EU Economy: Weak EU growth and Covid-hit China raise prospect of global downturn - by Martin Arnold and Valentina Romei

New data on Friday showed that the Russian invasion is weighing on Europe’s economy, pushing up energy and food prices, worsening supply bottlenecks for manufacturers as well as sapping business and consumer confidence.

The disappointing news came a day after the US announced that its economy suffered an unexpected 0.4 per cent quarterly contraction, while worries about the impact of severe Covid-19 lockdowns in China caused the steepest monthly fall in the renminbi on record.

The Chinese currency has fallen 4.2 per cent this month to about Rmb6.6 per dollar, the biggest drop since the end of its US dollar peg, which was in place from 1994 to 2005. The fall is greater than a one-off devaluation by the Chinese central bank in 2015 that rattled global markets and a tumble in 2018 during the US-China trade war under the Trump administration.

Economists said the combination of weak global growth, soaring commodity prices and a series of expected interest rate rises by western central banks — including an unusually large 0.5 percentage point hike by the US Federal Reserve that could come next week — would spell trouble for the global economy.

“The world is in really bad shape,” said Erik Nielsen, chief economics adviser at UniCredit. “Particularly in Europe, where we have entered stagflation now.” He predicted that the eurozone was heading for a “double whammy” of an economic downturn and rising borrowing costs as the European Central Bank was likely to raise interest rates as early as July.

Read more at: Weak EU growth and Covid-hit China raise prospect of global downturn | Financial Times

Ukraine War: Biden to join NATO leaders in Brussels and attend European Council summit next week amid Ukraine war

President Joe Biden will travel to Europe next week to meet with world leaders and discuss Russia's invasion of Ukraine, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday. The President will travel to Brussels, Belgium, to participate in a NATO summit on March 24 and will also join a European Council meeting, Psaki told reporters at a White House briefing.

The trip, which will be one of the most closely watched visits to Europe by an American president in decades, comes weeks after Russia launched an unprovoked attack on Ukraine. Biden will "discuss ongoing deterrence and defense efforts," during the NATO summit and reaffirm the US' commitment to its NATO allies, Psaki said.

"He will also join a scheduled European Council summit to discuss our shared concerns about Ukraine, including trans-Atlantic efforts to impose economic costs on Russia, provide humanitarian support to those affected by the violence and address other challenges related to the conflict," she said.

Note EU-Digest: It is high time for the West to give Putin an ultimatum to stop the agression against Ukraine, or that they will establish a no-fly zone. It is also important that Russia realizes that if they use nuclear weapons, Russia itself will become a nuclear wasteland. US, NATO, EU and all its allies, please stop acting like "sissies", being pushed around by this bully !

Read more at: https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/15/politics/biden-travel-to-europe/index.html

Ukraine war: Netherlands Sends Ukraine Stingers, Anti-Tank Rocket - by Inder Singh Bisht

The Netherlands dispatched an arms consignment Sunday to Ukraine that includes 50 German-made anti-tank rocket launchers and Stinger missiles.

The consignment aboard a C-17 transport aircraft also includes 100 sniper rifles with 30,000 rounds, 3,000 combat helmets, 2,000 fragmentation vests, 30 metal detectors, wire-guided robots to detect sea mines, five weapon location radars, and two battlefield surveillance radars, as requested by Kyiv.

Read more at: Netherlands Sends Ukraine Stingers, Anti-Tank Rocket Launchers

Netherlands Pauses Decisions on Ukrainians’ Asylum Applications for Next Six Months

As a response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, its nationals will be able to live in the Netherlands without having to apply for asylum for up to six months.

Read more at: Netherlands Pauses Decisions on Ukrainians’ Asylum Applications for Next Six Months - SchengenVisaInfo.com

Ukraine conflict: Netherlands sending 200 Stinger missiles to Ukraine; More military aid en route

The Netherlands will deliver 200 Stinger anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine as soon as possible, the Cabinet said on Saturday. The decision comes after additional requests from Ukraine for military goods. For this request, a careful, but shortened, assessment against the arms export criteria took place, according to a letter sent by Foreign Affairs Minister Wopke Hoekstra and Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren to the Tweede Kamer.

In addition to the 200 Stinger missiles, the Netherlands already dispatched the military equipment it committed to providing "for Ukrainian self-defense against an armed attack by Russia," Hoekstra said. Some of that material was already sent, with more to be dispatched as soon as possible. -Advertentie-

Read more at: Netherlands sending 200 Stinger missiles to Ukraine; More military aid en route | NL Times

The Netherlands: Demonstrators across Netherlands protest Russian invasion of Ukraine

Ukraine, according to Omroep West, while about 40 people took to the streets in Eindhoven. Demonstrations also took place in Enschede and Hengelo, and another one has been announced via social media for Amsterdam on Sunday.

Demonstrators in The Hague have gathered in various places, including outside the city hall at Spuiplein and outside the Russian embassy. They are calling for the Netherlands to aid Ukraine and for Russia to be excluded from the international payment system SWIFT. Some signs also say the protesters no longer want gas from Russia.

