Farmers reject PM’s updated proposals
Protesting farmers rejected the measures to reduce energy costs announced by the prime minister on Tuesday during a meeting with representatives, and said they will continue mobilizations.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1231624/farmers-reject-pms-updated-proposals/
Greece assumes command of Red Sea maritime security operation
The European Commission officially established on Tuesday “EUNAVFOR ASPIDES”, the European military operation for maritime security and freedom of navigation in the context of the Red Sea crisis.
Police linking courthouse parcel bomb to terrorism attempt
Investigators are reportedly working on the assumption that the envelope containing explosives that was sent on Monday to the Thessaloniki courthouse addressed to the president of the Court of Appeal was an attempted terrorist attack without, however, correlating the case with the recent strikes at the headquarters of the riot police in Goudi and the Ministry of Labor.
Shipping company denies triple killer was given a home
The shipping company where a former caretaker opened fire on Monday killing three people and himself by suicide has denied reports that the perpetrator had been given a home after his employment with the company was terminated.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1231600/shipping-company-denies-triple-killer-was-given-a-home/
ATHEX: Imported pressure on stocks
The US inflation data shook European markets, including Greece’s, which suffered losses in its indexes and the majority of stocks on Tuesday. This was the third straight session of losses for the benchmark, after it hit a 13-year high last week. Turnover was boosted by the inclusion of Athens International Airport in the FTSE indexes.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1231618/athex-imported-pressure-on-stocks/
KATHIMERINI: BoG: Housing loans of up to 90% of assets’ value
TA NEA: Uncollected rents: the keys to zero tax
EFIMERIDA TON SYNTAKTON: Government’s mockery of farmers has no end
AVGI: Criminal partisan favor by [former Transport minister] Karamanlis
RIZOSPASTIS: The farmers continue the road blocks and escalate their fair fight
KONTRA NEWS: The government shut down 40% of surgery booths in the NHS
DIMOKRATIA: Mr. Karamanlis, you knew about the issues in the railway and now you are lying
NAFTEMPORIKI: Investment hunger brings 4,6 billion euros to listed companies
NATO TALKS UKRAINE
NATO MINISTERS MEET — WITH TRUMP ON THEIR MINDS: NATO defense ministers are gathering in Brussels today and Thursday for a two-day meeting, with a focus on supporting Ukraine and discussions with the defense industry on how best to equip allies’ militaries.
Future of the alliance: But top diplomats are making no secret of the fact that former U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated broadsides against NATO will loom over the meeting.
Washington’s line: Speaking to the media on Tuesday, U.S. Ambassador to NATO Julianne Smith lambasted Trump’s invitation to Russia to attack NATO countries who are not investing enough in defense. “Encouraging the Kremlin to attack any NATO ally or alliance territory really puts our soldiers, U.S. soldiers, and our allies’ soldiers in greater danger,” she said. “Making those types of statements is dangerous and frankly irresponsible.”
Rutte, eyes emoji: The other elephant that’ll be in the room: the question of who’ll succeed Jens Stoltenberg as NATO secretary-general. Smith dropped some clues. “Allies are quite interested in completing this selection process, probably in the first quarter of this calendar year,” Smith said, adding: “I don’t think it’s any secret, though, that we have heard from [Dutch PM Mark] Rutte himself … and he has expressed an interest. So that is one person that the alliance is looking at.”
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Support for Ukraine: While U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who was released from hospital Tuesday night, won’t travel to Brussels, he is still expected to chair a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group virtually today, Smith said. “We do expect to see a number of our allies and partners once again coming forward with additional forms of assistance for our friends in Ukraine.”
Future-proofing the group: Smith also appeared to brush aside suggestions that the U.S.-led Ukraine Defense Contact Group, or the Ramstein format, would soon be taken over by NATO, out of fear of a Trump comeback. “The success of that group really rests … with Secretary Austin, who has been able to lead it each and every time,” she said, adding: “The U.S. will continue to invest in this process.”
Expectation management for Kyiv: Asked about the prospect of political commitment to NATO membership for Ukraine at the upcoming leaders’ summit in Washington this summer, Smith said: “I do not expect the alliance to issue an invitation. At this juncture, I do anticipate that the allies will be able to signal that the alliance continues to move closer to Ukraine, and that we are taking concrete steps to serve as a bridge between where we are now and that full-fledged membership.” Read more by Stuart Lau and Jacopo Barigazzi.
PUTIN’S TIME IS RUNNING OUT: Much of the attention these past weeks has focused on the Western alliance’s looming risks — which admittedly are hard to overlook with Trump’s shrill campaign cries.
Russia’s unsustainable effort: But the economic fundamentals tell a different story. Russia is spending around one-third of its budget on defense and is burning through arms, ammunition and troops at an unsustainable pace, according to a report published Tuesday.
How many more years? Russia will be able to sustain its war effort in Ukraine for “two to three more years,” said International Institute for Strategic Studies Director General Bastian Giegerich. Read more by Giovanna Coi.
