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Russia-Ukraine Talks Begin In Belarus Amid Growing International Pressure

February 28, 2022 People's Dispatch. , , , , ,
In a major development crucial for peace in the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia, both the parties started negotiations in Gomel in Belarus, near the Ukrainian and Russian, borders on Monday, February 28. The delegates of the two countries reached Gomel early after initial hiccups regarding the venue of the talks. A Russian delegation consisting of “representatives of foreign ministry, the defense ministry and other agencies, including the presidential administration” arrived to Belarus according to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Preskov, Russian news agency TASS reported. Ukraine claimed it is seeking immediate ceasefire and withdrawal of Russian troops in the talks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a phone conversation with UK prime minister Boris Johnson claimed that the next 24 hours are crucial for the war.

European Citizens Initiative To Stop Trade With Illegal Settlements

February 21, 2022 BDS Movement. , , ,
Brussels - Marking the World Day of Social Justice on February 20 a coalition of more than 100 civil society organizations, has launched a European Citizens Initiative (ECI) to stop trade with illegal settlements in occupied territories. An ECI is an official instrument for democratic participation of citizens in EU policy making. If an ECI garners one million signatures from EU citizens over 12 months the European Commission must consider and debate the petition’s demands.  This ECI demands EU legislation that will outlaw trade with illegal settlements, anywhere and at all times, including trade with Israel’s illegal settlements in occupied Palestine.

European Union Prefers Corporate Profits Over Global Health

February 20, 2022 Abdul Rahman, People's Dispatch. , , ,
As the summit between the African Union and European Union (EU-AU summit) came to a close on February 18, the EU’s dedication to ensuring equitable access to Covid-19 products remained murky. While Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, stated that the two unions had a very constructive discussion on the TRIPS waiver, the meeting resulted in little more than a tepid statement and a new deadline for reaching an agreement on intellectual property rights during the pandemic. Von der Leyen also stated, “We share the same goal. We have different ways to reach that goal.” In reality, it would seem the AU and the EU have very different goals. While delegates from different African countries made a point of supporting a suspension of intellectual property rights on key Covid-19 products, EU politicians continue to focus their energies on postponing the TRIPS waiver as much as possible and protecting the profits of pharmaceutical companies based in the Global North.

Pipeline Politics And The Ukraine crisis

February 15, 2022 John Foster, Canadian Dimension. , , ,
Amid escalating tensions between the United States, NATO and Russia, all eyes are on Ukraine. Canada’s Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland describes it as “a struggle between democracy and authoritarianism.” But Nord Stream 2, a pipeline built to bring Russian gas under the Baltic Sea directly to Germany, is an integral part of the story. On January 27, US Under Secretary for Political Affairs, Victoria Nuland, asserted, “If Russia invades Ukraine one way or another … we will work with Germany to ensure it [the pipeline] does not move forward.” Delayed by US threats and sanctions, Nord Stream 2 highlights why countries are challenging the leadership of the Biden administration. Since the 1960s when Europe first began importing Russian gas, Washington perceived Russian energy as a threat to US leadership and Europe’s energy security.

Nicaragua In The Multipolar World

January 14, 2022 Margaret Kimberley, Black Agenda Report. , , ,
The United States and the European Union announced new sanctions on the day that Daniel Ortega was inaugurated as president of Nicaragua. The move was not surprising, given that the United States congress passed the RENACER Act one week before elections which were held on November 7. The people of Nicaragua have acted in defiance of the United States ever since the 1979 revolution. First, Ronald Reagan used reactionary forces, the Contras, as proxies in an attempt to destroy the new government. The Reagan administration mined Nicaragua’s harbors and fomented a war which cost an estimated 30,000 lives. The United States still owes Nicaragua $17 billion in compensation for the damage it created decades ago.

Two Thirds Of Online Posts From Fossil Fuel Companies ‘Greenwashing’

October 5, 2021 Rachel Sherrington, DeSmog Blog. , , ,
One expert called it a “systematic deceptive marketing campaign designed to interfere with the solution that is necessary to respond to the climate emergency: stopping fossil fuel production.” Nearly two thirds of social media posts put out by six major European fossil fuel and energy companies since the end of 2019 present a “green” image of the company, despite the majority of their business activity remaining in fossil fuels, reveals new analysis by DeSmog. The findings add to campaigner concerns that fossil fuel companies are promoting a misleading image of their business models as the need to decarbonize the economy becomes increasingly urgent. DeSmog’s investigation shows a disproportionate focus on green or environmental efforts by the companies — including highlighting their net zero targets — compared to the share of their business devoted to clean energy.

EU Mission Evaluates Venezuela Electoral Team

July 14, 2021 Paul Dobson, Venezuelanalysis. , , ,
The European Union (EU) has sent an “exploratory mission” to Venezuela to assess social and political conditions in the country. The 15-day mission is similarly charged with judging electoral guarantees and the “utility, convenience and viability” of adding an EU delegation to the typically ample electoral observer teams for the November 21 “mega-elections,” in which more than 100 political parties are vying to elect over 3000 public regional and local officials. The delegation is considered a further step in smoothing relations between the Caribbean country and the European bloc, with EU Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell highlighting a “possible political opening in Venezuela.”

