The news that matter in Europe
The news that matter in Europe
Lawmakers in North Macedonia approved the new nationalist-dominated government of Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski, whose party won parliamentary elections in May, riding on voter anger at the slow pace of European Union integration, reported Reuters.
After a third vote and a technical…
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Let’s provide an overview of the key policy areas and responsibilities of the Belgian presidency of the European Union, highlighting its focus on various thematic areas such as enlargement, foreign affairs, economic governance, migration, health, social policy, green and digital transition,…
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Caso Lettori // La violación más prolongada de la disposición de igualdad de trato del Tratado en la historia de la UE está cerca de su fin. El Colegio de Comisarios en su reunión del pasado viernes avaló por unanimidad la remisión del expediente de infracción N.2021/4055 al Tribunal de Justicia de…
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The Russian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), together with deputies from Serbia, Armenia, Hungary and Moldova, protested the adoption of the law on indigenous peoples by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. The head of the Russian delegation, Deputy Speaker of the State Duma, Pyotr Tolstoy, announced this in his Telegram channel on Thursday.
“Russia has already declared a protest in PACE in connection with the actions of Kiev. Our initiative to condemn the actions of the Ukrainian side was supported by deputies from Serbia, Armenia, Hungary, Moldova. I am confident that the number of those dissatisfied with the actions of Kiev will increase, ”the head of the delegation said.
Tolstoy also clarified that the actions of the Ukrainian deputies, “shouting joyfully about the adopted law,” cannot be left unanswered. In his opinion, “outspoken Nazis” who are covered by the European authorities have settled in the Verkhovna Rada. “By their decision to delete 20 million Russian people from history, they lead to a repetition of the events of the second quarter of the XX century,” added the head of the Russian delegation.
On July 1, the Verkhovna Rada, by a majority (325) votes, adopted the law “On the Indigenous Peoples of Ukraine”, which was previously introduced by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. According to the text of the document, an “indigenous people” is an ethnic community that “was formed on the territory of Ukraine, is a bearer of a distinctive language and culture, recognizes itself as an indigenous people of Ukraine, does not have its own state education outside of Ukraine”
In Russia, the new law has been repeatedly criticized because it did not include Russians as indigenous peoples. Thus, during the direct line, Russian President Vladimir Putin called this law an example of the unfriendly attitude of the current Kiev administration towards Russia. “This is generally simply incomprehensible to the mind. From time immemorial, Russian people have lived here, and now they are declared non-indigenous, ”he said, adding that this could lead to a reduction in the number of Russians in the country. According to Putin, this is comparable to “the use of weapons of mass destruction.” The State Duma also condemned the draft law, calling it a “flagrant provocation” aimed at exacerbating tensions inside and outside Ukraine.
, https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20210621IPR06632/
, https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20210422IPR02619/
, https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20201213IPR93804/
, https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20201210BKG93511/
, https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20201120IPR92129/
Brussels. Young parliamentarians and youth-political organizations from across Europe have today published an open letter to European Council President Charles Michel urging him to invite the leader of the Belarusian opposition, Svetlana Tsikhanouskaya, to address this week’s meeting of the European Council. The initiative is being spearheaded by the President of the Youth of the European People’s Party (YEPP) Lidia Pereira MEP.
Dear President Charles Michel,
In August of this year, following the Belarusian Presidential election, the Youth of the European People’s Party (YEPP) launched a campaign called #WithBelarus to show our support for the people of Belarus and send them a clear message of European solidarity. This campaign has drawn support from our member organizations and young parliamentarians from across Europe. As you are aware, the situation in Belarus has continued to escalate and protestors continue to risk their own safety by taking to the streets to make their voices heard.
Each day protestors are being arrested and tortured for opposing the Lukashenko regime and this fight will not end until their demand for democratic change is met. In light of this, we see it as imperative to invite the leader of the Belarusian opposition, Svetlana Tsikhanouskaya, to address the upcoming meeting of the European Council. As Belarusian issues are European issues, it is crucial that the true voice of the Belarusian people is heard at the highest level of European politics. Inviting Ms. Tsikhanouskaya to address the meeting would be a clear statement showing that the European Union stands with the people of Belarus in their fight for a future that is democratic and free.
