Europe

• Archived version of CNN article (archive.li)
• "Ukraine and Russia begin the largest prisoner-of-war exchange since the invasion" (NPR)
• Archived version of NPR article (archive.li)

geteilt von: https://slrpnk.net/post/22590468

The European Union’s landmark anti-deforestation law could fail to deliver on its environmental promises if enforcement authorities disproportionately focus on small importers while missing less obvious violations from major commodity firms, according to a new analysis by U.K.-based investigative nonprofit, Earthsight.

The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), which comes into force Dec. 30, 2025, aims to prevent new tropical deforestation from Europe’s supply chains for soy, beef, palm oil and other commodities. To do so, it will require geolocalized data from indirect and direct suppliers that prove their products didn’t contribute to deforestation since December 2020.

The largest importers “will submit due diligence statements accurately and on time. They will have due diligence systems in place. They will have correctly identified risks. They will have traceability systems of some kind in operation,” the report’s authors write.

“The problems with these importers will lie deeper. Their mitigation measures will be weak. Their traceability systems will have fundamental flaws, but these will be well hidden,” they added.

In February, Cargill, one of the largest exporters of soy from Brazil’s Amazon Rainforest and Cerrado savanna, took advantage of the EUDR to weaken already existing anti-deforestation agreements. The agribusiness pushed up its deforestation cutoff date from 2008, the year established by the soy moratorium, to 2020, the cutoff date set by the EUDR. That would allow the company 14 more years of deforestation without consequence.

“There is good reason to be mistrustful of such firms,” Earthsight’s analysis writes. “Unfortunately, there are reasons to fear they will nevertheless get an easy ride when EU Member States start enforcing the new law.”

In the Ivory Coast, Earthsight’s data show, the top 10 importers buy up 83% of the local cocoa. In Brazil, the largest 10 multinational import companies ship out 64% of the nation’s soy exports.

Small companies will have an additional six months to comply with the law after it comes into effect, but producing accurate paperwork may be more challenging. They often lack the financial and technical resources necessary to quickly set up comprehensive due diligence systems with all the data points required by the law, experts say.

According to a report by Profundo, the relative cost for EUDR compliance is three times higher for small and medium-sized importers than large importers.

Europe’s enforcers will need to focus more on the quality of the largest importers’ reports, Earthsight said, rather than simply check bureaucratic boxes. “Going after such small firms will be much easier … and [authorities] will be tempted to focus most of their energy on this,” the group writes. “For the law to achieve its aims, it is essential that [they] avoid falling into this trap.”

archived (Wayback Machine)

Archived link

The European Union is nearing a decision to include the Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines linking Germany and Russia in a fresh proposal of sanctions against Moscow amid persistent rumors about reviving flows that the bloc wants to stop.

The European Commission will start consulting member states as early as today [May 23] on banning the links that run under the Baltic Sea and a decision will take into account recent developments in talks to end the war in Ukraine, according to people familiar with the matter who requested not to be identified because discussions are private.

Crucially, the bloc’s plan has Germany’s support. For German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said in Rome last week that he supports “the Commission’s proposal to start work on European measures against the Nord Stream 2 pipelines,” a key hope is that sanctions could temper debates at home about reviving the pipelines, the people said.

Rumors about a potential revival of the pipeline project have intensified this year as US President Donald Trump pushed to broker peace between Russia and Ukraine. Even without a formal ban, activating Nord Stream 2 — which was built but never certified by Germany, and was partially damaged in September 2022 explosions — was unlikely to happen anytime soon.

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Russia used to be Europe’s biggest gas provider with several pipeline routes to many countries.

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Natural gas prices have been closely tracking developments, even though the region has replaced most of its pipeline supplies with liquefied natural gas from elsewhere and plans to phase out Russian imports by the end of 2027. Some nations, such as Hungary and Slovakia, still depend on deliveries from Putin, and a few industrial players in the east of Germany have been hopeful that a return of Russian flows could help bring down energy costs.

As part of the push to end the war, US officials have discussed global energy projects as a possible area of collaboration with Russian counterparts in recent months. In these discussions, Russian energy giant Gazprom PJSC was keen for the US to help restart the Nord Stream pipelines, Bloomberg News reported in March. Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said in May that Russia and the US have discussed supplying gas to Europe.

