PM: Channels with Turkey must stay open
Responding to calls that his scheduled visit to Ankara on Monday should be postponed due to the conversion of the Chora monastery in Istanbul into a mosque, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis stressed on Wednesday that this would not be the correct course of action as “open channels must be maintained.”
https://www.ekathimerini.com/politics/foreign-policy/1238249/pm-channels-with-turkey-must-stay-open
Upcoming Athens visit by Albanian PM ‘unnecessary,’ Mitsotakis says
The upcoming visit of Edi Rama to Athens is an “unnecessary choice” on the part of the Albanian leader given that “there are issues in Greek-Albanian relations,” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has said.
Appellate public prosecutor lodges appeal against judgement for Mati fire
Appellate-level public prosecutor Spyros Pappas on Wednesday lodged an appeal against the entirety almost of the court ruling regarding the devastating fire in Mati, except for that section relating to the private citizen that started the fire and caused the disaster.
Appellate-level prosecutor files appeal against Golden Dawn leader’s release
Lamia Appeals Court Prosecutor Nikitas Theologidis on Wednesday filed an appeal against the early release on parole of Nikos Michaloliakos, the leader of the neonazi group Golden Dawn, who had been sentenced to serve 13 years in prison for his leadership role in the criminal organisation, which had adopted the guise of a political party.
ATHEX: Post-holiday jump to new 13-year high
The Greek stock market returned from its five-day holiday with a jump in prices that sent the benchmark to a new 13-year high on Wednesday, on significantly increased turnover too. Led by the blue chips of the Viohalco group, Cenergy and the National Bank of Greece (NBG), Athinon Avenue has risen to such heights as to consider the benchmark of 1,500 points for its main index.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1238287/athex-post-holiday-jump-to-new-13-year-high
KATHIMERINI: The seven fatal mistakes of the police in the femicide case in Agii Anargyri
TA NEA: Greeks’ big return to summer houses
EFIMERIDA TON SYNTAKTON: The gap between the rich and the poor widens
AVGI: SYRIZA leader Kasselakis in Albania today: Supporting the Greek minority
RIZOSPASTIS: The imperialistic conflict in Ukraine escalates
KONTRA NEWS: Appeal for the ruling on the Mati wildfire case – Cover-up for the fatal railway crash at Tempi
DIMOKRATIA: FIxed tax criteria: 1,500,000 taxpayers in the clutches
NAFTEMPORIKI: 4-year cap on the increase of public spending
HAPPY EUROPE DAY, when the EU’s institutions and citizens pause to celebrate the actually quite successful union that others in places like Ukraine and Georgia are fighting so hard to join. Seeing the hatred that still reigns between neighboring countries on the EU’s doorstep, and remembering the unforgivable things Europeans did to each other, one realizes what a feat reconciliation really was and remains.
There are celebratory events across the Continent, including of course in Brussels (more on that in Brussels Corner below). For Playbook’s part, we’re marking the day by listening to Daniel Barenboim’s West–Eastern Divan Orchestra playing the fourth movement of Beethoven’s ninth symphony, the Ode to Joy, which celebrates its 200th anniversary this week. It never gets old.
ISRAEL’S INVASION OF GAZA
NETANYAHU ESCALATES, BIDEN ACTS … BUT THE EU WATCHES, CONFUSED: Europe is a bystander while Israel’s army reportedly prepares a ground operation in Rafah in southern Gaza, where more than a million people have sought refuge.
Europe is divided over how to respond. That has resulted in inaction that stands in stark contrast to the decision by Washington — Israel’s closest ally — to delay a weapons shipment, with President Joe Biden saying the U.S. would cut off supplies of bombs and other munitions if Israel launches a major military invasion in Rafah.
Reminder: At the EU election debate co-hosted by POLITICO last month, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said it would be “completely unacceptable” for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to invade Rafah. She said the Commission would “sit down with our member states and act on that” if he did.
Is that still Europe’s position? Asked about those comments, a spokesperson for von der Leyen said: “The EU continues to urge the Israeli government not to undertake a ground operation in Rafah, which would worsen the already catastrophic humanitarian situation.”
