Displaying items by tag: Europe

The European Commission has said that free ports, the Singapore-style tax-free zones favoured by Boris Johnson, are ‘potentially vulnerable to money-laundering and financing terrorism’ in the European single market. Free ports are ‘the new emerging threat’, said the European justice commissioner, Věra Jourová. ‘This is something we want to focus on more.’ Prime Minister Johnson says he wants ‘about six’ tax-free zones in ports as part of his vision for the UK after Brexit. He has yet to give details on their size and location. EU countries and their dependencies already shelter 80+ free ports, including one on the Isle of Man, a British crown dependency which is neither in the EU nor the UK. The commission’s report warned that the EU has ‘a structural problem’ in preventing the financial system from being used by criminals.

Teen climate activist Greta Thunberg delivered an address to lawmakers at France’s national assembly. But some right-wing MPs chose to stay away, saying that to fight climate change ‘we need scientific progress and political courage, not apocalyptic gurus’, and ‘Don't count on me to applaud a prophetess in shorts, a Nobel Prize for Fear.’ Greta noted that some lawmakers had not attended and said, ‘That's fine. We are, after all, just children. You don't have to listen to us. But you do have to listen to the scientists, unite behind the science.’ On 25 July, she released a music track calling for civil disobedience while ambient instrumentals provided background music that would appeal to teens. See

Europe’s new president of the European Commission is German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen. She will lead the executive body that shapes policy for the world's largest economic bloc. Many believe Leyen's appointment confirms their view that the EU is undemocratic and doesn't respect ordinary citizens because she wasn't selected by the voters in the recent EU elections or by the lawmakers who won those seats. She was hand-picked by the 28 EU member states, who side-stepped better-known candidates chosen by various political factions. Anti-EU politicians like France's Marine Le Pen will spend the next five years declaring that von der Leyen's presidency reflects everything that is wrong with Brussels. Angela Merkel, Emmanuel Macron and others gave her narrow margin of approval so that her mandate is weak as she confronts fraught relations with the US and China, showdowns over Italy's budget, erosion of Hungary and Poland’s rule of law and the UK's exit.

Over 4,000 Swedish people have futuristic microchips implanted into their skin to replace credit cards and cash, as Sweden moves toward a cashless society. Only 1% of their economy is notes and coins. At the same time there’s been a dramatic decrease in crime - with only two bank robberies last year compared to 110 in 2008. The chips are inserted into their hands and pioneers predict millions will soon join them as they hope to take it global. The chips, the size of a grain of rice, can monitor their health and even replace key-cards to allow them to enter offices and buildings. The microchips were pioneered by a former body piercer who has hopeful international investors. He said the technology is safe but many fear cybercrime, integration with other systems and illegal data sharing. Users say they’re happy to give up privacy for convenience.

Brexit will affect not just the UK but the whole of Europe. The Brexit reality is not just an economic problem but part of larger cultural and social forces sweeping across Europe. The impact of Brexit on the EU will result in social and economic changes to the Union and also longer term political and institutional shifts. The extent of these effects remain speculative until the precise terms of UK’s post-Brexit relationship with the EU becomes clear. With the EU's policies on freedom of movement and the economic benefits and drawbacks which the UK and the EU provide each other with, there will be a clear impact with consequences for both institutions.

The US is hoping Europe will help in the IS fight, putting pressuring Britain, France and now Germany. Germany has so far deployed surveillance aircraft and other non-combat military support. Chancellor Angela Merkel faced cross-party pressure to reject the US request for German soldiers to serve in Syria. US special Syria representative told German media that Washington wanted Berlin boots on the ground in the north of Syria. The mandate for Germany's participation in Syria runs out on 31 October, meaning that parliament would be called on to decide what to do beyond that date. The German government spokesman, Steffen Seibert said: ‘When I say that the government intends to continue with its ongoing measures in the framework of the anti-IS coalition, then that means no ground troops. For years Germany has been making a significant and internationally acknowledged contribution to fighting IS.’

