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EU-wide mask rules for flights, airports eased from Monday

Despite the new guidance, Germany as the EU’s most populous country and top economy said it had no plans to lift the mask mandate for flights…reports Asian Lite News

EU-wide guidance on requiring masks for air travel will be lifted from next week, the bloc’s aviation safety agency said on Wednesday, as the pandemic eases in Europe.

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) said that under the new guidelines developed with the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), masks were no longer considered essential for all flights and airports.

Nevertheless national regulators and airlines will still have scope to demand face and nose covering by passengers and staff, it noted.

“From next week, face masks will no longer need to be mandatory in air travel in all cases, broadly aligning with the changing requirements of national authorities across Europe for public transport,” said EASA executive director Patrick Ky in a statement.

“For passengers and air crews, this is a big step forward in the normalization of air travel.”

Despite the new guidance, Germany as the EU’s most populous country and top economy said it had no plans to lift the mask mandate for flights.

“The mask requirement on airplanes continues to be in place for all domestic routes as well as on flights that take off or land in Germany,” health ministry spokesman Hanno Kautz said in an emailed statement.

EASA said after Monday, “rules for masks in particular will continue to vary by airline beyond that date.”

It stated that “flights to or from a destination where mask-wearing is still required on public transport should continue to encourage mask wearing.”

Vulnerable passengers with compromised health “should continue to wear a face mask regardless of the rules,” it added.

The EASA said passengers were also encouraged to observe social distancing at the airport but that operators should adopt a “pragmatic approach,” meaning avoiding measures that would “lead to a bottleneck in another location in the passenger journey.”

The Geneva-based International Air Transport Association (IATA) welcomed the new guidance for the EU but acknowledged the picture was more complex in an international context.

“Although the European protocol comes into effect next week, there is no globally consistent approach to mask-wearing on board aircraft,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s director general, in a statement.

“Airlines must comply with the regulations applicable to the routes they are operating. The aircraft crew will know what rules apply and it is critical that passengers follow their instructions.”

He added that the IATA asked all passengers to “be respectful of other people’s decision to voluntarily wear masks even if it not a requirement.”

The European aviation sector has predicted a return to near pre-pandemic traffic levels this summer despite soaring fuel prices, the war in Ukraine and inflation.

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Truss rejects EU proposals to resolve Northern Ireland trade dispute

The Times newspaper reported that Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government could legislate to ditch checks on goods and tell businesses in Northern Ireland to disregard EU rules…reports Asian Lite News

Britain has rejected the European Union’s proposals to resolve a standoff over post-Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland, saying it would not shy away from taking direct action in the latest escalation between the two sides.

Striking a deal that preserved peace in Northern Ireland and protected the EU’s single market without imposing a hard land border between the British province and EU member state Ireland, or a border within the UK, was always the biggest challenge for London as it embarked on its exit from the bloc.

It agreed on a protocol which instead created a customs border in the sea between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, but now says the required bureaucracy is intolerable.

London’s Conservative government has been threatening to rip up the protocol for months, raising the risk of a trade war with Europe at a time of soaring inflation and ringing alarm bells across Europe and in Washington.

Brussels offered to ease customs checks in October last year, but British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss on Wednesday said this failed to address the core problem, “and in some cases would take us backward”.

“Prices have risen, trade is being badly disrupted, and the people of Northern Ireland are subject to different laws and taxes than those over the Irish Sea, which has left them without a (governing) executive and poses a threat to peace and stability,” she said in a statement.

Truss said the government wanted a negotiated solution, but added we “will not shy away from taking action to stabilise the situation in Northern Ireland if solutions cannot be found”.

The Times newspaper reported that Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government could legislate to ditch checks on goods and tell businesses in Northern Ireland to disregard EU rules.

The move to announce domestic legislation which would effectively disapply the protocol could come on Tuesday, a Conservative source said.

But not everyone in British governing circles will back such an approach, which could also take months to be passed by the lower and upper houses of parliament.

Simon Hoare, a Conservative lawmaker who chairs parliament’s Northern Ireland select committee, said, “No honourable country should act unilaterally within an agreement.”

Were the House of Lords to object to the legislation, the government could try to resort to the Parliament Acts, a rarely used device that solves disagreement between the lower and upper houses, to force it through.

