Czech industry boss ‘hopes’ EU elections will ease regulatory burden

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In today’s news from The Capitals:

PRAGUE

The head of the Czech Confederation of Industry told Euractiv.cz that he hopes the upcoming European Elections will “generate” politicians who prioritise easing the industry’s growing regulation burden. Read more.

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EU INSTITUTIONS

Europe needs more funds for defence as wider war ‘no longer a fantasy’, Borrell warns. A full-scale conflict in Europe is “no longer a fantasy” and Europeans must find new ways to financially prepare for a potentially wider war on the continent, the EU’s chief diplomat Josep Borrell warned on Tuesday. Read more.

EU parties and Commission sign campaign rulebook against foreign interference, disinformation. All European political parties will sign on Tuesday (9 April) to a set of code of conduct rules, brokered by the European Commission, as part of broader efforts to shield June’s EU elections campaign from foreign interference and disinformation. Read more.

Recovery fund should be ‘blueprint’ for permanent joint borrowing, EU Commission economy chief says. The EU’s economic chief Paolo Gentiloni officially called for turning the bloc’s Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) into a “permanent” resource on Tuesday (9 April), saying the “temporary nature” of the programme has so far prevented it from unleashing its full potential. Read more.

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BERLIN

Weimar Triangle aims to increase investment in Moldova. The ‘Weimar Triangle’ of Germany, France, and Poland is looking to activate joint investment to prop up Moldova’s frail public finances amid increasing Russian pressure on the EU candidate country, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Tuesday. Read more. 

NORDICS & BALTICS

STOCKHOLM

Dissatisfied with the EU? New list aims to renegotiate Sweden’s EU membership. Swedish European People’s Party MEP Sara Skyttedal and former Social Democrat lawmaker Jan Emanuel presented on Tuesday a list for June’s European elections that seeks to unite all those dissatisfied with the EU to re-negotiate Sweden’s EU membership. Read more.

EUROPE’S SOUTH

MADRID

Sánchez will embark on a European tour to push for Palestinian recognition. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez will embark on a trip to rally European allies behind Madrid’s initiative to recognise the Palestinian state, with visits to Norway, Ireland, Belgium, and Slovenia, and a meeting in Madrid with Portugal’s new prime minister, Spanish government sources confirmed on Tuesday. Read more.

Spain takes first step to regularise half a million migrants. Backed by more than 600,000 signatures and with the support of numerous NGOs, the Spanish parliament on Tuesday took the first legislative step towards approving a citizen’s initiative calling for the regularisation of half a million undocumented foreigners living in Spain. Read more.

Former Catalan president to leave politics if he doesn’t win regional elections. Former Catalan president and leader of the right-wing separatist Together for Catalonia (JxCat), Carles Puigdemont, will quit politics if he does not win the snap regional elections on 12 May, he announced on Tuesday. Read more.

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ROME

Italian government releases economic document without key targets for future. In an unprecedented move, the Italian government released its Economic and Financial Document (DEF) without any programmatic targets on deficit and debt and excluding the impact of the measures the government plans for the budget law. Read more.

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NICOSIA

EU leaders to insist on Cyprus talks progress amid calls for two-state solution. EU leaders are expected to stress the importance of making progress in the Cyprus settlement talks, according to draft conclusions, seen by Euractiv, for an EU summit on 17-18 April, amid new calls from Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar for a ‘two-state solution’ for the divided island. Read more.

EASTERN EUROPE

WARSAW

Most Poles against army involvement in Russia-Ukraine war. New research by Statistics Poland (CBOS) found that 74.8% of Poles oppose the army of Poland or any other NATO country getting involved in the conflict, with only 10.2% favouring such support. Read more.

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BRATISLAVA

Slovakia leads ‘tough discussions’ with Brussels over controversial reforms. The government of Prime Minister Robert Fico is engaged in “an extremely tough professional and political discussion” regarding the changes to the Criminal Code and the abolition of the Special Prosecutor’s Office, Fico said in a recent press conference. Read more.

NEWS FROM THE BALKANS

SOFIA

Bulgaria appoints new caretaker government with sudden foreign minister switch. Bulgarian President Rumen Radev appointed the new caretaker government on Tuesday, which included a last-minute change in the foreign minister’s post, which will remain in place until early elections in June. Read more.

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BUCHAREST

Far-right Romanian party pledges to fight ‘Satanists and globalists’ in Brussels. The candidates of the extremist party Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR), running in the European and local elections on 9 June, have pledged to “combat globalists and Satanists” while defending Romanian values such as sovereignty, family, and church. Read more.

AGENDA:

• EU: Commission President Ursula von der Leyen chairs College of Commissioners meeting; Hosts President of Finland Alexander Stubb;
• Commission Vice President Margrethe Vestager meets with U.S. Chair of the Senate Commerce, Science & Transportation Committee Senator Maria Cantwell, in Washington D.C.;
• Vice President Maroš Šefčovič delivers keynote speech at high level event organised by Enel and Euractiv on “Time to act: Plugging into the Green Deal”;
• Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis participates in ECB Governing Council, in Frankfurt, Germany;
• Vice President Vĕra Jourová speaks at conference on 80 years of Sinti and Roma Holocaust – Lessons learned to ensure non-repetition;
• Jobs and Social Rights Commissioner Nicolas Schmit and ILO Director General Gilbert Houngbo meet Minister of Labour and Social Protection Alexei Buzu, in Moldova;
• Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders participates via videoconference in the Mandatory human rights due diligence & Raw materials due diligence conference;
• Climate Action Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra hosts Automotive Summit with key representatives from car industry;
• International Partnerships Commissioner Jutta Urpilainen participates in EU-UN strategic dialogue with UN Deputy Secretary General Amina J. Mohammed;
• Financial services, financial stability and Capital Markets Union Commissioner Mairead McGuinness delivers speech at high level panel on sanctions “The EU’s sanctions on Russia – where are we and what is next for the Bloc?”;
• Parliament plenary session votes on European Criminal Records Information System – Third Country Nationals, asylum and migration management, methane emissions reduction in the energy sector, establishing a Head Office Tax system for micro, small and medium sized enterprises, and more;

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[Edited by Sarantis Michalopoulos, Daniel Eck, Alice Taylor, Liene Lūsīte, Olivia Gyapong, Sofia Mandilara]

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