How Denmark Can Hit Back Against Trump on Greenland

Energy News BeatDenmark

The White House is threatening a close ally with a trade war or worse—but Copenhagen has leverage that could inflict instant pain on the U.S. economy.

During his first term as the U.S. president, Donald Trump occasionally floated the idea of buying Greenland, but few took it seriously. Now Trump is repeating the calls, backed with threats against Denmark, and nobody is chuckling anymore.

The Nordic nation is facing the prospect of a close ally taking Danish territory by force. But despite only having a small army and navy, Denmark has no shortage of economic leverage with which it can try to reason with—or, if necessary, pressure—the U.S. president.

Indeed, there are several Danish multinational companies without whose products and services Americans would feel immediate pain.


Over the weekend, the Financial Times disclosed details about a Jan. 15 call between Trump and Denmark’s prime minister, Mette Frederiksen.

According to the Financial Times, it was a fiery 45-minute conversation in which Trump—who hadn’t yet been inaugurated—was “aggressive and confrontational.” The crux was Fredriksen’s refusal to sell the Arctic island of Greenland to the United States.

Denmark is a committed and well-liked member of NATO, but it can’t change the fact that it’s a small country with a population just shy of 6 million and armed forces of some 20,000 active personnel.

If Trump is serious about acquiring Greenland, Denmark would not be able to mount much of a fight against its NATO ally even if it wanted to—though Washington’s meager aging fleet of icebreakers would make any naval operations in the polar north a challenge. (The will of the Greenlanders appears to be a secondary consideration in Washington.)

But Denmark is not powerless in the matter. On the contrary, it has several trump cards—so to speak—up its sleeve. For starters, the Scandinavian country is home to Maersk, the world’s second-largest container-shipping company by cargo capacity. Most of the world’s nonliquid cargo is transported in containers, and in 2023, the Danish shipping line transported some 24 million worth of them on its 672 ships. Maersk is so large that the firm’s ships account for an estimated 14.3 percent of the global container ship fleet.

In the United States, Maersk delivers goods to and from Baltimore, Charleston, Houston, Jacksonville, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Miami, Mobile, New Orleans, New York, Newark, Norfolk, North Charleston, Oakland, Philadelphia, Port Everglades, Port Hueneme, Savannah, Seattle, Tacoma, Tampa, and Wilmington.

On Jan. 1, for example, the MSC Tomoko arrived in Houston, then traveled to New Orleans and from there to Freeport in the Bahamas. The following day, the MSC Ensenada arrived in Houston, traveling on from there with cargo bound for Colombia and Brazil, according to Maersk’s website, where anyone can track its ships’ calls.

And right now, shipping lines are at—or near—full capacity. If any shipping line were to suddenly stop shipping to or from the United States, other carriers would only be able to fill a tiny share of that gap. If the Danish government banned Maersk from sailing to U.S. ports, then American businesses and consumers would instantaneously feel the pain.

And speaking of pain, millions of Americans would feel it in their waistlines if Frederiksen banned health care company Novo Nordisk from exporting to the United States.

The Danish pharma giant is, after all, the maker of semaglutide—the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy, the weight-loss drugs that have revolutionized anti-obesity and diabetes treatment in the United States. The company produces semaglutide in Denmark and, despite many attempts by copycats and others, genuine Ozempic can’t yet be created from scratch in the United States.

Between 2021 and 2023, the number of Ozempic prescriptions in the United States jumped by nearly 400 percent, an academic study shows. The total number of prescriptions for drugs containing semaglutide reached 2.6 million by December 2023. In May 2023, a survey by Barclays Research estimated that more than half a million Americans were taking Wegovy.

So stratospheric has Ozempic’s rise been in the United States that in 2023, Germany warned that German supplies of the drug intended for patients with diabetes—the disease that the drug was initially developed to treat—were being shipped to weight-loss customers in the United States.

Like Maersk, Novo Nordisk makes large sums of money in America. The company’s shares surged by more than 7 percent last week on news of positive trials for its new obesity drug amycretin. The demand for Ozempic is so strong that Novo Nordisk has invested $4.1 billion in a facility in North Carolina that will make the drug’s key ingredient.

But if the Danish government were to conclude that the country’s security is imperiled by Trump’s threats, it could order Novo Nordisk to cease doing business in the United States. Many Americans would immediately notice the company’s absence.

If Denmark decided to hit back, U.S. consumers might suddenly also notice the absence of luxury Danish furniture and their kids might mourn the loss of the latest Legos. Today, Lego sets are made in Mexico (and Denmark, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and China), though the Danish toy company is building a plant in Virginia that will manufacture for the U.S. market. It is expected to employ more than 1,700 people.

