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Russia has informed the United Nations, Turkey, and Ukraine that it will not extend a crucial grain deal that allowed Ukraine to export grain through the Black Sea. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated that the agreements had effectively ended on Monday. The deal permitted cargo ships to pass through the Black Sea from the Ukrainian ports of Odesa, Chornomorsk, and Yuzhny/Pivdennyi. However, Russia stated that it would reconsider the agreement if certain conditions were met.

Russian President Vladimir Putin had previously expressed dissatisfaction with parts of the deal, claiming that the export of Russian food and fertilizers had not been fulfilled. He specifically mentioned that grain had not been supplied to poorer nations, which was a condition of the agreement. Russia also complained about Western sanctions limiting its agricultural exports and repeatedly threatened to withdraw from the deal.

On Monday, the Russian foreign ministry reiterated these concerns, accusing the West of “open sabotage” and prioritizing commercial interests over humanitarian goals. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his belief that Putin still wanted to continue the agreement and stated that they would discuss its renewal during their upcoming meeting.

The grain deal is significant because Ukraine is one of the world’s largest exporters of sunflower, maize, wheat, and barley. Following Russia’s invasion in February 2022, Ukrainian ports were blockaded, trapping 20 million tonnes of grain and causing a sharp increase in global food prices. The blockade also posed a threat to food supplies in Middle Eastern and African countries heavily reliant on Ukrainian grain.

Nikolay Gorbachev, the president of the Ukrainian Grain Association, mentioned that alternative methods of exporting grain had been identified, including through Danube River ports. However, he acknowledged that these ports would be less efficient, leading to reduced grain exports and increased transportation costs.

Western leaders swiftly criticized Russia’s decision, with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen condemning it as a “cynical move” and emphasizing the EU’s efforts to ensure food security for vulnerable populations.

Russia’s announcement coincided with Ukraine claiming responsibility for an attack on a bridge in Crimea that resulted in the deaths of two civilians. Peskov stated that Russia’s decision to let the deal expire was unrelated to the attack, as President Putin had already declared the position before the incident.

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The EU lawmakers, on Wednesday had approved a low that allows Britons visa-free visits even after a “no deal” Brexit. Severe disputes had been occurring over the status of Gibraltar.

The law already had the backing of member states. Even though Britain is about to leave the EU almost by next week, the law allows British visitors 90-day trips to the Schengen passport-free zone.

When asking the committee to back the proposal, Bulgarian EU lawmaker Sergei Stanishev said, “The 12th of April is coming and the faith of millions of UK citizens and EU citizens and their right to travel is in our hands”.

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The EU Commission had insisted EU states for tight checking on non-EU nationals with ‘golden passports’ through investments. The commission says that the granting of ‘golden visas’ might be leading to tax evasion, money-laundering and other forms of corruption. So, a thorough checking is being planned for the schemes regarding ‘golden visa’ granting residence in exchange for big investments.

According to reports, wealthy candidates for residency or citizenship do not face sufficient security and background checks to prevent them from posing a security risk or laundering money. Some of the non-government organisations have already marked countries such as Malta, Cyprus and Bulgaria for offering wealthy foreigners citizenship that allows them to move freely in most of the 28-nation bloc. Many other countries grant residence permits to foreign investors. Hence the EU commission had presented this stunning report regarding the risks of the ‘golden visa business’

Sunaya Paison
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The European Commission pushed back plans to end individual member states’ veto power on the introduction of a proposed tax on digital revenues by five years to 2025. The EU executive suggested that the EU states should take an immediate decision on ending the veto or not, particularly in some sectors such as environment levies.

The progress of the digital tax is blocked by some EU states, and for them, the decision to end the veto could be taken by the end of 2025, it said, pushing back the deadline from 2020.

Pierre Moscovici, the EU Economic and Financial Affairs Commissioner said that unanimous decisions don’t protect the national sovereignty of members states, going after an argument often used by critics.

In an important step back from initial plans, the EU Executive led by former Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, decided to dismiss a legal procedure that could make tax reforms easier to agree. This leads to encourage the lawmakers to dub the move as a “smokescreen”.

The veto power has blocked many important tax reforms. This includes the energy issues, where the EU still allows subsidies to diesel.

The EU document said that the cost of the vetoes on tax reforms overall are in the hundreds of billions of euros a year.


Sunaya Paison
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