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“Sanctioning the Nord Stream pipelines now is less about punishing Russia and more about insulating the EU — from its own future temptations,” said Tatiana Mitrova, researcher at the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University. “It’s a preemptive strike against any political nostalgia for ‘cheap’ Russian gas.”

The commission, the EU’s executive branch, will start consultations with member states on the 18th package of sanctions this weekend. The proposal will require unanimous support from the bloc’s 27 national governments to take effect.

Archived version

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The Netherlands and seven other EU countries have called on the bloc to urgently improve its patchy civilian preparedness for man-made and natural disasters, in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Spain’s recent power blackout.

The European Commission earlier this spring urged capitals to draw up plans including advising citizens to stockpile food for three days, upgrading emergency shelters and establishing cross-border crisis hubs in the event of conflict or climate disasters.

The initiative comes after European intelligence agencies warned that Russia could attack an EU member state within three to five years, adding to climate change-related threats including floods and wildfires.

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[Dutch justice minister David] Van Weel and his colleagues from the Baltic states, Finland, Sweden, Belgium and Luxembourg met in Brussels to discuss how to make their countries more resilient at a time when the EU is pouring vast amounts of money into its defence sector to prepare for the eventuality of a full-blown conflict.

He said that the group of countries meeting in Brussels saw itself as “probably more advanced” on this issue than others that showed less willingness to follow suit, in part for fear of alarming their populations.

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He argued that “if you prepare for the worst scenario — which is a military conflict crisis — then local disasters are easier to handle”.

Co-ordinating among capitals on issues such as stockpiling, alarm systems or creating sufficient shelters was also required for an efficient response, van Weel said.

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“We saw again, with the blackout in Spain and Portugal, that it takes a long time before we have a shared picture about what’s happened. To have a more Europe-wide co-ordination on that, I think can help,” van Weel said.

But in some countries, the EU’s preparedness plans have also stirred up panic and false claims that Europe was starting a war against Russia.

In Romania, viral online posts in recent months alleged that preparations for food rationing and exercises for reservists in case they needed to be called up were proof Bucharest was joining a war effort.

The Romanian government issued statements in March and earlier this month debunking such claims and insisting that any preparedness plans “do not mean our country is entering any [armed] conflict”.

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/64758756

PARIS, May 23 (Reuters) - European luxury shares tanked on Friday as U.S. President Donald Trump said he is recommending a straight 50% tariff on goods from the European Union starting on June 1.

Europe's luxury industry, producing handbags, shoes, fashion items and champagne among other prized goods, is highly exposed to the U.S. market, which was seen as the sector's best hope for growth this year as Chinese demand lags.

Archived

Here is the German Federal Office for Information Security's original press release (and a link to download the paper, both in German)

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The German Federal Office for Information Security said has for years ranked energy sector at a "high" risk of hacking. Recent shifts including new technologies such as internet-connected solar power inverters and a tense geopolitical situation should nonetheless spark increased concern, the agency said.

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The growth of decentralized energy sector operations make the grid more complex to secure since thousands of smaller players with photovoltaic systems become part of the grid. Solar inverters and grid control technology is additionally at risk of supply chain attacks, the German agency [better known as the BSI for its German acronym] said.

"A successful disturbance of energy supply in Germany or Europe is a horror scenario for citizens, the German economy and the state bodies. Social life would come to a standstill, the economic damage would be enormous," said BSI President Claudia Plattner.

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The agency last year identified a slew of nation-state groups targeting German critical infrastructure, including China's Nylon Typhoon and Russian groups Fancy Bear and Midnight Blizzard.

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cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/64750194

• President Donald Trump on Friday said he is “recommending a straight 50% Tariff on the European Union” after complaining that trade negotiations have stalled.

• The EU “has been very difficult to deal with,” Trump wrote. “Our discussions with them are going nowhere!”

The European Union, which was formed for the primary purpose of taking advantage of the United States on TRADE, has been very difficult to deal with. Their powerful Trade Barriers, Vat Taxes, ridiculous Corporate Penalties, Non-Monetary Trade Barriers, Monetary Manipulations, unfair and unjustified lawsuits against Americans Companies, and more, have led to a Trade Deficit with the U.S. of more than $250,000,000 a year, a number which is totally unacceptable. Our discussions with them are going nowhere! Therefore, I am recommending a straight 50% Tariff on the European Union, starting on June 1, 2025. There is no Tariff if the product is built or manufactured in the United States. Thank you for your attention to this matter!

