All posts tagged: Aid and development

€3B assets package ‘almost nothing,’ Ukrainian minister says – POLITICO

€3B assets package ‘almost nothing,’ Ukrainian minister says – POLITICO

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“If we are talking about the needs of Ukraine and the needs of the war, military and non-military, €3 billion is actually almost nothing— we need hundreds of billions in order to win the war,” Maliuska told POLITICO at the G7 justice ministers’ meeting in Venice on Thursday. “It’s a good first step,” he said. Since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the EU has immobilized more than €200 billion of Russian state assets to help Kyiv’s reconstruction efforts. “The Ukrainian government really would like to get full confiscation [of Russian assets] and really believe this is lawful and this is the only approach which will be decisive in terms of the resolution of the war [with Russia],” he added. In February, EU leaders agreed on an additional €50 billion support package for Ukraine within the bloc’s budget, with European Council President Charles Michel saying: “This locks in steadfast, long-term, predictable funding for Ukraine.” Source link

As Rafah hangs in the balance, will Bibi defy Biden? – POLITICO

As Rafah hangs in the balance, will Bibi defy Biden? – POLITICO

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It’s true. While American Democrats, who have long been urging for conditions to be placed on arms transfers, argue that Biden’s been underestimating Washington’s clout, the history of U.S.-Israeli relations suggests his leverage may not be as great as some progressives think. Sometimes bare-knuckle pressure works, sometimes not — and particularly less so when Israeli leaders believe their actions are fundamental to their national security. Indeed, Netanyahu is just the latest in a long line of Israeli leaders who brazenly disregarded U.S. presidents. Ben-Gurion, the country’s first prime minister, engaged in a battle of wills with Kennedy over Israel’s nuclear program. Reagan was furious with Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin over Israel’s bomb raids on west Beirut in 1982, nine weeks into the Israeli invasion of Lebanon (though Reagan’s suspension of the delivery of did bring Begin round). And George H.W. Bush was one of several U.S. presidents who tried to halt Israeli settlement encroachments in the West Bank to little avail. In 2007, Olmert himself went ahead and targeted a suspected nuclear reactor at …

Armenian protesters vow to oust prime minister – POLITICO

Armenian protesters vow to oust prime minister – POLITICO

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“Pashinyan needs to go,” one middle-aged demonstrator told POLITICO, saying he preferred not to give his name as he feared reprisals. Asked who should take his place as prime minister, or how another leader would avoid conflict with Azerbaijan while still keeping the four villages, the demonstrator said: “Someone else will have a better plan.” Pashinyan has hailed the surrender of the four villages as a major step toward normalizing relations with Azerbaijan — the two countries have fought regularly since the fall of the USSR in 1991 — and respecting its international legal obligations. “We are reproducing the [legal] borders … at the time of the collapse of the Soviet Union,” he said last week. Earlier the same day, officials in Yerevan and Moscow confirmed that Russian border guards — stationed along Armenia’s frontiers with Azerbaijan since the 1990s — had been asked to leave their posts and begin withdrawing. In recent years, Armenia has frozen its membership in the Russian-led CSTO military alliance, which refused its calls for support when Azerbaijan launched an …

No one reveres you like we do – POLITICO

No one reveres you like we do – POLITICO

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Vučić also stressed that, when it comes to cooperation with Beijing, “the sky is the limit.” Serbia stands out as an early adopter of Chinese investments in Europe, such as the construction of the Pupin Bridge in 2013. Since then, investment initiatives have surged, including extensive infrastructure projects such as highways, the Smederevo Ironworks and the Zijin Mining Basin. However, this expansion has come at a cost to Serbia, which has amassed a debt burden of around €3.7 billion, due to the common practice of Chinese investments being bundled into loan schemes. It is also the sole European nation to acquire Chinese HQ-22 “Hong Qi” or Red Flag air defense systems, which has raised eyebrows due to the difficulty of integrating them into its existing weapons systems. Xi stopped in Belgrade after two days in France with President Emmanuel Macron, and before a trip to Budapest to meet Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán — like Vučić, another thorn in the West’s side. Swapping Russia for China Xi’s arrival was met with stringent security measures which effectively …

Azerbaijan’s climate charm offensive is backfiring – POLITICO

Azerbaijan’s climate charm offensive is backfiring – POLITICO

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When Egypt hosted in 2022, activists used the event to highlight the government’s crackdown on political opponents. Last year saw widespread criticism when COP28 host the United Arab Emirates appointed the man tasked with expanding the country’s oil and gas output to lead the talks. Likewise, the incoming president of COP29 is a former Azerbaijani oil and gas industry executive — though he was later tapped to lead the country’s ecology ministry. Still, Baku has been unapologetic about its intention to use the conference to promote its own economic interests. Aliyev used a speech as host of the talks to brand his country’s natural gas reserves “a gift of the gods” and to push for more investments in the fossil fuel industry, in addition to renewable projects — climate critics be damned. Europe has increasingly turned to Azerbaijan in recent years as a replacement for the Russian fossil fuel it shunned after Moscow invaded Ukraine. | Oleg Nikishin/Getty Images “As a head of the country, which is rich with fossil fuels, of course, we will defend …

