Tag: EU

Google handed setback as EU court upholds record fine

Luxembourg, Luxembourg (AFP) — The European Union’s second-highest court on Wednesday overwhelmingly upheld the EU’s record fine against Google over its Android operating system for mobile phones, slightly reducing the fee for technical reasons. In a statement, the EU’s General court said it “largely confirms the commission’s decision that Google imposed unlawful restrictions on manufacturers of Android mobile devices” in order to benefit its search engine. The court, however, said the fine should be slightly […]

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EU presidency calls new round of energy crisis talks

  PRAGUE, Czech Republic (AFP) — The European Union presidency said Tuesday it would convene another round of talks for the bloc’s energy ministers to discuss the energy crisis linked to the Ukraine war. “I am calling another extraordinary meeting of the energy ministers’ council for September 30,” Czech Industry and Trade Minister Jozef Sikela, whose country now holds the rotating presidency, said in a tweet. At the meeting, EU ministers pledged “unprecedented measures” to […]

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EU ministers seek ways to face energy shock

by Alex PIGMAN Agence France-Presse BRUSSELS, Belgium (AFP) — EU energy ministers on Friday will attempt to forge a united response to the energy shock from Russia’s war on Ukraine that has sent prices for electricity and heating skyrocketing. Moscow’s invasion has seen the price of natural gas hit record levels, throwing the EU economy into deep uncertainty with all eyes on whether Russian President Vladimir Putin will cut off the energy flow entirely. Before […]

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Putin says Ukraine grain deal mostly helping rich EU

MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that “almost all” the Ukrainian grain shipped under a UN-backed deal to ease a global food crisis was reaching rich European nations, an accusation denied by Kyiv. Data compiled by a joint center in Istanbul monitoring the July agreement showed slightly more than a third of the grain delivered to European countries and another 20 percent arriving in Turkey. It also showed 30 percent reaching […]

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EU watchdog approves first Omicron jabs

The Hague, Netherlands (AFP) by Danny KEMP The EU’s drug regulator on Thursday approved Covid-19 vaccines by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna adapted for the Omicron variant, paving the way for a booster campaign this winter. The so-called “bivalent” jabs target both the original virus that emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in 2019 and the BA.1 subvariant of Omicron, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) said. The vaccines are not updated for the newer and more […]

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EU ministers agree to suspend Russian visa facilitation deal

Prague, Czech Republic (AFP) EU foreign ministers on Wednesday agreed to suspend a 2007 visa facilitation deal with Russia but stopped short of a wider visa ban as requested by some member states. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said the ministers had agreed that relations with Moscow “cannot be business as usual” and the agreement should be “fully suspended”. Following the informal meeting in Prague, he said this would make it “more difficult” and […]

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Kremlin vows response to restrictions on EU visas for Russians

  Moscow, Russia (AFP) The Kremlin on Tuesday warned it would respond if the European Union makes it harder for Russians to travel to the bloc as part of measures in support of Ukraine. The idea to ban Russian tourists from Europe has divided EU nations, with some in full support and others fearing it would shut the door on dissident Russians fleeing abroad. EU foreign ministers will discuss the issue during a two-day meeting […]

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EU Ambassador Véron visits Siargao Island to monitor humanitarian aid and development projects

SIARGAO — H.E. Luc Véron, European Union Ambassador to the Philippines, is visiting Siargao Island from 15 to 18 August to monitor EU humanitarian aid and development projects and discuss the recovery with local officials and communities. This is eight months following typhoon Odette (Rai) and the fourth outreach mission of Ambassador Véron to see realities on the ground while observing health protocols. Since last year, he went to development programmes in the Cordillera Administrative […]

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Ukraine says parts of nuclear plant ‘seriously damaged’ in strikes

  KYIV, Ukraine (AFP) — Parts of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant were “seriously damaged” by military strikes that forced one of its reactors to shut down, the plant’s operator said on Saturday. The Friday strikes on the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in south Ukraine — Europe’s largest atomic power complex — “seriously damaged” a station containing nitrogen and oxygen and an “auxiliary building,” Energoatom said on the Telegram messaging service. Kyiv and Moscow blamed each […]

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EU debates plan to cut Russian gas and protect Germany

Brussels, Belgium | AFP by Daniel ARONSSOHN / Alex PIGMAN EU ministers debated Tuesday how to reduce gas consumption this winter, an act of solidarity for Germany and a response to Russia’s manipulation of supplies as an economic weapon. The plan, under discussion in Brussels, could see exceptions and carve-outs as European Union countries blanched at making too deep a sacrifice for Berlin and a few landlocked member states. Germany, the EU’s economic powerhouse, is […]

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Ukraine begins electricity exports to EU: Zelensky

  KYIV, Ukraine (AFP) — Ukraine has started exporting electricity to the European Union, via Romania, President Volodymyr Zelensky said, as Russia reduces gas supplies to the bloc which is supporting Kyiv in resisting Moscow’s invasion. Several European countries, including Italy and Germany, are highly reliant upon Russian gas for their energy needs but have been forced to look for alternatives as Moscow slashes deliveries. Speaking Thursday, Zelensky said Ukraine had “launched a significant export […]

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‘Huge uncertainty’ for EU firms over China’s Covid curbs, chamber warns

by Beiyi SEOW Many European firms are rethinking their investments in China because of its strict Covid controls, a top business group said Monday, warning that disruptions had pummelled operations. While the rest of the world has steadily removed coronavirus curbs, China has remained committed to its zero-Covid strategy, using lockdowns and mass testing to stamp out all infections. But this strategy has hammered businesses and snarled supply chains — 60 percent of respondents in […]

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