UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has dismissed EU accusations that Britain was deliberately procrastinating over Brexit trade talks to wait until the winner of the US presidential election has been determined, reports The Sun.

No 10 Downing Street rejected as “simply untrue” speculations that UK concerns that an administration led by Democrat Joe Biden might adopt a tougher stance on a US-UK trade deal could prompt London to grant more concessions to Brussels in order to get a deal done with the EU.

A source was cited as brushing off such claims by officials in Brussels as no more than “wishful thinking” and “desperate stuff”.

‘Mass Bargaining Session’

Following almost two weeks of intense negotiations between the EU and the UK that have not resulted in any breakthrough on major sticking points, Chief EU negotiator Michel Barnier is claimed to have rejected London’s calls to elevate ongoing Brexit talks to leaders’ level.

Warning that they were on a “trajectory” for a No Deal scenario, he was reported to have denounced the UK’s attempts to turn the current stage of talks on shaping the post-Brexit relationship between the sides into a “mass bargaining session”.

Some EU officials were claimed to have accused Britain of calling time on talks early this week amid the tight US election race between President Donald Trump and his Democratic rival Joe Biden.

Sources were cited by the outlet as suggesting that at a private briefing to senior MEPs Michel Barnier railed against No10 gearing up for a “big tug of war at the end”, with as many as 30 issues open for further discussion.

The French politician serving as the European Commission’s Head of Task Force for Relations with the UK reportedly fears that Boris Johnson hopes to wangle more concessions in a direct showdown with president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Key contentious issues up for debate between the sides have been access to UK fishing waters by EU boats and the need to have common regulatory standards and fair competition.

On fishing, the UK has urged that opportunities be calculated on the basis of ‘zonal attachment’ – a move that would increase the amount of fish caught in UK waters by British boats, while the EU says reaching a “fair deal” on fisheries is a pre-condition for a free trade agreement.

Referring to London’s tactics, Barnier is claimed by sources as having told European diplomats:

“I keep telling them that’s not going to happen… You can’t have things going up to that level that haven’t been gone over with a fine toothcomb.”

The official is cited as having added that unless Downing Street changes its approach to negotiations with Brussels, next week, a deal won’t be reached.

​Currently, British and EU negotiators are taking a three-day break from talks and are scheduled to reconvene in London on Sunday.

Both sides have been trying to strike a trade deal since the UK left the EU on 31 January in time for the agreement to be ratified by the end of the year, when a post-Brexit transition period ends.

The Moria fire

In September, the Moria camp on Lesvos burned down, leaving about 12,000 people without shelter. Most of them were transferred to an emergency site, which was later flooded. This prompted renewed calls for a dignified and long-term solution for people seeking asylum in Greece.

During his visit to Moria in October, FRA’s Director Michael O’Flaherty offered the Agency’s support to meet international human rights standards as new facilities are developed.

Situation at the border

Both at land and sea borders, the number of reported pushbacks is increasing.

As the Coronavirus pandemic situation abated in summer, the number of migrants and refugees arriving to Europe increased again.

Over 300 people have died or gone missing while trying to reach European shores. Moreover, authorities in many countries do not allow ships to land in their ports, leaving people stranded at sea. Many migrants are also attempting to cross the Channel.

Asylum procedure

The number of asylum applications is still significantly below pre-COVID-19 levels.

Many national authorities managed to reduce the backlog of asylum applications despite the Coronavirus challenges, but applicants still face long waiting times. Access to the asylum procedures remains complicated – applicants lack information and legal support. Many family reunification procedures are on hold because of the pandemic.

Reception centres

Many centres remain overcrowded, making it difficult to follow COVID-19 hygiene and physical distancing measures.

In some countries, arrivals are not promptly registered, which prevents access to accommodation and food. In others, migrants have to undergo a quarantine in undignified conditions.

Child protection

Thousands of unaccompanied children continue living in unsuitable conditions.

After the fires in Moria, a number of countries – such as Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Slovenia – committed to relocate 400 unaccompanied children who had been living in the camp.

