MPs vote to probe subsidies scandal
As expected, the Parliament voted Tuesday to set up a commission to investigate a case involving EU farm subsidies illegally disbursed to undeserving recipients by the agency set up to handle the subsidies. Opposition parties unanimously denounced the government, saying its proposal amounted to a whitewash that ignored the voluminous case file submitted by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office and which concerned solely the years 2019-22, that is, the first three years of the current conservative government.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/politics/1276711/mps-vote-to-probe-subsidies-scandal
Court hands down suspended sentences of 9 to 15 months for illegally paid OPEKEPE subsidies
The Single-Member Misdemeanours Court trying a case of fraud involving EU subsidies illegally paid out by OPEKEPE, the Greek payments authority for EU agricultural aid, on Tuesday handed out suspended prison sentences of nine to 15 months to seven defendants who were earlier found guilty as charged.
Polls: Tsipras seen as only realistic opposition to conservatives
Leftist former prime minister Alexis Tsipras is emerging as the only political figure currently seen as capable of forming a credible opposition bloc to the ruling conservatives, potentially overtaking PASOK as the country’s main opposition, recent polls suggest. A GPO poll published over the weekend found that 19.5% of respondents would consider supporting a new formation under his leadership.A Real Polls survey released on July 16 showed similar backing, with 18.1% expressing support.
Scuffles break out in Crete during visit by Israeli cruise ship
Scuffles broke out between riot police and demonstrators on the island of Crete on Tuesday, during a protest against the war in Gaza while an Israeli cruise ship was docked at the island. This follows similar protests on the islands of Syros and Rhodes that took place in recent days.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1276676/protest-held-in-crete-over-arrival-of-israeli-cruise-ship
ATHEX: Rebound for index nearing 2,000 points
The recovery of European bourses, the expectation of very positive results by Greek banks in the coming days, starting from Wednesday, and the notable interest in OTE telecom gave Athinon Avenue a fresh push on Tuesday, to offset losses of the previous two sessions. The rise in the closing auctions and the better-than-expected January-June data of Hellenic Exchanges, reported just after Tuesday, point to the benchmark being close to the leap above the headline-making 2,000-point mark.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1276699/athex-rebound-for-index-nearing-2000-points
KATHIMERINI: Record-high new jobs in the first half of 2025
TA NEA: Greece targeted by Russian spies
EFIMERIDA TON SYNTAKTON: The PM on the OPEKEPE scandal: Society is to blame
RIZOSPASTIS: The parliament whitewashes CAP policy and covers up the true culprits of the OPEKEPE scandal
KONTRA NEWS: Justice reveals – Government covers-up
DIMOKRATIA: PM’s true grit: Wolf cries wolf regarding the OPEKEPE scandal
NAFTEMPORIKI: Profits under conditions from the energy deal between EU-USA
DRIVING THE DAY: CAN EUROPE MAKE ISRAEL LISTEN?
BRUSSELS WARNS GAZA FACES “FAMINE,” DIPLOS KICK THE CAN: In some of the strongest criticism of Benjamin Netanyahu’s government ever to emerge from the Berlaymont building, the European Commission on Monday accused Israel explicitly of “violating human rights” and presiding over a potential “famine” in Gaza. The excoriating assessment came in the text of the Commission’s proposal to suspend part of the EU’s association agreement with Israel in response to the crisis.
The Commission did not hold back in its damning written verdict on Israeli actions, which was circulated among diplomats and published online: “The humanitarian situation has deteriorated to an unprecedented and unsustainable level, driven by ongoing bombardments, military operations, mass displacement, and the collapse of basic services.”
And yet, diplos are gonna dip: To the surprise of maybe no one, EU ambassadors kicked the can down Rue de la Loi again.The Commission’s plan to suspend Israel’s access to part of the Horizon Europe research program did not win enough support to progress when it was discussed among envoys on Tuesday, sources told us last night.
TO PUT IT IN CONTEXT: Here’s what the Commission actually said about the situation in Gaza …
The key quote: “With its intervention in the Gaza Strip and the ensuing humanitarian catastrophe, including thousands of civilian deaths and rapidly rising numbers of spreading extreme malnutrition specifically of children, Israel is violating human rights and humanitarian law and thus is in breach of an essential principle of the EU-Israel cooperation under the Euro-Mediterranean Agreement.”
Making the case: After months of weighing up the correct way to respond to the unfolding emergency in Gaza, with awkward formulations that don’t quite accuse Israel squarely of legal wrongdoing, something inside the EU executive seems to have snapped.