Lego’s U.S. facility is, in fact, a form of friendshoring of the very kind Trump has been calling for. (“Come make your product in America, and we will give you among the lowest taxes of any nation on Earth,” he told global leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos last week.) But he won’t be able to count on Danish investment if friends are treated like enemies.

A Danish blockade would be a dramatic step, and it’s one that Frederiksen would be reluctant to take. But she should remember that Trump’s trademark is issuing threats and speak back to him in a language that he understands.


Denmark’s prime minister should remind her American counterpart that her country has options that could damage the U.S. economy—and doing so might just level the playing field and lower the temperature, setting the stage for a more serious negotiation around U.S. interests in Greenland.

That’s what Chrystia Freeland—until recently Canada’s deputy prime minister, now running to succeed outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau—did after several Trump overtures suggesting a U.S. takeover of her own country.

“The threats won’t work. We will not escalate, but we will not back down. If you hit us, we will hit back—and our blows will be precisely targeted,” she wrote in a Washington Post op-ed the day before Trump’s inauguration. “We are smaller than you, to be sure, but the stakes for us are immeasurably higher. Do not doubt our resolve.”

Ordinary Americans may not care much about Denmark, but the Scandinavian nation has given them much to enjoy in life. They would certainly hate to lose it.

Source: Foreignpolicy.com

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Ukraine’s intel service denies chief’s alleged collapse warning

Energy News BeatUkraine

Kirill Budanov reportedly warned the country could cease to exist if it does not agree to peace talks with Russia

Ukraine’s intel service denies chief’s alleged collapse warning

Ukraine’s Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense (HUR) has sought to dismiss reports claiming its chief, Kirill Budanov, warned that the country’s survival could be at risk if Kiev doesn’t agree to peace talks with Moscow.

The alleged comments were reported on Monday by the local outlet Strana, which cited sources claiming that Budanov had made the remarks during a closed-door parliamentary session. One of the people reportedly present at the meeting told the outlet that top military officials, including officers from the General Staff, delivered sensitive briefings.

Budanov was quoted as allegedly warning lawmakers in Kiev that “if there are no serious negotiations by summer, very dangerous processes could begin for the very existence of Ukraine.”

In response, the HUR issued a statement on Telegram on Monday rejecting the quote as false and urging media outlets to refrain from spreading “rumors, unverified, and officially unconfirmed information,” especially regarding critical national security matters.

The intelligence agency emphasized that the dissemination of any reports allegedly discussed at classified official meetings involving the military and political leadership “undermines state security and is exploited by the enemy for its interests.”

Separately, Andrey Kovalenko, head of the National Security and Defense Council’s Center for Countering Disinformation, condemned the “leak” and accused a member of parliament of distorting Budanov’s words for media coverage.

“This is some kind of total irresponsibility,” he stated on Telegram, calling on lawmakers to “finally use your brain.”

The alleged warning by Budanov comes as Kiev’s forces have been pushed back across the front line by Russian troops. Ukrainian officials and commanders have also voiced concerns about manpower shortages amid a fraught mobilization campaign, with recruitment officers often facing open resistance from reluctant draftees.

Earlier this week, Strana reported that top Ukrainian officials were reviewing a plan by US President Donald Trump’s team to end the conflict within 100 days. While the roadmap remains unconfirmed, its key points reportedly include direct talks between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin to pave the way for a ceasefire along the front lines by April 20 and a peace agreement by early May.

Vladimir Zelensky’s Chief of Staff Andrey Yermak has dismissed the supposedly leaked plan as “fake,” posting on X on Sunday that “no ‘100-day peace plan’ as reported by the media exists in reality.”

Moscow has repeatedly stated it is willing to engage in talks with both the US and Ukraine but has accused the Kiev of refusing to resume negotiations.

Putin said last week that negotiations with Ukraine are currently impossible because of Zelensky’s prohibition on talks with Russia. He suggested that Kiev’s Western backers should push for the ban to be lifted.

Source: Rt.com

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Do not use terms like ‘black sheep’ and ‘blacklist’ – guide for UK police

Energy News BeatUK police

Officers have been discouraged from using certain phrases to avoid racial insensitivity

Do not use terms like ‘black sheep’ and ‘blacklist’ – guide for UK police

British police officers have been told to avoid using phrases such as “black sheep” and “blacklisted” due to concerns about potential racial insensitivity. The recommendations are part of a nine-page diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) guide that was previously distributed to several police forces and reported by the British media over the weekend.

