BRUSSELS: Brussels on Wednesday warned Prime Minister Boris Johnson against the idea he could strike a new Brexit deal with EU leaders before Britain crashes out of the bloc next month.
EU officials met a British delegation for “technical talks,” but stressed once again that London has come up with nothing that might convince them to reopen the withdrawal agreement.
And a senior EU source poured cold water on the idea leaders might agree and approve a new accord at their summit on October 17 and 18, just days before Britain leaves on October 31.
“Leaders have never negotiated directly with the UK PM on Brexit. In line with the treaty, UK is not even present when the EU27 Leaders discuss Brexit,” the official told AFP after a meeting of EU ambassadors.
“The assumption that in a space of a few days a proposal could be made, negotiated, endorsed by the summit and ratified by EP (European Parliament) and UK Parliament by end-October seems like a rather heroic assumption, to say the least,” he said.
Amid political chaos in London, Johnson has suggested that he could seek a new or revised withdrawal agreement when he attends next month’s European Council summit in Brussels.
But the leaders have delegated the task of negotiating with London to the European Commission, which has appointed a Brexit task force under senior official Michel Barnier.
The European Commission, meanwhile, said that Britain had not come up with any alternative for the so-called “Irish backstop” that Johnson insists must be stripped from the accord.
One day after Johnson saw his governing majority wiped out in a parliamentary revolt against his Brexit strategy, the new premier faced the claim that he aims to crash out without a deal.
“These negotiations that he talks about are a sham. All he’s doing is running down the clock,” British opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn declared at a rowdy prime minister’s questions in the parliament.
Johnson insisted “we are making substantial progress and we will get the backstop out. We will get an agreement that I think this house can approve.”
But there was no sign of any such development in Brussels, where EU officials were focused on stepping up planning to mitigate the economic impact of the feared no-deal outcome.
“There may be twists and turns in political developments in London right now, but our position is stable,” spokeswoman Mina Andreeva said, as the EU posted its latest planning document.
This report described the backstop as “the only solution identified” that would protect the Northern Ireland peace agreement and the EU internal market without closing the Irish border.
Johnson insists the backstop, which keeps Britain in the EU customs union until another way is found to keep the Northern Irish border open, must go if the UK is to sign up to any new deal for an orderly divorce.
Nevertheless, London’s Brexit “sherpa,” senior diplomat David Frost, and a team of experts were in Brussels for talks with Barnier’s task force.
A British official source told AFP the talks would “run through a range of issues, including the removal of the backstop.”
“Discussions so far have shown that the two sides remain some distance apart on key issues but are willing to work hard to find a way through,” he said.
European officials are skeptical, both that Johnson is sincere and that he has a mandate to negotiate while preparing for a likely snap election in the wake of his calamitous parliamentary defeat.
A European diplomat said EU leaders would probably agree to a third delay to Brexit beyond October 31 if the British parliament forces Johnson to ask for one and “if it prevents a chaotic Brexit.”
But he stressed that the negotiations have been undermined by the crisis in Westminster.
“The fundamental problem is that the British government and parliament disagree on what they want,” the European official told AFP.
“It is possible elections could bring a clarification. Having a government in power which obviously does not have a majority in parliament is naturally a problem.”
The EU argues that any “alternative arrangements” promoted for the Irish border must protect the integrity of the single market, prevent a hard border and respect the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement.
Barnier briefed the European Commission on the talks on Wednesday before Frost’s arrival and met ambassadors from the 27 other EU member states later in the day.
Afterwards, he told AFP simply that: “The European Union has shown it is calm, composed and vigilant — just like its negotiator.”
EU pours cold water on Johnson’s Brexit strategy
EU pours cold water on Johnson’s Brexit strategy
- Amid political chaos in London, Johnson has suggested that he could seek a new or revised withdrawal agreement
- EU officials are stepping up planning to mitigate the economic impact of the feared no-deal outcome
At APEC, China’s Xi warns of growing ‘unilateralism’
Xi was in Lima for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, and is due to hold talks with his US counterpart Joe Biden on Saturday.