Yours sincerely:
, https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20201002IPR88429/
The decision to postpone the EU council meeting solved – for the time being – one thorny EU question, writes Denis MacShane. What to do about Turkey’s new Sultan Erdogan and his non-stop aggression against EU member states, and core EU values?
Denis MacShane is a former Minister for Europe for the UK.
Cyprus has been put in the EU’s naughty corner as the EPP-controlled government there refused to sign off on sanctions measures against Belarus’s Lukashenko.
In time-honoured EU fashion, Nicosia used its veto powers in protest at European Commission and Council inaction on Turkish irredentism in the East Mediterranean.
Cyprus, it should not be forgotten, was invaded and dismembered by Turkey in 1974. Many remain indignant about Putin’s dismemberment of Ukraine and his annexation of Crimea and sanctions are still in place against Moscow.
But Erdogan has sent Turkish naval vessels to protect an energy exploration ship operating in waters that both Greece and Cyprus consider part of their domain.
For millennia, the identity of Greece is based not just on its mainland but on its islands. 200 years ago in 1821, it was island Greeks who rose up to claim freedom and independence from their Ottoman colonisers.
England’s Lord Byron was one of many Europeans who threw himself into the struggle for Greek independence – dying from fever in Greece in 1824.
Now President Erdogan in the eyes of many Greeks and Cypriots wants to restore Ottoman splendour. At a conference in Athens earlier this month, the former French president, François Hollande, laid out the charge sheet against Erdogan.
The new Sultan Erdogan, he said, was seeking to militarise the Eastern Mediterranean; had breached Nato Treaty obligations by buying Russian missiles; had imprisoned hundreds of journalists and political opponents; is obsessed with Islamism, promoting Islam in Europe and has converted two of the finest Byzantine Christian cathedrals in Istanbul into mosques; he flagrantly interferes in the politics of European countries like France and Germany, holding giant political rallies and insisting that Turkish EU citizens owe loyalty only to Turkey; his adventurism in Syria and his war on the Kurds is dangerous; and his alliance with Libya was an act of aggression.
Yet Hollande was countered by Germany’s former SPD Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel. He shrugged his shoulders and told Hollande and a number of Greek ministers that if Turkey was sanctioned for buying Russian S-400 air defence missiles in clear violation of Nato Treaty obligations or was made to leave Nato, Turkey would quickly become a nuclear power.
He added that if the EU showed solidarity with Greece and took any measures against Erdogan, Europe would have to build new walls on all its frontiers including internal ones in countries like Hungary, as Erdogan would send a million or more refugees into the EU.
For Gabriel, the main problem was that the United States was not ready to sanction Turkey and given the US controlled Nato, there would be no clear line on Turkish militarisation of the East Mediterranean.
For Gabriel, the answer was “strategic patience”. As Gabriel mockingly put it: “If the EU’s foreign policy is now vegetarian, German foreign policy is vegan”.
As keen meat eaters, the Greeks are more than disappointed with this policy from Berlin though as the UK’s former ambassador to Greece, John Kittmer, pointed out in a paper for London’s main defence policy think tank, the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), the Greeks need to improve their public diplomacy in smaller EU member states.
Paris is currently Greece’s number one supporter. When taxed with letting in an utterly reformed, corrupt Greece into the European Community in 1980, the then French president, Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, grandly replied: “Europe without Plato is unthinkable.”
Britain was one the most Hellenophile of Europe’s nations. But Prime Minister Boris Johnson is proud of his Turkish ancestry – his great grandfather, Kemal Ali, chose the wrong side after 1920 and was killed by his opponents – and since Brexit the UK is no longer a foreign policy player.
Now it is France which is Greece’s main champion though the French Europe Minister, Clément Beaune, has rebuked Cyprus for blocking action against Lukashenko.
Macron sent a French naval frigate to warn off Erdogan but the EU can only handle one foreign policy problem at a time and right now Belarus takes up all the bandwidth of the EU’s External Action Service..
Angela Merkel had a conference call with Erdogan and EU Council President Charles Michel this week and told Erdogan to enter into talks with Greece which the Sultan acceded to.
No-one holds up much hope for a new Turkey-Greece rapprochement such as happened during the so-called “earthquake diplomacy” era initiated by Greece’s then foreign minister, George Papandreou, in 1998. This led to moves to allow Turkey to be accepted as a candidate for the EU. As Tony Blair’s Europe minister at the time the UK and many on the centre-left supported Turkey’s turn to Europe.