No time to be diplomatic: Some 90 percent of households in Gaza face “severe” water supply problems and malnutrition is rising sharply. “Severe shortages of medicine, equipment, and medical staff indicate an urgent need for humanitarian assistance,” the document said, adding:
“Virtually the entire Gaza population is at risk of famine, with children and vulnerable people in a particularly dramatic situation.”
That’s quite the claim. Reminder: Israel argues there is no starvation in Gaza and any statements to the contrary are Hamas propaganda.
More jaw-jaw, and more war-war: The Danish EU presidency will continue working on the plan, amid frustration from within the Commission and among plenty of EU diplomats that it’s taking so long even for this small step to be agreed by a qualified majority.
DON’T RUSH MERZ: The hold-up lies squarely with Berlin. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz does not want to dive headlong into a historic breach with Israel, given his country’s tradition of staunch backing for the Jewish state.
Germany’s stance is frustrating officials inside the Commission, as well as diplomats from other countries, 10 of whom spoke out strongly in favor of the Horizon suspension plan in Tuesday’s meeting, with several calling for tougher measures on trade sanctions too, diplomats told Playbook. Another four countries were explicitly against the measure while a big group, including Germany, did not want to take action — yet.
Hurry up, eh? A senior Commission official said there was a “special urgency” to get on with implementing the measure, given the escalating crisis.
NEVER SAY NEVER: Germany’s position has certainly shifted over the past week from outright opposition to acting against Israel under the EU association agreement to a willingness to consider it, at the right time.
For all his resistance, Merz may yet come on board. If he does, it will surely shift the balance among EU countries in favor of acting to penalize Israel. POLITICO’s Nette Nöstlinger reports that Merz left the door open to taking further steps when a reporter asked him about it on Tuesday.
Still fact-finding, Fred? “We will probably ask the three foreign ministers from France, Great Britain and Germany to travel to Israel together on Thursday next week and present the positions of the three states, the three governments, and we naturally reserve the right to hold further discussions and make further decisions on this,” Merz said. “However, we assume that the Israeli government is quite willing to recognize that something must be done now.”
One EU diplomat wondered privately what could possibly come out of any visit next week that would make taking action unnecessary. There’s no guarantee they’ll see much anyway. The EU’s top humanitarian aid official was visiting Israel this week but was not able to observe the situation on the ground in Gaza.
What is clear: While Israel promised to allow in at least 160 aid trucks through different crossing points, nothing like this has yet happened, a senior Commission official said. “The situation is still pretty grim and the number of people in need [is] very high.” Law and order has completely broken down and there are reportedly “many cases of looting,” the official added.
STARMER PLANS TO RECOGNIZE STATE OF PALESTINE
SHIFTING POSITION: Britain on Tuesday said it will officially recognize a Palestinian state in September unless Israel backs off in Gaza, taking “substantive steps” to end the crisis and commit to a two-state peace process. It’s a radical and new position for U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer to take, and one that comes after intensifying pressure from within his own party and his cabinet. POLITICO’s London reporters have all the details.
France got there first: Starmer’s announcement follows French President Emmanuel Macron’s decision last week to recognize a Palestinian state. Both countries say they plan to formally announce the shift at a meeting of the United Nations in September. Maltese Prime Minister Roberta Abela also said Tuesday his country will recognize a Palestinian state at that general assembly meeting, per the Times of Malta.
In New York last night: At a high-level conference on this subject, hosts France and Saudi Arabia called on U.N. members to support “tangible, timebound and irreversible steps” to end the conflict in Gaza and establish a Palestinian state, Reuters reports.
The “New York Declaration,” which they’re asking other countries to sign before September’s general assembly, calls for a phased plan to lay the ground for a two-state solution, starting with a ceasefire, the release of hostages by Hamas, transfer of control of Gaza to the Palestinian Authority and deployment of international troops to maintain order.
Of course, if Israel meets Starmer’s demands … oh wait: “Starmer rewards Hamas’s monstrous terrorism & punishes its victims,” was Netanyahu’s verdict. Israel’s foreign ministry was similarly unimpressed. More here.
As for Donald Trump: The U.S. president said he didn’t discuss Palestinian statehood with Starmer on Monday and has “no view” on the matter. He told reporters on Air Force One on his way back from Scotland that the U.S. and Israel would partner to run new food centers “to make sure the distribution is proper,” but details were scarce, per the Associated Press.
MIA: THE BIGGEST DEAL EVER STRUCK
IS THAT IT? To say the trade deal Trump and Ursula von der Leyen struck in Scotland on Sunday was short on detail is an understatement. In fact, the harder you look at it, the further away the deal seems to get, almost to the point of vanishing into thin air.