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/64750316

Merz and Xi assured each other they were open to cooperate on overcoming global challenges, government spokesman Stefan Kornelius said after the call on Friday.

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/64750219

• The leaders said in an open letter made public in Rome on Thursday that interpretations of the rights convention by the European Court of Human Rights have limited the flexibility of national governments and prevented them from expelling migrants who commit crimes.

• The letter was signed by leaders of Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/30106806

Archived

Danish firms have found “suspicious” components added to east Asian circuit boards that were supposed to be built into the country’s green energy infrastructure, according to an industry body.

It has raised concerns about the potential for remote disruption of the power supply or digital espionage, coming a week after the US claimed to have identified “kill switches” in a consignment of solar panels and batteries from China.

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Green Power Denmark, an umbrella group for 1,500 Danish renewable technology companies, said the components from “the East” had been found during routine checks on a “development project” that had at no point been connected to the grid.

“It’s a clear warning: threats to energy security can hide in plain sight,” the organisation said. “The real danger isn’t always sabotage. It can also be unlisted components. Hidden functions. That’s why Danish energy companies dismantle and inspect before anything goes live.”

Jorgen Christensen, Green Power Denmark’s technical director, said there was no proof of foul play and it was possible that the mysterious electronics had been included to add some kind of innocent function to the circuit boards.

“It’s possible the supplier had no malicious intent,” he told Reuters. “We can’t say at this point. But that doesn’t change the fact that these components shouldn’t be there.”

Walburga Hemetsberger, head of the lobby group SolarPower Europe, said the discovery was highly concerning and called for an investigation.

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In recent years experts have issued increasingly strident warnings about the security risk posed by China’s stranglehold over the supply of many categories of renewable energy components in Europe, such as batteries, turbines and the inverters used to smooth the voltage of power as it is fed into the grid.

The large-scale blackout that occurred a fortnight ago across much of Spain and Portugal, both of which depend heavily on Chinese-made solar energy infrastructure, has further concentrated minds on the issue.

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cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/64741462

Amid mounting trade friction between the European Union and China, President Emmanuel Macron made a call to Chinese President Xi Jinping, a move that highlights France’s push to ease trade with Beijing while reinforcing its diplomatic presence in the Indo-Pacific region.

Archived

The European Union is seeking a defence pact with Australia to deepen military co-operation in a move that highlights fears of a sharp increase in global instability.

The EU put the proposal to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Rome on Sunday in the hope of matching other defence partnerships that have cleared the way for closer intelligence work and joint exercises.

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The move came as Albanese met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and pledged continued Australian support against Russia, including the delivery of Abrams tanks promised last October.

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The EU signed a defence partnership with South Korea in November to set up joint talks on security and intelligence, clear the way for military exercises, respect sea borders and work together on cybersecurity.

While the agreement did not name any adversaries, it focused on risks that have been aired in the past in relation to Russia and China, such as cybersecurity.

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Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys has warned against re-engaging with Georgia’s ruling Georgian Dream [GD] government at any diplomatic level unless it recommits to democratic principles, citing what he described as a missed opportunity by the European Union to impose sanctions during the country’s ongoing democratic backsliding.

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Asked whether EU leaders such as European Commission Vice President Kaja Kallas and Commissioner Marta Kos “should engage with the de-facto government in Tbilisi”, Budrys rejected the idea of normalization under present conditions, “till we still have the European perspective on the table we cannot engage and normalize the current situation.” He added: “So, I don’t see the value added in continuing this.”

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“I think that we missed not once a chance to send the stronger message to Georgian authorities about the path that they have chosen” including with the sanctions, Budrys said, referring to legislation targeting NGOs, electoral irregularities, and the violent dispersal of demonstrations. He described the authorities’ conduct as “beyond the red lines.” He further added, “We missed the chance then and what was obvious that it will go down the hill with the democratic freedoms being more and more constrained and limited, and it would limit the capabilities of ours and the area of cooperation between European Union and Georgia.”