Critics have called the initiative an example of excessive woke culture infiltrating public institutions.

The document, which was sent to the Bedfordshire Police, Hertfordshire Constabulary, and Cambridgeshire Constabulary, suggests that terms such as “black sheep,” and “blacklist” may be offensive for using the word “black” in a negative way. Other recommendations include replacing “pregnant woman” with “pregnant person” to be more inclusive of transgender and non-binary individuals.

The guide advises against the term “faith,” which it describes as “Christian-centric,” and suggests using more neutral terms to acknowledge diverse belief systems. Additionally, it outlines a broader understanding of gender, describing it as a “social construct” that encompasses a wider range of identities beyond the male-female binary.

The instruction also discourages assumptions about older individuals being “grumpy” or associating menopausal symptoms with women in their 50s. The term “mature adult” is also flagged for potentially suggesting that younger people are immature.

A spokesperson for the three police forces stated that “our forces serve diverse communities, and we are pleased to have an inclusive, culturally intelligent workforce, and invest in training to develop this ethos across our workforce.” The representative emphasized that the guidance is intended to help officers identify differences within communities and treat individuals with respect.

Some opponents argue that focusing on language trivializes more pressing issues. “Policing should be about tackling crime and keeping people safe, not enforcing language codes that make no tangible difference to community relations,” a former officer told The Telegraph.

Festus Akinbusoye, the UK’s first black police and crime commissioner and a former PCC for Bedfordshire Constabulary, described the guidance as “utterly mad.” He raised questions about its consistency, asking why terms like “whitewashing” were not included if phrases such as “blacklisted” were deemed problematic. “Was this to have been brought to my attention while serving as Police and Crime Commissioner, I would have asked questions as to the necessity and limited inclusivity of this inclusion document,” Akinbusoye added.

“I think it is utter madness that in all the years we have seen the harms that this woke ideology has done, that this is being sent to police officers,” James Esses, a campaigner and psychotherapist, said condemning the recommendations. He argued that terms like “black sheep” and “blacklisted” have no racist origins but are historically associated with darkness or death.

In 2024, US intelligence agencies, including the CIA, reportedly recommended avoiding the term “blacklisted” for similar reasons.

In 2022, the UK police were ordered to use “gender-neutral” forms of address rather than calling people ‘sir’ or ‘ma’am’, according to training materials distributed to officers seen by the Daily Mail on Sunday. The upper chamber of Parliament was also warned about using supposedly offensive terms such as ‘man-made’, ‘the common man’, and ‘manpower’, according to an ‘Inclusive Language Guide’ obtained by the Daily Mail on Sunday.

Source: Rt.com

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Will Trump Follow Through on Gaza?

Energy News BeatTrump

Only sustained U.S. pressure on Israel and Hamas will end the war.

Implementation of week two of the Israel-Hamas cease-fire deal has gone according to plan, more or less. But anyone who seriously believes that there’s smooth sailing ahead for the three-phased accord should lay down and wait quietly until the feeling passes.

This isn’t an agreement between the United States and Switzerland. It’s the grudging result of 15 months of bitter, bloody conflict between two combatants seemingly pledged to the other’s destruction. One of those parties—Hamas—engaged in the willful and indiscriminate killing of civilians; serial sexual violence; the taking of hostages; and is designated by the agreement’s principal mediator as a foreign terror organization. The other—Israel, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose overriding goal is to stay in power—would prefer the war in Gaza continue, and thus is in no hurry to reach the agreement’s second stage, which imagines the end of the war and the withdrawal of Israeli forces.

The implementation process is literally week by week, and much might disrupt it. That said, perhaps the most likely outcome will be the successful completion of the first phase, with its exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners. The agreement compels both parties to respect the cease-fire so long as negotiations on the second phase continue. And few will be surprised if both sides drag these on well beyond the initial six weeks designated for the first phase. Indeed, the negotiators’ logic is that after six weeks of quiet, both sides, perhaps under public pressure, will find it much harder to return to battle. Hovering over this unwieldy enterprise is newly minted U.S. President Donald Trump who, having claimed credit for the accord’s success, now owns it. It remains to be seen just how much currency he’s prepared to spend to keep it alive and how concerned he is about the real possibility that his first preinaugural foreign-policy success might crater on his watch.

Phased deals are always inherently risky, especially between two parties who view their conflict in near existential terms. It would have seemed much simpler to implement an all-for-all negotiation, speeding up the timeline with Israel getting all the hostages back in exchange for the release of thousands of Palestinian prisoners and the end of the war in Gaza. But, then again, this is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, where anything remotely resembling comprehensive trade-offs goes beyond what either party is prepared to concede. This is especially true on the Israeli side, where domestic politics dominates decision-making and produces risk-aversion, not risk-readiness, particularly when it concerns territory.

