High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell and Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarcic, have issued the following statement on the earthquake that has struck Türkiye and Syria:
“A powerful earthquake of magnitude 7.8 on the Richter scale – one of the strongest earthquakes in the region in more than 100 years – struck the region of Gaziantep in Türkiye, which impacted neighbouring Syria as well, overnight.
In an immediate response, the European Union has mobilised search and rescue teams for Türkiye following its request to activate the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.
Ten Urban Search and Rescue teams have been quickly mobilised from Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, France, Greece, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania to support the first responders on the ground. Italy, Spain, and Slovakia have offered their rescue teams to Türkiye as well. The EU’s Emergency Response Coordination Centre is in direct contact with the authorities in Türkiye to coordinate further support if needed.
The EU’s Copernicus satellite system has also been activated to provide emergency mapping services.
The EU is also ready to support those affected in Syria, which has also reported casualties, through its humanitarian assistance programmes.
Our thoughts are with all those who have lost loved ones and the brave first responders working to save lives.”
The full statement is available online.
(For more information: Balazs Ujvari – Tel.: +32 2 295 45 78; Daniel Puglisi – Tel.: +32 2 296 91 40)
EU-India: new Trade and Technology Council to lead on digital transformation, green technologies and trade
Today, the EU and India have strengthened their relationship as strategic partners by setting up a new Trade and Technology Council (TTC). The new TTC will deepen strategic engagement on trade and technology between both partners.
In a rapidly changing geopolitical environment, the EU and India have a common interest in ensuring security, prosperity and sustainable development based on shared values. The TTC will provide the political steer and the necessary structure to coordinate approaches and advance technical work. To lay the groundwork, both sides have agreed to work on critical areas such as connectivity, green technologies and resilient supply chains. Ministerial meetings of the TTC will take place at least once a year, with the venue alternating between the EU and India. As of today, three working groups are established and will begin their cooperation, one on Strategic technologies, digital governance and digital connectivity, one on Green and clean energy technologies and the last one on Trade, investment and resilient value chains. The first EU-India ministerial meeting is planned to be held in spring 2023. You will find more information on this press release.
(For more information: Johannes Bahrke – Tel: +32 2 295 86 15; Miriam Garcia Ferrer – Tel.: +32 2 299 90 75; Charles Manoury – Tel: +32 2 291 33 91; Roberta Verbanac – Tel.: +32 2 298 24 98)
Commission seeks feedback on the implementation of the Foreign Subsidies Regulation
The Commission invites stakeholders to give feedback on the implementation of the Foreign Subsidies Regulation (‘FSR’). The draft Implementing Regulation clarifies practical and procedural aspects related to the application of the new EU rules to address distortions caused by foreign subsidies in the Single Market. The feedback period will last 4 weeks. Interested parties are invited to submit their comments by 6 March 2023.
The FSR, which entered into force on 12 January 2023 and will start applying on 12 July 2023, allows the Commission to investigate financial contributions granted by non-EU countries to companies operating in the EU and redress, if needed, their distortive effects. It empowers the Commission to adopt procedural rules in relation to the enforcement of the FSR.
In particular, the draft FSR Implementing Regulation clarifies the information required in the notification forms for concentrations and public procurement procedures, rules on the calculation of time limits and on access to the file, as well as the rights of the parties.
All interested parties can submit their views on the draft Implementing Regulation on the Commission’s Have Your Say Portal until 6 March 2023.
A press release is available here.
(For more information: Arianna Podesta – Tel.: +32 2 298 70 24; Sonya Gospodinova – Tel.: +32 2 296 69 53)
Commissioner Johansson visits the port of Antwerp to discuss the fight against drug trafficking
Tomorrow, Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, will travel to Antwerp for an official visit of the port together with the Belgian Minister of the Interior, Institutional Reform and Democratic Renewal, Annelies Verlinden. They will be joined by the Europol Executive Director, Catherine De Bolle and European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) Director, Alexis Goosdeel.
The Commission is committed to tackling serious and organised crime and illegal drugs trafficking, as outlined in the
EU Security Union Strategy, the EU Strategy to Tackle Organised crime and the EU Drugs Strategy 2021-2025. Antwerp is one of the main ports of entry and transit of cocaine in Europe. Only last year, Belgian authorities seized 110 tons of cocaine, almost all in the port of Antwerp.
Later this month, Commissioner Johansson will be visiting Ecuador and Colombia to strengthen cooperation with key third countries in the global fight against drugs trafficking.
Following the visit, Commissioner Johansson will hold a joint press conference with Minister Verlinden, Europol Executive Director, Catherine De Bolle, and EMCDDA Director Alexis Goosdeel at +/-16:00 CET, which will be broadcast live on EbS.
West and Central Africa: EU allocates €181.5 million for humanitarian aid in 2023
The EU has allocated €181.5 million this year for humanitarian aid in West and Central Africa, as this region continues to face protracted crises driven by conflict and worsened by other factors such as climate change and the global spike in food prices. New allocations have been announced for Burkina Faso (€25.5 million), Mali (€26 million), Mauritania (€6.5 million) and Central African Republic (€20.5 million), together with a regional allocation of €500 000. These add to the EU funding already pledged for Nigeria (€34 million), Niger (€25 million), Chad (€26.5 million) and Cameroon (€17 million) last month, during the High-Level Conference on the Lake Chad Region held in Niamey.
