immunity of MEP Eva Kaili, claiming that it was illegal because none of the conditions for such a move were met. Read more.
Qatargate: Kaili reacts negatively to partner’s release from jail. Francesco Giorgi, the partner of European Parliament former vice president Eva Kaili, has been freed from jail but will wear an electronic bracelet, according to a press release by the Belgian prosecution dated 23 February. The development however prompted a negative reaction from Kaili. Read more.
How Europe prepares to support Ukraine for ‘as long as it takes’. As the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion nears, Kyiv and its Western allies are looking at how to keep up sustained long-term support. To do so, this could see the EU entering unchartered territories. Read more.
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EDITOR’s TAKE
UK thinks Begum may have been a trafficking victim, so why is she a threat? Shamima Begum, a 15-year-old child who left the UK to join the Islamic State group in 2015, lost her challenge over the decision to deprive her of British citizenship, with the ruling admitting she may have been a victim of child trafficking but could pose a ‘threat’ nonetheless. Read more.
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PARIS
France hopes to recover €14.6 billion worth of 2022 tax fraud from the public. French taxpayers may have to fork out €14.6 billion in unpaid taxes, according to the tax authorities fraud assessment for 2022, the Public Accounts Ministry reported on Thursday. Read more.
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VIENNA
Far-right attacks on Austrian president spark outrage. Far-right leader Herbert Kickl’s verbal attack on President Alexander Van der Bellen at the traditional “political Ash Wednesday”, where politicians have carte blanche to publicly criticise eachother, has sparked widespread outrage among Austria’s political parties. Read more.
UK AND IRELAND
LONDON
UK researchers await NI protocol deal after losing £1.6bn Horizon funds. In the UK parliament on Thursday, ministers revealed that grants worth up to £750 million had been provided to 1,548 successful applicants as part of the UK government’s Horizon Europe guarantee. Read more.
UK welcomes EU’s role in addressing global challenges, Ukraine support. The European Union played a positive role in addressing global challenges, upholding peace and security in the Western Balkans, and supporting Ukraine, said the UK’s UN Ambassador Barbara Woodward at the Security Council briefing on EU-UN Cooperation on Thursday. Read more.
NORDICS AND BALTICS
HELSINKI
Finland to donate three Leopards to Ukraine. Finland will hand over three Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine in a new military aid package, Defence Minister Mikko Savola (Center) announced in a press meeting on Thursday. Read more.
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STOCKHOLM
Sweden considers sending tanks to Ukraine. The Swedish government could soon send Leopard-2 tanks to Ukraine as Defence Minister Pål Jonson announced he was open to the idea on Thursday following political agreement in parliament. Read more.
EUROPE’S SOUTH
ROME
Italy’s leading leftwing force to vote on new leadership on Sunday. Emilia-Romagna Governor Stefano Bonaccini and his former deputy, leftwing MP and former MEP Elly Schlein, are through to the primaries for the election of the new leader of Italy’s leading centre-left force, the Democratic party (PD), with the vote scheduled for Sunday. Read more.
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MADRID
Spanish PM vows full support for Ukraine following second visit. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez pledged Spain’s support for Ukraine for ‘as long as necessary’ during his second trip to the country since the start of the Russian invasion on Thursday. Read more.
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LISBON
EU recovery funds may be used to tackle ‘undignified housing’ in Lisbon. Lisbon city council on Thursday proposed to include municipal neighbourhoods in the Lisbon local housing strategy, thus allowing the application of funds from the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP) in their rehabilitation. Read more.
VISEGRAD
WARSAW
Polish-US relations flying high after HIMARS systems sale. US Congress greenlighted the sale of almost 500 HIMARS artillery rocket systems to Poland, said Polish Defence Minister Mariusz Błaszczak on Thursday. Read more.
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PRAGUE
Czechia hosts most Ukrainian refugees per capita. The 10.5 million strong population of Czechia hosts the most Ukrainian refugees with temporary protection status per population among European Union nations, Eurostat data shows. Read more.
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BRATISLAVA
Slovak parliament pressured to make chicken farming cage-free. The National Council will look into banning cages for chickens and laying hens after investigation videos showing the animals’ welfare conditions in three Slovak farms made the rounds online. Read more.
NEWS FROM THE BALKANS
SOFIA
Bulgaria may join Eurozone in 2025. Bulgaria may join the Eurozone on 1 January 2025, European Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis said in Sofia on Thursday, postponing Bulgaria’s initial plan to join the group in 2024. Read more.
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ZAGREB
Zagreb may soon rename streets dedicated to Nazi-backed Ustasha regime. Local authorities in Zagreb are proposing to rename four streets currently named after high-ranking officials linked to the Nazi-backed Ustasha regime in another move away from the historical revisionism prominent in the 1990s. Read more.
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PRISTINA
Lajcak: Kosovo, Serbia expected to agree on normalising relations on Monday. The Special Envoy of the European Union for the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, Miroslav Lajçak, said he expects Belgrade and Pristina to accept the European proposal, backed by France and Germany, for the normalisation of relations with Kosovo at the meeting in Brussels on Monday. Read more.
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TIRANA
Albania received most remittances from EU in 2021. Albania ranked number one in Europe in 2021 as the country with the most remittances from European Union countries, totalling more than €1 billion. Read more.
AGENDA
- EU: President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen on official visit in Tallinn, Estonia marks the anniversary of the Estonian Declaration of Independence and one year after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine; Meets with Prime Minister Kaja Kallas and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg; Participates in the G7 leaders’ meeting, via videoconference;
- Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis participates in the “Bulgaria towards the Euro” conference;
- Vice President Dubravka Šuica participates in the CoFoE European Citizen Panel on Virtual Worlds;
- Economy Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni participates in the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meetings in Bengaluru, India;
- Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton holds meetings with First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Economy of Ukraine Yulia Svyrydenko, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA) Fatih Birol;
- President of the ECB Christine Lagarde, and member of the Executive Board Fabio Panetta participate in the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting;
- Ukraine: President Volodymyr Zelensky holds press conference on the first anniversary of the Russian invasion;
- Council of Europe: Ceremony in support for the Ukrainian people on the occasion of the one year anniversary since the war started, followed by an extraordinary meeting of the committee of ministers;
- OSCE: Winter meeting of the Parliamentary Assembly;
- UN: Security Council meets at ministerial level to mark anniversary of the Russian invasion to Ukraine;
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[Edited by Sarantis Michalopoulos, Vlad Makszimov, Daniel Eck, Zoran Radosavljevic, Alice Taylor, Sofia Stuart Leeson, Sofia Mandilara]
Source: euractiv.com