The prime example of a phased, conditions-based performance agreement was the Oslo Accords. And those failed, largely because there was no clear-cut end state, and, instead of generating trust and confidence, the gradualist approach created resentment and lack of trust. And if Oslo—which was a genuine breakthrough, complete with signing ceremonies, talk of actual peace, and real respect (even affection) between the negotiators—still failed, one can imagine the challenges to an Israeli-Hamas accord.

The thornier questions are saved for the second phase, which, at its core, will require a vision for the end of the war and Gaza’s future. At present, the two sides have irreconcilable visions for Gaza’s future, with Hamas determined to stay in power and Israel determined to prevent that outcome. Phase two envisions Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, which is difficult to imagine without a robust security architecture and guarantees—which Hamas will work hard to reject. Negotiations in the second phase will also require addressing questions of a political day after in Gaza, which will almost certainly involve some role for the Palestinian Authority (PA), something Netanyahu has adamantly opposed. Phase two depends on agreement from both sides over Gaza’s future: who is in charge politically, what the security architecture looks like, and monitoring of the enclave. At present, these questions seem insurmountable.

Perhaps a different Israeli prime minister—one who is free from the all-consuming need to stay in power and without the threat of being on trial for bribery, fraud, and breach of trust—might have been able to take on an all-for-all approach. But the political laws of gravity that have governed Israel’s negotiating style—need for performance-based implementation, fundamental mistrust of Hamas, and concerns over withdrawal from Gaza that could bring Hamas’s resurgence—would have been more likely pushed in the direction of a phased agreement.

The challenge of phasing is made worse by the Hamas factor, which has shaped Israel’s view of the conflict and now looms over the agreement’s implementation. The Israel-Hamas agreement clearly reflects the hollowness of Netanyahu’s claim of total victory over the group. Hamas has clearly been dealt a mighty blow. Its senior leadership has been killed; its capacity as an organized military force capable of another attack on the level of Oct. 7, 2023, destroyed; its allies (save the Houthis), Hezbollah and Iran, severely weakened. It seems unlikely, even if it wanted to (and it may not), that Hamas can return to governing Gaza as it did between 2007 and 2023. Its popularity has declined among Palestinians in Gaza who wonder what Oct. 7 achieved, other than death and destruction, as well as what Hamas will be able to do to alleviate their suffering and rebuild their homes and lives. And yet, Hamas survives. The cease-fire has enabled it to emerge above ground, bold and brazen, sending its police to maintain order, staffing its ministries, paying salaries, restoring services, and distributing humanitarian assistance. Indeed, recent reporting suggests that, however weakened, Hamas remains “deeply entrenched,” and its hold on power will create challenges for any permanent cease-fire.

At a minimum, should the cease-fire collapse, Hamas will remain an insurgency capable of inflicting casualties on returning Israeli forces. Indeed, former U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said during a recent speech that Hamas has already recruited nearly as many fighters as Israel has taken off the battlefield. And if the cease-fire holds, Hamas plans to wield significant influence in Gaza’s proverbial day after. Given the dysfunction of the Palestinian national movement; the weakness of the corrupt, nepotistic, and authoritarian Mahmoud Abbas-led PA; and the Israeli government’s seeming refusal to engage in post-war planning that might actually empower a new legitimate Palestinian governing structure, Hamas will likely rule by default.

With both Israel and the PA blocking serious post-war planning for Gaza, the Israel-Hamas agreement might actually empower Hamas, facilitating the release of almost 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and ensuring a surge of humanitarian assistance for the first time in 15 months at pre-war levels. Hamas’s visibility on the streets of Gaza will also continue to harden Israeli government positions on getting to a second phase. As Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar asserted last week, the current deal is only for a temporary cease-fire; any permanent end to the war would depend on eliminating any Hamas role and influence in Gaza.

Henry Kissinger once quipped that Israel had no foreign policy, just domestic politics. An exaggeration to be sure, but when applied to the way Netanyahu has handled the post Oct. 7 Israel-Hamas conflict, there is no better analysis. All leaders of democratic societies keep an eye on the rear-view mirror, looking to see where their domestic supporters and opponents are trending. But Netanyahu’s circumstances are unique. On trial for bribery, fraud, and breach of trust for four years running, his political career and potentially his physical freedom compel him to retain power and find some way to beat or undermine his indictment and trial. That means remaining in power, which in turn depends on the support of his right-wing coalition, including two extremist parties—one of which has already withdrawn from the government in protest over the cease-fire deal, and the other threatening to withdraw at the end of the first phase if Netanyahu doesn’t resume the war.