Read more at: Demonstrators across Netherlands protest Russian invasion of Ukraine | NL Times

Netherlands to send military equipment to Ukraine -government

The Netherlands announced it will be sendibg military equipment to Ukraine -government

Read more at: Netherlands to send military equipment to Ukraine -government | Reuters

Storm: Britain - Netherlands hit by powerful storm: Storm Eunice Slams Northern Europe With Dangerously High Winds - by Derrick Bryson Taylor and Amanda Holpuch

Strong winds battered parts of Britain and Northern Europe on Friday, as a severe storm led to the deaths of at least seven people in the region, damaged buildings and severely disrupted travel by air, land and sea,

Netherlands Meteorological Institute warned of “significant damage and very dangerous situations” expected from falling trees and flying objects.

Read more at: Storm Eunice Slams Northern Europe With Dangerously High Winds - The New York Times

The Netherlands: Travel: Netherlands to Remove Quarantine Requirement on February 25

“From February 25, 2022, people travelling from very high-risk areas are no longer required by law to self-quarantine on arrival,” the statement of the government reads.

ead more at: Travel: Netherlands to Remove Quarantine Requirement on February 25 - SchengenVisaInfo.com

The Netherlands - Electric Cars: Tesla opens entire Supercharger network in the Netherlands to all EVs - by Rebecca Bellan

Tesla said Monday that non-Tesla owners can charge their electric vehicles at all Supercharger stations in the Netherlands.

The announcement marks an expansion of a pilot program that kicked off in November 2021 with 10 stations. CEO Elon Musk had initially expressed interest in opening up the Supercharger network to other EVs in the summer of the same year.

Unlike other automakers, Tesla operates an expansive proprietary network that has previously prevented EVs from other automakers from using the chargers. The network, which Tesla began building in 2012, now numbers 30,000 Supercharging stations globally.

Read more at: Tesla opens entire Supercharger network in the Netherlands to all EVs | TechCrunch

Netherlands aims to drop most COVID measures this month

The Dutch government on Thursday said it aims to drop most of its coronavirus restrictions by the end of the month, as record levels of infections in recent weeks have only had a limited effect on hospital numbers.

Bars and restaurants will be allowed to stay open until 1 a.m. (midnight GMT) as of Feb. 18, instead of the current order to close at 10 p.m., h

Read more at: Netherlands aims to drop most COVID measures this month | Reuters

Facebook threatening EU: Meta (FB) May Shut Down Facebook, Instagram in Europe Over GDPR Data Rules - by Jillian Deutsch and Stephanie Bodoni

Meta Platforms Inc. has once again threatened to pull Facebook and Instagram from Europe if it is unable to keep transferring user data back to the U.S., amid negotiations betwregulators to replace a scrapped privacy pact.

European Union regulators have for months been stuck in negotiations with the U.S. to replace a transatlantic data transfer pact that thousands of companies relied on, but which got struck down by the EU Court of Justice in 2020 over fears citizens’ data isn’t safe once shipped to the U.S.

In its annual report published Thursday, Meta said that if it couldn’t rely on new or existing agreements -- such as so-called standard contractual clauses -- to shift data, then it would “likely be unable to offer a number of our most significant products and services, including Facebook and Instagram, in Europe.”

Read more at: Meta (FB) May Shut Down Facebook, Instagram in Europe Over GDPR Data Rules - Bloomberg

The Netherlands: Why the Dutch embrace floating homes - by Shira Rubin

When a heavy storm hit in October, residents of the floating community of Schoonschip in Amsterdam had little doubt they could ride it out. They tied up their bikes and outdoor benches, checked in with neighbours to ensure everyone had enough food and water, and hunkered down as their neighborhood slid up and down its steel foundational pillars, rising along with the water and descending to its original position after the rain subsided.

"We feel safer in a storm because we are floating," says Siti Boelen, a Dutch television producer who moved into Schoonschip two years ago. "I think it's kind of strange that building on water is not a priority worldwide."

As sea levels rise and supercharged storms cause waters to swell, floating neighbourhoods offer an experiment in flood defence that could allow coastal communities to better withstand climate change. In the land-scarce but densely populated Netherlands, demand for such homes is growing. And, as more people look to build on the water there, officials are working to update zoning laws to make the construction of floating homes easier.

Read More at: Why the Dutch embrace floating homes - BBC Future

The Netherlands: Around 90% of newly built homes erected last year in the Netherlands are gas-free – by Emiliano Bellini

Netbeheer Nederland, the Dutch association of national and regional power network operators, has revealed that approximately 90.1% of new buildings erected last year are not connected to the gas network in the service areas of grid operators Liander, Enexis Netbeheer and Stedin.

A year earlier, this percentage had reached around 87%. “The number of applications to disconnect existing homes from natural gas is also increasing,” the organization said. “For example, households are switching to all-electric as a sustainable alternative.”