A court has granted a Christian couple custody of their children after six years of legal conflict over their right to home-school youngsters. The state kept legal custody of Dirk and Petra Wunderlich's two youngest children after it came to light that the couple were breaking German law by educating their four children at home. Over thirty police officers and social workers raided their home and forcefully removed all the children: only two were later returned, thus preventing the whole family from leaving the country. ‘The right of parents to direct the education of their children is a fundamental right, protected in international law’, said the family’s lawyer at the European Court of Human Rights. ‘We are pleased that the court respected this right.’

A series of eruptions has rocked the small island of Stromboli, off the west coast of Italy. The initial explosion was the largest since at least 2007, according to volcanologist Boris Benhcke. Firefighters were deployed to extinguish fires started by the eruption, and a helicopter was dispatched to rescue hikers in distress. One hiker died and a second was rescued. On 3 July, two primary eruptions occurred, preceded two minutes earlier by lava spills. At the time of writing there have been a further twenty minor explosive events. ‘We can still see the fire on the mountain,’ said one onlooker. ‘The mountain is burning but it doesn't look as if it's going to come to the village soon, at least. These eruptions are considerably more severe than normal. The island is engulfed in a plume of smoke.’

..Commits To NATO Membership

Ukraine's president said he is ready to negotiate with Russia to end the war in eastern Ukraine, but he also reaffirmed his country’s course toward NATO membership -- a move strongly opposed by Moscow.

Volodymyr Zelenskiy made the comments on June 4 during a visit to Brussels, where he met withtop European Union and NATO officials as part of his first foreign trip as president.

Fighting between government forces and Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine has killed some 13,000 people since April 2014, shortly after Russia seized control of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula.

Cease-fire deals announced as part of the Minsk accords in September 2014 and February 2015 have contributed to a decrease in fighting in the eastern provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk but have failed to hold.

"We are ready to hold negotiations with Russia [and] to implement the Minsk agreements. But first we must be capable to protect ourselves and get stronger economically, politically, and militarily," Zelenskiy said at a joint press conference with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg at the alliance's headquarters.

Zelenskiy also said that Ukraine's "strategic course to achieve full-fledged membership in the EU and NATO" remained unchanged.

Moscow has made explicit its opposition to NATO’s further expansion, especially as regards to Ukraine and Georgia. Tbilisi is also seeking to become a member of the Western military alliance.

Calling Ukraine a "highly valued partner," Stoltenberg expressed NATO's support for the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, saying: "Allies do not, and will not, recognize Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea."

The NATO chief also called on Ukraine to implement reforms on fighting corruption and strengthening the rule of law.

"These reforms are essential to ensure security and prosperity for all Ukrainians and to bring Ukraine closer to NATO," he said.

Zelenskiy is scheduled to attend a session of the NATO-Ukraine Commission later in the day. The commission is the key format for cooperation between Kyiv and NATO.

A comedian-actor with no political experience, Zelenskiy was inaugurated on May 20 after defeating incumbent Petro Poroshenko by a large margin.

In addition to the conflict in the east and Russia's occupation of Crimea, Ukraine faces entrenched corruption and major economic hurdles.

With reporting by Reuters, TASS, Interfax, and Rikard Jozwiak in Brussels

More at: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-s-president-says-he-s-open-to-peace-talks-with-russia-commits-to-nato-membership/29981348.html

Pray: For peace and stability to be restored in this region.
Pray: For wisdom, strength and statesmanship for President Zelenskiy despite his lack of experience.
Pray: For an end to the aggression and threats being made directly and indirectly by Russia.
Pray: That efforts to tackle corruption in the Ukraine will succeed.

The United States has agreed to station "about 1,000" more military personnel in Poland as the government of the East European country seeks to counter what it perceives as a growing Russian threat.

However, the joint U.S.-Poland declaration signed by President Donald Trump on June 12 stopped short of calling it a permanent presence, potentially easing Kremlin concerns about a larger U.S. military presence near its western border.

