World
EU leaders meet in Versailles to discuss Ukraine war and gas imports
EU leaders are assembly within the Palace of Versailles, France, to debate Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and plans to strengthen the bloc’s power independence and defence capabilities.
The 2-day assembly begins on Thursday night and is hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron, whose nation at present holds the EU Council’s rotating presidency.
Macron has outlined the Ukraine struggle as a “change of period” for the continent that requires a geopolitical rethinking.
“We can’t rely upon others to defend us, whether or not on land, at sea, underneath the ocean, within the air, in house or in our on-line world,” the president stated final week.
“On this respect, our European defence should take a brand new step.”
Ever since Macron arrived on the Élysée, he has been essentially the most distinguished and vocal defender of strategic autonomy, a theoretical idea that posits the EU ought to grow to be extra self-reliant and assertive on the world stage.
Russia’s aggression and the ensuing set of hard-hitting sanctions that the EU, in coordination with allies, has slapped on the Kremlin have created a brand new momentum round requires strategic autonomy, which Macron is about to additional amplify.
The Versailles gathering follows a sequence of transformative occasions for the EU.
For the primary time in its historical past, the bloc will finance the acquisition of deadly weapons for international locations which can be underneath assault, with an preliminary €500 million package deal for Ukraine.
Germany, Sweden and Finland have additionally dropped long-standing insurance policies concerning army support. Denmark will maintain a referendum in June to determine whether or not to maintain the opt-out clause that has up to now eliminated the nation from the EU frequent defence coverage – the one member state at present excluded.
Leaders will construct upon these developments to debate methods to spice up defence expenditures, promote progressive applied sciences and deepen cooperation between member states.
The 27 will even take inventory of the state of affairs inside Ukraine, the humanitarian disaster and Kyiv’s utility to hitch the EU. The European Fee is at present inspecting the request and is predicted to challenge an opinion within the coming days.
Vitality push
Along with this, leaders will contact upon the bloc’s last-minute push to slash power imports from Moscow and break away from its long-standing dependency.
To at the present time, Russia stays the primary EU provider of crude oil, fuel and stable fossil fuels, a sector that brings greater than 40% of the nation’s revenues. Western international locations are more and more involved that the big amount of cash they ship Russia to import power is not directly financing the struggle in Ukraine.
Within the US, President Joe Biden has already imposed a complete ban on Russian imports. Within the UK, the federal government unveiled plans to part out all Russian oil merchandise by 2023.
The EU will not be unified sufficient to introduce the same ban, given the assorted levels of power dependence that some member states current. Nonetheless, political willpower is intensifying to hurry up the transfer away from Russian power.
Earlier this week, the Fee unveiled an formidable roadmap to chop Russian fuel by two thirds (round 100 billion cubic metres) earlier than the tip of yr, most of which shall be changed by liquefied pure fuel (LNG) from different suppliers, such because the US, Qatar, Azerbaijan and Algeria.
Biomethane, clear hydrogen, power effectivity and renewable power must also contribute to the speedy swap, Brussels famous. The plans supplied new measures to take care of hovering electrical energy payments, like regulated worth caps and redistribution of windfall income.
“We should grow to be impartial from Russian oil, coal and fuel. We merely can’t depend on a provider who explicitly threatens us,” stated EU Fee President Ursula von der Leyen.
The manager’s objective is to make the bloc “impartial from Russian fossil fuels effectively earlier than 2030.”
Even when Brussels can present steerage and facilitate joint procurement, the plans will rely upon member states and their capability to swiftly change power suppliers and maintain the burden greater costs within the close to time period.
The transition is already bearing fruit. Based on figures released by Bruegel, an financial suppose tank, Russia’s share of EU fuel imports fell from 47% in January 2021 to twenty-eight% in January 2022, amid tensions alongside the Ukraine border.
On Friday, the controversy will flip to financial issues, like funding, provide chains and innovation. European Central Financial institution President Christine Lagarde will be part of leaders for the dialogue.
Even when the assembly is casual and no official conclusions shall be taken, the stage offers the event an air of solemnity and grandeur. The Palace of Versailles, situated exterior Paris, noticed the signature of the 1919 peace treaty that put an finish to the struggle between Germany and the Allied Powers.
World
Justin Baldoni Sued by Former Publicist Amid Blake Lively Scandal
Justin Baldoni‘s former publicist sued him, his company and his current publicity team on Tuesday, amid a spiraling scandal over an alleged smear campaign against Baldoni’s “It Ends With Us” co-star Blake Lively.
Steph Jones, who owns Jonesworks, accused Baldoni of breaching their contract, which required him to pay her $25,000 per month. Baldoni dropped the firm in August, a few months into a year-long deal, after his Jonesworks publicist, Jennifer Abel, left the company to start her own publicity firm.
Jones also sued Abel and publicist Melissa Nathan, accusing them of implementing the smear campaign against Lively behind her back and without her knowledge. She alleges that they are now trying to blame her for the ensuing meltdown.
“To this day, Abel and Nathan continue to point the finger falsely at Jones now that their own misconduct is coming to light, and to defame and attack Jones in the industry,” the lawsuit states.
Lively filed a complaint on Saturday with the California Civil Rights Department, accusing Baldoni and his publicists of orchestrating negative coverage about her in retaliation for her complaints of sexual harassment on set.
In the complaint, Lively accused Baldoni of a catalog of sexually inappropriate comments and behavior that allegedly took place on set in 2023. According to the complaint, she raised these issues through her attorneys before filming, which had been suspended during the Hollywood strikes, resumed earlier this year.
