Europe

Update: The anti-deforestation has been delayed and relaxed, pending agreement of member states. https://www.dw.com/en/a-70728269

Maria Troyanivska had come home early the night a Russian drone hit her bedroom.

“It flew in through the window, right into her room,” her mother Viktoria tells the BBC. After the explosion, she and her husband Volodymyr ran from the next room to find their daughter’s room on fire.

“We tried to put it out, but everything was burning so strongly,” she says through tears. “It was impossible to breathe – we had to leave.”

The Russian Shahed drone killed the 14-year-old in her bed, in her suburban apartment in Kyiv, last month.

“She died immediately, and then burned,” her mother said. “We had to bury her in a closed coffin. She had no chance of surviving.” BBC/Kamil Dayan Khan Maria's bedroom in suburban Kyiv

China should face “a higher cost” for supporting Russia in the war against Ukraine, the EU’s incoming foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, has said.

The former Estonian prime minister was speaking to MEPs during a three-hour hearing before she takes office, when she listed Ukraine’s victory as a priority – stronger words than vaguer formulas of support voiced by some EU politicians.

“Victory of Ukraine is a priority for us all; the situation on the battlefield is very difficult,” Kallas told MEPs in her opening remarks. “That is why we must keep on working every day, today, tomorrow and for as long as it takes, and with as much military, financial and humanitarian aid as needed.”

[...]

French prosecutors said that France's far-right leader, Marine Le Pen, should face jail time and a ban from public office that would bar her from the 2027 presidential race as she and members of the National Rally party stand trial for using money intended for EU parliamentary aides to pay staff who worked for the party.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/19893452

« Social media can be an important tool for news organisations and help us to reach new audiences but at this point X now plays a diminished role in promoting our work. Our journalism is available and open to all on our website and we would prefer people to come to theguardian.com and support our work there » the Guardian said.

Responding to the announcement, Musk posted on X that the Guardian was « irrelevant » and a « laboriously vile propaganda machine ».

Last year National Public Radio (NPR), the non-profit US media organisation, stopped posting on X after the social media platform labelled it as « state-affiliated media ». PBS, a US public TV broadcaster, suspended its posts for the same reason.

This month the Berlin film festival said it was quitting X, without citing an official reason, and last month the North Wales police force said it had stopped using X because it was « no longer consistent with our values ».

In August the Royal National orthopaedic hospital said it was leaving X, citing an « increased volume of hate speech and abusive commentary » on the platform.

After Musk's comments on Italy's interior politics and his recent appointment in Trump's administration, isn't it time for his fascist propaganda to be gone?

People from the African continent and its diasporas will attend workshop to share struggles, experiences and discuss ways to advance reparations

Archived link

The European Union should directly use $300 billion in frozen Russian assets to finance the reconstruction of war-torn Ukraine, says Kaja Kallas, the candidate for the top EU foreign policy position.

Kallas, a former Estonian prime minister who has been nominated as the EU’s high representative, said member states should abandon their reservations about directly seizing assets, citing Kyiv’s “legitimate claims” to the funds after the Russian attack.

[...]

“We recognize that Russia has legitimate claims against us because we have their assets. But Ukraine also has legitimate claims against Russia because they are destroying Ukraine every day,” Kallas said

She hinted that Russia might have the opportunity to “reclaim” assets as part of the settlement, but added: “Given what’s going on, I doubt there’s anything left.”

To taxpayers who don’t want EU member states to pay for Ukraine’s reconstruction, Kallas said: “We shouldn’t do that. Those who are destroying Ukraine will pay for it.”

Kallas said Estonia’s initiative to send 0.25 percent of its gross domestic product to Ukraine should be adopted by other member states.

She also said that EU sanctions against Russia should not be renewed every six months and should be permanent until the 27 member states decide to lift them. “It would be better if the situation was reversed,” Kallas said.

[...]