“In a written speech addressing APEC CEO Summit 2024, Xi also warned of the spreading unilateralism and protectionism, and cautioned that the fragmentation of the world economy is increasing,” Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported.
In the wide-ranging speech, Xi said the world had “entered a new period of turbulence and transformation,” Xinhua reported.
In that context, he called for global industrial and supply chains to be kept “stable and smooth.”
US President-elect Donald Trump, set to take office in January, has promised a raft of protectionist trade policies, including 60 percent import tariffs targeting China, with whom he engaged in a trade war during his last term in office.
The Republican has once again signaled a confrontational approach to Beijing for his second term.
Xi said any attempts to reduce global economic interdependence was “nothing but backpedaling,” comments potentially aimed at Trump’s proposed policies on the campaign trail.
China, the world’s second-largest economy, has been reeling from headwinds on several fronts, with growth struggling to recover since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Beijing is pushing for an official national growth target this year of around five percent, a goal most economists believe it will narrowly miss.
But recent weeks have seen officials announce their most aggressive measures in years in a bid to breathe fresh life into the economy.
In Lima, Xi vowed to meet the GDP growth target, and to pursue economic liberalization policies that would “open its (China’s) door even wider to the world.”
Muslims who voted for Trump upset by his pro-Israel cabinet picks
- Muslim support for Trump helped him win Michigan and may have factored into other swing state wins, strategists believe
- Hassan Abdel Salam, a former professor at the University of Minnesota said Trump’s staffing plans were not surprising, but had proven even more extreme that he had feared
WASHINGTON: US Muslim leaders who supported Republican Donald Trump to protest against the Biden administration’s support for Israel’s war on Gaza and attacks on Lebanon have been deeply disappointed by his Cabinet picks, they tell Reuters.
“Trump won because of us and we’re not happy with his Secretary of State pick and others,” said Rabiul Chowdhury, a Philadelphia investor who chaired the Abandon Harris campaign in Pennsylvania and co-founded Muslims for Trump.
Muslim support for Trump helped him win Michigan and may have factored into other swing state wins, strategists believe.
Trump picked Republican senator Marco Rubio, a staunch supporter of Israel for Secretary of State. Rubio said earlier this year he would not call for a ceasefire in Gaza, and that he believed Israel should destroy “every element” of Hamas. “These people are vicious animals,” he added.
Trump also nominated Mike Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor and staunch pro-Israel conservative who backs Israeli occupation of the West Bank and has called a two state solution in Palestine “unworkable,” as the next ambassador to Israel.
He has picked Republican Representative Elize Stefanik, who called the UN a “cesspool of antisemitism” for its condemnation of deaths in Gaza, to serve as US ambassador to the United Nations.
Rexhinaldo Nazarko, executive director of the American Muslim Engagement and Empowerment Network (AMEEN), said Muslim voters had hoped Trump would choose Cabinet officials who work toward peace, and there was no sign of that.
“We are very disappointed,” he said. “It seems like this administration has been packed entirely with neoconservatives and extremely pro-Israel, pro-war people, which is a failure on the on the side of President Trump, to the pro-peace and anti-war movement.”
Nazarko said the community would continue pressing to make its voices heard after rallying votes to help Trump win. “At least we’re on the map.”
Hassan Abdel Salam, a former professor at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities and co-founder of the Abandon Harris campaign, which endorsed Green Party candidate Jill Stein, said Trump’s staffing plans were not surprising, but had proven even more extreme that he had feared.
“It’s like he’s going on Zionist overdrive,” he said. “We were always extremely skeptical...Obviously we’re still waiting to see where the administration will go, but it does look like our community has been played.”
The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
Several Muslim and Arab supporters of Trump said they hoped Richard Grenell, Trump’s former acting director of national intelligence, would play a key role after he led months of outreach to Muslim and Arab American communities, and was even introduced as a potential next secretary of state at events.
