Gov’t rejects blackmail by irate farmers
As farmers announced an escalation of mobilizations on Tuesday, including blockades on the country’s highways and a possible march to Athens next week, government sources said the window of a possible meeting with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is still open on the condition that it will take place with open roads and without disrupting transport and the economy.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1231004/govt-rejects-blackmail-by-irate-farmers/
Gov’t has failed to formulate long-term strategy for crucial agricultural sector, PASOK leader says
For five years in a row, the ruling New Democracy government “has neglected the significant challenges of the primary sector, PASOK-Movement for Change (KINAL) leader Nikos Androulakis said in Tuesday in a written statement addressing the problems faced by farmers.
Houthis fire missiles at Greek-owned ship, causing minor damage
For five years in a row, the ruling New Democracy government “has neglected the significant challenges of the primary sector, PASOK-Movement for Change (KINAL) leader Nikos Androulakis said in Tuesday in a written statement addressing the problems faced by farmers.
ATHEX: The party continues at the stock market
The sixth consecutive session of gains at the Greek stock market brought the benchmark not only to another 13-year high, but also above the 1,400-point mark, on significantly increased daily turnover too. All this was before the entry of the 300 million shares of Athens International Airport, which is scheduled for Wednesday.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1231014/athex-the-party-continues-at-the-stock-market/
KATHIMERINI: “Plastic money” increased state revenue by 550 million euros
TA NEA: Collision course between government and farmers
EFIMERIDA TON SYNTAKTON: The government is responsible for the farmers’ planned protest in Athens
AVGI: The government is terrified of a potential double blockade by farmers and university students
RIZOSPASTIS: The farmers are escalating their fair fight
KONTRA NEWS: Farmers’ ultimatum: We are coming to Athens
DIMOKRATIA: Former Regional Governor of Thessaly to stand trial for covering up the Tempi train-crash scandal
NAFTEMPORIKI: 2023 budget x-rayed
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
TODAY — HUNGARY AND CZECH REPUBLIC BLOCK SANCTIONS AGAINST ISRAELI SETTLERS: EU countries will today discuss a proposal to impose sanctions against extremist Israeli settlers. But, as my colleague Barbara Moens reports, Hungary and the Czech Republic are blocking the initiative — despite Washington’s decision to go ahead with its own sanctions.
Background: The EU’s top diplomat Josep Borrell proposed sanctions against individual Israeli settlers — such as a ban on entering Europe — back in December.
Over recent months, extremist settlers have attacked Palestinians and chased them from their homes. Israel’s government has been criticized for supporting such settlers and not preventing them from moving further into Palestinian territories — making the two-state solution, which the EU and U.S. officially back, ever more difficult.
Hitting Hamas: In January, the EU slapped new sanctions on Hamas, which controls Gaza, hitting the group’s financial streams and targeting half a dozen individuals.
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According to diplomats, the idea among EU member countries was to agree to those Hamas sanctions first before moving on to impose sanctions against Israeli extremist settlers.
Berlin on board: Germany — which has been cautious in its criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government — is now on board with the sanctions, two EU diplomats said.
Washington too: The U.S. on Friday announced it will impose sanctions on four individuals who have killed or displaced Palestinians from their land, which puts extra pressure on the EU to move. “One can hardly accuse the U.S. of being anti-Israeli,” one of the diplomats said. “If they can move on this, surely we must be able to do the same?”
NETHERLANDS UPDATE
DUTCH COALITION TALKS COLLAPSE: Negotiations to form the next Dutch government collapsed Tuesday after Pieter Omtzigt, who leads the New Social Contract (NSC) party, quit the talks.
Wilders left stranded: Omtzigt’s support was key to securing backing for a center-right majority government with four parties, including Geert Wilders’ far-right Party for Freedom (PVV).
What happened: Omtzigt said he was leaving the discussions due to disagreements over how to tackle the state of the government’s finances, but his party could support a minority Cabinet while remaining out of government, Dutch public broadcaster NOS reported.
Not happy: “How disappointing,” Wilders said. “Pieter Omtzigt is throwing in the towel while we were still in talks until today. I don’t understand it at all.”
Far right keeps rising: The sluggish pace of the coalition talks seems to have benefited Wilders in opinion polls. According to POLITICO’s Poll of Polls, the PVV has now soared to 32 percent of voter support, up from 24 percent in November’s election. Read more by Nicolas Camut.
THE LEGISLATION RACE
BELGIUM RACES TO CLOSE KEY LEGISLATIVE FILES: The Belgian EU Council presidency is racing to close key remaining legislative files before the EU’s lawmaking machinery enters into preelection deepfreeze.
Chocolate for the EU budget top-up: Fueled with chocolate, nuts and caffeine, the Belgian presidency spent the night negotiating with MEPs on the EU’s budget top-up to subsidize industries.
Industry fund: According to people in the room, Parliament pushed for more money for the industry fund, aka STEP — with the Belgian presidency having leeway to meet Parliament halfway, given the Council’s position was already painstakingly negotiated between the 27 EU countries.