But 20 years later Erdogan has made clear he has no interest in a European Turkey but wants an Islamised Ottoman Turkey back which holds sway once again over the Aegan region.
A Spanish consumers association Atty Luis de Miguel Ortega, with a coalition of other associations, has written the President of the European Commission requesting urgent response and adjustment to the law in different health issues related to the current situation of pandemic, saying that:
This institutional behavior, together with the evident collusion with philanthropic-looking pharmaceutical research, production and distribution entities, not only affects the freedom of the market but also the essential rights of citizens and consumers who are left out of the slightest decision.
At the end of the letter (which can be found below the article) request Von der Leyen the following.
1) Have associations by persons in the procedure of the Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL relative to the performance of clinical trials and the supply of medicines for human use that contain genetically modified organisms or are composed of these organisms, intended to treat or prevent coronavirus disease.
2) These associations are considered an interested party and their legitimacy and direct interest are recognized.
3) The file or, where appropriate, all the information related to said modification that is legitimately accessible to interested persons is transferred to us.
4) It is considered announced that if this claim is not answered within the deadline, a claim will be filed with the Court of Justice of the EU, as established in the provisions that regulate access to said jurisdiction. However, the European Commission requires acknowledgment of receipt stating the corresponding deadlines and resources.
Mr. Luis de Miguel Ortega, as Attorney and in the name and representation of the associations indicated above [Association SCABELUM of Consumers], appears in a timely manner and respectfully SAYS:
FIRST:
That the associations mentioned in this writing, watch over the interests of consumers, especially their health rights and are concerned about the consequences that any reduction in guarantees for human health and the environment may have for the citizens they represent.
Proposing the release and use of genetically modified organisms without guaranteeing the safety of the environment and citizens, seems a crazy idea when not directly terrifying in a context of biological risk that may not only not obtain the adequate response, but may also further aggravate the situation.
The precautionary principle is established to avoid unnecessary risks and has been a doctrinal constant over the years, and in this sense it should be remembered that the seriousness of a situation, by itself, cannot be a reason for a reduction in guarantees and caution as proposed by the Commission.
It is also proposed in a confusing way, without explaining the true object of such modification, which is none other than experimentation with vaccines resulting from genetic engineering, as an experiment for use in the population, without guaranteeing safety -without causing harm-, efficacy – achieving a concrete and measurable objective- and efficiency -at a reasonable cost-.
Throughout the health crisis, there has been a lack of data transparency and an obsession to conduct experiments on human beings, avoid possible responses and treatments, and insist on a vaccine for which there is no prior experience or guarantee.
Real and effective treatments such as artemisia, hydroxychloroquine, chlorine dioxide or vitamin C in high doses, have been banned, reviled, censored and even persecuted, pretending that the objective of the institutions and states was not life, the health and safety of its citizens, but a strange business that we fail to understand.
This institutional behavior, together with the evident collusion with philanthropic-looking pharmaceutical research, production and distribution entities, not only affects the freedom of the market but also the essential rights of citizens and consumers who are left out of the slightest decision.
SECOND:
That this part has studied in detail the Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL relating to the performance of clinical trials and the supply of medicinal products for human use that contain genetically modified organisms or are composed of these organisms, intended to treat or prevent coronavirus disease (Text with EEA relevance).
That said modification affects the following Directives that we have studied:
Directive 2009/41 / CE, relative to the contained use of genetically modified microorganisms.
Directive 2001/18 / CE, on the deliberate release into the environment of genetically modified organisms.
Directive 2001/20 / CE, on clinical trials (Directive 2001/18 / CE and Directive 2009/41 / CE).
Directive 2001/83 / EC (Article 83 of Regulation (EC) No. 726/2004).
