MAGNITSKY ACT. Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who survived Novochok poisoning by Russia in August, has called upon the EU to target oligarchs close to President Vladimir Putin. Meanwhile, the EU is close to signing off on a Magnitsky-style law to impose sanctions on human rights abusers. “Getting the act passed is only 50% of the battle. The next 50% of the battle is getting the EU to use the legislation,” Bill Browder, an American-born British financier and political activist who lobbied for the original act, told EURACTIV. DISINFORMATION SANCTIONS. As part of the European Commission’s Democracy Action Plan, the EU is charting the establishment of punitive measures to improve the bloc’s and member states’ capacity to counter disinformation. ‘CAT AND MOUSE’. German Chancellor Angela Merkel hopes to keep a channel of communication open with Turkey as opposition forces in the country are advocating a different approach toward the EU, Social Democrat MEP Udo Bullmann told EURACTIV. However, he added, the EU should send a clear message to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at next week’s EU summit. There, the main foreign policy intrigue there will be whether member states will adopt sanctions against Ankara. Turkey has not de-escalated its stand-off with Greece in response to diplomatic outreach, European Council chief Charles Michel said, warning that EU member states would now consider “the means at our disposal”, which probably means sanctions. BREXIT WORRIES. Thousands of Europeans living in the UK risk missing the deadline to apply for settled status in Britain because they are unaware of the new settlement scheme or lack the digital skills to complete the application, according to new research. MIGRANT PUSHBACKS. Lawmakers in the European Parliament grilled the director of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency Frontex over migrant pushbacks in the Mediterranean, with left-wing political groups calling for his resignation. The EU also wants to improve migration cooperation with Morocco. MERCOSUR TALKS. The crisis of multilateralism, driven by the competition between the US and China, and a lukewarm push from the current leaders of the EU and Mercosur, explains why the agreement between these two blocks is such a challenge, analysts say. CHINA FIRST. China pushed past the US in the third quarter to become the European Union’s top trade partner, as the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the US while Chinese activity rebounded. |