⊂ EUROPE ⊃
NATO alarmed by Russian troop buildup on Russia-Ukraine border: NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg expressed concern on Monday about Russia’s military buildup on the border with Ukraine. Stoltenberg said a „large and unusual“ build-up of Russian forces had been spotted on the border in recent weeks. He spoke amid speculation Russia could be planning to invade Ukraine. The foreign ministers of Germany and France released a joint statement in support of Ukraine after meeting with Ukrainian Foreign Minster Dmytro Kuleba. German Chancellor Angela Merkel had also raised the issue in a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
dw.com, bbc.com, sueddeutsche.de
International Space Station (ISS): United States raps Russia after missile strike on its own satellite. politico.com
EU sanctions against Belarus, Merkel talks to Lukashenko: The EU has agreed on new sanctions against Belarus targeting “everyone involved” in facilitating the transport of people to Belarus’s border with Poland, where thousands are stuck in makeshift camps in freezing weather. A list of people and entities to be hit by asset freezes and travel bans is expected to be finalised in the coming weeks. It will include “people, airlines, travel agencies and everyone involved in this illegal push of migrants against our borders”, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Belarus‘ leader Alexander Lukashenko held a phone call on Monday to discuss humanitarian aid for refugees and migrants stranded at the EU-Belarus border. „More and more groups of migrants are being brought to the Kuznica border crossing by Belarusian forces,“ Poland’s Defence Ministry said on Monday. Polish police said that a group of several hundred people unsuccessfully tried to cross the border in the Starzyna area.
theguardian.com, reuters.com, dw.com, spiegel.de
- Lukashenko said Monday that Belarus was working to repatriate migrants france24.com
- Iraq to repatriate citizens stuck at border of Belarus and Poland on a voluntary basis france24.com
- US announces sanctions against Belarus france24.com
Bosnia-Herzegovina: German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas brings up sanctions against Serb leaders. Milorad Dodik, Serb member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, is currently pushing for a secession of the Serb-dominated part of the country. faz.net
EU considers creating its own army: The EU is on its way to militarise itself. After the chaotic withdrawal of Western troops from Afghanistan, showing how reliant Europe was on US firepower, plans for an EU army are back on the table. In Brussels this plan goes by the name of strategic compass. The EU is looking to increase its abilities in crisis management, defence capabilities, resilience and partnerships with allies.
euronews.com
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Air pollution in Europe still killing more than 300,000 a year: Premature deaths caused by fine particle air pollution have fallen 10% annually across Europe, but the invisible killer still accounts for 307,000 premature deaths a year, the European Environment Agency said Monday. Deaths linked to fine particulate matter were estimated at 346,000 for 2018. The clear reduction in deaths for the following year were put down partly to favourable weather but above all to a progressive improvement in air quality across the continent, the EU’s air pollution data centre said.
france24.com
Christine Lagarde warns inflation will last longer: Eurozone inflation will stay elevated for longer than previously expected, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde conceded Monday — but she stuck to her call that it will drop below the central bank’s 2% target over the medium term. “We still see inflation moderating in the next year, but it will take longer to decline than originally expected,” Lagarde told MEPs on the Parliament’s economics committee.
politico.eu
EU Parliament, countries want more innovation, less burden in AI Act: An internal report on Artificial Intelligence recently approved by a special committee of the European Parliament embodies a push from EU lawmakers and member states to make regulation on artificial intelligence less burdensome and more innovation-friendly.