REGULATION (EU) No 536/2014 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of April 16, 2014 on clinical trials of medicinal products for human use, and by which Directive 2001/20 / EC is repealed (Text relevant to the purposes of the EEA )
THIRD:
What we have studied in detail:
“ Coordinated EU action to fight the COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences. European Parliament resolution of 17 April 2020 on coordinated action by the Union to combat the COVID – 19 pandemic and its consequences (2020/2616 (RSP)). “
” COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, TO THE EUROPEAN COUNCIL, THE COUNCIL, THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND TO THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS The time for Europe to repair the damage and prepare the future for the next generation {SWD (2020) 98 final}”
” European Parliament resolution on the European Union’s public health strategy after COVID-19 (2020/2691 (RSP))”
FIFTH:
Having regard to the TFEU, the Commission’s Internal Regulations [C (2000) 3614], the CODE OF GOOD ADMINISTRATIVE CONDUCT FOR THE STAFF OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION IN THEIR RELATIONS WITH THE PUBLIC, the Statute of the Court of Justice of the European Union ( 1-5-2019) and the Rules of Procedure of the Court of Justice (1-1-2020), we understand that there are reasons to appear before that commission.
SIXTH:
That the Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL regarding the performance of clinical trials and the supply of medicinal products for human use that contain genetically modified organisms or are composed of these organisms, intended to treat or prevent coronavirus disease, affects:
1) DIRECTIVE 2011/83 / EU OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of October 25, 2011 on consumer rights, amending Council Directive 93/13 / EEC and Directive 1999/44 / EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Directive 85/577 / EEC of the Council and Directive 97/7 / EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (Text with EEA relevance) are repealed.
2) DIRECTIVE 2004/35 / CE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of April 21, 2004 on environmental liability in relation to the prevention and repair of environmental damage.
3) The TFEU, in its articles:
Article 11 (ex Article 6 TEC) The requirements of environmental protection must be integrated into the definition and implementation of Union policies and actions, in particular with a view to promoting sustainable development.
Article 12 (ex Article 153 (2) TEC) When defining and implementing other Union policies and actions, consumer protection requirements shall be taken into account.
Article 15 (ex Article 255 TEC) 1. In order to promote good governance and to guarantee the participation of civil society, the institutions, bodies and agencies of the Union shall act with the greatest possible respect for the principle of openness.
3. Every citizen of the Union, as well as every natural or legal person who resides or has its registered office in a Member State, shall have the right to access the documents of the institutions, bodies and agencies of the Union, whatever their support. , in accordance with the principles and conditions to be established in accordance with this section.
Article 101 (former Article 81 TEC) 1. All agreements between companies, decisions of associations of companies and concerted practices that may affect trade between Member States and that have as their object or purpose shall be prohibited. The effect of preventing, restricting or distorting the game of competition within the internal market.
Article 102 (former Article 82 TEC) It shall be incompatible with the internal market and, insofar as it may affect trade between Member States, the abusive exploitation, by one or more companies, of a dominant position in the internal market or a substantial part of it.
Article 107 (former Article 87 TEC) 1. Unless the Treaties provide otherwise, the aid granted by the States or through State funds shall be incompatible with the internal market, insofar as they affect trade between Member States. in any way, that distort or threaten to distort competition, favoring certain companies or productions.
Article 191 (ex Article 174 TEC) 1. Union policy in the field of the environment shall contribute to achieving the following objectives: – the conservation, protection and improvement of the quality of the environment.
– the protection of people’s health,
– the prudent and rational use of natural resources, – the promotion of measures at international level to deal with regional or global environmental problems. and in particular to fight against climate change.
2. Union policy in the field of the environment shall aim to achieve a high level of protection, bearing in mind the diversity of situations existing in the different regions of the Union. It will be based on the principles of precaution and preventive action, on the principle of correcting attacks on the environment, preferably at the source itself, and on the principle that the polluter pays. In this context, the harmonization measures necessary to meet environmental protection requirements will include, where appropriate, a safeguard clause authorizing Member States to adopt, for non-economic environmental reasons, provisional measures subject to a Union control procedure.
3. In drawing up its policy in the area of the environment, the Union shall take into account:
– the scientific and technical data available,
– environmental conditions in the various regions.
– the benefits and burdens that may result from action or lack of action,
– the economic and social development of the Union as a whole and the balanced development of its regions.
4. Within the framework of their respective competences, the Union and the Member States shall cooperate with third countries and competent international organizations. The modalities of the Union’s cooperation may be the subject of agreements between the latter and interested third parties. The preceding paragraph shall be understood without prejudice to the competence of the member states to negotiate in international institutions and to conclude international agreements.