The rift between Baldoni and Lively became apparent during the publicity tour for the film last summer. Baldoni feared that Lively or her team would public accuse him of sexual misconduct, and sought ways to combat that. The complaint quoted extensively from text messages among Baldoni’s publicity team, in which they plotted to “bury” Lively.
In an unusual move, Lively’s attorneys obtained the messages by sending a pre-litigation subpoena to Jones.
Abel, Nathan, and Baldoni are represented by attorney Bryan Freedman. On Monday, Freedman threatened to sue Jones for releasing the contents of Abel’s phone to Lively’s legal team. Freedman, Abel and Nathan did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Jones’ suit.
In her lawsuit, Jones relates that she “forensically preserved” Abel’s company phone after Abel was fired.
“Abel and Nathan’s covert take down and smear campaigns were revealed in black and white on Abel’s company-issued phone following her termination, which Jonesworks forensically preserved and examined in detail after receiving a subpoena for the phone’s contents,” Jones’ suit states. “Jones discovered the breadth and intensity of Abel and Nathan’s duplicity from these records, including that Abel was actively encouraging other Jonesworks clients and employees to leave Jonesworks while Abel was still employed there.”
Jones’ suit alleges that Abel conspired for months to leave her company and to “steal” her clients and trash her reputation in the industry. She accuses Nathan of encouraging Abel to leave, because Nathan would then have greater access to those clients.
“This scheme ultimately inflicted serious damage on Jones and Jonesworks,” states the lawsuit, which was filed in state court in New York.
Among other things, the suit alleges that Abel and Nathan planted negative stories about Jones in the press, including an article in Business Insider that was published last summer.
The suit alleges breach of contract, tortious interference with contract, breach of fiduciary duty and defamation.
World
Police officer dressed as the 'Grinch' steals Christmas spirit during drug bust
A Peruvian police officer dressed as the Grinch, the cantankerous and green-furred villain, busted suspected drug traffickers in the South American country’s capital days before Christmas.
The operation in San Bartolo in Lima resulted in the arrest of three suspects, according to a video posted online by the Peruvian National Police.
“In an ingenious operation, agents of the Green Squad arrested the aliases La Reina del Sur, La Coneja and Pote, alleged members of the La Mafia de San Bartolo gang, dedicated to drug dealing,” a police post on X states. “Various narcotics were seized.”
FLORIDA MAN WHO WAS HALF-NAKED, ‘HIGH ON METH’ BREAKS INTO HOME, GRABS CARPET CLEANER
Using what appeared to be a sledgehammer, the officer walked down the street dressed as the infamous Christmas villain with a small heart before breaking down the front door of a home and entering, according to the video footage.
The suspects were arrested, and the “Grinch” is seen rummaging through various items in the home before finding what authorities said were illegal drugs and other items related to drug trafficking.
MORE THAN $31M OF METH CONCEALED IN SHIPMENT OF PEPPERS SEIZED AT TEXAS-MEXICO BORDER
Peru is the second-largest producer of cocaine and cultivator of coca in the world, according to the State Department.
“The majority of cocaine produced in Peru is transported to South American countries for domestic consumption, or for onward shipment to Europe, the United States, East Asia, and Mexico,” the State Department website said.
Peru’s national police force has carried out similar operations in the past.
On Halloween 2023, officers disguised as horror favorites Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees and Tiffany Valentine, the murderous doll in the “Child’s Play” series, also broke into the home of alleged drug dealers.
World
Are your Christmas gifts ready? Here are where EU toys come from
While the EU saw a drop in toy exports, China was the EU’s biggest supplier, providing 80% of these imports, valued at €5.2 billion.
In 2023, the EU imported €6.5 billion worth of toys from countries outside the bloc, a €2 billion decrease compared to 2022.
According to the latest Eurostat figures, China was the EU’s biggest supplier, providing 80% of these imports, valued at €5.2 billion.
Vietnam followed with 6% and the United Kingdom with 2%.
Around a fifth of the EU’s toy imports ended up in Germany, while France and the Netherlands received 16% and 14%, respectively.
At the same time, the EU exported €2.3 billion worth of toys in 2023.
This figure represents a slight decrease of €0.2 billion from the previous year.
More than half of the toys exported from the EU came from the Czech Republic, Germany and Belgium.
The UK was the top destination for EU toy exports, receiving 30% of the total, followed by Switzerland at 13% and the United States at 10%.
Concerns over toy safety
A recent Toy Industries of Europe study revealed that 80% of toys purchased from third-party sellers on online marketplaces failed to meet EU safety standards.
The research tested over 100 toys from various platforms, uncovering serious health risks such as choking hazards and toxic chemicals.
At the beginning of September, the European Parliament backed a proposal to improve the safety of toys available on the EU market.
The proposal focused particularly on decreasing the number of unsafe toys in the EU market and better protecting children from toy-related risks, including banning harmful chemicals in toys.
-
Business1 week ago
Freddie Freeman's World Series walk-off grand slam baseball sells at auction for $1.56 million
-
Technology1 week ago
Meta’s Instagram boss: who posted something matters more in the AI age
-
Technology4 days ago
Google’s counteroffer to the government trying to break it up is unbundling Android apps
-
News1 week ago
East’s wintry mix could make travel dicey. And yes, that was a tornado in Calif.
-
Politics5 days ago
Illegal immigrant sexually abused child in the U.S. after being removed from the country five times
-
News5 days ago
Novo Nordisk shares tumble as weight-loss drug trial data disappoints
-
Entertainment5 days ago
'It's a little holiday gift': Inside the Weeknd's free Santa Monica show for his biggest fans
-
Politics1 week ago
Trump taps Richard Grenell as presidential envoy for special missions, Edward S. Walsh as Ireland ambassador