Ireland, Germany and the EU leadership have urged the UK not to take matters into its own hands.

But elections in Northern Ireland last week added impetus and the UK says nothing must threaten a 1998 peace deal which largely ended decades of sectarian violence between Irish nationalists and unionists.

Irish nationalist party Sinn Fein, which accepts the protocol given its goal of Irish unification, emerged as the largest party in the vote, while the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), which fears losing ties with London, fell to second.

The DUP has now refused to form a new power-sharing administration unless the trading rules are overhauled.

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This is the law of the jungle, Russia slams EU action

In Grushko’s opinion, such a decision, if taken, “will hit the Europeans themselves, hit the modern financial system and undermine confidence in Europe and in the West in general”….reports Asian Lite News

Seizing the foreign-exchange reserves of the Russian state would be an act of “complete lawlessness” and would undermine the very basis of international relations, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko has said, commenting on an idea floated by EUs top diplomat, Josep Borell.

In a recent interview with FT, Borrell suggested seizing Russia’s frozen reserves and using them to cover the costs of rebuilding Ukraine once the conflict is over.

Responding to these remarks, Grushko told RIA Novosti that the EU’s “appetite comes with eating” and that confiscation of the assets would be “complete lawlessness, the destruction of the very foundation of international relations”, RT reported.

In Grushko’s opinion, such a decision, if taken, “will hit the Europeans themselves, hit the modern financial system and undermine confidence in Europe and in the West in general”.

“This is the law of the jungle,” he concluded.

In coming up with the idea, Borrell referred to the precedent of US President Joe Biden having set aside billions worth of the assets of Afghanistan’s central bank “to be used to benefit the Afghan people”.

“We have the money in our pockets, and someone has to explain to me why it is good for the Afghan money and not good for the Russian money,” the EU foreign policy chief said.

He added that one of the key questions the world has to answer is who will be paying the “incredible amount of money” needed for the reconstruction of Ukraine.

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‘EU should seize Russian reserves to rebuild Ukraine’

Borrell told the newspaper it would be logical for the EU to do what the United States did with Afghan central bank assets after the Taliban took over the Asian nation…reports Asian Lite News

The European Union should consider seizing frozen Russian foreign exchange reserves to help pay for the cost of rebuilding Ukraine after the war, its foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said in an interview with the Financial Times.

The EU and its western allies have put curbs on the Russian central bank’s international reserves since the country began its invasion of Ukraine, actions Moscow describes as a “special military operation.”

Borrell told the newspaper it would be logical for the EU to do what the United States did with Afghan central bank assets after the Taliban took over the Asian nation.

“We have the money in our pockets, and someone has to explain to me why it is good for the Afghan money and not good for the Russian money,” Borrell said.

Washington froze the Afghan funds after the military takeover by the Taliban and plans to use some to help the Afghan people while holding the rest to possibly satisfy terrorism-related lawsuits against the extremist militants.

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EU likely to sanction Putin’s alleged girlfriend

Sources have confirmed to the BBC that she is on the latest list of individuals to be sanctioned by the EU…reports Asian Lite News

Russia is already under unprecedented sanctions due to its invasion of Ukraine and now the European Union (EU) could target Alina Kabaeva, a politician, media boss, former Olympic gymnast, and, if the rumours are true, President Vladimir Putin’s girlfriend and mother to some of his children, according to a media report.

The sanctions imposed by the EU and others are designed to punish those closest to Putin — the oligarchs, politicians and other officials said to have benefited from their proximity to the President, said the BBC report.

Last month, the US and UK imposed sanctions on Putin’s daughters Maria Vorontsova and Katerina Tikhonova. They are his children with former wife Lyudmila.

Until now, Kabaeva has escaped, despite her reported status. She might have felt something was coming: an online petition in March demanded her expulsion from her residence in Switzerland, says the BBC report.

Sources have confirmed to the BBC that she is on the latest list of individuals to be sanctioned by the EU.

The Russia, leader has always been intensely private. When asked about his private life, he has tended to brush off the queries.

He has, though, explicitly denied a relationship with Kabaeva.

In 2008, the Moskovsky Korrespondent newspaper reported that he was planning to divorce his wife Lyudmila and marry Kabaeva.

Both rejected the story and soon after, the authorities shut the newspaper down.

Putin and Lyudmila however, announced their split five years later, the BBC reported.

