EU - Military - Foreign Policy: German Chancellor Angela Merkel calls for greater military cooperation in EU countries ahead of EU parliamentary elections in May - by Alex Daniel

Up Yours Donald !

Angela Merkel has said the European Union should cooperate more in developing weapons systems in a bid to push back against a growing wave of euroscepticism before the European parliamentary elections in May.

In a speech to her Christian Democrats party (CDU) she said: “It is good that after several decades we want to develop a common defence policy ... We must develop weapons systems together.”

“We have very strict export rules, others have less strict rules ... But anyone who develops an airplane with us would also like to know whether they can sell the plane with us,” she said.

Merkel has repeatedly stressed the importance of Germany’s partnership with France, saying on her weekly podcast this week the friendship was “far from a given after centuries of military conflict between our countries”.

“We want to give an impulse to European unity,” Merkel said.

In November the German Chancellor went as far as to call for the creation of a European Army, stressing that such an effort would not mean an end to the US-led Nato.

Note EU Digest: Given the present political climate in the US, the EU can not forever rely on the NATO being there, and must get off Grandpa's knee to take some more independent decissions of their own, as it relates to their defence and foreign policies.

EU-Digest

China-EU Trade Relations: It’s Official: EU Imposes Anti-Dumping Duties on E-Bikes Imported from China

Today the European Commission has imposed anti-dumping as well as anti-subsidy duties on e-bikes imported from China. The Commission has opted for the imposition of per company targeted dumping duties.

The dumping duties vary from 73.4 percent for the Bodo Vehicle Group, 24.6 percent for Giant Electric Vehicle to 33.4 percent for the majority of Chinese e-bike exporters

All other Chinese e-bike exporters are hit by a 79.3 percent anti-dumping duty. More to follow later. See also the attached EU document including the Annex on the impositions of the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties.

Read more at: It’s Official: EU Imposes Anti-Dumping Duties on E-Bikes Imported from China

Russia - Chechnya - LGBT Community: gay purge includes torture and killings

Arrests, torture and deaths part of Chechnya ‘gay purge’ accusations from Russian LGBT network

Read more at: 

https://www.euronews.com/2019/01/15/russian-lgbt-network-reports-arrests-torture-and-deaths-part-chechnya-gay-purge-accusation

EU - Economy - EURO: 20th. Anniversary of the EURO

European parliament marks 20th anniversary of euro

Note EU-Digest: A success story - 20 years EURO (€) currency. Remember those days before the EURO when driving by car from Holland to France, via Belgium and Germany, and having to exchange Dutch guilders to Belgian francs, German marks and French francs, paying the bank a percentage for each currency exchange they made, and also stopping at each border for custom controls. It is difficult to understand how some people want to go back to those "old days" before the EU and the € .Yes indeed #LoveTheEuro  and #LoveTheEU

Read more at:
https://www.euronews.com/2019/01/15/european-parliament-marks-20th-anniversary-of-euro

Biking: The Netherlands will pay people to ride bikes - by Andrea Lo

With 17 million residents and 23 million bicycles, the Netherlands already has more bikes than people. Now, it wants to get even more cyclists on the roads -- and will pay people to do it.

The Dutch government recently announced that it will invest $390 million (€345 million) in cycling infrastructure to get 200,000 more people commuting by bike in three years' time.

Fifteen routes will be developed into "cyclist freeways" (highways that cater to those on bikes), 25,000 bike parking spaces will be created and more than 60 bike storage facilities will be upgraded, according to the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management.

"My ambition is to ensure that people can easily get to work or school, or visit family and friends," says Stientje van Veldhoven, state secretary for that department, who is spearheading the project.

Read more at: The Netherlands will pay people to ride bikes | CNN Travel

The Netherlands: Dutch PM criticized after calling out 'white sipping elites' for not giving Trump a fair chance

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte faced criticism on Sunday after making comments about what he called "white wine sipping elites in Amsterdam" who are not giving US President Donald Trump a fair chance. Rutte made these comments during an appearance on Buitenhof, a weekly TV show focused on Dutch politics that aired on Sunday.  

Note Almere-Digest: Strange comments by Dutch PM, specially after the US Trump administration downgraded the diplomatic status of the  European Union’s delegation to the United States last year without making a formal announcement or informing the bloc about the change. The European Union’s demotion from a member state to an international organization became clear at the funeral of President George Bush, when Mr.O’Sullivan’s name was not called in the expected order, dictated by diplomatic protocols.Donald Trump certainly is not a friend of the EU, or the Netherlands, a Member State of the European Union. The Dutch PM "must have lost his "marbles" in making these comments. 

For the full report click on link below 
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/01/dutch-pm-criticised-calling-white-wine-sipping-elites-190113195619653.html

Dutch public transport is the most expensive in Europe - by Mina Solanki

According to 2017 figures from the European Statistical Office Eurostat,
public transport in the Netherlands is more expensive than in any of the other 27 countries in the European Union.

Dutch public transport is the most expensive in Europe