Europe

• Kepala Royal Navy menyatakan bahwa pasukan angkatan laut terpadu akan menghalau ancaman Rusia di masa depan dari 'perbatasan laut terbuka' di utara • Britania telah setuju untuk membentuk pasukan angkatan laut terpadu dengan sembilan negara Eropa untuk menghalau ancaman Rusia di masa depan dari "perbatasan laut terbuka" di utara, demikian pengumuman kepala Royal Navy. • Gen Sir Gwyn Jenkins menegaskan bahwa meskipun krisis sedang berlangsung di Timur Tengah, di mana selat Hormuz tetap tertutup setelah perang AS-Israel di Iran, "Rusia tetap menjadi ancaman paling serius bagi keamanan kami".

Pasal 42.7 telah terabaikan selama beberapa dekade – hingga Donald Trump mulai meragukan komitmen AS terhadap Nato• Jangan lewatkan pengiriman This Is Europe ke kotak masuk Anda? Daftar di siniKebanyakan orang telah mendengar tentang pasal 5 Nato. Klausul “satu untuk semua, semua untuk satu” ini menyatakan bahwa serangan bersenjata terhadap satu negara anggota harus dianggap sebagai serangan terhadap semua anggota, yang mengharuskan negara-negara anggota untuk membantu korban – termasuk dengan “penggunaan kekuatan bersenjata”.Tidak banyak orang, hingga minggu ini, yang mendengar tentang klausul pertahanan bersama milik UE sendiri, pasal 42.7 (pdf), yang menyatakan bahwa jika suatu negara anggota mendapat serangan bersenjata, negara lain “wajib memberikan bantuan dan pertolongan dengan segala cara yang mereka miliki”. Hal ini mungkin karena, hingga baru-baru ini, tidak banyak kebutuhan bagi orang Eropa untuk berkonsultasi dengan pasal 42.7. Lebih dari 40 pangkalan militer AS dan 85.000 tentara di seluruh UE (dan Inggris) menjadi bukti komitmen pertahanan Washington terhadap benua lama tersebut. Lanjutkan membaca...

Ursula von der Leyen later due to meet new Hungarian leader who is seeking to unlock EU funds in return for reformsVon der Leyen says that “every member state has a different energy mix,” so no blanket EU solution would work.But she calls for more coordination not just on common procurement, but also on fuel reserves, “especially jet fuel and diesel, where markets are tightening.”“ Let us use this to make the switch to electricity – not just in transport, but also in industry and heating. This is not only a matter of affordability and competitiveness; this is also a matter of economic security. Thus, speaking of European independence, this is the moment to electrify Europe.”“This is the second energy crisis within four years, and the lesson should be very clear. Our overdependency on imported fossil fuels makes us vulnerable. … We must reduce our overdependency on imported fossil fuels and boost our home-grown, affordable, clean energy supply. From renewables to nuclear, in full respect of technology neutrality.” Continue reading...

Eight EU members continue to include force or violence in their definitions in national criminal codesThe European parliament has called on the EU to draw up a standardised consent-based definition of rape, in what legislators described as a crucial step towards addressing the patchwork of laws, some of them insufficient, that currently exist across the bloc.On Tuesday, 447 of the parliament’s 720 MEPs voted to approve a report calling for a common definition of rape, centred on “only yes means yes,” prompting a loud round of applause in the chamber in Strasbourg. Continue reading...

High fuel prices and passenger delays caused by EU’s EES entry-exit system causing problems, says trade bodyBusiness live – latest updatesEurope’s smaller airports may not survive if jet fuel shortages triggered by the Middle East crisis lead to widespread route cancellations, the industry’s trade body has warned.Although airlines insist that there are currently no supply issues within the normal four- to six-week horizon, the US-Israel war on Iran and the effective closure of the strait of Hormuz have doubled the price of jet fuel, prompting some carriers to cancel flights. Continue reading...

France’s president, who is also co-prince of the micro-state, expected to speak frankly about issue in country with some of strictest abortion laws in EuropeMeanwhile, Macron is visiting the Andorran primary school in Santa Coloma and absolutely loving spending his time with kids, happily posing to pictures with the Andorran flags.Last week, he suggested he would quit politics at the end of his term in May next year, and so we should expect to see more of this sort of legacy-building trips and interventions as he enters the final year in office. Continue reading...

Resolution Foundation report says ‘crisis’ stems from rising ill-health and a failing system of benefits and job supportBritain has the third-highest rate of young people not in work or education among Europe’s richest countries because of rising ill-health and a failing system of benefits and job support, a report has warned.The Resolution Foundation thinktank said the UK was facing a “crisis” in youth jobs amid a dramatic rise in the number of 16- to 24-year-olds who are not in education, employment or training (Neets) to almost 1 million – the highest level in more than a decade. Continue reading...