The spokesperson stressed “there must be accountability for violations of international law” and pointed out that the EU had already taken “restrictive measures” against extremist settlers responsible for violence against Palestinians.
Biden ramps up pressure: After media reports that the U.S. had paused a bomb shipment to Israel, Biden confirmed the decision publicly on Wednesday. “Civilians have been killed in Gaza as a consequence of those bombs and other ways in which they go after population centers,” Biden told CNN. “I made it clear that if they go into Rafah — they haven’t gone in Rafah yet — if they go into Rafah, I’m not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah.”
Fraying alliance: Israeli officials complained about the public confirmation. An American official responded the irritation was “rich” given the news emerged from the Israeli side. It’s yet another sign that relations between the historic allies are strained to an unprecedented extent, reports my U.S. colleague Alex Ward.
What’s next: Biden’s move will put pressure on Germany, the second-largest supplier of arms to Israel after the U.S., to explain whether it intends to follow suit.
EU STAFF PROTESTS: Dozens of EU civil servants and staff protested on Wednesday in front of the Berlaymont and Justus Lipsius buildings over what they said was insufficient action to stop the suffering in Gaza. “The EU is founded on the values of human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and human rights,” said Manus Carlisle, who works at the Commission and co-organized the protest. “As EU staff it is our duty to uphold these values and stand for international law.”
Centrist and left-wing MEPs call for sanctions: “By means of this urgent appeal, we call on you to convene as soon as possible a meeting of the European Council to discuss the consequences of the invasion and impose EU sanctions against Israel,” reads a letter to von der Leyen, EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell and Council President Charles Michel, signed by several dozen MEPs from Renew, S&D, Greens and The Left, dated May 7 and shared with Playbook.
REPORT — IRELAND, MALTA, SLOVENIA AND SPAIN TO RECOGNIZE PALESTINE THIS MONTH: Madrid, Dublin, Ljubljana and Valletta are in talks to jointly recognize Palestinian statehood on May 21, Ireland’s public broadcaster RTE reported, citing unnamed sources. The prime ministers of the four countries had issued a joint statement in March expressing their “readiness to recognize Palestine” and said they would do so “when it can make a positive contribution and the circumstances are right.”
What’s next: Spain’s Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares is traveling to Washington on Friday to explain Madrid’s intention to imminently recognize Palestine, El Confidencial reported. Spanish officials would not confirm or deny RTE’s report on the May 21 timing.
ROAD TO EU ELECTION
VIOLENCE ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL: The leaders of the S&D, Renew, Greens and the Left groups in the European Parliament have warned that the escalating attacks by the far right on politicians, activists and journalists have brought us to a “crucial moment in the history of our European project.” In a declaration responding to a series of violent incidents in recent days, they say: “Once more the far right is attempting to bring back the darkest pages of our history.”
Reminder: Last week, Socialist MEP Matthias Ecke was seriously assaulted on the campaign trail in east Germany. Then on Tuesday, Berlin’s Senator for Economic Affairs Franziska Giffey, from the Social Democratic Party, was injured in an attack in a library in the German capital. Giffey was hit over the head by a man wielding a bag “filled with hard contents,” according to police, and was briefly taken to hospital for treatment.
The incidents prompted outrage. “Anyone who attacks politicians is attacking our democracy,” said Berlin’s Mayor Kai Wegner after the attack on Giffey. “We will not accept that.”
Reminder of Germany’s dark past: The spate of attacks has shaken many in Germany and sparked a national debate over the increasingly fraught political climate in the country, with some drawing comparisons to the kind of political violence that accompanied the rise of the Nazis, POLITICO’s James Angelos writes.
The European Parliament groups say they’re determined to resist a rightward surge: “We will never cooperate nor form a coalition with the far right and radical parties at any level,” says the declaration from the centrist and left-wing MEPs.
EPP position: However, after a day of negotiations on the text, the EPP said it would not back the declaration because, it claimed, the S&D was using the violent attacks for political campaigning.
SPEAKING OF DEALS WITH THE FAR RIGHT:: Von der Leyen clarified her remarks about possible alliances with hard-right parties made during last month’s election debate, when she was heavily criticized for leaving the door open to governing with the ECR group after the EU election. In a post on X, the Commission president said the basis for any coalition was “crystal clear.” It is: “Clear commitment to the rule of law. Clear commitment to Ukraine. Clear commitment to our Europe.”