At the time, the President denied he was involved with Kabaeva, who was transitioning from a successful sporting career to one in politics.

There are rumours that they also have children together, although reports vary on how many, BBC reported.

A Swiss newspaper reported that Kabaeva had a boy in 2015 at an exclusive clinic near Lake Lugano, and another boy at the same place in 2019.

But The Sunday Times and The Wall Street Journal said she had twins in 2019 in Moscow although they disagree on how many children she has had.

The Kremlin denies such reports. Back in 2015, Putin’s spokesman said “information about the birth of a baby fathered by Vladimir Putin does not correspond to reality”.

Such is Putin’s guarded nature. In public, he’s never mentioned the names of the children he has with Lyudmila, other than to say he has two adult daughters, the BBC reported.

Kabaeva has been in and out of the spotlight since reports of her relationship with Putin emerged.

There was a Vogue cover in 2011, where she wore a pricey gold dress from French fashion house Balmain. She was also a torch bearer at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

More recently in April, she appeared at a junior gymnastics festival in Moscow, quashing suggestions she was in hiding.

Since the Ukraine war began, there have been calls for her to face sanctions.

The Wall Street Journal has suggested that the US is reluctant to sanction Kabaeva, for fear it may be deemed “so personal a blow” to Putin that it may escalate tensions further.

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Von der Leyen seeks support for NATO’s Ukraine crusade

Her problem is that a hitherto meteoric career may come to ground as a consequence of what is being witnessed in Ukraine, writes Prof. Madhav Nalapat

When we were children, stories were told to us that were denuded of nuance. There was Good, and confronting that was Evil It was the duty of all the good of the earth to assist the former to vanquish the latter. Judging by the views of the leaders of the countries that comprise NATO, the ruling elite in Kiev are a collection of individuals, many of whom have the attributes of sainthood. It would almost be disrespectful to refer to the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in any other manner than Saint Volodymyr. The received wisdom is that his every word shines with the glory of Truth, and each of his commandments to the rest of the world (minus Russia and the Russian-speaking people) needs to be followed without question.

It would not be possible for a civilised individual to go to bed each night with an untroubled conscience, unless such instant obedience were carried out. Whether it be President Biden, Prime Minister Johnson or the other Atlanticist leaders following in their wake in the prosecution of the Ukraine Crusade, they are tripping over each other in their anxiety to obey the latest commandment issued from Kiev by the saintly President of Ukraine. They tremble at any word of disapproval from him, and double down on their efforts to implement policies designed to ensure that NATO plunge into a full-scale war with the Russian Federation.

The crusade against Sinner Vladimir and the evil Russian Federation has already caused substantial distress to people across the world, several tens of millions of whom are going to starve this year as a consequence of the sanctions being implemented on the command of the saintly Volodymyr and his presumably equally noble constellation of officials, who (we are assured) have collectively and courageously battled the Russian-speaking population in Ukraine since the luckless Viktor Yanukovych was transformed from a Head of State to a refugee as a consequence of the Maidan upheaval in 2014.

After all, where matters of principle are involved, where High Morality needs to be upheld through the eviction and replacement of governments, it is not the ballot box but the streets that should decide who is to assume power in Kiev. Whether it be in the US, as seen in the eruption of violence at the US Capitol on 6 January 2021, or in the rising number of street protests that have been taking place in several European cities, the example of Maidan appears to have inspired tens of millions engaged in crusades of their own to copycat. They may believe that the next round of street power in Paris, if vigorous enough, may topple the occupant in the Élysée Palace long before the next French elections to the presidency five years hence. Marine le Pen may not yet have succeeded in occupying the Élysée Palace, but she may soon be in control of much of the domestic policy of France as Prime Minister of the Republic.

President Macron could then focus on matters important for the future of humanity, such as the “European Idea”, whatever that is. Clearly, to NATO, Ukrainian-speaking people who have a revulsion to those who speak Russian are fully European in a manner that is not the case with those speaking the language that is the mother tongue of Pushkin, Dostoyevsky, Solzhenitsyn or Tolstoy. Small wonder that the efforts at integration into the “common European home” by successive leaders in the Kremlin from 1986 until 2006 were firmly rebuffed every time. Now, the Ukraine Crusade is occupying almost the entirety of media and political discourse in Europe and in North America. Speakers of the Russian language may be permitted to compete in sports, cultural and other activities in the civilised world only if they repudiate their own country. Both sides of the Atlantic are engaged in the combat between Good (i.e. NATO) and Evil (the Russian Federation). All this would be amusing, were the consequences of this conflict not so tragic for the whole world.