NOW READ THIS: Despite those economic hurdles, Estonia’s Foreign Intelligence Service reckons Russia is gearing up for a potential armed conflict with Western countries within the next decade, according to a report published Tuesday.
Ripple effect: Russia’s brutal war in Ukraine — and potential actions elsewhere — are transforming militaries across Europe. As Elisabeth Braw writes here, Sweden’s Home Guard reserve force has become so attractive to young Swedes, it’s having to turn away applicants.
The closer you are, the more you spend: And within NATO, almost all members of the alliance are setting aside more money for defense, Hanne Cokelaere reports. For example, Poland, which borders Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, is now the top defense spender per GDP among the 31 countries in NATO.
GREEN TRANSITION
BRETON WARNS ABOUT CHINA EV DEPENDENCY: Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton will tell car industry representatives today that Europe is “at a pivotal moment … in our green ambitions” and far more needs to be done to switch lanes to electric vehicles, according to remarks shared with Playbook.
Exporting jobs to China: European carmakers need to make cheaper electric vehicles and get better at producing batteries in Europe, Breton will warn, “otherwise, we will leave the market to Chinese and other manufacturers. We will become net importers of vehicles and will lose jobs, here in Europe.”
Ambition vs. reality: The European Union’s ambition of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 90 percent by 2040 risks only being “a target, with limited chances of success” since “ensuring it is effectively implemented is the real challenge,” he’ll say.
Making it happen: Breton wants to focus minds today on making sure more batteries and their components are made and recycled in Europe. He also wants more attention on rolling out charging infrastructure and making sure power grids can cope.
SLOVAKIA CORNER
REYNDERS BLASTS SLOVAKIA OVER RULE OF LAW: European Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders wrote to Slovak Justice Minister Boris Susko on Feb. 8 to “demand that you halt the accelerated legislative procedure” to push through a far-reaching amendment to the country’s criminal code — the same day the country’s parliament passed the changes, Slovakia’s SME daily reported.
Reynders’ warning: Citing “irreparable damages” in Slovakia, including the abolition of the Special Prosecutor’s Office that handles the gravest organized crime and political corruption cases, Reynders said the EU executive would be forced to respond, as the legislation impacted European rights and the EU’s financial interests, my colleague Tom Nicholson writes in to report. Reynders also noted that the reduction in Slovakia’s statute of limitations, in many cases by half — such as for rape, where victims will now only have 10 years rather than 20 to bring their cases — would result in “systematic impunity.”
In the naughty corner: SME reported that Bratislava now faces either infringement proceedings or punishment under the EU’s rule-of-law conditionality mechanism, used against Poland and Hungary, which could potentially lead to Slovakia’s EU funding being frozen.
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AROUND PARLIAMENT
WATCH OUT FOR SCAMS: EU Lawmakers today vote on measures designed to hold telecom and social media giants liable for payment scams that come through their platforms via telephone calls or text messages, my colleagues Mathieu Pollet and Bjarke Smith-Meyer write in to report.
Don’t spy, but keep an eye: “If the Facebooks of the world make money on ads and accounts, they should take responsibility if those ads and accounts are fraudulent,” Poland’s Socialist MEP Marek Belka told reporters on Tuesday. “We don’t want them to spy on everyone but to react to information when they get some.”
State of play: The European Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee will vote on the draft rules for payment services, which still need to be negotiated with EU governments. Council talks on the file are scheduled for March.
Think twice: Lawmakers’ plans didn’t go down well with digital giants. The amendments are “inappropriate and raise more questions than answers,” said Boniface de Champris, a senior policy manager at Big Tech lobby group CCIA.
Overlap: The Parliament’s measures could clash with the EU’s new content moderation rulebook, which already mandates platforms to fight fraud. Belka said the new provisions are “connected and harmonized with the Digital Services Act” and have been discussed “at length with the people from the [European] Commission.”
IN OTHER NEWS
HAPPY VALENTINE’S: It’s that time of year again, when POLITICO brings you the ultimate list of Brussels power couples in honor of Valentine’s Day. Sarah Wheaton and Eddy Wax have been busy quizzing 14 Brussels couples, assigning each a power rating, as well as a “raised-eyebrow” factor for controversy or risk of conflict of interest. See who made the loved-up list here.
SCHINAS READY FOR ROUND 2: Playbook hears Commissioner Margaritis Schinas has the cards lined up in his favor for a second term, with Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis, a close ally, having won an election last year. Asked whether he was interested in a second term, Schinas told my colleague Laura Hülsemann: “My future lies in the hands of the Greek prime minister and the Commission president.”
ICYMI: Russia has put Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas on a wanted list “for the destruction and damage of monuments to Soviet soldiers,” according to Russian news outlets. “This is yet more proof that I am doing the right thing,” Kallas said on X in response. More from Pierre Emmanuel Ngendakumana.