Initial reactions of dismay at the headline 15 percent tariff figure (and those incredible euro investment pledges) have given way to head-scratching as journalists and other puzzled observers ask what, if anything, it all means.
Gloating: Speaking to CNBC Tuesday, a grinning U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick hailed Trump’s “master class” in negotiation and said there’s “plenty of horse trading left to do” with the EU. “Do I expect to continue to be talking to the European Commission’s trade people? Yeah, they called me this morning,” he said, adding that “digital services, taxes and the attack on our tech companies — that is going to be on the table.”
Free-trading Sweden is not impressed, even as the full extent of the agreement remained unknown. “We are still analyzing the details. However, we must be clear about the fact that the United States is now introducing the highest tariffs on Europe in almost 70 years,” Benjamin Dousa, the Swedish trade minister, told Playbook. “This agreement does not make anyone richer, but is perhaps the least worst option,” he acknowledged, before adding: “As the United States closes itself off, Europe needs to open itself up.”
Earning his corn: Commission trade spokesperson Olof Gill battled through the blizzard of questions from reporters at Tuesday’s midday briefing, many of whom were asking for details that were not even close to being nailed down. “On Sunday the two presidents reached a deal, a political agreement. What we are doing now is taking that political agreement, fleshing out the details,” Gill explained. “That will lead to a joint statement. I can’t tell you precisely when that joint statement will be ready, but it should be soon.”
So this forthcoming joint statement — will that be the deal? No. “That joint statement itself is not a legally binding document, rather it’s a roadmap, a series of political agreements,” Gill went on. From these agreements it will be possible to generate “the stability” that business needs and which von der Leyen promised would come from the U.S. accord.
There’s more: All this is really just the start, though, according to the Commission. What the deal does is open a new chapter in EU-U.S. relations, preparing for proper collaboration on subjects likely including defense and security as well as trade, officials argue.
And as for those tricky tariffs: “We will look at further areas where we can reduce tariffs and other areas of cooperation,” Gill said. “But the joint statement, we view it as a kind of a platform, a foundation from which we can allow transatlantic trade to continue, to grow.” Clear yet?
FURTHER READING: Your Playbook author took another look at the politics of Trump’s deals to ask whether his preferential tariffs for the U.K. mark the moment Brexit finally paid off. (No laughing at the back!)
What about Beijing? Antonia Zimmermann has this story on how Brussels got tough on China to secure its deal with Trump … while in this op-ed for POLITICO, former U.S. Ambassador to NATO Ivo Daalder writes that in the competition between Beijing and Washington, Beijing is winning.
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IN OTHER NEWS
17 COUNTRIES JOIN BRUSSELS ARMS BUYERS CLUB: Seventeen countries requested cheap loans worth over €120 billion from the European Commission to boost their defense capabilities and potentially buy arms for Ukraine, POLITICO’s Gregorio Sorgi reports. The Security Assistance Facility for Europe loans-for-weapons scheme, which offered up to €150 billion in cheap loans, saw Poland put in the most ambitious bid, for €45 billion.
Trump’s deadline for Putin: President Trump said Russia must agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine by Aug. 8 or risk sanctions. Details here.
PFIZERGATE LOSS: Amid all the excitement of the MFF budget announcement and the trade deal with the U.S., the Commission quietly decided not to appeal the Pfizergate judgment that called von der Leyen’s leadership into question, POLITICO’s Mari Eccles discovered.
Reminder: The EU’s lower-tier General Court ruled in May that the Commission was wrong to block access to von der Leyen’s secret texts with Pfizer’s CEO at the height of the Covid pandemic. The deadline for the Commission to fight that ruling at the top-tier court passed earlier this month, with the EU executive choosing to accept the decision without appeal.
GOOD NEWS FOR TRAVELERS: The European Commission on Tuesday said it will permit some high-tech C3 scanners to be used again at airports to allow passengers to take up to 2 liters of liquids through security checks.
Bad news for travelers: The Commission’s shift in position is causing confusion because only scanners made by one company — the U.K.’s Smiths Detection — can be used. That leaves airports that bought scanners from rivals out in the cold, Tommaso Lecca reports.
WILD WEATHER 1 — PORTUGAL WILDFIRES: More than 1,300 firefighters tackled three large wildfires in central and northern Portugal on Tuesday, Reuters reports.
WILD WEATHER 2 — TSUNAMI ALERT: An 8.8-magnitude earthquakes struck Russia’s far east early this morning, setting off a tsunami in the northern Pacific region and prompting warnings for Alaska, Hawaii and other coasts south toward New Zealand. AP has more.