Netanyahu has bribed and pacified these ministers and other coalition members with various benefits: for the religious parties, subsidies for their religious seminaries and legislation to allow them to avoid military duty; and for former National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich settlements, land confiscation and policies that can lay the basis for annexation of the West Bank in everything but name. But, to be clear, like the radical Ben-Gvir and Smotrich, Netanyahu also doesn’t want the war to end completely either. The prime minister fears that if the shooting stops, the focus will turn to his role in the Oct. 7 catastrophe. Indeed, he has done everything in his power to block the formation of a state commission of inquiry and to undermine, if not dislodge, those intelligence and security officials who oppose his wartime policies. There is no obstacle on the Israeli side greater than Netanyahu’s obsession with staying in power and the necessity of catering to his extremist ministers. That dynamic almost certainly prevented a hostage and cease-fire deal from being signed months ago, has constrained the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Gaza, and prevented any serious discussion of post-conflict day-after arrangements in Gaza, especially with regard to a role for the PA. And it has led to a toughening of Israeli policy toward Palestinians on the West Bank and the enabling of settler violence and intimidation there.

Indeed, the recent large-scale operation in Jenin, which might expand to a larger area of the northern West Bank, is partly related to the need to placate members of Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition, who opposed the hostage deal but have declared Trump’s electoral victory as an opportunity to “apply Israeli sovereignty” in the West Bank. A serious explosion in the West Bank has the potential to derail the deal from both sides, creating yet another obstacle to phase two of the deal. As the deal’s implementation moves forward, Israeli politics— particularly pressure from the right to resume the war—will increase. And it is difficult to see how Israel will move from phase one to two with this government. The opposition has offered Netanyahu a safety net to implement the full deal should his coalition break. But this would be a risky move for a prime minister who would then be dependent on adversaries whom he knows would love to see his back.

By all accounts, there’s little doubt that Trump and his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff played important roles in pressuring both Hamas and Netanyahu, particularly the latter, to accept the agreement. Inauguration Day in the United States and the looming transition from a presidential administration that had no leverage to an incoming one that held important cards, clearly had an impact on Netanyahu, who seemed willing to give Trump a preinaugural win. Whether and how Trump may have sweetened the plot for Netanyahu is unclear. There’s reportedly a letter that contains U.S. assurances that if Hamas fails to hold up its end of the deal, Israel is free to resume the war. In any case, Trump’s unpredictability and clear messaging that he wanted the deal done before he assumed office signaled to Netanyahu that Trump didn’t want Israel to become a problem this early in his second term. And Netanyahu, who’s not quite sure where he stands with Trump and whether he can say no to him the way he rebuffed former U.S. President Joe Biden for months without serious cost, got the message.

Going forward, Trump’s relationship to the agreement has much to do with his broader goals in the region. Much has been made of his interest in broadening the Abraham Accords to include Israeli-Saudi normalization, and even more of the fact that he wants a Nobel Peace Prize. If he’s serious about an Israeli-Saudi deal, all roads will almost certainly lead back to Gaza and well beyond, as the Saudis press Trump and Netanyahu for a commitment to a political horizon involving some sort of two-state solution. This, of course, would set up the possibility of a clash with Netanyahu if the Saudis and Trump demand more of him on the Palestinian issue than his politics will allow.

But that’s a matter for another day. The question now is how much does Trump care about the cease-fire deal and what is he prepared to do to help implement it. Witkoff has been quite expansive in asserting an active U.S. role going forward and is planning a trip to Gaza and the region. Trump, on the other hand, has been decidedly more risk-averse. When asked about implementation recently, Trump responded, “It’s not our war. It’s their war. I am not confident.” Trump can always walk away and blame the collapse on Hamas, and, if necessary, on Israel. And let’s be crystal clear: Trump has a huge agenda, and it’s doubtful that this issue is at the top of his list. Nonetheless, like it or not, the Israel-Hamas deal may well be Trump’s first foreign-policy test. And as a self-proclaimed peacemaker and the world’s greatest negotiator, he doesn’t like to fail.

