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News from WEC:
Recovery, Reform, and Resilience-A manifesto for a more inclusive and agile labor market in the context of Covid-19
We need more than restore From Coronavirus disease crisis.European private Employment The service sector calls for reforms and resilience measures to make the labor market more flexible and inclusive. Read more in our manifesto.
In today’s news from the capital:
Athens
EURACTIV was informed that several EU member states have asked the Greek government to clarify which companies to choose to benefit from cheap loans from the post-pandemic recovery plan.read more.
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My chairman
Slovenia and Bulgaria are seeking compromises on North Macedonia’s EU bid. Slovenian President Borut Pahor met with Bulgarian President Rumen Radev on Thursday to discuss Bulgaria’s veto power for North Macedonia to join the European Union. read more.
The EU helps promote youth employment in the Western Balkans. The EU Minister of Employment and Social Affairs and colleagues from the Western Balkans met in Slovenia to discuss measures to allow young people to enter the labor market. Regional officials called for the implementation of a youth job security program.read more.
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EU institutions
European Parliament urges officials to boycott the Beijing OlympicsThe European Parliament on Thursday (July 8) called on the European Union to boycott the February 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing unless China improves the human rights situation in Hong Kong and Xinjiang, where the Uighur Muslim minority resides. read more.
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Berlin
The exiled Turkish journalist was injured after the Berlin attack. exile Turkish journalist Erk Acarer, known for criticizing President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was attacked outside his home in the German capital on Wednesday night and sustained head injuries.read more.
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Paris
Top French companies are committed to combating climate change. The Association of French Private Companies (AFEP) updated the Ambition 4 climate platform on Wednesday, which brings together projects from 64 large companies aimed at achieving carbon neutrality. Read the full text.
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Vienna
Austria plans to impose a carbon dioxide tax by 2022. Austria The ÖVP-Green Alliance is currently “fully pushing forward” a new ecological tax reform that will pave the way for the collection of a carbon dioxide tax. Finance Minister Gernot Blümel stated in the plenary session of the parliament that the government plans to introduce a carbon dioxide tax, which will be 2022 Effective year.read more.
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Brussels
The Belgian Parliament recognizes the risk of Uyghur genocide. The Belgian parliament passed a resolution on Thursday warning the Uyghur Muslim minority in China that there is a “serious risk of genocide.” The resolution was passed unanimously without the Marxist PTB party abstaining, and it aligns Belgium with similar statements made by the US government and a handful of Western countries including the United Kingdom, Canada, and the Netherlands.
This caused a strong reaction from China. Zhao Lijian, an official of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “calls on Belgium to immediately correct its mistakes so as to prevent the deterioration of China-Belgium relations.” (Alexandra Brzozowski, EURACTIV.com)
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The Hague
In the face of a surge in infections, the Dutch government is considering new restrictions. Following the sharp rise in coronavirus infections reported by health authorities, the Netherlands is considering implementing new coronavirus restrictions on Friday, including mandatory closures and cancellation of multi-day events.
After moving Dutch media According to reports, the country has detected 5,475 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours.
Hugo de Jonge, the outgoing Minister of Health, said: “We are seeing a very rapid increase that has not yet translated into hospitalizations, but the growth rate is very fast. He added that the Netherlands may also become a code red. National, this means that Dutch tourists must meet strict entry requirements. (Alexandra Brzozowski | EURACTIV.com)
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Berne
The EU and Switzerland accept each other’s COVID-19 travel certificates. The European Commission said on Thursday that the European Union and Switzerland have agreed to mutually recognize each other’s COVID-19 digital certificates starting Friday to allow Swiss citizens to travel within the European Union and between the European Union and Switzerland. read more.
UK and Ireland
London
The UK plans to overhaul the NI agreement. Ministers said on Thursday that Britain plans to announce a new plan to overhaul the Northern Ireland Protocol later this month. Britain’s Brexit Secretary David Frost and Northern Ireland Minister Brandon Lewis stated that it failed to achieve its goal of minimizing the impact on Northern Ireland’s daily life and promoting trade between Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom.read more.
The United Kingdom signs trade agreements with Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. The British government said it signed free trade agreements with Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein on Thursday, the latest trade agreement since Brexit. The agreement was signed after the four countries reached an agreement in principle last month. read more.
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Dublin
The Prime Minister of Ireland is concerned about the Delta spillover effect from the United Kingdom. Irish Prime Minister Michael Martin expressed concern about the proliferation of delta variants in the UK and the threat of “overflow” in Ireland. The newspaper Irish Times Report. “I am worried about the national melee that seems to be developing in the UK. This does cause problems for us as a nation and a country, because we are next-door neighbors and what happens in the UK can quickly overflow,” Martin told reporters on Thursday. .
“Our public health advice is that that is not the way to go. The UK is clearly a sovereign country and has the power to make decisions. Obviously, they also affect us, so I think people need to be cautious,” he added. (Paula Kenny | EURACTIV.com)
Baltic Sea
Vilnius
Minister: Lithuania will build a separation wall on the border with Belarus. Lithuanian Defense Minister Arvydas Anušauskas confirmed on Thursday that the Lithuanian government will start building barbed wire fences along its border with Belarus after the number of immigrants fleeing the country’s authoritarian regime has surged.
