Former premier Samaras expelled from New Democracy’s parliamentary group
After harshly criticizing the government on a number of issues, former PM Antonis Samaras was expelled from the parliamentary group of the ruling New Democracy party, which he once led.
PM vows to shield consumers from excessive electricity price hikes
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, in his weekly address on Sunday, pledged to shield consumers from excessive electricity price increases, announcing that a European Commission delegation will visit Athens to address profiteering in the energy sector.
EU sees higher Greek primary surplus
Greece will achieve higher-than-expected primary budget surpluses in the three-year period ending in 2026 and its debt will drop more than 10 percentage points from 2024 to 2026, according to the European Commission’s fall forecast.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1253721/eu-sees-higher-greek-primary-surplus
Modest rise in retail sales in Q3
Sales rose 4.4% year-on-year in the third quarter of 2024, a number not satisfactory to retailers.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1253725/modest-rise-in-retail-sales-in-q3
ATHEX: Bourse ended week with near 1% drop
The Athens Stock Exchange went through a third consecutive session with losses on Friday, as sellers of banks and other blue chips dominated again.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1253719/athex-bourse-ended-week-with-near-1-drop
SUNDAY PAPERS
KATHIMERINI: Rubio’s map, Erdogan and Greece
TO VIMA: Interview with former PM Antonis Samaras: “I am proposing Kostas Karamanlis for next President of the Republic”
REAL NEWS: How and when will the objective tax criteria be “phased out”
PROTO THEMA: EU: New RRF and change of course due to Trump’s election
MONDAY PAPERS:
TA NEA: The right wing is being rearranged
EFIMERIDA TON SYNTAKTON: The ousting of Antonis Samaras from New Democracy’s parliamentary group intensifies the crisis within the ruling party
KONTRA NEWS: Snap elections are a one-way road for Kyriakos Mitsotakis
DIMOKRATIA: Harakiri for Kyriakos Mitsotakis
NAFTEMPORIKI: Government to pay early a mammoth-debt of 13 bln
DRIVING THE DAY: US TAKES BRAKES OFF UKRAINE
BIDEN GREENLIGHTS LONG-RANGE STRIKES ON RUSSIA: Three years into Moscow’s full-scale war, U.S. President Joe Biden has finally agreed to lift restrictions on Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles to strike limited targets inside Russia, handing Kyiv a late — some say too late — parting gift.
Thanks, Pyongyang: The move comes in response to Vladimir Putin escalating the conflict by inviting North Korean troops into his country to fight alongside Russian forces. The NYT reports Ukraine is likely to use the missiles against Russian and North Korean troops massing near Kursk in Russia, where Ukraine’s soldiers have dug in. Axios reports similar, noting the green light from the Biden administration came around three days ago, with Washington aiming to deter Pyongyang from sending more troops to Russia.
So long, Joe: Lifting the taboo on long-range strikes marks a powerful pro-Ukraine statement from Biden — one that’s divided his advisers, according to the New York Times — two months before Donald Trump is due to enter the White House.
Better late than never? Critics pointed out that granting Ukraine deep-strike capability is unlikely to change the course of the war, especially with Trump at the doors of the White House. But it could help Kyiv steady its footing ahead of widely anticipated negotiations to end the war. Zelenskyy indicated the first strikes on Kursk would happen in the coming days.
Ich bin allein: While France and the U.K. have both provided long-range missiles to Ukraine, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has dug into his nein on delivering German Taurus cruise missiles. The self-proclaimed “peace chancellor” used a recent speech to the Bundestag to reiterate his ban on providing long-range missiles, then followed up on Friday with an hour-long phone call with Putin.
In the first direct exchange between the leaders in 2 years, Scholz said he reiterated Germany’s willingness to support Ukraine “as long as necessary,” and called on Putin to withdraw his troops and seek a “just and lasting peace.” Putin stressed that any peace deal would have to accept “new territorial realities” and force Ukraine to renounce NATO membership.
Putin’s response was to rain ballistic missiles down on Ukraine, targeting the country’s power grid. In one of the biggest aerial raids since the start of the war, Russia launched 120 missiles and 90 drones that killed at least 10 people, and caused severe damage to Ukraine’s power system.
Warsaw-Berlin beef: Scholz’s attempt at phone diplomacy came in for fierce criticism from Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who said it was no substitute for real action. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was also critical, saying Scholz’s contact with Putin would open a “Pandora’s box” and undermine attempts to isolate Russia.
Home crowd: Jan Techau, Europe director at the Eurasia Group, said Scholz’s outreach to Putin should be read in large part as a campaign move. “The domestic logic is now much more compelling than before,” he said, adding that Scholz “wants to demonstrate that he is an international player.”
Solo mission: According to aides of French President Emmanuel Macron quoted by Le Monde, Scholz informed members of the Quad (U.S., U.K., France and Germany) that he would speak to Putin. But he didn’t coordinate with them on messaging.