Can he save the deal if it’s on the cusp of cratering? Can he pressure Netanyahu and Hamas to bend to his will? It’s doubtful that Trump, who fashions himself as the most pro-Israeli president in history, would draw on the levers Biden refused to use in pressuring Netanyahu: restricting U.S. military assistance, criticizing Israel in international fora, or unilaterally recognizing Palestinian statehood. And it may well be that Trump’s bluster is stronger than his bite. But Netanyahu is clearly on edge because of Trump’s unpredictability and clearly doesn’t want to put himself on Trump’s bad side. Unlike with Biden, Netanyahu knows there’s no Republican Party to which he can appeal. Trump is the party now. So a decision point may well be coming. Can Trump succeed in pushing Netanyahu to a second phase, or will he be dragged like Biden into the never-ending labyrinth of Israel-Hamas negotiations? In a matter of weeks, or perhaps sooner, we’re going to find out.

This post is part of FP’s ongoing coverage of the Trump transition. Follow along here.

Source: Foreignpolicy.com

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The Brief – Never again?

Energy News BeatEurope

 

On this 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz by Red Army troops, it’s worth a brief reality check on how the greatest atrocity in human history is seen in Europe today.

It’s a depressing exercise. Though there is no shortage of official remembrances across the continent, the degree to which everyday Europeans are prepared to reflect on the Shoah and confront the persistent scourge of antisemitism in our societies is clearly on the wane – even in Germany.

Nearly 40% of Germans between the ages of 18 and 29 are unable to provide accurate information about what transpired during the Nazi period, according to a study published last week by the Jewish Claims Conference. An astounding 10% of German adults had not heard or were unsure if they’d ever heard of the Holocaust.

In much of the rest of Europe, the picture is no better.

“Across countries surveyed, large swathes of the population do not know that 6 million Jews were killed during the Holocaust, and notable subsets of the populations believe 2 million or fewer Jews were killed,” the study found.

There’s no question that much of this ignorance resides in Muslim migrant communities, where hatred of Jews is as much a staple of daily life as baklava.

But we all know that’s not the whole picture.

Walk past Berlin’s gigantic Holocaust memorial on any given day and you’ll find tourists from all over Europe (and the rest of the world) taking selfies in one of the rows of black slabs, as if they were visiting Euro Disney.

Against this backdrop, it’s unsurprising that rising numbers of Europeans have no qualms about voting for (or collaborating with) openly racist parties. Or that the president of Ireland – a country deemed to be so hostile to Jews that Israel shuttered its embassy there – thinks its perfectly fine to raise Gaza during a ceremony to observe the Holocaust.

The sad reality is that at a time when the last living survivors of the Shoah are gradually dying out, much of Europe isn’t just ignorant about what happened – they don’t even really care.


Middle East – EU foreign ministers put their political stamp on the reactivation of EU-supervised checks at the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt on Monday, clearing the way for an early February start.

Energy Norwegian politicians are resisting attempts to implement critical EU energy laws, which would integrate the country more tightly into European power markets.

Agrifood – The European People’s Party (EPP) is calling on the European Parliament to give political impetus to new EU rules that could speed up approval of sustainable alternatives to traditional chemical pesticides.

Syria – EU foreign ministers on Monday agreed in principle to begin gradually easing sanctions on Syria to support economic recovery after the ouster of Bashar al-Assad.

Across Europe

Hungary – Hungary removed its veto on the EU’s six-month extension of Russia sanctions on Monday, but it may not be its last standoff.

France – The President of France’s Rassemblement National, Jordan Bardella, will send a letter to the President of the European People’s Party, Manfred Weber, asking to join forces to end the Green Deal.

Ireland – Ireland’s antisemitism controversy flared up again on Sunday after President Michael D. Higgins raised Gaza during a speech to mark Holocaust Memorial Day, sparking protests.

Source: Euractiv.com

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EU agrees to gradually ease Syria sanctions

Energy News BeatSyria

 

EU foreign ministers on Monday agreed in principle to begin gradually easing sanctions on Syria to support economic recovery after the ouster of Bashar al-Assad.

EU member states had begun reassessing their sanctions regime as Syria’s new leadership, the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), lobbied to have them lifted to improve the war-torn country’s economic situation.

Monday’s ‘roadmap’, which will need to be further developed in the coming weeks, includes the lifting of sanctions on the energy and transport sectors and key financial institutions.

“While we aim to move fast, the lifting of sanctions can be reversed if wrong steps are taken,” the EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, said after the decision.

It was not immediately clear following Kallas’s comments, however, in which order the measures would be lifted.

Some member states had been hesitant to move forward with lifting sanctions on financial institutions as the initial step, EU diplomats said.

At the same time, many EU countries have been in favour of adopting a gradual and reversible approach to keep leverage on Damascus’ new leaders, making any easing conditional on how the new Syrian government will rule.

