Europe

Paywall? https://archive.is/IEsaS

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/46960583

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/46947893

I found this on Reddit and I read the whole thing, I thought it was interesting.

The author argues in favour of greater European independence on defence (and less dependence on the US). The article is a year old but I think it's still relevant.

The author is apparently a journalist with France 24, a French state-owned media company, so you could say that makes him biased in favour of the French position. But I think he still makes valid points.

Mirror: https://archive.is/2024.11.07-142852/https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/11/07/europe-needs-to-wake-up-and-look-after-itself

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/46866518

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/46874673

Germany's Federal Prosecutor's Office said on Thursday that it had arrested a US national, identified as Martin D., on suspicion of offering to spy for China.

"The accused is strongly suspected of having declared himself willing to conduct espionage agent activities to a foreign intelligence service," prosecutors said in a statement.

What are the allegations?

"Until recently, Martin D. worked for the US military services in Germany," prosecutors said. "In 2024, he contacted Chinese state officials and offered to them to forward sensitive information belonging to the US military to an intelligence service in China."

Prosecutors said he had acquired the data during his time working with the military. They did not say whether his offer had been accepted or whether he had delivered any information.

The investigations were conducted in close coordination with Germany's domestic intelligence agency, prosecutors said.

[...]

Several recent arrests on espionage allegations

German authorities last month arrested a Chinese woman, who had worked for a logistics services company at the Leipzig/Halle international airport.

She was accused of providing information obtained via her workplace to another Chinese national, Jian G., who is a former employee of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) European Parliament member Maximilian Krah.

Jian G. is accused of forwarding information to China from the European Parliament, with news of this development coming at the height of the European Parliament elections earlier this year, when Krah was the party's lead candidate.

Three German citizens were also arrested in Düsseldorf and Bad Homburg in April of this year, accused of forwarding on information on military technology.

Several of the other espionage-related investigations in Germany this year pertain to alleged attempts to transfer information to Russia.

In 2018 the Moldovan government launched an initiative to grow the country's IT sector - the Moldova IT Park (MITP).

This isn't a physical business park. Instead it is virtual scheme open to all IT firms in the country - and those that wish to move there from overseas. Firms that sign up only have to pay a corporation tax rate of 7%.

The MITP is part of a wider effort by the Moldovan government to modernise and expand its economy ahead of a bid to join the European Union in 2030.

This drive is being led by Moldova's pro-EU President Maia Sandu, who this week was re-elected for a second term. And last month Moldovans voted "yes" on pro-EU constitutional changes.

[...]

Dumitru Alaiba, Moldova's deputy prime minister and minister for economic development and digitalisation, is positive about where Moldova is heading.

"Moldova in the past 10 to 15 years has really proven that it's a country that can change very fast," he tells the BBC.

"This used to be a highly corrupt country, a country where, exactly 10 years ago, a billion dollars from our central banks just disappeared."

"We are moving very fast towards joining the EU, and we are reforming our economy at top speed. Of course, we have a long way to go."

[...]

Member companies of the MITP don't just benefit from the 7% corporation tax rate. They also don't need to make employer social security contributions, and staff don't have to pay income tax. [...]

The MITP has also simplified immigration procedures through the IT Visa program.

[...]

DARPA helps drives technological progress in the US forward. If the EU wants to create a similar agency, key changes will be needed.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/25878453

The draft amendment also includes prison time for those who access systems to maliciously spy or intercept data.

Finnish President Alexander Stubb has congratulated his future US counterpart Donald Trump on his re-election.

[...]

Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) commented on the election [in a press conference ...] "I have been saying for a long time that Europe must take a bigger role. We cannot count so much on US support. Of course, the United States has other interests," the PM said.

[...]

In Orpo’s view, peace must be achieved in Ukraine, but not under any conditions.

"Peace must be attained on Ukraine's terms," he said. "We have our own experience from history that if the big ones agree over [others'] heads, it is not in the interest of a small or independent nation, and hopefully this will be kept clearly in mind when a peace agreement is possibly made."

[...]

Former president Sauli Niinistö, who met with Trump multiple times, struck a cautious note in regard to the possible ramifications for Nato and Ukraine.

On Wednesday, Niinistö commented to Yle about Trump’s assertion that he will end the war in Ukraine quickly.

"I haven't seen a detailed plan on the matter, if there is one. Rather, that will have to be considered after we see what he is really going to do," Niinistö said.

[...]

Archived link

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on Monday, the 4th of November, during a visit to the German capital where he met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, that Russia is carrying out hybrid attacks against other countries as part of its all-out war against Ukraine.

“Russia is carrying out … an intensified campaign of hybrid attacks in the territories of our allies, directly interfering in our democracies, sabotaging industry and committing acts of violence,” Rutte said.

[...]

Calling the deployment of North Korean troops by Moscow a “major escalation”, Rutte said China and Iran also supported Moscow, but added that the NATO alliance was cooperating with countries in the Asia-Pacific region, including South Korea and Japan.

Dutch commissioner recommits to a 90% emissions cut by 2040, pledges not to revise deadlines for the phase-out of new petrol and diesel cars, and brushes off a far-right climate denier during a grilling by MEPs.

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/46758406