While noting that a large majority of Georgians continue to support EU integration, Budrys said the government must take concrete steps to restore the country’s democratic trajectory. “So Lithuania is repeating that the best way out of this situation is to organize fair elections again and recall, also recalling legislation that limits the activities of political opposition and NGOs,” he said. “If not, we are heading in a very bad direction — and that’s only the responsibility of Georgian authorities right now.”

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GD Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze responded to Budrys’ remarks during a press briefing with a dismissive statement: “The Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs does not exist. That’s just an ordinary unit of the ‘deep state.’”

Lithuania has been among the first EU member states to react strongly to Georgia’s democratic backsliding. In response to the violent suppression of peaceful demonstrators during the November–December 2024 rallies, Lithuania imposed travel sanctions on Georgian Dream officials it deemed responsible for the crackdown and for enabling the democratic regress.

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/64705366

Denmark is set to have the highest retirement age in Europe after its parliament adopted a law raising it to 70 by 2040.

The retirement age at 70 will apply to all people born after 31 December 1970.

The "Accept all" button is often the standard for cookie banners. An administrative court has ruled that the opposite offer is also necessary.

Lower Saxony's data protection officer Denis Lehmkemper can report a legal victory in his long-standing battle against manipulatively designed cookie banners. The Hanover Administrative Court has confirmed his legal opinion in a judgment of March 19 that has only just been made public: Accordingly, website operators must offer a clearly visible "reject all" button on the first level of the corresponding banner for cookie consent requests if there is also the frequently found "accept all" option. Accordingly, cookie banners must not be specifically designed to encourage users to click on consent and must not prevent them from rejecting the controversial browser files.

Archived link

"We're currently observing a steady trend towards an increase in the number of appeals from children about recruitment attempts," says Vasyl Bohdan, Head of the Juvenile Police of Ukraine, on the national joint 24/7 newscast, as reported by the Ukrinform news agency.

"As of today, almost 50 children have reported to the National Police that they had been contacted via messengers and social media by unknown persons from fictitious accounts who were agitating for arson attacks on military vehicles, government and local authority buildings, civilian and critical infrastructure, as well as collecting various information, for which they promised financial reward."

Bohdan said that the Juvenile Prevention Unit of the National Police, together with the Security Service of Ukraine, is implementing an information campaign across Ukraine. During visits to schools, they hold lectures, discussions and open lessons for teenagers to raise their legal awareness.

Law enforcement officers also work with parents and teachers to explain how to recognise the signs of recruitment, how to talk to children and how to act in the event of a threat.

At first, children may be given simple tasks such as gathering information about the location of military facilities or distributing leaflets discrediting the Ukrainian Armed Forces or containing elements of Russian propaganda, before being assigned more complex missions.

The German chancellor has visited Lithuania to mark Berlin’s first permanent foreign troop deployment since the second world war, as he called on allies to dramatically expand their efforts to bolster European defences against a hostile Russia.

As a crowd waved Lithuanian, German and Ukrainian flags, Friedrich Merz and his defence minister, Boris Pistorius, attended a ceremony launching the official formation of an armoured brigade aimed at protecting Nato’s eastern flank.

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/64669223

"What is happening there is unjustified and unacceptable. Israel must stop these operations immediately," Mitsotakis told Greek broadcaster Skai.

Since last year, Georgia’s European Union accession process has completely stalled. However, the country’s First Deputy Prime Minister Levan Davitashvili has told Euronews that the government still aims to join the bloc by 2030.

Archived

Advanced persistent threat (APT) groups with ties to China have become persistent players in the cyber espionage landscape, with a special emphasis on European governmental and industrial entities, according to a thorough disclosure from ESET’s APT Activity Report for Q4 2024 to Q1 2025.

The report, covering activities from October 2024 to March 2025, highlights the sophisticated tactics and tools employed by these threat actors to infiltrate sensitive networks.

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These diverse and innovative techniques illustrate the persistent dedication of China-aligned APTs to espionage, often prioritizing long-term access over immediate financial returns.

The ESET report emphasizes that the highlighted operations are merely a snapshot of the broader threat landscape, with intelligence derived from proprietary telemetry data and verified by expert researchers.

The sustained focus on European targets by these APT groups signals a strategic intent to gather sensitive political and industrial intelligence, potentially influencing geopolitical dynamics.

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