Greece plans demarche to Ukraine over sea drone
Athens will issue a formal diplomatic complaint to Ukraine over the uncrewed sea drone filled with explosives that was discovered this month on a rocky shore in western Greece, officials said Thursday. Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis briefed the European Union’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, on the Greek military’s conclusions on the drone, the officials said – speaking on condition of anonymity. The drone was discovered May 7 by fishermen on the Ionian Sea island of Lefkada and handed over to the military. It is believed to be connected to a series of maritime drone attacks Ukraine is believed to have carried out in recent months targeting vessels linked to Russia’s efforts to transport oil.
Tsipras formally registers his new ELAS party
Left-wing former prime minister Alexis Tsipras on Thursday formally registered his new Greek Left Alliance, or ELAS, party with the Supreme Court, voicing optimism that his political comeback after three years would prove “useful” to the country. Tsipras, who governed from 2015-2019 in coalition with a small right-wing party, told reporters he hoped “to manage to bring something better to this country.”
https://www.ekathimerini.com/politics/1305127/tsipras-formally-registers-his-new-elas-party
Androulakis: The country must make a new start with political change
“The country must make a new start with political change,” said main opposition PASOK – Movement for Change leader Nikos Androulakis, in an interview with TV Open on Thursday, commenting that “a new start cannot happen with old practices and mindsets. A new start cannot happen with unreliability and dependencies.”
European Prosecutors file criminal charges against 17 people in northern Greece for EU subsidies fraud
Some 17 individuals arrested in northern Greece over illegally receiving EU farm subsidies through the OPEKEPE agency were led earlier on Thursday to the offices of the European Prosecutor in Greece, where they were charged with serious offenses committed as a criminal organization.
ATHEX: Bourse ends rising streak, except PPC
Thursday’s profit-taking at the Greek stock market followed six straight days of benchmark rise, but also recorded a considerably increased turnover, the highest of the last five sessions. The latest military activity in the Persian Gulf gave traders the pretext they needed to cash in on recent gains. Contrary to the pattern set by banks, with their index conceding almost 2.5%, Public Power Corporation advanced 4.67%, as its new shares are proving particularly attractive for investors.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1305181/athex-bourse-ends-rising-streak-except-ppc
KATHIMERINI: Greek FBI: Weapons from Turkey reach Europe via Evros
TA NEA: Express transfers for all real estate assets
EFIMERIDA TON SYNTAKTON: Mitsotakis-controlled Intelligence Service within the National Intelligence Service
RIZOSPASTIS: New EU regulation for the capacity of the railways focuses on profits and war plans sending workers and passengers to the guillotine
KONTRA NEWS: Roll polls show 9% difference between New Democracy and ELAS
DIMOKRATIA: IMF “bombs” regarding unhinged servicers in Greece
NAFTEMPORIKI: Taxman achieves large “catches”
DRIVING THE DAY
BRUSSELS VS. BEIJING: Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s plan to protect EU industries by making it harder for China to flood the European market faces its first major test today, with her commissioners set to weigh in as capitals inch closer to supporting a tougher stance on Beijing.
Mandate of heaven: Governments are worried about the decline of sectors like steel, car making and chemicals, which are struggling to compete with cheap Chinese imports. And, as we first reported earlier this month, the Commission is hoping to capitalize on that to get the green light for tougher powers to deal with them.
What’s happening today: Commissioners will meet for an “orientation debate” to discuss the proposals — which include investigating Chinese trade practices and an “overcapacity instrument” to squeeze the flow of cheap products. Two probes are already being considered for the chemicals industry, my colleague Koen Verhelst reports.
Running order: Commissioners will kick off the discussion from 9 a.m. and will hear presentations from Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič and Alfred Schipke, a China expert at Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.
In the room: “The debate of today should confirm the growing consensus in Europe about the necessity to act … we can’t let Europe be the victim of predatory strategy that is destroying our industry,” industry chief Stéphane Séjourné told Playbook. Climate Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra told my colleague Zia Weise that he is a “hardliner” on the need for measures.
The other camp: Others, such as Executive Vice President Teresa Ribera, have championed cooperation with Beijing and will be warier of a confrontation, two officials said. Ribera previously served as a minister in the Spanish government of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who has pursued closer relations with Beijing.
The stricter measures are coming from the top down. Von der Leyen and her chief of staff Bjoern Seibert — who have long wanted to toughen the bloc’s position despite skepticism from member countries — have championed the plans, according to three officials with knowledge of the discussions.
On a mission: “She really has had to push this forward,” said Tim Rühlig, a former adviser to von der Leyen on China. The Commission president “saw the economy-security nexus much earlier than other, national politicians,” he told Koen.
This is just the start: Von der Leyen will talk to leaders at the G7 in France on June 15-17 and at the European Council June 18-19. While no written conclusions are expected, von der Leyen could present measures as soon as her State of the Union address in September. But to actually launch new investigations will require a broad majority from member countries.
Convincing capitals could prove difficult: Spain will be the toughest nut to crack, according to two of the officials. Madrid backed away from supporting similar proposals yesterday. To launch a new push against China, the Commission will need support from member countries — the more support it has, the more options open up for action.
Watch this space: Despite growing support for von der Leyen’s plans, getting them in place will require intense negotiations in the next few weeks, convincing colleagues and fellow leaders that a row with Beijing is less damaging than continuing to lose industry to China.