Another key Trump ally, Massad Boulos, the Lebanese father-in-law of Trump’s daughter Tiffany, met repeatedly with Arab American and Muslim leaders.
Both promised Arab American and Muslim voters that Trump was a candidate for peace who would act swiftly to end the wars in the Middle East and beyond. Neither was immediately reachable.
Trump made several visits to cities with large Arab American and Muslim populations, include a stop in Dearborn, a majority Arab city, where he said he loved Muslims, and Pittsburgh, where he called Muslims for Trump “a beautiful movement. They want peace. They want stability.”
Rola Makki, the Lebanese American, Muslim vice chair for outreach of the Michigan Republican Party, shrugged off the criticism.
“I don’t think everyone’s going to be happy with every appointment Trump makes, but the outcome is what matters,” she said. “I do know that Trump wants peace, and what people need to realize is that there’s 50,000 dead Palestinians and 3,000 dead Lebanese, and that’s happened during the current administration.”
Trump promises to end wars with a ‘strong military’
- “We’re going to work on the Middle East and we’re going to work very hard on Russia and Ukraine. It’s got to stop,” Trump added
PALM BEACH, United States: US President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday promised a “strong military,” as he repeated his pledge to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Trump, who campaigned on an “America First” foreign policy, has said previously that he wanted to strike a deal between Kyiv and Moscow, without giving details, and end bloodshed in the Middle East.
“We have to get back to a great country with low taxes and a strong military. We’re going to fix our military, we did once and now we’re going to have to do it again,” he said Thursday at a gala organized by the America First Policy Institute at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida.
“We’re going to work on the Middle East and we’re going to work very hard on Russia and Ukraine. It’s got to stop,” Trump added.
He also criticized the “big chunk” of US spending on Afghanistan, from where American troops withdrew in 2021 after two decades of fighting an insurgency by the Taliban, which returned to power that year.
Trump’s re-election has the potential to upend the almost three-year conflict between Russia and Ukraine, throwing into question Washington’s multibillion-dollar support for Kyiv, which is crucial to its defense.
The Republican said on the campaign trail that he could end the fighting within hours and has indicated he would talk directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Trump has not said how he intends to strike a peace deal on Ukraine or what terms he would propose.
Ukraine slams Scholz after first call with Putin in two years
- “This is exactly what Putin has been wanting for a long time: it is extremely important for him to weaken his isolation,” Zelensky said
- Scholz spoke with Zelensky before and after the call with Putin, the chancellor’s spokesman said, but the early warning failed to quell Kyiv’s concerns.
BERLIN: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky Friday accused Germany’s Olaf Scholz of playing into the hands of Russian President Vladimir Putin after the chancellor spoke by phone to the Kremlin chief for the first time in almost two years.
In the call, Scholz “condemned Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and called on President Putin to end it and withdraw troops,” the chancellor’s spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said.
The German leader “urged Russia to show willingness to negotiate with Ukraine with the aim of achieving a just and lasting peace,” Hebestreit added in a statement.
The Kremlin confirmed the call between Scholz and Putin, which it said was held at the invitation of the German side.
Putin had a “detailed and frank exchange of views over the situation in Ukraine” with Scholz, the Kremlin said.
Putin told the German leader that any agreement to end the war in Ukraine “should take into account the security interests of the Russian Federation,” the Kremlin added.
An accord should “proceed from the new territorial realities and, most importantly, address the root causes of the conflict.”
Russia has demanded Ukraine surrender four regions as a precondition for talks, which Kyiv has rejected.
Ukraine responded angrily to Berlin reviving its lines of communication with Moscow. The call had opened a “Pandora’s Box,” Zelensky said.
“This is exactly what Putin has been wanting for a long time: it is extremely important for him to weaken his isolation,” Zelensky said.