Take that, Olaf: Referring to Scholz’s call, one EU diplomat quipped: “This call fits his MO entirely and is precisely why cheers went up in Kyiv when his government collapsed. He’s weakening us vis-a-vis both Putin and the U.S., precisely at a time when we don’t need that. To put it mildly.”
WEIMAR PLUS TO DISCUSS UKRAINE’S FUTURE: It’s putting Scholz at odds with France, the U.K. and Poland, which will send representatives to Warsaw on Tuesday for a “Weimar Plus” meeting to discuss Ukraine amid fears that Trump will quickly pull the plug on U.S. aid. Ukraine’s foreign minister will be there, per Warsaw, as will the EU’s incoming high representative (pending confirmation by Parliament), Kaja Kallas.
Berlin isolated: That’s a recipe for awkwardness in Warsaw, where foreign ministers gather Tuesday for what Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski has called “the most important talks on Ukraine.”
G20 IN RIO DE JANEIRO
SHOCKWAVES RIPPLE THROUGH FRAGMENTED G20: Ukraine will be just one of the tough issues on the agenda as the leaders of the world’s biggest economies gather in Rio de Janeiro for the G20 summit over the next couple of days. China’s Xi Jinping, U.S. President Joe Biden, Indian PM Narendra Modi, French President Emmanuel Macron and others will discuss pressing issues including combating global hunger, reforming international institutions and climate change.
Tough task: The summit comes at a perilous moment, with the world’s top powers seemingly further apart than they’ve been for a long time, wars and crises rippling across the globe, new alliances forming — and, of course, the specter of Trump’s return to the White House adding to the uncertainty.
Trump is on everyone’s mind in Rio, said a Western European diplomat, as diplomats scramble to figure out how an isolationist America will accelerate divisions in the group. The G20, the diplomat warned, risks becoming “a cacophonic echo chamber of the different blocs, rife with rumors, with everyone just listening to his own voice.” Read more in the scene-setter by my colleagues Clea Caulcutt, Sam Blewett and Veronika Melkozerova.
FRANCE VS. MERCOSUR: Macron is looking beyond Europe for help to kill off the EU-Mercosur trade deal — by teaming up with Argentinian leader Javier Milei. Speaking to reporters in Brazil, Macron called the agreement with South American countries a “bad deal” that would be “very harmful for Argentina’s reindustrialization” and “harmful for our farmers.” Clea Caulcutt has more here.
Switching partners: After getting super friendly with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on his last trip to Brazil — the pair wore matching outfits and held hands for photographers — this time Macron is cozying up with Lula’s enemy, Argentina’s Milei, a plot twist worthy of a telenovela, Joe Stanley-Smith writes in to report from Rio.
Meanwhile, back in France: Farmers today start nationwide protests against the Mercosur deal, which they hope will spread to “the crossroads, roads and boulevards” of other EU countries. Their first round of grinding demos in January pushed Macron to try to knife the accord and they’re hoping a second one will bolster opposition in other member countries. But are farmers justified in panicking about Mercosur? My colleague Alessandro Ford reckons it’s an overreaction. Read his story here.
BRAZIL PITCHES TAX ON SUPER-RICH: Brazil, which currently holds the G20 presidency, is set to present plans for a worldwide tax on ultra-high-net-worth individuals at the summit today. It’s been in the works for a while: G20 leaders referred to a potential super-rich tax at their last meeting in October.
Poverty-killer: The tax revenue could lift 350 million people out of hunger and create a fund for public policies to protect the environment, Brazilian Minister Márcio Macêdo said over the weekend.
But leaders are unlikely to back the idea. In fact, they could even struggle to agree on warm words, since Milei — who last week became the first foreign leader to meet Trump in person since his reelection and has a close relationship with Elon Musk — is among the most likely to block the action.
Argentina threatened to block a joint communiqué set to be endorsed by the G20 leaders at the meeting partly because of objections related to the tax on the super-wealthy, the Financial Times reported, citing people briefed on the negotiations. Diplomats had been rushing to reach a consensus on statements related to climate finance and other geopolitical issues including the war in Ukraine as leaders began arriving in the Brazilian city. Milei’s obstructiveness in Rio comes days after Argentina withdrew its delegation from the COP29 U.N. climate talks in Azerbaijan.
Enter Macron, the Milei whisperer: The French president met with Milei in Buenos Aires on Sunday in an attempt to persuade the Argentinian not to derail the G20 summit. The visit was an attempt to “reconcile” Argentina’s chainsaw-wielding leader with “the priorities of the G20” and convince “Argentina to contribute to the international consensus,” said an official from the Elysée Palace. Read Clea and Joe’s piece on how the French president is trying to rein in the global right’s darling.
This is how we do politics now: Meanwhile, tensions between Brazil and the U.S. are heating up after Brazil’s first lady, Janja Lula da Silva, said at a G20 social event: “Fuck you, Elon Musk!” Musk shared a clip of the moment on X, writing: “They will lose the next election.”
CAN STARMER SAVE THE WORLD? One leader hoping to step into the international vacuum is British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who is emerging as a beacon of hope for the center-left amid rising populism. He’s seeking to rally leaders at the G20 against Trump’s looming influence while prioritizing climate action and support for Ukraine, Sam Blewett reports.