This year, the G7 reached an agreement to seize profits from Russia’s frozen assets. However, the plan does not include confiscation. Some countries considered the potential legal implications of such a move and the risk to the euro, while others, including the US and UK, advocated bolder options such as outright asset confiscation.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine knows how to handle Russia’s frozen assets. He proposed handing over the entire $300 billion to Kyiv. “Frankly, this is Ukrainian money,” he said.

The World Bank estimates that Ukraine’s total economic, social and other monetary losses from the war will be $499 billion by the end of 2023.

Ante Ivkovic herded sheep in Bosnia-Herzegovina with his father as a child. Years later, without his consent or knowledge, he says, a wind farm was built on his property by a Chinese company.

The Chinese wind farm company, headquartered in the capital Sarajevo, declined to comment on camera. In an email, they stated they relied on Bosnian documents that confirmed the concession's legality and claimed there were no unresolved ownership issues.

Ivkovic, with the help of his lawyer, is pursuing legal action to prove his ownership. His lawyer is gathering evidence from archives to build the case.

[...]

Chinese wind energy companies have been aggressively expanding into the European market, undercutting European competitors by significant margins, thanks to state subsidies. This is evident not only in Bosnia, but also in neighboring Croatia.

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The EU has taken notice. Under Ursula von der Leyen's leadership, the EU is scrutinizing Chinese wind farms, investigating whether state subsidies are giving them an unfair advantage over European competitors. Lobbyists warn that with every new wind farm, China tightens its grip on Europe's energy supply.

"On a modern wind turbine there are around 300 sensors on the different components of the turbine, which are giving information to the wind farm owner and operator, and to the turbine manufacturer about the performance. And many people in Europe are saying, 'do we want to give that power to entities outside of Europe to control the functioning of wind turbines?'," says Giles Dickson, the CEO of WindEurope.

[...]

Will a retiree be able to assert his rights against a 160-million-euro project? This case will help determine how much property rights are worth in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

cross-posted from: https://fed.dyne.org/post/306152

The deal, watched by the European Central Bank for its effect on inflation, comes at a tough time for Europe's biggest economy.

Ukraine is close to setting up three new joint ventures with European weapons producers in its effort to boost arms output during the war with Russia, the first deputy prime minister said.

Yulia Svyrydenko, who is also the economy minister, said five joint ventures with Western weapon producers had already been set up, including with German and Lithuanian companies. Several arms producers have opened offices in Ukraine.

"We have three more agreements with European companies in the final stages to set up joint ventures," Svyrydenko told Reuters in an interview in the government headquarters in central Kyiv.

[...]

The authorities are still tight-lipped about details of the defence industry, but President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in October that Ukraine could produce four million drones annually and was ramping up its military production, including missiles, a "drone missile" and transport vehicles.

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Germany's weapons giant Rheinmetall has already launched its first defence factory in Ukraine, specializing in the maintenance of combat vehicles, with plans to start manufacturing Lynx infantry fighting vehicles by the year's end.

Britain-based BAE Systems, Franco-German KDNS, the Babcock defence and aerospace company and MyDefence, which specializes in counter-drone technology, have teamed up with Ukrainian producers and set up local offices.

German weapons producer Flensburger Fahrzeugbau Gesellschaft is building a service centre in Ukraine jointly with a private Ukrainian weapons producer, Svyrydenko said.

Developing domestic defence production was a boost to the broader economy, which is still smaller than prior to the war despite two years of economic growth, she said.

[...]

wired.com/story/ecosia-qwant-e…

Guess we're gonna witness the creation of the digital European Coal and Steel Union

Russia exposes alarming patterns of torture used as a State-sanctioned tool of repression to stifle dissent and intimidate communities abroad, according to a report conducted by Mariana Katzarova, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation.

"Torture is used as a State sanctioned tool for systematic oppression, to maintain control and to stifle dissent", she says.

According to her research, this goes beyond isolated cases. Torture is frequently aimed at political prisoners, critics of the ongoing war in Ukraine, and migrant communities worldwide.

Normalisation of torture

One of the report’s most unsettling revelations is the portrayal of torture in Russian media.