Scholz spoke with Zelensky before and after the call with Putin, the chancellor’s spokesman said, but the early warning failed to quell Kyiv’s concerns.
“What is needed are concrete, strong actions that will force him to peace, not persuasion and attempts at appeasement, which he sees as a sign of weakness and uses to his advantage,” Ukraine’s foreign ministry said.
As well as Ukraine, Scholz also notified the countries of the so-called Quad, which includes France, the United States and Britain, a source close to French President Emmanuel Macron said.
The chancellor’s message to Putin was not “coordinated” between the allies but the French side expected to be informed on the contents, the source said.
During the hour-long call, Scholz “condemned in particular Russian air strikes against civilian infrastructure in Ukraine,” a German government source said.
Scholz “made it clear that sending North Korean soldiers to Russia for combat missions against Ukraine would lead to a serious escalation and expansion of the conflict,” the source said.
The German and Russian leaders “agreed to remain in contact,” while Berlin would keep its allies updated, the source added.
Scholz will have an opportunity for discussions at a meeting of G20 leaders in Brazil next week, from which Putin will be notably absent.
Putin has spoken to few NATO and Western leaders since 2022, when the EU and the US imposed massive sanctions on Russia for launching its shock Ukraine offensive.
His last known phone call with the leader of a major Western country was his previous conversation with Scholz in December 2022.
Almost 1,000 days after Russia launched its full-scale invasion, Ukraine is bracing for what could be the most difficult winter of the war so far.
Much of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure has been destroyed by Russian bombardments and Kyiv’s troops are increasingly on the back foot.
Germany has been one of Ukraine’s biggest military supporters, second only to the United States in the aid it has sent to Kyiv.
But the election of Donald Trump, who has criticized aid to Ukraine, as the next US president, has called into question Washington’s continued support.
Trump said on the campaign trail that he could end the fighting within hours and has indicated he would talk directly with Putin.
The Kremlin has denied reports that Putin and the president-elect of the United States recently discussed the Ukraine conflict by phone.
Scholz, who did speak with Trump following his election win, told the German daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung on Friday that the incoming US leader had a “more nuanced” position on the conflict than was commonly assumed.
Following the Putin-Scholz call, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said he had been updated by the German leader on the discussion.
Tusk was “satisfied” that Scholz had “reiterated the Polish position: ‘Nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine’,” he said on social media platform X.
Croatian health minister arrested and sacked over alleged graft
- Beros’ lawyer Laura Valkovic told local media that he denied any criminal responsibility
- The prime minister’s comments came after Croatia’s Office for the Suppression of Corruption and Organized Crime (USKOK) said it was conducting several arrests
SARAJEVO: Croatian Health Minister Vili Beros was sacked on Friday after being arrested on suspicion of corruption, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said.
Beros’ lawyer Laura Valkovic told local media that he denied any criminal responsibility. The health ministry declined to comment.
The prime minister’s comments came after Croatia’s Office for the Suppression of Corruption and Organized Crime (USKOK) said it was conducting several arrests.
The European Public Prosecutor’s Office also said it had initiated an investigation against eight people, including Beros and the directors of two hospitals in Zagreb, over alleged bribery, abuse of authority and money laundering.
Croatia’s State Attorney Ivan Turudic, whose office works closely with USKOK, said there were two parallel investigations into the alleged crimes and that EPPO has not informed his office nor USKOK about its investigation.
Turudic said Beros was accused of trade of influence. He said two other individuals had been arrested and one legal entity would be investigated on suspicion of the criminal act of receiving a bribe.
The people detained will be brought before an investigative judge who will decide on any pre-trial detention, Turudic told a news conference.
The EPPO said that a criminal group seeking to secure financing for the sale of medical robotic devices in several hospitals was suspected of giving bribes to officials to try to win contracts for projects, including EU funded ones.
“What is obvious is that this is about criminal acts of corruption,” Plenkovic said. “On behalf of the government, I want to say that agencies authorized for criminal persecution should investigate everything.”