Trump earlier in the day said the increase in U.S. forces in Poland could come at the expense of Germany -- whom he criticized for underspending on NATO defense and overspending on Russian gas.

"We would be taking them out of Germany or we would be moving them from another location. It would be no additional troops to Europe," Trump said shortly before reaching the agreement.

The United States has 52,000 troops based in Germany, Trump said. The Pentagon told RFE/RL that the sourcing of the military personnel and other details of the agreement "are still being worked out."

About 4,500 U.S. troops have been stationed in Poland on a rotational basis for the past few years in response to Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea and Moscow's continued military support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.

NATO separately placed about 1,200 troops in Poland in 2017 as part of its efforts to beef up deterrence against Russia in Eastern Europe and recently agreed to invest $269 million to support U.S. forces in the country.

The 1997 NATO-Russia Founding Act pledges the alliance to carry out its collective defense without the "additional permanent stationing of substantial combat forces." However, the pledge only applied to the "current and foreseeable security environment" at the time.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the June 12 U.S.-Polish agreement was "fully in line with NATO's international commitments."

"When the world changes, we have to adapt to make sure that we can continue to protect all allies," Stoltenberg said in the statement, possibly hinting at Russia's actions in Ukraine.

Poland last year proposed spending as much as $2 billion to host a permanent U.S. armored division, which consists of between 10,000 and 15,000 troops, to strengthen its defense against Russia.

Russia, which occupied part of Poland under the tsars, "is again showing its imperial face" by its actions in Ukraine, Polish President Andrzej Duda said at the joint press conference with Trump.

According to the agreement, the U.S. military will expand its "enduring presence" in Poland by about 1,000 personnel "in the near-term." Poland will finance that expanded presence as well as additional military infrastructure, including a U.S. divisional headquarters.

Russia could seek to build up its military presence in the exclave of Kaliningrad in response, former U.S. Army Europe commander Lieutenant General Ben Hodges told RFE/RL. He said the Kremlin could also put more pressure on Belarus to allow its troops into that country. Both Kaliningrad and Belarus border Poland.

Though the U.S. agreement fell far short of Poland's initial request, it is something that "could be scaled" up in the future should developments in Eastern Europe demand it, Eugene Chausovsky, a Eurasia analyst at Stratfor, told RFE/RL.

"This is something that the Polish government can claim as a victory of sorts," he said of the deal.

Poland helped win over Trump's support for the increased military presence by agreeing to purchase U.S. fighter jets as well as liquefied natural gas, Chausovsky said.

Trump confirmed during the joint press conference that Poland will buy nearly three dozen F-35 fighter jets -- worth in excess of $2.5 billion -- as well as an additional $8 billion of liquefied natural gas.

Poland is seeking to wean itself off Russian energy, which accounts for nearly 70 percent of its gas imports. Duda will travel to Houston with Energy Secretary Rick Perry to meet executives of U.S. energy companies during his six-day visit to the United States.

Washington and Warsaw are seeking to halt Russia's plans to build an $11 billion gas pipeline to Germany. The pipeline would make Germany a "hostage of Russia" while also supporting the Russian economy, Trump said.

"We are protecting Germany from Russia, and Russia is getting billions and billions of dollars of money from Germany," Trump said ahead of his meeting with Duda.

He highlighted that Germany was only spending about 1 percent of gross domestic product on defense, below the 2 percent threshold set by NATO members in 2014.

Hodges said moving troops from Germany to Poland would be taken as a sign that the United States was punishing Berlin for its failure to meet defense spending limits.

However, he said, maligning Berlin was not in Washington's interest.

"We have to make sure that we treat Germany as our most important ally. Spending is such a small component of the relationship. You can't put a price tag on" all that Germany does for the United States, said Hodges, who is now with the Center for European Policy Analysis.

Article by Todd Prince

More at: https://www.rferl.org/a/u-s-agrees-to-station-about-1-000-more-military-personnel-in-poland/29996114.html