Among those most active in the Crusade is EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who just visited India. She was broad-minded enough to believe that although the country of 1.4 billion was till now deluded into not participating enthusiastically in the NATO crusade against Russia, she may yet persuade New Delhi to see the wisdom in bringing closer and closer a kinetic confrontation between Russia and NATO. After all, it was probably Von der Leyen’s persuasive skills that made Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin abandon the longstanding foreign policy of the SPD and become an active combatant in the conflict, rather than remain on the fringes, as the German Chancellor had been doing till a few days ago.

So powerful is the call of the Ukraine Crusade that even the Green Party has shed any pacifist pretensions that it may have had, and become as dedicated as Biden or Johnson to ramping up the kinetic pressure on Russia through the transfer of weapons into Ukraine. There are reports of individuals from numerous locations converging on Ukraine and buying sophisticated weaponry such as mobile anti-aircraft missiles. These are intended for use in the future, but not in a conventional war or against Russia. It is astonishing what emotion does when harnessed to police. Countries such as the US and the UK are flooding sophisticated weapons into Ukraine without ensuring that they are being used solely in the crusade against the Russian Federation.

Baroness von der Leyen was invited by the MEA to play the stellar role in the “Raisina Dialogue”. In this international event, the curated guest list reflects the priorities of the ministry’s mandarins about who counts where India’s foreign policy is concerned. The choice of the able, personable Ursula von der Leyen was an inspired one, as the lady is expected in future to play a more consequential role, perhaps as Chancellor of Germany, still the most important country in Europe, minus of course the Russian part of that continent.

Her problem is that a hitherto meteoric career may come to ground as a consequence of what is being witnessed in Ukraine, but such a view remains fringe within the NATO alliance, which is rushing pell-mell into a greater and greater confrontation with Russia, a country that in effect is excluded from the definition of what constitutes a European country. In a way, such an exclusion may indeed be justified on the grounds that the Russian Federation is neither European nor Asian, but a blend of both, a quintessentially Eurasian power. Half of the territory of both continents is Russian, which makes the world’s largest country by far the ideal vehicle for a closer integration of two continents that need to be closely linked to each other on grounds of self-interest. Unfortunately, the Ukraine Crusade is resulting in the opposite effect, that of separating Asia from Europe, as Baroness von der Leyen may have found out during her sojourn in India.

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Total ban on Russian oil; EU toughens stance

The EU has been focusing for weeks on how to wean itself off Russian oil and gas…reports Asian Lite News

The European Union (EU) has proposed its toughest measures yet against Russia, including a total ban on oil imports and sanctions on war crimes suspects, BBC reported.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that the package was aimed at maximising pressure on Russia while minimising damage to Europe.

Russian crude oil would be phased out within six months, BBC reported citing Ursula von der Leyen

Military officers involved in suspected war crimes in Bucha and Mariupol would also face new sanctions.

“This sends another important signal to all perpetrators of the Kremlin’s war: We know who you are, and you will be held accountable,” von der Leyen told the European Parliament on Wednesday.

The EU has been focusing for weeks on how to wean itself off Russian oil and gas. It has already pledged to reduce gas imports by two-thirds by the end of 2022 and now plans to phase out crude oil over six months and refined products by the end of 2022.

“We will make sure that we phase out Russian oil in an orderly fashion,” the Commission president said.

Slovakia and Hungary, which currently rely on Russian oil, would be given an extra year to find alternative suppliers. A Hungarian government spokesman said they had not yet seen plans or guarantees for a transition.

Last year, Russia supplied the EU with a quarter of its oil imports, and Germany was the biggest buyer. However, Germany has dramatically reduced its reliance on Russian oil imports, down from 35 per cent to 12 per cent. The UK, which is no longer in the EU, is already phasing out Russian oil, which accounts for 8 per cent of its imports.