4) It also affects the rights included in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU (2000 / C 364/01)
CHAPTER I on dignity, arts 1, 2 and 3
CHAPTER III on equality, arts. 24, 25 and 26
CHAPTER IV on solidarity, arts. 35, 37 and 38
CHAPTER V on citizenship, arts. 41 and 42
SEVENTH:
The Court of Justice of the European Union shall control the legality of legislative acts, of acts of the Council, of the Commission and of the European Central Bank that are not recommendations or opinions, and of acts of the European Parliament and of the European Council intended to produce legal effects against third parties. It will also control the legality of the acts of the organs or agencies of the Union intended to produce legal effects against third parties.
Any natural or legal person may file an appeal, under the conditions set forth in the first and second paragraphs, against the acts of which it is the recipient or that affect it directly and individually and against the regulatory acts that affect it directly and that do not include measures of execution.
The appeals provided for in this article must be filed within a period of two months from, depending on the case, of the publication of the act, of its notification to the appellant or, in the absence thereof, from the day the appellant had knowledge of the same.
In the event that, in violation of the Treaties, the European Parliament, the European Council, the Council, the Commission or the European Central Bank abstain from acting, the Member States and the other institutions of the Union may appeal to the Court of Justice of the European Union in order to declare such violation. This article shall apply, under the same conditions, to the organs and agencies of the Union that refrain from making a pronouncement.
Any natural or legal person may appeal a complaint to the Court, under the conditions indicated in the preceding paragraphs, because one of the institutions, or one of the organs or agencies of the Union, has not directed an act other than a recommendation or an opinion.
Based on all the above, the signatory associations request:
1) Have associations by persons in the procedure of the Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL relative to the performance of clinical trials and the supply of medicines for human use that contain genetically modified organisms or are composed of these organisms, intended to treat or prevent coronavirus disease.
2) These associations are considered an interested party and their legitimacy and direct interest are recognized.
3) The file or, where appropriate, all the information related to said modification that is legitimately accessible to interested persons is transferred to us.
4) It is considered announced that if this claim is not answered within the deadline, a claim will be filed with the Court of Justice of the EU, as established in the provisions that regulate access to said jurisdiction. However, the European Commission requires acknowledgment of receipt stating the corresponding deadlines and resources.
In Burgos on July 25, 2020
Original publication can be found at: https://www.scabelum.com/post/letter-to-president-of-european-commision
EP President David Sassoli will hold a press conference at 11.00 tomorrow morning (22 July) on the conclusions of the EU summit on the revised Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) and Recovery Plan proposals. It will take place immediately after a first assessment of the EUCO deal by Parliament’s political group leaders.
Journalists are welcome to attend the press conference in person, respecting the precautionary measures in force (see below), or participate remotely via Skype.
Parliament will be using an interactive virtual press environment (with interpretation) based on Skype TX, in conjunction with the traditional EbS and web-streaming services.
If you are unable to attend and wish to ask a question:
Please use headphones and a microphone for better sound quality.
The system will be managed by Parliament’s media services and you will be placed in a queue (virtual waiting room) before being invited to ask your question(s).
If you have any trouble connecting, you can contact: +32 22834220 or use the Skype chat box.
After asking a question / listening to the reply (and any follow-up), you should then disconnect from Skype so that the next journalist in line can be connected to the press briefing room.
You only need to connect through Skype if you wish to ask a question.
REMINDER: working conditions in Parliament for journalists in light of Coronavirus
As of 13 May, it is mandatory to wear a community mask that covers the mouth and nose at all times while in Parliament’s buildings. This is to continue to ensure Parliament’s operational capacity, while at the same time avoiding health risks for Members, staff and other persons working in and visiting the European Parliament. In addition, as of Monday 15 June, temperature controls are being carried out on all persons entering Parliament’s premises.
However, journalists may remove their mask for the duration of a recording (stand-ups, interviews, studio recordings) or when asking a question in the press room, if the social distancing measures are respected. The press room on the ground floor (Paul-Henri Spaak building) is also now open again for those who need to work from Parliament, though social distancing rules remain in force.
Please refrain from coming to EP premises if you present any symptoms of a respiratory infection, if you have knowingly been in contact with an infected person in the last 14 days or if you have been to regions with very high transmission rates.