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  1. #771
    Biệt Thự Triển's Avatar
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    Croatia's EU presidency: What will it bring for Europe?

    On January 1, Croatia assumes the six-month rotating presidency of the EU Council. With countries wanting both in and out of the bloc, what can the EU’s youngest member do?




    Croatia is not stinting on the superlatives when describing the country's upcoming presidency of the EU Council. Media and politicians are agreed that their country faces "the biggest challenge in modern history." They describe it as a "historical event for Croatia" and the "most difficult test of its maturity since independence." Starting on January 1, the youngest member of the European Union will serve as first among equals for the next six months. International conferences will be held under its presidency; the EU's highest representatives as well as hordes of journalists will be knocking at its door.

    The country will be in the spotlight — a great opportunity to present itself positively. However, it is expected of any country holding the EU presidency that it will set its own interests aside and promote pan-European issues rather than its own national goals. It is expected to act as a mediator, to help resolve current problems and find compromise solutions.

    Where foreign policy is concerned, there are three main issues Croatia will have to deal with.

    Migration and EU border protection

    In the past two years Croatia has proved an extremely reliable guardian of the bloc's external border, especially along what is referred to as the "Balkan route." Although not all EU states will say so openly, the majority clearly want to allow as few refugees into the EU as possible, and Croatia implements this very effectively. Its eastern border with the neighboring state of Bosnia-Herzegovina is strictly guarded, and any refugees who manage nonetheless to get through to Croatian — and thus EU — territory are immediately sent back.

    Croatian police are far from squeamish about this. There have been numerous reports from NGOs, and by various witnesses of "pushbacks" — refugees being returned illegally — as well as about abuse and the use of force by Croatian police.

    In May, video footage was released that appears to show Croatian police forcibly returning migrants to Bosnia across the "green border" in the countryside, where there are no official crossing points. Human Rights Watch (HRW) published an open letter calling on the Croatian government to stop this practice. Croatia's president, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, actually confirmed in an interview for Swiss television that "pushbacks" did take place, and that "of course a little force" is required.

    Just a few days ago, Croatian news portal net.hr exposed an unofficial network within the Croatian security authorities whose task is to collaborate with local taxi companies in tracking down refugees and deporting them to Bosnia. The refugees do not have a chance to file applications for asylum.

    However, Croatian authorities routinely deny all such allegations, insisting that everything is done in accordance with EU regulations, and that no violations of the law have been registered.

    In doing this, Croatia is also acting in its own interest. Croatian officials are hardly concerned about whether refugees might want to stay in the country — most want to go further west. Instead, the country is trying to present itself as a vigilant border guard in order to be accepted into the Schengen Area as soon as possible — one of the stated priorities of Croatian foreign policy.

    In the meantime, the Croatian government has received absolution for its activities from the highest authority. At the end of November, the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, said in Zagreb: "From the perspective of a country that's supposed to protect the external [EU] border, it of course looks different compared to the perspective of a country [such as Germany] in the middle of the Schengen Area."

    Western Balkans and EU enlargement


    One of the declared aims of Croatia's EU Council presidency is to press ahead with negotiations on the further European integration of the western Balkan countries. In particular, this refers to the announcement of a date for the start of accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia. However, the continuation of negotiations that are already underway with Serbia, as well as closer rapprochement with Bosnia-Herzegovina, are also on the agenda. A separate EU summit will also be held to address these in Zagreb in May.

    However, France in particular has huge reservations about further enlargement. It is also uncertain to what extent Croatia is able to act as a "fair and honest broker" in this process, and be seen as such, as the Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic has declared it will. Croatia's relations with its former enemy Serbia and with neighboring Bosnia-Herzegovina are not exactly characterized by mutual trust.

    Croatia is still in dispute with Serbia over various unresolved issues from their recent war-torn past. Zagreb places particular emphasis on the importance of clarifying the fate of the many people who are still missing and unaccounted for. It accuses Belgrade of failing to cooperate properly on this. Furthermore, it expects the Serbian government finally to put the war criminals from its own ranks on trial, and also, ideally, to admit that it was guilty of aggression.

