Europe

The European Union has called for a bloc-wide handling fee on small packages ordered online from platforms such as Shein, Temu and Alibaba to be imposed in early 2026, over two years earlier than scheduled, in a bid to crack down on billions of cheap Chinese imports each year, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing a letter from trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic to EU finance ministers.

The European Commission urged EU finance ministers meeting on Thursday to agree the faster implementation to protect domestic retailers from unfair competition, the report said.

!!! IF YOU ARE AN EU CITIZEN, PLEASE DO THE FOLLOWING FORM !!!

https://fightchatcontrol.eu/#contact-tool

Be especially sure to select your home country's permanent representation in the Committee, but selecting everyone the website proposes is a very good idea (and done by default).

Raise your voices and flood their inbox, this might be the last chance we ever get

Source

Patrick Breyer's warning about this from 2 days ago

On Wednesday, Minister of Defense Antti Häkkänen (Confederation of Finnish Socialists and Democrats) announced news about cooperation between the Nordic air forces.

Archived/unpaywalled version

Over the past week, two moves in East Asia and Europe clearly signal that the handling of the ‘Taiwan question’ is entering a new phase. It is one in which neither Tokyo nor Brussels is prepared simply to abide by a carefully calibrated diplomatic equilibrium coordinated from Beijing.

The emergence of Japan’s new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, with her hawkish remarks about Taiwan, in which she said any blockade of the country by Chinese forces would be tantamount to a “national survival crisis situation”, coupled to the European Union’s decision to allow Taiwan’s vice-president, Hsiao Bi‑khim, to speak at the European Parliament where she became the first ever sitting Taiwanese vice-president to do so, represent a bolder posture by both Tokyo and Brussels and a more direct than usual challenge to the diplomatic norms that Beijing has long counted on.

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Takaichi’s comments in Japan’s Diet, that a Chinese military move against Taiwan might constitute “a situation threatening [Japan’s] survival” and subsequently trigger Japan’s own self-defence mobilisation, depart from Tokyo’s longstanding strategy of ambiguity.

Historically, Japanese prime ministers have avoided naming Taiwan in scenarios deemed to trigger Japan’s exercise of collective self-defence as was widely reported in the hours and days after she spoke, but her move signals a willingness to link Japan’s regional security directly with Taiwan’s status after years of bilateral parliamentary exchanges between the two.

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[In response to Takaichi's comment] the Chinese consul-general in Osaka, Xue Jian, issued a now-deleted social media post threatening Takaichi’s “dirty neck”. Such language by Chinese officials underscores how volatile the region has become even if national leaders shake hands and smile for cameras at regional and global events.

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Simultaneously, across Eurasia, the EU has taken a notable step with Taiwan’s vice-president, Hsiao Bi-khim addressing the annual summit of the Inter‑Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) held at the European Parliament in Brussels.

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While the speech by Hsiao was delivered in an unofficial parliamentary gathering rather than at a formal EU foreign-policy event, the symbolism matters. Hsiao told the gathering: “Europe has defended freedom under fire. And Taiwan has defended democracy under pressure” ABC News reported, at the same time urging deeper trade, technology and security ties with EU partners while warning that peace in the Taiwan Strait was “a cornerstone of global prosperity.”

To a standing ovation, Hsiao added “In an era marked by increasing fragmentation, volatility and rising authoritarianism, this gathering affirms something vital - that democracies, even when far apart, are not alone” the ABC report added.

For Brussels, the decision to let Hsiao speak appears to signal two things: one, a recognition that Taiwan is no longer a peripheral “China issue” but integral to global democratic and technological supply-chains; and two, a willingness to test the limits of the conventional “one-China policy” façade by offering Taiwan high-visibility diplomatic space.

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In sum therefore, what we are witnessing is not merely isolated diplomatic provocation of China, by Tokyo and Brussels, but the establishment of a new set of alliances and postures in East Asia’s Taiwan-China equation.

Japan, under Takaichi, is openly signalling that the fate of Taiwan, a 50-year colony run from Tokyo from 1895 to 1945, is no longer someone else’s business - it is a matter of Japanese survival. The EU, by elevating Taiwan’s voice in Brussels, is signalling that the island matters to the global democratic community – a group China is not qualified to join.

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Archived version

The European Commission is preparing to block Chinese institutions from significant portions of its €95.5 billion ($110 billion) Horizon Europe research program, citing intellectual property risks and links between Chinese universities and Beijing's military.

A draft document for the Horizon Europe "main" work program for 2026/2027 proposes excluding Chinese entities from three of the six research areas: civil security and society; health; and digital, industry and space technologies.

The proposals have not yet been adopted or endorsed by the European Commission, although they are clearly being considered.

The restrictions respond to lack of progress on an EU-China cooperation roadmap established at the 2019 Innovation Cooperation Dialogue. The Commission points to persistent concerns about protecting trade secrets and potential transfer of knowledge to China's military, which it says are "supported rather than deterred" by Beijing's policies.