EU’s top diplomat condemns assault on Rafah as Israel halts aid routes – POLITICO

EU’s top diplomat condemns assault on Rafah as Israel halts aid routes – POLITICO

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Held-up cash The European Commission announced in March that it would continue to fund UNRWA, the U.N. relief agency for Palestine refugees, after Israel claimed in January that UNRWA staff were involved in the Oct. 7 attacks. However, parts of the financial support for the Palestinian territories and member countries’ contributions to the agency are still being held up. Borrell told reporters that “time has come” to restart full payments to UNWRA after a U.N.-commissioned review led by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna found more than two weeks ago that the aid organization has established mechanisms and policies to ensure neutrality and “rapid and adequate responses to allegations.” The report stressed the lack of evidence provided by Israel to back the claims of staff involvement in Hamas’s Oct. 7 attacks. Spanish, German and Belgian ministers have also supported the call to reintroduce full funding of the U.N. agency. “We are talking about civilians […] who may suffer more hunger due to the totally wrong decision of a government,” said Eva​ Granados Galiano, State Secretary …

Ukraine wants to use EU money to grow its military-industrial complex – POLITICO

Ukraine wants to use EU money to grow its military-industrial complex – POLITICO

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Kamyshin said his country’s arms industry can produce about $20 billion worth of weapons. The Ukrainian government plans to issue contracts for $6 billion, while another $4 billion would come from local partners; Ukraine’s allies could supply the missing $10 billion. Denmark is leading the way, announcing last month that it will allocate 200 million krone (€27 million) to buy kit from Ukrainian businesses. Canada also promised to donate C$3 million (€1.1 million) to Ukraine for the production of drones by Ukraine’s domestic defense industry. Now the idea is to expand those efforts by tapping into more aid money for Ukraine to sign procurement contracts. “Our main task is to find additional funding for the defense forces in Ukraine. My task is to get this financing for production in Ukraine since we are already capable,” Kamyshin said. “We have additional non-contracted capacities, and we want them to be financed at the expense of European funds.” Kamyshin said he had discussed with Borrell the idea of using the EU’s European Peace Facility, an off-budget fund that partially …

UN denounces ‘onslaught of violence against women’ by Israel, notes mass graves in Gaza – POLITICO

UN denounces ‘onslaught of violence against women’ by Israel, notes mass graves in Gaza – POLITICO

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The statement notes that of the 34,488 Palestinians killed since the start of the war seven months ago, 14,500 have been children and 9,500 women. Israel disputes the number of dead as it is compiled by local health authorities run by Gaza’s Hamas-controlled government. The statement says reports continue of sexual assault and violence against women and girls detained by Israeli forces, but provides no further details. It cites U.N. reports that “a number of” women and girls have been “forcefully disappeared” since the start of the war. The authors also say miscarriages have increased; that 17,000 children have been orphaned since the start of the war; and that Israeli forces have destroyed Gaza’s largest fertility clinic, which is reported to have been storing 3,000 embryos. “Israel must cease all hostilities and States must end the export of all weapons immediately. These States can no longer ignore the fact that the weapons are being used to kill and maim innocent women and children. There can be no more excuses,” the statement concludes. Israel’s foreign press …

North Macedonia’s EU aspirations face bumpy ride after elections – POLITICO

North Macedonia’s EU aspirations face bumpy ride after elections – POLITICO

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Since then, however, the citizens of North Macedonia have become increasingly frustrated with the slowness of the accession process, and public support for the EU has dropped sharply. Elections to choose a new government and president on May 8 look set to usher in a new administration under the VMRO-DPMNE party, which is taking a confrontational approach with both Sofia and Athens — both of whom would need to agree to Skopje’s admission into the bloc. Riling the Bulgarian side, VMRO-DPMNE is rejecting Sofia’s demand for constitutional changes recognizing a Bulgarian minority. Meanwhile, the Greeks are increasingly attuned to the fact that VMRO-DPMNE’s prime ministerial front-runner is referring to the country as “Macedonia” rather than “North Macedonia” — reigniting the old tensions with Greece about the use of the name of the homeland of Alexander the Great. Opinion polls indicate VMRO-DPMNE, currently the main opposition party, is ahead and is expected to replace the SDSM socialist party, which has run the country since 2017, even though a coalition will be needed. The first round of …