    In its relations with Bosnia-Herzegovina, the main bone of contention is the status of the Croats living there. The government in Zagreb, and above all the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), see themselves as patron saints of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian Croats, and accuse the current central government in Sarajevo of trying to marginalize them. They're especially at odds with Zeljko Komsic, the Croatian member of the three-member presidium, as he was elected predominantly with the support of Muslim Bosniaks.

    There is also a dispute about plans for an EU-funded bridge across a Bosnian-Herzegovinian bay on the Adriatic. Croatia's good relations with the Bosnian Serb leader, Milorad Dodik, who has never concealed his separatist aspirations, are also regarded with suspicion in Sarajevo.

    Brexit perspective

    The United Kingdom is scheduled to formally leave the European Union on January 31. After that, negotiations over Britain's future relations with the EU, including a free trade agreement, will begin. However, Croatia's role in this process will be more of a supporting one.

    "We want to help all EU members and the European Parliament to ratify the treaty ending British EU membership as early as January, so that we then have eleven months to reach an agreement on future relations," Andrej Plenkovic has said. The Croatian prime minister has emphasized that Michel Barnier will continue to be the EU's main Brexit negotiator. In any case, Brexit is only of peripheral interest for Croatia — it is more a task for the big players, such as Germany, which will take over the bloc's presidency from Croatia on July 1.


    /* src.: https://www.dw.com/en/croatias-eu-pr...ope/a-51847900



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  2. #772
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    German government may offer 'silence money' for living near windmills

    Legal resistance to wind farms has become more common in Germany as the country switches to renewable energy. The Social Democrats have suggested direct financial compensation for those who live near a windmill.



    The Social Democratic Party (SPD) has proposed a new answer to people complaining about wind farms in Germany: offering money to those willing to live near them.

    "Those people who accept windmills in their neighborhood, and so make the expansion of renewable energy possible, should be rewarded," SPD environment spokesman Matthias Miersch told the Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung newspaper.

    The cash could be handed to local community authorities, with the stipulation that it be spent on direct benefits to citizens, though Miersch is also prepared to offer "direct financial incentives for people who live in those regions."

    Wind farms are vital to the German government's energy plans, with both a transition away from coal and nuclear power currently being undertaken, though too slowly for the demands of environmentalists in the face of the ongoing climate crisis.

    Delayed wind

    Despite this, local newspaper reports in Germany are filled with reports of people unhappy with having wind farms on their doorsteps, with complaints about noise "like a helicopter" (as one family told the Waldeckische Landeszeitung), and subsequent legal battles slowing down construction.

    On the other hand, the Baden-Württemberg newspaper Leonberger Kreiszeitung reported on Wedndesday that the village of Weissach is seeking to turn a profit from its local wind farm by investing €435,000 ($487,000).

    The center-left SPD, as junior coalition partner to Angela Merkel's conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), is concerned that further delays to the construction of new windmills will make its country's targets impossible to reach. Germany's official target is to draw 65% of its electricity from renewables by 2030.

    But the rate of wind farm construction has slowed down, with only 160 new windmills planned until November this year: the lowest number for 20 years. "We cannot allow ourselves the long-winded planning processes we have now if we want to manage this enormous transformation," said Miersch.

    Money for silence

    Local governments aren't necessarily impressed with the idea. Uwe Brandl, president of the German Association of Towns and Municipalities, practically dismissed the payments as hush money during a press conference in Berlin on Friday.

    "What we're noticing now is more in the direction of paying people to keep quiet," he said. "I don't think that's the right direction. If we start paying for people to keep quiet, then it'll start with windmills and will go on with roads and other infrastructure measures."

    "I think the government would be well-advised to sensitize people to the fact that they're part of this game, part of this society, and change is only possible if everyone is ready to participate in it," he added.

    The idea of paying people living near wind farms has been implemented elsewhere. As the taz newspaper reported, two German states have also offered compensation to communities living near windmills, either in the form of shares in the company, or in the case of Brandenburg, €10,000 per windmill to all communities within three kilometers (1.86 miles).

    Meanwhile, the debate is threatening to open up a new flashpoint in Merkel's coalition government. In response to the ongoing court cases, the government recently introduced a measure stipulating that wind farms had to be built at least 1,000 meters from residential estates. These were defined as five or more homes — a stipulation that Miersch and the SPD would like to lift. The Green party, meanwhile, considers the restriction as unacceptable.