"In view of the persistent lack of progress in the discussions on the Roadmap and the substantive concerns in relation to the undesired transfer of IP to China supported by both legislative and policy initiatives, cooperation involving entities established in China needs to be calibrated accordingly," it states.

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Archived version

India has scaled back purchases of Russian crude for arrival in December, showing that Western sanctions and trade talks with the US are having a major impact on buying patterns.

Five big Indian refiners haven’t placed any orders for Russia oil for next month, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named due the sensitivity of the trade. Typically, deals for crude for the following month are done by the 10th of the current month.

The shift in purchasing by the world’s third-largest oil importer comes after President Donald Trump doubled tariffs on all Indian imports to 50% in August, and then sanctioned Russia’s two biggest oil producers — Rosneft PJSC and Lukoil PJSC — last month. India had become heavily reliant on discounted Russian crude over the last few years, and faced US accusations that it was helping to fund the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine.

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Meanwhile, Russia’s oil revenues plunged 27% Year-on-Year in October, according to Russia's Finance Ministry cited by The Moscow Times.

Revenue from the mineral extraction tax, a key source of budget income, also fell 26% year-on-year to 671.3 billion rubles.

Oil and gas revenues totaled 7.5 trillion rubles over the first 10 months of 2025, down 2 trillion from 9.54 trillion a year earlier.

The pace of decline has accelerated steadily, from 14% in the first five months of the year to 21% by October.

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Unpaywalled

[When Spain's King Felipe visits China] Madrid will describe it as a gesture of goodwill and opportunity. In reality, it is a calculated gamble that may cost Spain and Europe far more than it gains. Behind the ceremonial smiles lies a strategic miscalculation, engaging Beijing on Beijing’s terms at a time when the European Union is struggling to build a coherent position on China.

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Spain’s enthusiasm for Chinese capital also reveals a worrying short-sightedness. Madrid faces a large trade deficit with China and believes new projects can offset it. In practice, they seldom do. Chinese investors import their own supply chains, labour, and technology. They create limited local value while drawing European know-how into Chinese networks. Spain risks seeing its renewable energy and manufacturing sectors absorbed into Beijing’s wider strategic designs, leaving it exposed if relations sour or global trade tensions rise.

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When an EU member breaks ranks, it weakens the credibility of that approach and gives China a wedge to exploit divisions inside the bloc. This fragmentation is exactly what Chinese diplomacy aims for. Every bilateral agreement, every royal handshake, chips away at Europe’s collective leverage.

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If Spain chooses to play Beijing’s game, it may soon discover that the price of Chinese goodwill is far higher than it expected.

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cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/49662834

Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Ukraine's Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said Wednesday that justice minister German Galushchenko had been suspended amid a corruption scandal in the country's energy sector.

The decision comes a day after anti-corruption prosecutors accused the former energy minister in connection with the scandal, which has sparked widespread anger.

"A decision was made to suspend Herman Galushchenko from performing the duties of minister of justice," Svyrydenko said in her statement.

His job has been taken over by deputy minister for European integration, Lyudmyla Sugak, she added.

Galuschenko said in a statement that he had spoken with the prime minister and agreed with her decision.

"A political decision must be made, and only then can all the details be sorted out," he added.

"I believe that suspension for the duration of the investigation is a civilised and correct scenario. I will defend myself in court and prove my position."

The Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) has accused Timur Mindich, a close ally of President Volodymyr Zelensky, of orchestrating a $100-million corruption scandal involving embezzlement in the energy sector.

They said Galushchenko, who served as energy minister for four years, had received "personal benefits" from Mindich in exchange for control over the money flows in the energy sector.

The investigation has come to light even as the country's infrastructure is battered by Russian attacks.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/52915542

https://archive.is/KdSuc

It was the first time in modern British history that a protest group that does not call for violence against people had been labeled a terrorist organization.

Vautrin, France’s new defence minister, weighed into the fight this week, saying that “Germany has currently no capacity to manufacture a [fighter] jet.”

Over-The-Air (OTA) software updates and connectivity modules could, in theory, provide external access to vehicle systems. Such technology is being implemented in new generation buses: the new Mercedes eIntouro for instance (Daimler Buses enthusiastically stressed in late 2024 as being the “first bus manufacturer in Europe to present a bus that is compatible with over-the-air updates“).

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/52913682

"The friendship between Spain and China undoubtedly benefits both peoples and is consistent with two countries with a long history and a global vocation," Felipe told his host.

After their meeting, Xi and Felipe oversaw the signing of 10 agreements covering food safety and phytosanitary standards, language education and cooperation in space and astronomy, among other issues.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/52916313

The delegation will include banks like Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank and insurance companies like Allianz and Ergo, the source said.