Policy developments

On 23 September, the European Commission published a new Pact on Migration and Asylum. It sets out a new approach to migration and asylum management in the EU, with a stronger focus on border procedures, improving cooperation with the countries of origin and transit, successful integration of refugees and return of those with no right to stay.

Background:

The latest migration quarterly bulletin covers the period between 1 July and 30 September 2020. FRA has been regularly collecting data on migration since September 2015.

Access previous migration quarterly reports >>

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The European Union (EU) delegation in Uganda will today meet President Yoweri Museveni to discuss conservation of natural resources.

Eight EU Ambassadors have for the past four days been in Western and Northern Uganda to assess and discuss environmental conservation in the country. Top on the agenda was the controversial cultivation of sugarcane in Bugoma central forest reserve by Hoima Sugar Limited, depletion of Zoka central forest reserve by illegal lumbers and charcoal burning and others.

The other area of interest was the proposed construction of a 360 MW hydropower dam on Murchison Falls among others.

Addressing journalists in Gulu city on Thursday, Ambassador Attilio said that the country needs to strike the right balance between development or the necessity to develop with the much-needed conservation of its treasures.

According to Attilio, there should always be dialogue and clear decisions regarding the conservation of the environment.

Dr Roswitha Kremser, the Head of Austria office in Uganda said that there should be options and alternatives to the destruction of natural resources.

Speaking about the cultivation of sugarcane in Bugoma forest, Kremser questioned whether sugarcane growing can take place in a forest or whether there are no alternative sites that can be found. She demanded that natural resources should not be destructed at the expense of development.

Per Lindgarde, the Ambassador of Sweden said that protecting and restoring forests is very important since it attracts tourists and other benefits.

He noted that environment and climate change were key for Sweden and the European Union, which explains why they support natural resource management.

The Ambassador of Italy, Massimiliano Mazzanti said that investment activities in Bugoma forest do not make any sense to them as the European Union.

“There is enough production of sugar in this country. We understand of course the impact of such an investment in terms of short-term jobs but killing the forest to produce sugar, it is suicide in long term perspective to the economy for the whole region,” Mazzanti noted.

He equally said that building a dam on Murchison Falls also does not make sense since there is already enough production of electricity in the country.

Jules-Armand Aniambossou the Ambassador of France, said that Uganda could become the worst example if it doesn’t take conservation seriously.

Besides environment conservation, the EU Press and Information Officer Emmanuel Gyezaho says that the meeting between the President and the Ambassadors is in line with Article 8 Cotonou Partnership Agreement Political Dialogue regularly held between the EU and Government of Uganda.

The last meeting between the EU delegation and the President was on 15th November 2019. They discussed topics ranging from business and investment climate, human rights and democracy including electoral reforms, freedom of assembly and expression as well as National dialogue.

URN

The European Union (EU) on Thursday called on Israel to stop the demolition of Palestinian homes in the occupied territories.

EU Spokesperson Peter Santo announced in a statement: “This week, Israeli forces demolished more than 70 structures, including residential, livelihood and sanitation facilities, belonging to 11 Palestinian families with 41 children in Khirbet Hamsa Al-Foqa, in the northern Jordan Valley.”

“This large-scale demolition confirms once again the regrettable trend of confiscations and demolitions since the beginning of the year,” he added.

“This comes on top of the threat of demolition of the Palestinian school in the Ras Al-Teen community in the central West Bank, which has been co-funded by the EU and several EU Member States,” added Santo.

The EU official indicated: “There are currently 52 Palestinian schools under threat of demolition.”

Santo asserted: “As reiterated in previous EU Council Conclusions, the EU calls for the protection of children, including ensuring their right to education in a safe and secure school environment. Education is a basic human right that should be protected and maintained.”

READ: France condemns Erdogan over ‘violence’, threatens sanctions on Turkey

He continued: “Such developments constitute an impediment towards the two-state solution.”

“The EU reiterates its call on Israel to halt all such demolitions, including of EU-funded structures, in particular in light of the humanitarian impact of the current coronavirus pandemic,” concluded the EU spokesperson.