And just like that … a deal on STEP was agreed. The provisional agreement includes an additional €1.5 billion to be allocated to the European Defense Fund, and incentives for channeling cohesion policy funds toward investments in critical technologies. Parliament and Council still need to formally sign off on the deal.
Some more success, sort of: It comes after the aid package for Ukraine was already agreed on Tuesday, as reported by Playbook. Although my colleague Gregorio Sorgi has a piece out today on how that €50 billion package already seems like peanuts for Kyiv.
ECONOMIC GOVERNANCE REFORM: Tuesday also saw another round of negotiations between Belgian Finance Minister Vincent Van Peteghem and MEPs on the EU’s new fiscal rules.
Parliament pushing back: The chair of Parliament’s economics committee Irene Tinagli said that national capitals were not making an effort to meet MEPs halfway and accused the Council of ignoring Commission proposals to facilitate the negotiations.
Let’s go again: MEPs and membercountries are meeting again today for further talks, but they’re running out of time to secure a political deal before Friday, when Van Peteghem will lead what all involved hope will be the last trilogue, just ahead of the cutoff date for the reform.
Stay tuned: There are still some sleepless nights ahead — good thing Belgians have got good chocolate!
AROUND PARLIAMENT
SOCIALISTS HIT BACK AGAINST EPP ON GREEN DEAL: The Party of European Socialists is hitting back at the EPP, following Playbook’s report Tuesday on comments by center-right lawmaker Peter Liese about the Green Deal.
Quality of debate: “We are for a battle of ideas, not personal attacks. These sorts of slanderous statements are a disgrace and have no place in our political discourse,” PES Secretary-General Giacomo Filibeck told Playbook in a statement.
“If conservatives want to criticise our policies for a social green deal, that is fine. But they should not bring the debate down to unfounded, conspiratorial, personal attacks,” Filibeck said, arguing all sides had a responsibility for the quality of the political debate.
Background: In remarks to journalists, the EPP’s Liese accused former Green Deal chief Frans Timmermans of staffing the EU’s climate division with “many many people [who] work on instruments [for] how to torture Europeans, European farmers, European industry and so on.”
VDL CAN DELAY, NOT AVOID, SHOWDOWN WITH FARMERS: With farmers blocking highways and burning manure from Barcelona to Berlin, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday scrapped almost all references to agriculture in the EU’s bold new plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
Delaying the inevitable: But as my colleagues Karl Mathiesen and Zia Weise report, the EU will have to tackle the polluting agri sector in the coming legislature. Von der Leyen is making concessions “to punt a climate battle over farming to the next president — which may be her,” they write.
“You deleted everything on agriculture,” said Bas Eickhout, a lead election candidate for the European Greens, as he chided Climate Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra during Tuesday’s parliamentary session. “You put it away in this communication, but that doesn’t make the problem go away.”
RENEW LEADER’S NEW CABINET: The new leader of Parliament’s liberal Renew group, Valérie Hayer has appointed Catherine Martens, a former journalist with German network DW, as her spokesperson, insiders told Playbook. Hayer had faced criticism within the group for having too many French people in her staff.
Who else is in Hayer’s cabinet … the lineup includes Arnaud Schoenaerts, Agathe Bocquet, Valentin Gros, Alexander Kolks, Merlin Halilova and Ariane Forgues.
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IN OTHER NEWS
MITSOTAKIS’ GAMBLE: Greece’s center-right Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is not the most likely candidate to bring a landmark bill to the country’s parliament legalizing same-sex marriage. Despite an uproar from some conservative corners, analysts reckon he will emerge strengthened by his progressive push. Nektaria Stamouli has more.
EU IN DC TO TALK CHINA: Stefano Sannino, the no. 2 figure in the EU’s diplomatic arm, is in Washington for the EU-U.S. dialogues on China and the Indo-Pacific. And it’s perfect timing: His new counterpart, Kurt Campbell, a renowned Asia hand, was confirmed as the U.S. deputy secretary of state by the Senate on Tuesday.
GERMANY URGES ORBÁN TO STOP DELAYING SWEDEN’S NATO ADMISSION: Germany is piling pressure on Viktor Orbán to speed up approval of Sweden’s NATO membership bid, after the Hungarian leader’s ruling Fidesz party held up ratification on Monday. “We believe that it is now a matter of loyalty to the alliance and, more generally, of friendly behavior between EU states that this should happen very quickly,” a senior German official told reporters in Berlin on Tuesday. More from Hans von der Burchard and Nicolas Camut here.
EU MORE EFFICIENT THAN AMERICA ON INFRASTRUCTURE, NEW STUDY FINDS: European countries pay less per kilometer of rail and highway, when compared to the U.K., U.S. and Australia according to a BCG study out today. But EU countries are often also slower at completing such infrastructure projects. Except for Germany, which had the lowest share of delayed road projects (but still 29% of them were delayed).
Sometimes clichés are true: While Germany was the best at getting road projects done in time, France was the best at building rail. “France performs the best with the lowest absolute unit costs for both road and rail projects,” said Raoul Ruparel, lead author of the study. “The median unit cost for French rail is £12.6m per track km, which is half the global average in our dataset (£24.3m).”