Syria has been subject to sweeping EU sanctions following the outbreak of civil war in 2011, which targeted both individuals and economic sectors. Measures included a ban on Syrian oil exports and restrictions on access to global financial channels.

The country’s new de facto leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, and his HTS group will remain under EU sanctions, and there are so far no plans to lift them, EU diplomats said.

“What we are not relieving, of course, is anything related to arms, and everything that we are still concerned about,” Kallas said.

[OM]

Source: Euractiv.com

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Irish president’s Holocaust memorial speech reignites antisemitism row

Energy News BeatHolocaust

 

Ireland’s antisemitism controversy flared up again on Sunday after President Michael D. Higgins raised Gaza during a speech to mark Holocaust Memorial Day, sparking protests.

Security staff forcibly removed at least one woman who objected to the president’s remarks. Others who turned their backs on Higgins were asked to leave, The Irish Times reported.

The latest row could hardly come at a worse time for the Irish government. Last month, Israel said it would close its Dublin embassy, accusing Ireland of “antisemitic rhetoric” and “double standards” over its over its attitude to the world’s only Jewish state.

Ireland has endorsed South Africa’s ongoing International Court of Justice case accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza, and its parliament passed a resolution making the same allegation in November.

The accusation of genocide – a term coined to describe Nazi Germany’s attempt to exterminate European Jews – is incendiary for many Jewish people. The American Jewish Committee, among others, says the allegation distorts the word’s meaning, and points to Israeli efforts to limit civilian harm as evidence that it’s not true.

This year’s Holocaust Memorial Day, on Monday, is the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp.

‘The rubble in Gaza’

Higgins did not repeat the accusation on Sunday. But with tension already high, raising the Gaza war in a speech commemorating the Holocaust, while standing before a giant screen displaying an image of Auschwitz, was bound to hit a nerve.

All the more so, given that Irish presidents have traditionally kept their political opinions to themselves.

The president said he hoped Israelis mourning their loved ones, those waiting for Hamas to release hostages, “or the thousands searching for relatives in the rubble in Gaza will welcome the long-overdue ceasefire.”

In many settings, acknowledging both Israeli and Palestinian suffering would be uncontroversial.

But doing so at a Holocaust memorial event left the impression of linking the war in Gaza to the worst crime in history – one that drove many of the European Jews who survived to seek refuge in Israel.

Prior doubts

There were already doubts about Higgins’s appearance at the event before he spoke. Several representatives of Ireland’s Jewish community asked him not to give the speech because of his past comments about Israel, according to The Irish Times.

In December, Higgins called Israel’s charge that Ireland is antisemitic “gross defamation and slander.”

Nevertheless, the Dublin-based Israeli academic whom security staff threw out told The Irish Times she came prepared to give Higgins the benefit of the doubt, and only turned her back after he mentioned Gaza.

“The beginning of the speech was lovely,” Lior Tibet told the paper. “That’s why we didn’t get up at that point. We are all great supporters of human rights. We have problems with what Israel is doing,”

At an EU foreign affairs meeting in Brussels on Monday, Simon Harris – who is both Ireland’s foreign minister and its deputy prime minister – said the country would increase its funding of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation, which preserves the memorial at the former death camp.

Harris didn’t say whether the decision was linked to the furore in Dublin on Sunday. But he did say Higgins was right to mention the situation in the Middle East.

“I am conscious, though, that this is a a very, very sensitive time,” Harris added.

Ireland formed a new government on Thursday led by the same two centre-right partners – Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael – that have been in coalition together since 2020.

[MK]

Source: Euractiv.com

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Russia says no contact yet with Trump’s team

Energy News BeatRussia

A phone call between the Russian and US leaders hasn’t been planned yet, according to Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov

Russia says no contact yet with Trump’s team

Moscow is open to dialogue with the new US administration but no contact has been established yet, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov has stated.

Speaking to journalists on Monday, Ryabkov said that a phone call between the two countries’ presidents is not being planned while there is no agreement or understanding on the matter. All contacts are currently being carried out at the embassy level, he noted.

US President Donald Trump, who took office last Monday, has said he is ready to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin as quickly as possible to negotiate an end to the Ukraine conflict. The Kremlin had previously stated that Moscow is ready to talk and is awaiting signals from the Trump administration.

“As the Russian President has repeatedly said, we are open to dialogue and contacts, conversations and meetings,” Ryabkov reiterated.

The diplomat was also asked by reporters about the possibility of a first face-to-face contact between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and new US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on the sidelines of the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in South Africa at the end of February.

“What will happen in the coming weeks is an open question, anything is possible,” the diplomat responded.