The independent expert described the aftermath of a March terrorist attack in Moscow, where members of the Tajik minority “who haven't been tried yet and haven't been found guilty” were tortured through electric shocks and mutilation.

Following the broadcast, there were reports of law enforcement carrying out widespread sweeps, arresting and allegedly abusing migrant workers from Central Asia.

LGBTQIA+ individuals in Chechnya have also received brutal treatment from State officials there. Ms. Katzarova reported that members of the LGBTQIA+ community were systematically detained, tortured, and threatened with death unless they agreed to volunteer as soldiers in Ukraine.

Judicial impunity, no accountability

A key issue raised in the report is the failure of the Russian judicial system to prosecute torture cases adequately. Under Russian law, torture is not classified as a distinct criminal offence, allowing perpetrators to evade justice through lesser charges such as “abuse of power or authority.”

“Here we have a judicial system which is so politically influenced,” she expressed, “that there is no justice for the victims of torture.” Without recourse to the European Court of Human Rights, Russian victims must now rely solely on the UN system, which lacks the authority to pursue legal action.

Ms. Katzarova urged governments worldwide to use their criminal justice systems to prosecute torture cases from Russia under universal jurisdiction, an international principle that allows courts to try cases regardless of where the crime occurred.

The Special Rapporteur like all other independent UN human rights experts. works on a voluntary basis, is not a UN staff member and receives no salary for her work. The experts are appointed by the UN Human Rights Council and are independent from any government or organization.

Three years ago, a court in The Hague backed a case by Friends of the Earth and 17,000 Dutch citizens requiring Shell to reduce its CO2 emissions significantly, in line with the Paris climate accords.

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At the time, the 2021 ruling marked the first time a court had ordered a private company to align its workings with the Paris climate agreement, meaning that it was not sufficient for a company simply to comply with the law - it had to comply with global climate policy too.

[...]

The appeals court judge said that companies such as Shell were obliged to contribute to combating climate change based on the human right to protection against dangerous climate change.

However, the court said Shell was already working to reduce its emissions and the court could not establish whether it should make a 45% cut or another percentage, as there was no current accepted agreement in climate science on the required amount.

[...]

Environmental groups can now take their case against Shell to the Supreme Court - meaning that a final verdict in this far-reaching case may still be years away.

[Edit typo.]

• Finland's Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen opposes imposing neutrality on Ukraine
• Valtonen questions Russia's trustworthiness in adhering to agreements
• Forcing Ukraine to accept terms could undermine international system, Valtonen says

Forcing neutrality onto Ukraine will not bring about a peaceful solution to the crisis with Russia, Finland's foreign minister said on Monday, adding that Moscow could not be trusted to adhere to any agreement it signs.

[...]

With the prospect of U.S. president elect Donald Trump seeking to end the conflict as quickly possible and concerns from some allies that the terms could be imposed in Kyiv, one scenario could be to force a neutral status on Ukraine.

Russia has repeatedly demanded Ukraine remain neutral for there to be peace, which would de facto kill its aspirations for NATO membership.

Russia trust issues

[...] Finland's Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen poured cold water on using the "Finlandisation" model, pointing out that firstly Helsinki had fended off Russia in World War 2 and that despite the ensuing peace had always continued to arm itself fearing a new conflict.

"I'm against it (Finlandisation), yes. Let's face it, Ukraine was neutral before they were attacked by Russia," Valtonen, whose country has a 1,300-km (810-mile) border with Russia, said on the sidelines of the Paris Peace Forum.

[...]

The Ukraine invasion led both Finland and Sweden to abandon decades of military non-alignment and seek safety in the NATO camp.

Valtonen questioned whether Russia could be trusted even if it agreed a deal and said forcing Ukraine's hand to accept terms against its will would tear down the international system.

"I really want to avoid a situation where any European country, or the United States for that matter, starts negotiating over the heads of Ukraine," she said.

"A larger power can not just grab territory, but also essentially weaken the sovereignty of another nation," she said.