Netbeheer Nederland specified that the 10% of new homes built last year that were still linked to the gas grid were granted this possibility as their environmental permit was filed before 1 July 2018. “In addition, municipalities still have the option of granting an exemption for new construction projects after 1 July 2018, for example when solutions other than natural gas are technically impossible,” it added.

Read more at: Around 90% of newly built homes erected last year in the Netherlands are gas-free – pv magazine International

EU: Time to make new alliances? European diplomacy in the Ukraine crisis

The Ukrainian parliament witnessed an unusual scene this week. A group of representatives gathered around the lectern and held up flags of NATO and allied countries for the cameras — a demonstration of gratitude for foreign support for Ukraine in the confrontation with Russia. The flag of the United Kingdom, the Union Jack, featured twice.

It was also on display in the streets of the Ukrainian capital on Tuesday, when the British prime minister, Boris Johnson, visited Kyiv. Ukraine is clearly grateful to the beleaguered Johnson, who is under considerable pressure on the domestic front. His government supplied Ukraine with anti-tank weapons in recent weeks, the British army is training Ukrainian soldiers, and now the British Conservative leader is holding out the prospect of financial support equivalent to 100 million euros to assist Kyiv in the current crisis.

Read more at: Time to make new alliances? European diplomacy in the Ukraine crisis | Europe | News and current affairs from around the continent | DW | 04.02.2022

The Netherlands-Ukraine Relations: Dutch PM, in Kyiv, urges justice for MH17 victims, dialogue in Ukraine crisis

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte urged dialogue to defuse a crisis with Russia on Wednesday during a trip to Kyiv in which he also reaffirmed his resolve to secure justice for families of the victims of an airliner downed over eastern Ukraine in 2014.

Rutte is the latest leader - following in the tracks of the British and Polish premiers - to visit Kyiv in a show of solidarity after Russia massed tens of thousands of troops near Ukraine's borders in a standoff that has alarmed the West.

The Ukraine crisis is closely watched in the Netherlands, where Dutch prosecutors have sought the convictions of four men charged with murder over the shooting down of the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17.

Read more Dutch PM, in Kyiv, urges justice for MH17 victims, dialogue in Ukraine crisis | Reuters

The Netherlands: How the Dutch Built the Netherlands to Protect it from Flooding

through the building of dikes, drainage canals, and pumping stations. Today, there are more than 3,000 polders throughout the nation. This wasn't enough though, and in 1916, they suffered from severe flooding.

That's when the Dutch decided to work on the Afsluitdijk to protect low-lying areas and the wall off the Zuiderzee from the sea. The seawall was one of the largest engineering feats of its time, spanning 20 mi (32 km) and a final height of 23 ft (7 m) above sea level. More impressive was the fact that it was topped off by sand and clay, and held together by grass.

Read more at: How the Dutch Built the Netherlands to Protect it from Flooding

NATO allies put forces on standby as tensions rise over Ukraine crisis - by Eliza Mackintosh

NATO announced on Monday that some member countries are putting forces on standby and sending additional ships and fighter jets to eastern Europe as the United Kingdom and the United States ordered diplomats' families to withdraw from Ukraine amid concerns of a Russian invasion.

The developments underscore growing fears of a possible Russian incursion, following months of military maneuvering by Moscow that has set off a tit-for-tat series of escalations with NATO, a military alliance of Western powers.

Read more at: NATO allies put forces on standby as tensions rise over Ukraine crisis - CNN

Netherlands: World's First Waxed Vegan Cheese Wheels Launch In Netherlands - by Tanuvi Joe

Amsterdam cheese makers Max&Bien just unveiled the world’s first plant-based cheese wheel with paraffin coating. The new sliceable speciality cheeses are made from fermented wheat. From this week, consumers will be able to buy the products from cheese and delicatessen stores.

ProVeg, the international nonprofit dedicated towards building a sustainable food system called this move as an innovative step in the booming market for vegan cheese.

Read more at: World's First Waxed Vegan Cheese Wheels Launch In Netherlands

The Netherlands: Dutch cabinet to discuss COVID-19 rules as OMT advises further relaxations

The government’s decision to leave a number of lockdown measures in place at the last press conference was met with much controversy and various protests and demonstrations across the Netherlands. Now, however, less than two weeks later, the outlook appears to be more positive and Prime Minister Mark Rutte is optimistic about lifting various COVID-19 restrictions on Tuesday.

The OMT is also feeling more hopeful, with the latest report from medical experts advising the Dutch government to reopen the hospitality and cultural industries, albeit with an enforced closing time of 8pm.

Sources in The Hague have suggested that Rutte and Health Minister Ernst Kuipers will opt to open restaurants, museums, theatres, and cinemas, with an enforced closing time of 10pm. With these venues reopening, the government will also reintroduce the use of coronavirus certificates.

Read more at: Dutch cabinet to discuss COVID-19 rules as OMT advises further relaxations