Trump has vowed to quickly negotiate a resolution to the conflict between Moscow and Kiev and has reportedly given his Ukraine envoy, Keith Kellogg, 100 days to hammer out such a settlement. On Wednesday, the US president threatened to impose new sanctions on Russia if the latter refuses to accept an unspecified “deal” to end the conflict but maintained that he is “not looking to hurt Russia.”

Earlier media reports have suggested that Trump’s team is eyeing a peace plan for Ukraine, which could include a ceasefire along the current front lines and the creation of an 800-mile demilitarized zone patrolled by European troops. Additionally, the roadmap would reportedly see Kiev agree to delay its aspirations for NATO membership for at least 20 years.

Russia has insisted that the hostilities will only end when Ukraine commits to permanent neutrality, demilitarization, and denazification, stressing that Kiev must recognize the territorial “realities on the ground.” Moscow has stated that it has always been open to talks with Ukraine, but that any deal must include “reliable, legally binding agreements eliminating the root causes of the conflict.”

Source: Rt.com

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Poland to question ex-justice minister over spyware

Energy News BeatPoland

Donald Tusk’s government has accused its predecessor of using Israel’s Pegasus program against political opponents

Poland to question ex-justice minister over spyware

A Warsaw court has ordered the arrest of former Polish Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro, unless he testifies before a parliamentary committee investigating the alleged use of Israeli-made spyware against the current ruling coalition.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s government has claimed that its predecessor used Pegasus, developed by Israel’s NSO Group, to spy on almost 600 people between 2017 and 2022, including political rivals and their campaign teams.

The Sejm’s (lower house of parliament) commission investigating the allegations has petitioned to have Ziobro arrested if he does not appear at the January 31 hearing. On Monday, the District Court in Warsaw approved the request.

“Even though I am abroad, I will come to Poland because I am not afraid of the officers,” Ziobro told Polsat News in response to the subpoena.

“I will not resist,” he added, clarifying a remark he made on Friday about having an arsenal of weapons and believing in self-defense.

Ziobro, a member of parliament from the opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party, has argued that the inquiry is illegal, citing a September 2024 ruling by Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal.

“There is no commission of inquiry into Pegasus, because the Constitutional Tribunal banned it,” MP Michal Wojcik of PiS said on Monday. “Despite this, a group of MPs are demanding that Ziobro be forcibly brought in. This is being endorsed by a judge who spoke on the merits of the case, but does not want to recuse herself. Sick!”

Krzysztof Brejza, a member of the European Parliament from Poland’s ruling Civic Platform coalition, countered that “the law applies to everyone,” even to Ziobro, claiming that the former justice minister was “mocking the law.”

Ziobro missed four summons by the committee before the Sejm voted to lift his parliamentary immunity last month. He then said he would testify voluntarily, following the arrest of the former head of the Internal Security Agency (AWB), Piotr Pogonowski.

PiS ruled Poland from 2015 to late 2023, when Tusk’s coalition took over. The new government has launched multiple inquiries into its predecessor’s alleged misdeeds. According to reports in the Polish media, PiS spent substantial sums to use spyware against political opponents, including the Civic Platform’s election campaign leader.

Source: Rt.com

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Freeport LNG resumes operations

Energy News BeatFreeport LNG

“Freeport LNG’s liquefaction production operations have safely resumed,” a spokeswoman for Freeport LNG told LNG Pime on Monday.

The spokeswoman did not provide further details.

She previously said that the plant’s production operations were taken offline due to intermittent Centerpoint Energy power interruptions beginning early Tuesday morning last week.

The spokeswoman said on Friday that liquefaction production operations will remain offline until power transmission conditions stabilize.

According to its AIS data provided by VesselsValue, the 173,400-cbm Flex Endeavour loaded a cargo at Freeport LNG and left the facility on Sunday.

The data also shows that the 173,400-cbm British Listener was located at the LNG export facility on Monday.

Freeport LNG, led by billionaire Michael Smith, recently shipped its 800th cargo since 2019.

The facility began export operations from the first train in 2019 and the second train in January 2020.

It launched commercial operations in May 2020 for the third train at its facility.

This event also marked the full commercial operation of Freeport LNG’s $13.5 billion, three-train facility.

The facility did not ship LNG cargoes from June 2022 to February 2023 due to an incident that occurred at the facility in early June 2022.

Of the 15 mtpa of Freeport LNG’s export capacity, 13.4 mtpa has been sold to Osaka Gas, Jera, BP, TotalEnergies, and SK E&S.

Source: Lngprime.com

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