euractiv.com
Transparency debate: EU Commission may want to archive chats after all spiegel.de
Semiconductors: Commission wants to strengthen European chip production derstandard.at
Syria: Four new ministers added to EU sanctions list consilium.europa.eu
Economy: Euro-zone foreign trade picks up noticeably despite supply problems handelsblatt.com
EU Parliament: Maltese MEP Roberta Metsola will seek Parliament presidency politico.eu
Council of the EU adopts conclusions on the new EU forest strategy for 2030 consilium.europa.eu
⊂ QUOTE OF THE DAY ⊃
„It’s disappointing that, at the very last minute, the coal phase-out has been watered down to a coal phase-down.“
The results of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow have „fallen short of expectations“, according to EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
rnd.de
⊂ COUNTRIES ⊃
Shell ditches the Dutch, seeks move to London: Royal Dutch Shell said on Monday it would scrap its dual share structure and move its head office to Britain from the Netherlands, pushed away by Dutch taxes and facing climate pressure in court as the energy giant shifts from oil and gas. Not only does the company intend to change its tax residency, but will also drop Royal Dutch from its full name after 130 years. Shell said that several of its divisions would remain in The Hague, including technology and renewable energies. Shares will also continue to be listed in Amsterdam, alongside London and New York.
reuters.com, dw.com
Women in French politics call for a #MeToo moment: A few months before France elects its next president and MPs, 285 women working in politics say perpetrators of sexual and sexist violence have no place on the political scene and should be barred from running for elected office. A number of French politicians, from all parties, have been linked to sexual and sexist violence – most famously the former finance minister and head of the IMF Dominique Strauss Khan.
rfi.fr
Former French PM Fillon appeals five-year sentence for corruption: A French court on Monday began hearing an appeal by former prime minister François Fillon against a conviction in a corruption scandal. In 2017, Fillon’s campaign was hit by revelations that his wife Penelope was paid over €800,000 over 15 years for a suspected fake job as a parliamentary assistant. In June 2020, a court ruled that Penelope’s job was either „fictitious or greatly overstated“ and gave Fillon a five-year jail term, three years of which were suspended, and barred him from holding elected office for 10 years. His wife received a suspended sentence.
france24.com
- Fillon insists that his wife did real work including organising his mail and proofreading his speeches
- The Fillons were also hit by claims of fake jobs in the Senate for two of their five children and another fake job for Penelope at a magazine owned by a friend of Fillon
Anti-corruption party wins Bulgarian election: A new centrist anti-corruption party appears to be the winner of Bulgaria’s parliamentary election, the country’s central electoral commission said Monday. With nearly 76% of the ballots counted, results showed that the We Continue the Change party, founded few weeks ago by two Harvard graduates, has captured 25.3% of the vote, edging out the opposition centre-right GERB party of former Prime Minister Boyko Borissov by nearly 3%.
apnews.com
Tougher Covid restrictions in Germany: The three parties likely to form Germany’s next government agreed over the weekend to toughen coronavirus restrictions in response to a record-breaking surge in infections. The parties agreed on stricter measures for the non-vaccinated, including requiring them to get a negative test before travelling by bus or train, public broadcaster ARD reported Monday.
politico.eu
- Italy: Stricter rules in taxis, trains and buses zeit.de
- Ukraine offers cash bonus as reward for vaccination tagesschau.de
- Infections on the rise again in Spain and Portugal orf.at
- Clinics in the Netherlands under increasing pressure tagesspiegel.de
- Czech Republic sends soldiers to overburdened hospitals orf.at
France: Paris e-scooters forced to slow down in busy areas theguardian.com
Spain: La Palma volcano claims first victim since eruption began english.elpais.com
Greece: Prime minister Mitsotakis to make Parthenon marbles key issue in meeting with Boris Johnson theguardian.com
⊂ POLITJOBS ⊃
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⊂ LAST BUT NOT LEAST ⊃
Italian police move against violent anti-vaccine activists: Police conducted searches across Italy on Monday against 17 anti-vaccine activists who were allegedly affiliated with a Telegram chat that espoused violence against government, medical and media figures for their perceived support of COVID-19 restrictions. In a statement, police said they monitored the now-shuttered Telegram chat for weeks and identified 17 extremists who threatened Premier Mario Draghi, among others. They were considered the most dangerous of the chat members, and searches of their homes across the peninsula turned up weapons and flammable acid, police told a press conference in Turin.
apnews.com