Wait and Xi: Starmer was expecting to sit down with Xi on the sidelines of the summit at Rio’s Museum of Modern Art this morning for his first meeting with the Chinese president, my London Playbook colleagues report. The PM told journalists traveling with him to Brazil that his top priority for the G20 is “shoring up our support for Ukraine.”
FOREIGN AFFAIRS COUNCIL
MEANWHILE, BACK IN BRUSSELS: Foreign ministers gather today to discuss intelligence findings that show a Chinese factory is making military drones for Russia to use in its war against Ukraine, sharpening their tone against Beijing as Trump heads back to the White House.
FAFO … Europe style: Speaking to journalists Friday, a senior EU official said that if the reports were confirmed and it turns out Beijing was aware of the firm’s activities — as appears likely — “then that will have consequences.”
Beijing’s neutrality in focus: A second EU diplomat said: “We’ll obviously have to look very closely to see if China is moving away from its position of neutrality on the Ukraine conflict, which it has held publicly until now.” Read my write-up here.
No fireworks: Asked what action the EU would take, the first EU diplomat texted Playbook: “The evidence is credible and convincing but some member states seem reluctant to draw any conclusions from that. It will make for an interesting debate.”
What to expect: A potential statement from the EU’s top diplomatic envoy Josep Borrell, who will be chairing his final Foreign Affairs Council before handing over the reins to ex-Estonian PM Kallas. However, sanctions seem unlikely at this stage, two diplomats said.
Agenda: Foreign ministers will also focus on how to face the incoming Trump administration in Washington, continued aid for Ukraine, the Middle East and the aftermath of the disputed Georgian election. As a parting shot, Borrell is due to present a proposal to suspend political dialogue with Israel, but several diplomats said this was unlikely to find support among the bloc’s 27 members.
VIENNA BLASTS PUTIN “HENCHMEN” OVER GAS CUTOFF: In comments shared with my colleague Barbara Moens, Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg blasted Gazprom’s decision to shut off gas shipments to his country over a contract dispute.
Blowing off steam: “It is not surprising that Putin and his henchmen are once again using energy as a weapon,” Schallenberg wrote. “The fact that Gazprom is stopping its supplies overnight because an arbitration court ruling has not been handed down shows once again what the rule of law is like in Russia. Keeping contracts is no longer a value in Putin’s Russia.”
TODAY’S MUST READ: Who failed Russian defector Maxim Kuzminov? That’s the question posed by my colleagues Claudia Chiappa, Eva Hartog and Veronika Melkozerova in this POLITICO long-read about his murder in Spain. The former Russian helicopter pilot had flown an Mi-8 across the front line and delivered it to Ukraine.
IN OTHER NEWS
“INTENSIVE TALKS” CONTINUE ON COMMISSIONERS: Negotiations over confirmation hearings for commissioner nominees in the European Parliament continued through the weekend and are set to start again today — with a breakthrough possible later this week, according to a European People’s Party (EPP) insider.
Light at the end of the tunnel: The EPP and the Socialists and Democrats (S&D) have been deadlocked over the confirmations of Teresa Ribera and Raffaele Fitto, but the situation could move this week as Ribera is due to appear in the Spanish parliament over her role in the response to the deadly Valencia flooding. The EPP insider called Ribera’s appearance a “good” sign (it was a key EPP demand), insisted on Fitto keeping his executive vice president title and said the Commission should get started on Dec. 1. A spokesperson for the S&D declined to comment on the EPP’s position.
FRUGALS UNHAPPY WITH BUDGET DEAL: Negotiators from the European Parliament and EU countries in the early hours of Saturday agreed on a €199.44 billion EU budget for 2025. But fiscally conservative countries from Northern Europe didn’t support the budget plans for next year, Gregorio Sorgi reports in this morning’s Financial Services newsletter. An EU diplomat said: “Knives are being sharpened and alliances forged” ahead of the looming fight over the EU’s next seven-year budget.
Winners and losers: The bloc’s so-called frugal countries, including the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Austria, opposed a plan to repay additional interest rates on the EU’s post-Covid joint debt in 2025 on the grounds the burden will fall on national capitals. The European Parliament and those states that favor a bigger budget instead claimed victory, saying they had protected the EU’s core programs from proposed cuts.
SPANISH LAWMAKER ELECTED HEAD OF PATRIOTS PARTY: Santiago Abascal was elected president of the far-right Patriots for Europe party on Saturday. Abascal has been leader of the Vox party in Spain since 2014 and a Spanish MP since 2019. He called on the Patriots to capitalize on the EU election and “promote a frontal and total response to globalism,” vowing to make Europe “great, prosperous, safe and free again,” Louise Guillot reports.
ISRAEL KILLS HEZBOLLAH SPOKESMAN: An Israeli airstrike on central Beirut killed Hezbollah spokesman Mohammed Afif, Lebanese security sources said on Sunday. DW has the write-up.