First cracks appear in farmers’ protests
Most of the farmers are determined to continue their mobilizations; however, some now believe that further escalation is not going to yield the results they want.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1231745/first-cracks-appear-in-farmers-protests/
Voting on same-sex civil marriage bill to take place Thursday evening
Voting on the same-sex civil marriage bill will take place in the Greek parliament on Thursday evening, after leaders of parties deliver their speeches in reverse order. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis will address plenary last, while also scheduled to speak is former Prime Minister Antonis Samaras.
PM Μitsotakis chairs first meeting of committee drafting strategy on juvenile violence
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis chaired a working meeting with the members of a policy-making committee on violence and delinquency of minors on Wednesday.
Greece doubles capacity of RES in four years, minister tells International Energy Agency conference
The development of cross-border interconnections that make Greece an energy hub for Southeastern Europe was highlighted by Deputy Minister of Environment and Energy Alexandra Sdoukou in her address at the ministerial Conference of the International Energy Agency (IEA) on 13-14 February in Paris.
ATHEX: New 13-year high for the benchmark
The better-than-expected annual results of Coca-Cola HBC and the strong figures of Piraeus Bank gave strong momentum to Greek stocks on Wednesday, which combined with the positive mood across Europe led the ATHEX benchmark to a new 13-year high. That has put an end to the mini-streak of three losing sessions at Athinon Avenue and highlighted that the overall course of the market remains upward.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1231703/athex-new-13-year-high-for-the-benchmark/
KATHIMERINI: Two-year shutdown for fuel stations involved in smuggling operations
TA NEA: Positive news and… a vile extortion
EFIMERIDA TON SYNTAKTON: [Minister of Health] Georgiadis imposes unjust levy on the insured
AVGI: Tempi crime: No the cover-up!
RIZOSPASTIS: Popular demand: No frigate at the Red Sea
KONTRA NEWS: Time is running out for MItsotakis’ political dominance
DIMOKRATIA: Former Transport Minister Karamanlis obviously committed perjury
NAFTEMPORIKI: 12 tax declaration form (E1) codes to be pre-entered by AADE
DRIVING THE DAY: EU DEFENSE
URSULA VON DER LEYEN ‘VERY POSITIVE’ ON EU DEFENSE ROLE: EU countries typically want full control over their defense policy. But with war raging in Ukraine and the specter of Donald Trump back on the ballot in the United States, the EU is considering creating a new defense commissioner role to oversee industrial aspects of defense policy, three people directly aware of the matter told Playbook.
Nod from the boss: “While it will be for the new president of the Commission to decide the composition and roles of his/her college, I can confirm that President von der Leyen is very positive with respect to this,” a Commission spokesperson told Playbook.
Reminder: Von der Leyen hails from the European People’s Party, which first called for an EU defense commissioner in a draft campaign manifesto. The German politician is expected to reveal her intention to run for a second term during a political meeting with her CDU party in Germany on Monday. If all goes well and she wins countries’ approval for another go at the top job, she would decide how to divvy up portfolios for the incoming Commission — including a potential defense role.
Secure the bag: Asked about plans to create a defense commissioner job, a senior EU diplomat said: “I would be surprised if they didn’t do it. There might be a substantial financial package attached to defense. So you would need someone to oversee it.”
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Who might that be? One name in circulation is Radosław Sikorski, Poland’s current foreign minister. “He definitely wants it,” added the above diplomat. Another contender is Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, who was behind the EU’s pledge to deliver 1 million shells to Ukraine by March 2024 — a deadline the bloc is about to miss — and who penned this opinion piece for POLITICO last year calling for a “strategic leap not only in our thinking but also in real deliverables.”
Fine print: A Commission official and a senior official from a large EU country said that while talk about the role was serious, discussions about its scope were likely to be contentious. “There is a growing perception that Europe must do much more on defense. So we’re likely to see something with that title attached to it,” added the government official. “But what goes into it will be bitterly debated.”
What it wouldn’t be: A geopolitical role that could overshadow national defense prerogatives, particularly on nuclear weapons.
What it could be: An industrial policy role geared toward shared needs on ammunition and deploying EU investments into arms development programs spread out over several countries.
Centralize it: Several people pointed out that defense policy is currently spread among various institutions, with an underpowered Defense and Space Directorate General at the Commission, the European Defense Agency, under High Representative Josep Borrell, and the bloc’s joint procurement program, EDIRPA, reporting to the Council. The idea would be to centralize some of these functions in the Berlaymont.
Bottom line: Jolted into action by Ukraine and Trump, the EU is considering moves on defense that would never have been conceivable just a few years ago. It’s about time.
HUNGARY HOLDS UP SANCTIONS
ORBÁN CIRCUS DELAYS SANCTIONS: Making sure new sanctions don’t apply to nuclear energy seems to be Hungary’s worry for the 13th EU sanction package against Russia. “It’s systematically the same circus,” one diplomat told my POLITICO Morning Trade colleagues, referring to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s tactics in EU decision-making.