The announcement was made on the occasion of the EU-ECOWAS ministerial meeting held in Brussels today, attended by Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarcic. Up to €111 million of the mentioned budget will benefit ECOWAS members.
The EU’s humanitarian aid in West and Central Africa will cover the following areas:
Providing life-saving aid to populations displaced by conflict and to hosting communities;
Supporting victims of human right violations, including survivors of sexual and gender-based violence and children affected by conflicts;
Providing food assistance to households and communities most in need, focusing on the lean season and hard-to-reach areas, and treating severe acute undernutrition in children under 5;
Offering healthcare to populations outside the reach of health authorities and improving access to safe water and sanitation;
Supporting emergency education for children that are displaced or cannot attend school;
Enhancing disaster preparedness actions, such as early warning systems and climate resilience measures
In addition, the Commission has already requested an extra allocation of €32 million from the budgetary authorities. If approved, €25 million would be destined to countries within the ECOWAS bloc. More info here.
European Innovation Council Fund injects €331 million of equity into European deep-tech companies
The European Innovation Council Fund (EIC Fund) has taken 42 new investment decisions into deep-tech companies for a total of €331 million since the last announcement in November 2022. 13 companies have already signed their investment agreements. These are pioneering start-ups that are poised to bring breakthrough innovations to citizens and businesses: a new type of computer vision software and robotics technologies for orthopaedic surgeons; visual search technologies for businesses and industry applications; breast self-reconstruction with patients’ own tissue; innovative photonics; improved food production with reduced emissions; and a first miniaturised universal gas analyser for all renewable gases.
This marks a significant progress, as the EIC Fund is now fully operational. Since the appointment of an external fund manager in September 2022, the EIC Fund has taken a total of 77 investment decisions for deep-tech companies, worth over €521 million, supporting high-risk start-ups to bring their innovative technologies to market and scale up in strategic areas for Europe.
The EIC Fund, the investment component of the EIC Accelerator, is an important source of funding for start-ups and small businesses in Europe. The equity investments, ranging from €500,000 to €15 million per company (more in justified cases), complement EIC Accelerator grant financing of up to €2.5 million. So far, under Horizon Europe, 269 out of 378 selected companies have signed their grant agreements. The EIC is now complying with the target set by the EIC Board to sign the grant agreements with selected companies within 4-5 months. More info here.
EU-India: new Trade and Technology Council to lead on digital transformation, green technologies and trade
Today, the EU and India have strengthened their relationship as strategic partners by setting up a new Trade and Technology Council (TTC). The new TTC will deepen strategic engagement on trade and technology between both partners. This follows the announcement by President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, on 25 April 2022 in New Delhi. It will be co-chaired on the EU side by Executive Vice-Presidents Margrethe Vestager and Valdis Dombrovskis, and on the Indian side by Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs, Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce and Industry, and Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of Electronics and Information Technology.
Working Groups
In a rapidly changing geopolitical environment, the EU and India have a common interest in ensuring security, prosperity and sustainable development based on shared values. The TTC will provide the political steer and the necessary structure to coordinate approaches and advance technical work. To lay the groundwork, both sides have agreed to work on critical areas such as connectivity, green technologies and resilient supply chains.
Ministerial meetings of the TTC will rely on the preparatory work of three working groups, which will meet within two weeks to organise their work:
Strategic technologies, digital governance and digital connectivity: the group will work jointly on areas of mutual interest such as digital connectivity, Artificial Intelligence, 5G/6G, high performance and quantum computing, semiconductors, cloud systems, cybersecurity, digital skills and digital platforms.
Green and clean energy technologies: this group will focus on green technologies, including investment and standards, with emphasis on research and innovation. Areas to be explored could be clean energy, circular economy, waste management, plastic and litter in the ocean. It will also foster cooperation between EU and Indian incubators, SMEs and start-ups.
Trade, investment and resilient value chains: the group will work on the resilience of supply chains and access to critical components, energy, and raw materials. It will also work to resolve identified trade barriers and global trade challenges by promoting cooperation in multilateral fora. It will work towards promotion of international standards and cooperation on addressing global geopolitical challenges.
The three strands of bilateral negotiations on trade, investment and geographical indications will continue separately from the TTC. The High-level Trade and Investment Dialogue will remain the principal organ for steering these negotiations. In addition, the EU-India High-level Digital Investment Forum (DIF) may be organised on the margins of the first TTC Ministerial meeting.
Next Steps
Ministerial meetings of the TTC will take place at least once a year, with the venue alternating between the EU and India. As of today, the three working groups are established and will begin their cooperation. The first EU-India ministerial meeting is planned to be held in spring 2023.
Background
The partnership with India is one of the most important relationships for the upcoming decade and strengthening this partnership, including through the TTC, is a priority. The cooperation in the TTC should focus on key issues of shared strategic importance, including trade, trusted technology and security, notably in respect of challenges posed by rival governance models. In this context, cooperation on research and innovation are important to unlock potential.
The EU-India Trade and Technology Council is the second such bilateral forum for the EU and the first one established with any partner for India. The EU and the US launched a TTC in June 2021. It will complement the Digital Partnerships already launched with Asian partners as part of the EU Strategy for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific.
Source: Cyprus News Agency