Belarus decided to allow immigrants to enter Lithuania, a member of the European Union, in response to EU sanctions after Minsk forced a Ryanair flight to land on its territory and arrested a dissident blogger on board. read more.
Southern Europe
Lisbon
With digital certificates, Portuguese hotels require negative tests and short-term rentals. Tourist agencies and short-term rentals entering the Portuguese mainland will require customers to present a digital vaccination certificate or negative test.read more.
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Rome
Italy, the EU’s least efficient judicial system. According to the European Union Judicial Scoreboard released by the European Commission on Thursday, Italy is the least efficient country in the European Union. The scoreboard provides comparative data on the efficiency, quality and independence of the judicial systems of all member states.read more.
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Madrid
The Spanish Prime Minister’s visit to the NATO base in Lithuania was interrupted by jet planes. On Thursday, a press conference attended by the Spanish Prime Minister at a NATO base in Lithuania suddenly fell into chaos. At that time, the pilots rushed out two fighter jets in response to an unidentified aircraft intrusion over the Baltic Sea., Partner of EURACTIV EFE report.
Visegrad
Budapest
Orban: The European Commission and Parliament hope that there will be LGBTQ activists in schools. Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban stated that EU institutions are planning to send LGBTQ activists to schools in the country. telex Report.read more.
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Warsaw
The Polish Prime Minister was “disappointed” by Turuf’s negotiations with the Czech Republic. Prime Minister Mateus Morawiecki sent a letter to Czech Prime Minister Andrei Babis, accusing the Czech negotiators of reluctance to reach a consensus on the Turuf brown coal mine, a few kilometers away from the common border of the two countries.read more.
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Bratislava
Half of the educated young Slovaks want to flee the country. A survey conducted by the focus agency on behalf of the Institute of Public Affairs (IVO) among 18-29 year-olds revealed that nearly half of Slovak educated young people are considering leaving Slovakia.read more.
News from the Balkans
Sophia | Berlin
Germany hopes that the EU will lead the Three Seas Initiative. German President Frank-Waltersteinmeier said at a summit in the Bulgarian capital on Thursday that Germany hopes that the Three Seas Initiative (3SI) promoted by the United States will become part of European policy and investment tools.read more.
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Bucharest
The Romanian Minister of Finance was dismissed due to delays in reforms. Romanian Prime Minister Florin Situ hired his finance minister, Alexandru Nazaré, to point out that the Ministry of Finance had accumulated huge delays in reforms.read more.
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Zagreb
Robotaxis may start driving in Zagreb in 2024. Rimac Automobili is developing a self-driving car project, a robotic taxi, which, if successful, could be tested in Zagreb in 2024, the owner Mate Rimac said at a meeting with the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.read more.
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Ljubljana
Slovenia will donate 250,000 doses of AstraZeneca to Egypt. Slovenia will donate 250,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines to Egypt and 500,000 euros to the global COVAX program aimed at equitable access to COVID vaccines.read more.
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Belgrade
Orban: Serbia is the key to stability in the Western Balkans. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban stated in Belgrade on Thursday that Serbia is the key to stability in the Western Balkans.read more.
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Tirana
The Bank of Albania and the European Central Bank signed an agreement to prevent counterfeit banknotes. The Bank of Albania has signed a cooperation agreement with the European Central Bank (ECB) to exchange information in the field of anti-counterfeiting protection of euro banknotes.
The agreement aims to standardize and promote cooperation procedures between the two central authorities in the field of preventing counterfeiting of euro banknotes in Albania.
At the same time, the European Central Bank will provide specifications and data information obtained from technical analysis of counterfeit Euro banknotes found in Europe and other regions. Gent Sejko, President of the Bank of Albania, stated that cooperation is very important to strengthen the exchange of information, opinions and expertise in the field of euro counterfeiting. (Željko Trkanjec | EURACTIV.hr)
Agenda:
- France: G5 Sahel Leaders Video Summit/French Foreign Minister Le Drian visits Spain
- Italy: G20 finance ministers meet with central bank governors.
- Spain: Visit by EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides
- Bulgaria: The Three Seas Initiative summit continues in Bulgaria.
- Slovenia: Prime Minister Janez Janša will host Višegrad Group leaders-Andrej Babiš of the Czech Republic, Viktor Orban of Hungary, Mateusz Morawiecki of Poland and Eduard Heger of Slovakia-for talks on the priorities and epidemiology of Slovenia as the EU presidency .
- Serbia: European Parliament mediators Vladimir Birchik and Tanja Fahon begin a two-day visit during an inter-party dialogue on improving the election conditions in Serbia.
- North Macedonia with Greece Sign the gas connection agreement.
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[Edited by Alexandra Brzozowski, Sarantis Michalopoulos, Daniel Eck, Paula Kenny, Zoran Radosavljevic, Josie LeBlond]