RUSSIAN ASSETS
EU APPROVES €3B PLAN TO ARM UKRAINE: Ambassadors meeting in Brussels on Wednesday gave the go-ahead to a plan to use the profits generated by frozen Russian assets to buy weapons for Ukraine, as my colleague Gregorio Sorgi reports.
Belgian climbdown: The deal was agreed after the government in Belgium — where a large portion of the frozen assets is held — bowed to pressure from allies to forgo tax income collected on the profits. Euroclear, the Brussels-based security depository, will also reduce its fee for handling the assets to 0.3 percent.
What it’s worth to Ukraine: Between €2.5 billion and €3 billion per year, according to estimates. Ninety percent of the profits will be used to buy weapons, while the remaining 10 percent will go toward non-military aid. The money is expected to start flowing in July.
Mea culpa: Wednesday’s Playbook incorrectly described how Belgium had spent the tax collected on the profits from frozen Russian assets. It spent about €1 billion out of €1.7 billion buying weapons for Ukraine.
MORE RUSSIA
PUTIN INAUGURATION — MACRON UNDER FIRE FOR SENDING AMBASSADOR: EU diplomats and MEPs were astonished that France, alone among G7 countries, sent its ambassador to Moscow to watch Vladimir Putin being sworn in on Wednesday.
The other EU countries represented at the glitzy inauguration ceremony: Hungary, Slovakia, Malta, Cyprus and Greece (along with other illustrious guests including Putin’s favorite aging action star Steven Seagal).
It didn’t play well at home. In a scathing editorial, Le Monde said the French representative’s presence “without coordinating with our European partners, at the very moment when Russia is again saber-rattling with its nuclear threat, contradicts the firm stance France has taken in recent months, and is more a sign of ambivalence than strategy.”
‘SIMILAR TO HITLER’: Former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy told POLITICO’s Power Play podcast that Putin’s war in Ukraine is analogous to Nazi aggression in the 1930s.
“I think the actions of Putin are very similar to Hitler,” McCarthy said. I think this is a critical time. We should make sure Putin fails in Ukraine. For the world to be safe we should make sure that this axis of evil is broken up … You need to make the case to all of America and to the free world.” Listen here.
MOLDOVA’S FIGHT AGAINST RUSSIAN DISINFO: With an EU referendum and a presidential election in October, Moldova is battling a barrage of disinformation, cyberattacks and Kremlin-backed political corruption, reports my colleague Mark Scott.
IN OTHER NEWS
CONSERVATIVE LANDSLIDE IN NORTH MACEDONIA: The right-wing opposition is set to return to power in Skopje after big wins in parliamentary and presidential elections on Wednesday — but the VMRO-DPMNE party’s triumph could complicate North Macedonia’s bid to join the EU and hurt relations with Bulgaria and Greece.
Breaking the glass ceiling: The Balkan country will get its first female head of state after electing Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova, a 70-year-old law professor aligned with VRMO-DPMNE, to the largely ceremonial presidency.
XI’S EUROTRIP: China’s leader Xi Jinping received an enthusiastic welcome when he arrived in Belgrade on the second leg of his European tour, with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić vowing that “the reverence and love he encounters in our Serbia will not be found anywhere else.” Vučić stressed that, when it comes to cooperation with Beijing, “the sky is the limit.” Let’s see whether Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán one-ups that effusiveness when he meets Xi today.
MALTA FOLLOW-UP: Members of the European Parliament’s health committee have questioned the nomination of Maltese Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne for the post of European commissioner amid reports he will face criminal charges in connection with a deal for three hospitals. Fearne, who has denied wrongdoing, was considered a frontrunner to replace Stella Kyriakides as health commissioner after the EU election. My colleague Rory O’Neill has the details.
UKRAINE CALLS UP CONVICTS: In an attempt to bolster troop numbers, the Ukrainian parliament on Wednesday passed a bill on the voluntary mobilization of convicts for the country’s war with Russia, though those who’ve committed serious crimes won’t be eligible. Veronika Melkozerova has the details.