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EU ready for Russian gas cut-off: Von der Leyen

Russian President Vladimir Putin demanded on March 23 that Russia’s current gas contracts with “unfriendly countries” should be paid in rubles…reports Asian Lite News

The European Union (EU) is ready to face the suspension of Russian gas deliveries to its member states, said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

The Russian gas supplier Gazprom announced earlier on Wednesday that it was fully stopping its gas deliveries to Poland and Bulgaria, due to the two EU member states’ “failure to pay in rubles”.

In a statement reacting to Gazprom’s announcement, von der Leyen on Wednesday called the move “another attempt by Russia to use gas as an instrument of blackmail” in the context of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Russian President Vladimir Putin demanded on March 23 that Russia’s current gas contracts with “unfriendly countries” should be paid in rubles.

“We have been working to ensure alternative deliveries and the best possible storage levels across the EU,” and the gas coordination group is meeting in order to map out a coordinated EU response, said the European Commission President.

The EU, highly dependent on Russian gas and oil, has been working on finding alternative energy supplies through its ‘REPowerEU’ plan launched on March 8. The bloc agreed with the US on March 25 that it would purchase an additional at least 15 billion cubic metres of liquified natural gas (LNG) for 2022, and 50 billion cubic metres of LNG per annum until at least 2030.

The bloc is also accelerating its green transition to wean itself from fossil fuels and to increase energy efficiency.

ALSO READ-EU braces for new phase of Covid 19

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EU braces for new phase of Covid 19

To make sure that the EU is ready in case of a new wave, the European Commission calls on its member states to work on their preparedness and resilience, in order to be able to react promptly…reports Asian Lite News

Despite most Covid-19 restrictions being lifted in the European Union (EU), the bloc’s member states should remain vigilant and increase their preparedness, said EU officials.

“We are entering a new phase of the pandemic, as we move from emergency mode to more sustainable management of Covid-19. Yet, we must remain vigilant,” said President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on Wednesday.

“While the health situation is improving, we must prepare for different scenarios, and do it in a coordinated way,” said Margaritis Schinas, European Commission’s Vice-President for Promoting our European Way of Life.

“It is… crucial that the Member States maintain a high level of vigilance and preparedness for new outbreaks and variants — the pandemic is not yet over,” said Stella Kyriakides, European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety.

To make sure that the EU is ready in case of a new wave, the European Commission calls on its member states to work on their preparedness and resilience, in order to be able to react promptly, Xinhua news agency reported.

Actions include stepping up vaccinations; setting up integrated surveillance systems to get reliable estimates; testing and sequencing for the detection of new variants; investing in the recovery of healthcare systems; coordinating actions on free and safe travel; supporting the development of next-generation vaccines; fighting disinformation; and continuing efforts to fight the disease globally.

The European Commission said it will act to ensure the resilience of supply chains during the pandemic. It is also launching the EU FAB initiative, which will keep an ever-warm network of vaccine manufacturing capacities ready to get into action as soon as needed.

The EU is witnessing a return to “normal life”, as the Omicron variant is less severe than the previous ones, thus putting much less pressure on the healthcare systems, the Commission added.

“However, infections are still in the millions worldwide,” Kyriakides added.

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Jaishankar, EU chief hold talks on India-EU ties

“The two leaders also exchanged views on the economic and political implications of the Ukraine conflict.”…reports Asian Lite News

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Monday called on visiting President of the European Commission (EC) Ursula Von Der Leyen during which they discussed ties between India and the European Union (EU).

Taking to Twitter after their meeting here, Jaishankar said: “Pleased to call on President of @EU_Commission @vonderleyen. Discussed taking forward the #IndiaEU partnership.

“Also exchanged views on the economic and political implications of the Ukraine conflict.”

The EC President embarked on her visit to India on April 23.

Earlier on Monday, she visited the Raj Ghat where she paid tribute “to the life and legacy of Mahatma Gandhi”.

“His aura has long transcended the borders of his native India. He has gifted us a precious set of values which, more than ever, should guide us in making our world a more peaceful place,” Von Der Leyen said in a tweet.

In another tweet, she said: “Strengthening the India-EU partnership is a key priority for this decade. We will step up cooperation in trade, technology and security.

“This is why I’m pleased that (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi and I will establish an EU-India Trade and Technology Council.”

On Sunday, she also addressed a meeting on Solar Energy Development at the International Solar Alliance Headquarters and also visited The Energy and Resources Institute.

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