Hijacking The Recovery Through Hydrogen

July 9, 2021 Fossil Free Politics. , , ,
EU Covid-19 recovery funds are supposed to drive the ‘green transition’ and move us beyond fossil fuels – but industry lobbying at both national and EU level has ensured oil and gas firms and utilities remain some of the biggest beneficiaries in Italy, the Spanish State, Portugal and France. The European Commission has said it wanted to avoid giving billions in bailouts to the fossil fuel industry. Despite sending mixed signals, to its credit, in these four cases it has tried to exclude direct financing for fossil fuel projects, including controversial carbon capture and storage (CCS). However, the hugely outsized role for hydrogen and renewable gases in national recovery plans has thrown a lifeline to the fossil fuel firms involved, as well as their main product: fossil gas.

It Is Time To End Illegal Pushbacks And Abolish Frontex

June 22, 2021 Mark Akkerman, ROAR Magazine. , , ,
The European Union’s border regime has been rapidly expanding in the past years, especially since the so-called “refugee crisis” of 2015, which put migration at the top of the European political agenda. It seems that there has not been much opposition against this expansion, which ranges from border militarization and the beefing up of the budget and mandate of EU border agency Frontex, to the extensive use of biometric databases, surveillance technologies and the increasing cooperation with non-EU-countries to stop migrants on their way to Europe. Nonetheless, many activists have campaigned tirelessly against the EU border policies for years, while others have done all they can to rescue and support migrants.

The ‘Zapatista Invasion’ Has Begun!

May 13, 2021 Jérôme Baschet, ROAR Magazine. , , ,
It was a genuine surprise when the Zapatistas published their communiqué “A Mountain on the High Seas” on October 5, 2020, announcing a tour of the EZLN (Ejército Zapatista de Liberación Nacional) across five continents, starting with Europe. Even though the Zapatistas have not shied away from organizing initiatives in Chiapas and across Mexico — the March of the Color of the Earth just 20 years ago is a case in point — it is basically the first time since 1994 that they are leaving the borders of their homeland behind. Then, on January 1 of this year, they published a Declaration for Life, co-signed with hundreds of individuals, collectives and organizations, outlining the objective of this voyage: making a contribution to the effort for anti-capitalist struggles — which are inseparable from the struggles for life — to converge in full consciousness of their differences and unhampered by homogenizing or hegemonizing forces.

Protecting The OPCW Against Transparency

April 25, 2021 Vanessa Beeley, The Wall Will Fall. , , ,
On the 15th April 2021 an extraordinary event took place in the European Parliament, in Brussels. An Ireland South MEP, Mick Wallace, expressed concerns over the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) handling of an alleged chemical attack in Douma, Eastern Damascus, Syria, on the 7th April 2018, which was immediately blamed on the Syrian government prior to the OPCW investigative team securing access to the site of the reported attack.  A “chemical attack” that led to the US, UK and French bombing of Damascus and Homs on the 14th April 2018, targeting purported “chemical weapon” research centers, a claim denied by Syrian officials and employees at the centers. 

Europe: A Backlash Is Growing Over Incinerating Garbage

April 5, 2021 Beth Gardiner, Yale 360. , , ,
For decades, Europe has poured millions of tons of its trash into incinerators each year, often under the green-sounding label “waste to energy.” Now, concerns about incineration’s outsized carbon footprint and fears it may undermine recycling are prompting European Union officials to ease their long-standing embrace of a technology that once seemed like an appealing way to make waste disappear. The EU is in the process of cutting off funding for new incinerators, but there’s little sign most existing ones —currently consuming 27 percent of the bloc’s municipal waste — will close any time soon. And, even without EU financial support, new plants are in the works, many in southern and eastern European countries that have historically incinerated less than long-standing waste-to-energy proponents such as Germany, the Netherlands, and the Scandinavian nations.

ALBA Countries Reject Interventionist EU Agenda In Venezuela

February 24, 2021 Telesur English. , , ,
The countries of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America-People's Trade Treaty (ALBA-TCP) have "energetically" rejected the latest sanctions approved by the European Union (EU) against 19 representatives of the different powers of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in a joint communiquè. "These actions constitute a clear violation of international law and represent an unacceptable interventionist application that in no way contributes to the development of the Venezuelan people," the text underlines. In this sense, the South American alliance has ratified its "solidarity" and support to the Venezuelan government and people and demanded the international community to reject the Brussels measures and "demonstrate in defense of the principles of respect for the sovereignty, self-determination, and independence of peoples."

The EU Avoids Treating Guaido As ‘President’ Of Venezuela

January 7, 2021 Telesur English. , , ,
The European Union avoided referring to the opposition politician Juan Guaido as Venezuela's "acting president" once the mandate of the National Assembly over which he presided expired on Tuesday. "Venezuela urgently needs a political solution to end the current impasse through an inclusive process of dialogue and negotiation leading to credible, inclusive, and democratic processes," said Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. He added that the EU will maintain its engagement with all Venezuelan political and social actors, including  "Juan Guaido and other representatives of the outgoing National Assembly elected in 2015."

Israel’s Genocide In Gaza Goes Uninterrupted

December 23, 2020 Miko Peled, Mintpress News. , , ,
A report published by the United Nations in 2018 stated that by the year 2020 the Gaza Strip would be uninhabitable. It said specifically that, “the United Nations has stated that Gaza may well be unlivable by 2020.” The report emphasized also that “Michael Lynk, Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in the Palestinian Territories Occupied Since 1967, drew attention to Israel’s persistent non-cooperation with the Special Rapporteur’s mandate. As with his two predecessors, Israel has not granted him entry to visit the country, nor the Occupied Palestinian territory.” Anyone who thinks that the Gaza Strip was liveable prior to 2020 is out of their mind.
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