Deadline in sight: At a meeting of EU ambassadors on Wednesday, Hungary argued it needed more time to assess the package of sanctions. That puts the deadline for delivery — in time for the two-year mark of Russia’s full scale invasion of Ukraine — on Feb. 24, in some doubt.
Work is ongoing: “They are not opposed to the package or anything inside … [It] does not look like a big hurdle,” one diplomat said, describing it as just the “usual feet dragging.” Several diplomats — all of whom were granted anonymity to speak freely — expected that the delay should not mean the symbolic deadline will be missed.
Atomic taboo: Nuclear tech from Russia is a taboo. Hungary relies on state-owned company Rosatom for the Paks plant, which produces more than half the country’s electricity.
Export bans: The 13th package largely consists of export bans on companies the EU suspects of helping Russia evade sanctions on technological goods. For the first time, this would include companies based in mainland China, among other countries. These companies are not sanctioned with an asset freeze but are rather entity-non-grata for dual-use exporters inside the bloc.
Long list: The EU is also looking to sanction individuals — for instance North Koreans — suspected of aiding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine by supplying missiles and other ammunition. The total number of export bans and listings comes close to 200 entries, spread over different annexes in the EU’s sprawling legal architecture on sanctions.
NOW READ THIS: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are among the most hawkish EU countries on sanctions over the war in Ukraine, but they’ve struggled to manage the 1,600-kilometer border they share with Russia and its ally, Belarus. As a result, Baltic border crossings have become a prime destination for those seeking to evade sanctions on goods that could have both civilian and military uses, as well as luxury items like cars, according to government officials, customs officers and experts. Read more, from Leonie Kijewski.
EU VOTER OPINION
EU VOTERS STILL BACK UKRAINE: European citizens’ support for EU backing of Ukraine remains high, a new EUpinions poll surveying 13,000 EU citizens across the 27 member countries shows.
Arms shipments: The poll, taken in December, shows 55 percent of respondents backed EU arms shipments to Ukraine, down from 60 percent three months earlier. Polish citizens were most supportive of arms deliveries, with Italians the least, out of seven countries surveyed in detail.
EU membership: Across the EU 27, 60 percent of respondents backed EU membership for Ukraine, with Spaniards and Italians the most strongly in favor. However, 52 percent of Germans were against the idea.
Defense policy: The poll showed overwhelming support for a common European defense policy, with 87 percent of respondents in favor.
MORE RUSSIAN WAR
TODAY’S TOP READ — HOW THE US BROKE KOSOVO AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR UKRAINE: The failure of U.S. nation-building in Kosovo serves as a warning for Ukraine, my colleague Matthew Karnitschnig writes in an essential long-read out this morning. Looking at what happened in the years after the U.S. and its NATO allies wrenched Kosovo out of Serbia in 1999 to halt an unfolding genocide against the ethnic-Albanian population, Matt cautions that political will in Washington to remain engaged in foreign countries typically fades once big business has squeezed what it can out of America’s presence.
YET ANOTHER PUTIN INTERVIEW: Russian President/Chief Troll Vladimir Putin had plenty to say in an interview with state-run broadcaster Rossiya 1 on Wednesday. Lowlights: Putin said U.S. President Joe Biden would be a better leader than Donald Trump, and that Putin “didn’t get complete satisfaction” from last week’s interview with Tucker Carlson, because the right-wing U.S. pundit was too soft on him, Playbook’s own Zoya Sheftalovich reports.
YIKES: The U.S. is concerned that Russia is attempting to develop an anti-satellite nuclear weapon for use in space, our Stateside colleagues report.
NOW HEAR THIS: In this week’s Power Play podcast, host Anne McElvoy talks to POLITICO’s Alexander Ward and Suzanne Lynch about what to expect from this year’s Munich Security Conference, which kicks off on Friday. Suzanne will also be bringing you up to speed from Bavaria with her Global Playbook.
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IN OTHER NEWS
KEEPING IT IN THE FAMILY: There are lots of ways to become a politician — and having a famous parent helps. Greece’s PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Belgium’s Alexander De Croo and Estonia’s Kaja Kallas are some of the leaders who got into the family business. Ketrin Jochecová reports on Europe’s nepo baby politicians.
FORMER CZECH PM ACQUITTED: Former Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš has once again been acquitted of fraud involving around €2 million in EU subsidies linked to his agriculture business. An appeal court in September dismissed a previous ruling, which acquitted Babiš, and ordered the case to be retried. The former PM took to X to say “I’m happy,” in the wake of the decision.
ROLLING IN IT: The EU will have greater power to convince governments to hand over cash for grand projects after a largely unnoticed change to spending rules was agreed last weekend. Gregorio Sorgi reports on the changes that could unleash cash for everything from defense projects to the green transition.