Meanwhile, the United Nations announced on Thursday: “So far in 2020, 689 structures have been demolished across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.”

Yvonne Helle, acting humanitarian coordinator in the occupied Palestinian territory, disclosed in a statement on Thursday that these demolitions resulted in the displacement of 869 Palestinians who lost their homes.

Helle pointed out that the number of razed buildings since the beginning of the year until today is: “More than in any full year since 2016.”

READ: Austria calls for European front in ‘war on Islamism’

BRUSSELS: A second wave of the coronavirus pandemic has stalled a nascent recovery in Europe, the European Union (EU) said today, warning that the economy would not return to pre-virus normality before 2023.

“The rebound has been interrupted,” the EU’s economic affairs commissioner Paolo Gentiloni told reporters as he announced new forecasts.

The soured outlook dashed hopes for a quick turnaround of the European economy and raised questions whether more stimulus would be needed to avert more lasting damage.

“We never counted on a V-shaped recovery. Now we know for sure that we won’t have one,” Gentiloni said.

In its forecast, Brussels pointed to a whole series of danger signs, including higher unemployment and soaring debt levels for countries that will need to keep spending to revive their economies.

The European Commission said the eurozone economy would expand by just 4.2% next year, much lower than the 6.1% it predicted in July.

In effect, renewed disruptions across the continent will “put the recovery on hold in the short term”, Gentiloni said, but added that the outlook was subject to “extremely high uncertainty”.

The loss of steam came despite a better-than-expected recovery in the middle of 2020 which limited the depth of this year’s historic recession.

The economy in the 19 countries that use the single currency would crash by minus 7.8 percent in 2020, instead of the minus 8.7 predicted earlier, the EU said.

But, unlike earlier hopes, EU economic output “will not return to pre-pandemic levels by 2022,” warned commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis.

All 19 eurozone countries are mired in recession this year, but three are particularly hard hit – Spain with a dive of 12.4%, Italy at minus 9.9% and France at minus 9.4%.

Germany, the bloc’s leading economy, has limited the damage, with GDP expected to fall 5.6% in 2020.

The downturn has led member states to open the purse strings in the hopes of saving their economies and public deficits have widened to more than 10% in the case of France, Italy, Spain and Belgium.

As a clear consequence, the debt of the member states is expected to soar in 2020 and will exceed 100% of GDP in the eurozone as a whole.

The commission called on the European Central Bank to keep doing all it can to offset the negative consequences of this heavy debt.

So far, thanks to the ECB’s action, the financial markets have shrugged off the extra public spending with borrowing costs currently near record lows despite the high debt.

The EU also underlined the uncertainty of stalled post-Brexit talks, which “clearly weighs on the EU’s economic outlook,” Dombrovskis said.

In another development, the recovery in German industrial orders from the shock of pandemic restrictions slowed in September, official data showed on Thursday, as new measures to tackle a resurgence in cases clouds the outlook again.

“After the first strong recovery following the lockdown in April, industry is continuing to fight its way out of the crisis,” the economics ministry said in a statement.

Industrial orders grew 0.5% month-on-month, compared with a rise of 4.9% in August, as curbs tightened and quarantines became more widespread across Europe to fight a second wave of the pandemic.

The data was below expectations for a 1.5% rise, according to financial services provider FactSet.

The small rise was sustained by domestic demand which went up 2.3% in September, while orders from abroad dipped 0.8%.

Compared with the same month in 2019, industrial orders were down 1.9%.

Manufacturing has benefited from Germany’s economic recovery from May onwards, enabling orders to return close to levels in the fourth quarter of 2019 before the outbreak of the pandemic, the ministry said, “driven by domestic and foreign demand”.

The automotive industry, the engine of the German economy, saw orders rebound strongly at 5.1%, reaching levels 5.8% above February 2020.

Germany’s economy expanded by a record 8.2% in the third quarter as restrictions were lifted and shops and factories reopened.

However, lockdowns announced by Chancellor Angela Merkel to curb the second wave in the country for the month of November will likely hit the economy again. – AFP