    /* src.: https://www.dw.com/en/german-governm...lls/a-51882662

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  3. #773
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    Đức bỏ rơi "đồng minh". Lục đục dọn hàng từ chợ Một rắc qua chợ Cu quay.







    US military sends Iraq withdrawal letter by 'mistake'



    "....
    German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said earlier Monday that neither Germany nor any other country involved in the anti-IS coalition would remain in Iraq without Baghdad's approval.

    The Bundeswehr is set to "temporarily" transfer German soldiers out of Iraq, according to a letter provided to the Defense and Foreign Ministries and seen by German broadcaster ARD. They are likely to be transferred to nearby Jordan and Kuwait, as Berlin waits to see how tensions play out between the US and Iran.
    ...."

    (coi nữa)
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  4. #774
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    Boris cần Tô Lâm.





    Harry Dunn death: US officials say UK's extradition request 'highly inappropriate'


    Home Office letter demanding return of Anne Sacoolas means justice is ‘now a decision for US authorities’


    British officials have formally demanded that the wife of a US intelligence officer charged with causing the death by dangerous driving of the 19-year-old motorcyclist Harry Dunn be sent back to the UK to face trial.

    The Home Office has sent a request to the US government to extradite Anne Sacoolas, who has previously insisted she will not return to the UK voluntarily, over the case of the teenager who died in a collision outside RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire on 27 August last year.

    A spokesman for the department confirmed the move on Friday evening, adding: “This is now a decision for the US authorities.”

    However, the US state department called the request “highly inappropriate”. A department spokesman said: “The use of an extradition treaty to attempt to return the spouse of a former diplomat by force would establish an extraordinarily troubling precedent.”

    (more)












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  5. #775
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    Siemens boss meets with activists

    The German tech giant Siemens is in trouble again. Climate activists are criticizing Siemens for its planned delivery for a controversial mine in Australia. This Friday, Siemens-CEO Joe Kaeser met with the German Friday-for-Future activist Luisa Neubauer for a discussion.


    => https://www.dw.com/en/siemens-boss-m...ts/av-51959953



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  6. #776
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    Quote Originally Posted by Triển View Post




    Siemens boss meets with activists

    The German tech giant Siemens is in trouble again. Climate activists are criticizing Siemens for its planned delivery for a controversial mine in Australia. This Friday, Siemens-CEO Joe Kaeser met with the German Friday-for-Future activist Luisa Neubauer for a discussion.


    => https://www.dw.com/en/siemens-boss-m...ts/av-51959953





    Chỉ có 18 triệu cũng kiếm ăn. Siemens đang xuống vực.




    Australia: Siemens to remain in Adani mining project despite climate criticism

    The German engineering firm has reaffirmed plans to support the controversial Adani coal mine project. Siemens has come under fire for the project's climate implications, with bushfires currently raging across Australia.

    (more)
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  7. #777
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    Gần như mỗi vài ba năm lại phát hiện bom của
    đồng minh Anh-Pháp-Nga rải lên nước Đức còn
    sót lại từ đệ nhị thế chiến, mỗi khi đào bới xây dựng
    hạ tầng cơ sở.
    Rất nhiều người huênh hoang hiếu chiến. Họ không
    biết chiến tranh là gì cả. Không chỉ mất mát nhất thời
    mà hậu quả còn kéo dài cả thế kỷ.





    Dortmund WWII bomb disposal complete

    German disposal experts have detonated two unexploded bombs from World War II that were discovered in the western city of Dortmund. Some 14,000 residents were ordered to leave their homes for the operation.



    (coi nữa)
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  8. #778
    Better New Year ốc's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Triển View Post
    Chỉ có 18 triệu cũng kiếm ăn. Siemens đang xuống vực.
    Nên lập hội đá banh rồi qua Ả rập đá dễ kiếm bạc triệu hơn. Tiểu phú do thương, đại phú do cầu.

  9. #779
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    Quote Originally Posted by ốc View Post
    Nên lập hội đá banh rồi qua Ả rập đá dễ kiếm bạc triệu hơn. Tiểu phú do thương, đại phú do cầu.
    Đá banh không phải nghề của họ. Có thể chuyển sang chế vũ khí bán cho Ả Rập lời hơn nhiều: Sát thương tất phú.

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  10. #780

 

 

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