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BIG AND BREAKING
ROMANIA DRONE HIT: A Russian drone crossed the border from Ukraine and crashed into a residential building in the Romanian municipality of Galați overnight, causing a fire and minor injuries to two people.
UKRAINE FIGHTS BACK: Ukraine’s defenders have a plan to push deep into the land corridor used by Russia’s invasion forces to supply troops in the south of the country.
ROLLING THE DICE: The Commission is eyeing a €13.3 billion cash grab by taxing online gambling as part of efforts to fund €2 trillion of spending in the coming years.
FATAL ADDICTION: The EU is still dependent on importing foreign fossil fuels — an Achilles heel that could be used against it in a war, the bloc’s defense and climate chiefs told POLITICO.
WHICH WAY TO WALL STREET? The EU’s six largest countries have struck a deal to try to turn the bloc into a U.S.-style superpower in the financial markets.
HE’S BACK: Ex-Commissioner Phil Hogan is the front-runner to become the EUs candidate to lead the world’s biggest food agency.
HUNGARIAN RESET
WHAT TO EXPECT FROM TODAY’S MARQUEE MEETING: Any deal between new Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar and the European Commission to release billions of euros in frozen EU cash will only be partial.
Not so fast: While Magyar on Thursday said a breakthrough was “very close,” Brussels is playing down the prospect of Hungary’s new leader getting everything he wants.
No quick fix after 16 years of Orbán: “Of course you can’t ask to reform a country overnight so we don’t expect an agreement on everything,” a Commission official granted anonymity to speak freely told my colleague Zoya Sheftalovich. “Something will be agreed and some other things we will continue to work on.”
For the diary: Magyar and Ursula von der Leyen are meeting at around 1 p.m.
Why Brussels is wary: The caution reflects three concerns, as Zoya and Nick Vinocur set out in this story: an imminent European Court of Justice ruling over the Commission’s 2023 decision to release €10 billion to Hungary’s previous government led by Viktor Orbán; fears Magyar could trigger a constitutional crisis if he moves too aggressively against Orbán-era loyalists embedded in Hungarian institutions; and lessons from Poland, where Brussels released funds after Donald Tusk’s election only to see key judicial reforms later stall.
At stake: €10.4 billion in post-pandemic recovery funds. Hungary must still meet so-called super milestones on judicial independence, anti-corruption safeguards and procurement rules before the money can flow, and Brussels wants reforms completed — not merely promised — before signing off on the cash. Budapest must formally request the money by Aug. 31, with final disbursements due before the end of the year.
Complicating matters: Magyar has already assembled his ministerial team and appointed all his secretaries of state. But he has yet to appoint someone tasked with dealing with EU affairs in Budapest. For now, Magyar is handling the EU file himself while he looks for a permanent secretary to take over the task, two people familiar with the situation told Zoya.
20-SECOND PLAYBOOK PRIMER
With an election in Malta on Saturday,who’s likely to win? The island nation has two main parties, the governing Labour Party of Prime Minister Robert Abela and the opposition Nationalist Party led by Alex Borg (the latter is also the political home of European Parliament President Roberta Metsola). POLITICO’s Poll of Polls has Labour, which has been in power for 13 years, on course for a comfortable victory. Abela called a snap general election last month, citing the need for “stability” amid geopolitical turmoil.
CLOTHES SALE
VESTAGER’S VÊTEMENTS: European commissioners aren’t generally renowned for their great fashion sense. But one of the few to know her way around a good power dress was ex-competition chief Margrethe Vestager, who would dole out billion-euro antitrust fines in eye-catchingly bright outfits. Now, you too can emulate her style, as she’s announced she’ll be flogging her old togs at a Copenhagen flea market this weekend. The Dane told her Instagram followers that she will be selling “dresses from the Bruxelles days” at the event on Saturday.
Fashion philosophy: “Men realize you’re a woman even if you dress like a man with a suit-like jacket and a white blouse. So why bother?” she was quoted as saying during her time as commissioner. Vestager used to turn up at the most high-profile events in the same outfit, but it’s not yet clear if what she used to call her “lucky” dresses will be on sale.
A Vestager original: The famed knitter will also be selling “a self-made dress,” as well as some handknits and ceramics, she said.
Not a well-trodden path: While most ex-commissioners opt for lucrative gigs at consultancies, Vestager seems to be giving the fashion thing a good go. Last year, she released her own brand of shoes — the “Margrethe boot” — which she also modeled on billboards in Denmark.
5 MORE THINGS GETTING US TALKING
NEW ORBÁN IN TOWN: The EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, will meet Hungary’s new Foreign Minister Anita Orbán in Brussels today to talk about closer cooperation on the world stage, an EU official told Playbook.
BALTIC DRONE FEARS: Latvia has a new prime minister — and Andris Kulbergs now wants to fix the air defense problems that brought down his predecessor.
CRISIS AT CANNES: A growing feud over the influence of right-wing tycoon Vincent Bolloré is engulfing French cinema.
TRYING HARD: Britain’s Conservatives think they’re onto a winning plan, even as they keep losing.
FRIDAY FUNNY: How much would you pay to own multiple versions of the Maltese opposition’s party anthem?