Turkey to accept Sweden in NATO if US sells F-16s

September 27, 2023 admin-dominor

The Capitals brings you the latest news from across Europe, through on-the-ground reporting by EURACTIV’s media network. You can subscribe to the newsletter here.

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In today’s news from the Capitals:

STOCKHOLM

Turkey will say yes to Sweden’s NATO bid if the US keeps its promise to sell F-16 fighter jets to Turkey, President Erdogan said on Tuesday, even though he had previously claimed that the sale of the fighter jets had nothing to do with membership.

Erdogan’s surprising statement comes days after a corruption scandal involving a senior US senator – who has been opposing selling F-16 jet fighters to Turkey – erupted. Read more.

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BERLIN

Germany to start checks at Polish, Czech border despite fierce opposition. Germany’s interior ministry is set to reinstate border controls with Poland and the Czech Republic to crack down on irregular migration, despite strong opposition from within the coalition government and trade unions, who have called the move inefficient. Read more.

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PARIS

French FM slams Russian ‘complicity’ in Karabakh, calls for international diplomatic action. France needs more support to help preserve Armenia’s territorial integrity and protect the displaced populations of Nagorno-Karabakh, French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna told lawmakers as she announced several international initiatives on Tuesday. Read more.

Macron unveils €100/month leasing scheme for EU-made electric cars. A €100/month electric vehicle (EV) leasing scheme will be introduced in France in November as part of the country’s climate action strategy, French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Monday, though only EU-made cars will be eligible. Read more.

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VIENNA

Austria pledges ‘unconditional support’ to Ukraine’s EU accession. Austria will continue to stand behind Ukraine and support the war-torn country on its path to join the EU despite Austria’s tradition of neutrality, the President of the Austrian parliament, Wolfgang Sobotka, said during a speech in Kyiv on Tuesday. Read more.

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THE HAGUE

Climate groups, farmers angered by ‘nature permit’ for Dutch airport. The outgoing cabinet’s decision to grant a ‘nature permit’ to the country’s largest airport, Schiphol, which would allow it to schedule at least 440,000 flights per year, sparked outrage among climate groups, farmer representatives, and lawmakers on Tuesday. Read more.

UK & IRELAND

LONDON

Labour party accuses UK home secretary of ‘giving up’ on fixing asylum chaos. Home Secretary Suella Braverman’s migration speech in Washington on Tuesday – where she spoke about how laws have morphed from helping those fleeing persecution to those fearing bias elicited criticism from the Labour Party. Read more.

EUROPE’S SOUTH

VALETTA

Ex-Maltese PM ‘misled’ EU Commission over controversial gas deal with Azerbaijan. Former Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat misled the EU Commission over the previously hidden Security of Supply Agreement signed by his former energy minister Konrad Mizzi and Azerbaijan’s state energy company, Socar. Read more.

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ATHENS

Greek left drags conservatives into same-sex marriage race. The intention of the newly elected chief of the main opposition Syriza party (EU Left), Greece’s first openly gay political party leader, to push forward the legalisation of same-sex marriage was a wake-up call for the conservative government to speed up its LGBTIQ agenda. Read more.

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MADRID

Catalan PM demands self-determination ‘reconciliatory referendum’. The central government in Madrid must commit to a self-determination referendum for Catalonia and approve an amnesty law for those involved in the 2017 secessionist attempt, said regional Prime Minister Pere Aragonès on Tuesday. Read more.

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LISBON

Lawsuit in EU court by young Portuguese, largest climate case ever. The lawsuit by young Portuguese people against 32 states, which was filed at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), could force Europe to act urgently against the climate crisis, according to Zero, an environmental association. Read more.

EASTERN EUROPE

WARSAW

Polish minister looks into extradition for Ukrainian nazi ‘hero’ in Canadian parliament. Education and Science Minister Przemysław Czarnek wants the country’s national remembrance institution to investigate whether there is a basis for a Ukrainian nazi – who controversially received a standing ovation during President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to the Canadian parliament last Friday – to be deported to Poland. Read more.

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PRAGUE

Czech PM: EU Green Deal failed to steer countries towards transformation. Four years after being announced, the European Green Deal has failed to lead EU countries towards innovation and economic transformation, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS, ECR) said on Tuesday. Read more.

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BRATISLAVA

Inefficient use of EU funds costs Slovakia ‘three hospitals yearly’. Insufficient public investment in Slovakia, which has averaged €1.2 billion less per year than its neighbours over the past five years, has led to investment debt of over €40 billion, equivalent to the cost of building three new hospitals or 13 kilometres of motorway every year. Read more.

NEWS FROM THE BALKANS

SOFIA

Bulgaria will not wage diplomatic war over Schengen. Bulgaria will not play hardball with Austria and the Netherlands, which are blocking its accession to Schengen, but will try soft diplomacy and political pressure in Brussels to overcome the veto, several sources in Sofia told Euractiv. Read more.

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BUCHAREST

Romania adopts tax reform amid business concerns. The Romanian government’s fiscal reform package, which aims to combat tax evasion and create a fairer tax system, was rushed through parliament without amendment or debate on Tuesday night but has not gone down well with the business community. Read more.

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BELGRADE

Vučić meets with Quint ambassadors, asks for KFOR to take over security of Serbs in Kosovo. President of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić demanded that KFOR take over responsibility for all security matters in northern Kosovo instead of the country’s national police during a meeting with the ambassadors of the Quint countries and the Head of the EU Delegation in Serbia on Tuesday. Read more.

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PRISTINA

Leader of Serbian List implicated in Kosovo terrorist attack, Albanian PM nudges EU, US for action. A video showing the vice-leader of the Serbian List party in north Kosovo, Milan Radoicic, among the group of individuals who carried out a terrorist attack on Sunday has been published by Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla. Read more.

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TIRANA

Tirana hosts regional, EU economy ministers, PM states ‘EU needs Western Balkans’. Prime Minister Edi Rama hosted the ministers of economy of 20 regional and European countries in Tirana on Tuesday within the framework of the Berlin Process and emphasised that the EU needs the Western Balkans just as much as the region needs them. Read more.

AGENDA:

EU: Informal meeting of General Affairs Council takes place in Murcia, Spain; Agenda highlights include working sessions on enlargement preparation;
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen chairs College of Commissioners meeting; Hosts Prime Minister of Latvia Evika Siliņa;
Vice President Margaritis Schinas participates in EPP Home Affairs ministers’ meeting;
Vice President Maroš Šefčovič participates in Green Gases Business Forum;
Economy Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni hosts Chairman of the European Fiscal Board Niels Thygesen;
Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders hosts Justice Minister of Moldova Veronica Mihailov-Moraru;
Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson delivers keynote speech at Forum on Ukraine Renewable Gases organized by the Energy Community;
International Partnerships Commissioner Jutta Urpilainen participates in Athens Democracy Forum, in Greece;
Parliament President Roberta Metsola meets with Prime Minister of Croatia Andrej Plenković;
Belgium: NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg meets Latvia Prime Minister Evika Silina;
Russia: President Vladimir Putin chairs government meeting on economic development of Kaliningrad;