- Time to get serious about saving gas
- Draghi wins confidence vote by a hair’s width
- Nord Stream 1 bookings at 40 percent of capacity
- Gas crisis: Commission relaxes state aid rules
- New Russia sanctions to come into force this Thursday
- Grain exports: Erdogan wants agreement on corridor this week
- Commission increases pressure on Orbán
- Only Sunak and Truss left in race to succeed Johnson
- EU states want to strengthen consumer protection
- EU likely to bolster Apple probe with new evidence
- Michael Clauß – the man for the long haul
Brussels refuses to be impressed by Moscow’s further moves around energy supply. The EU states are to cut gas consumption by 15 percent possibly starting already in August – mandatorily if necessary. Manuel Berkel analyzes why this sweeping broad-brush approach could be risky.
Early elections are on the horizon in Italy. Yesterday, Prime Minister Mario Draghi won the vote of confidence but is expected to offer his resignation to head of state Sergio Mattarella again soon regardless. Isabel Cuesta Camacho reports from Italy.
The political scene in Brussels goes on its obligatory summer break in August, despite war and crises. However, EU diplomats like Michael Clauß continue to work under high pressure. In addition to the sanctions, the German must also discuss the Commission’s new gas emergency plan with the other permanent representatives of the EU states in a fast-track procedure. Till Hoppe presents a profile of the long-distance runner.
I wish you an exciting read or, in the words of Boris Johnson at his last parliamentary appearance yesterday, “Hasta la vista, baby.”
Lisa-Martina Klein
Feature
Time to get serious about saving gas
Brussels would like to see as much unity as in the Commission among the EU members. Yesterday, no less than four members of the College presented the gas emergency plan for the winter – from President Ursula von der Leyen and her Vice President Frans Timmermans to the heads of energy and the internal market Kadri Simson and Thierry Breton.
Von der Leyen left no doubt about the seriousness of the situation: “Russia is blackmailing us and using energy as a weapon. With the “Save Gas for a Safe Winter” plan, the EU wants to prepare for all possible courses of action, be it a partial or even a complete halt to Russian supplies. Putin should therefore be given no more room to delay a decisive response by the community of states with ever new maneuvers.
The steps largely correspond to the drafts made public on Tuesday and a week ago. The Council is to adopt a regulation as early as July 26, the draft of which was also presented by the Commission yesterday. The timetable has been clear since yesterday: Already from August and until the end of March, each member state should reduce its gas consumption by 15 percent. The comparison period is to be the average of the years 2016 to 2021, also taking harsher winters into account.
Continue reading now
… and get free access to this Professional Briefing for a month.
Are you already a guest at the Europe.Table? Log in now