Regulation essential to curb AI for surveillance, disinformation: rights experts

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2 June 2023

Regulation essential to curb AI for surveillance, disinformation: rights experts

In a statement on Friday, the experts said that emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence-based biometric surveillance systems, are increasingly being used “in sensitive contexts”, without individuals’ knowledge or consent

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‘Urgent red lines’ must be drawn

“Urgent and strict regulatory red lines are needed for technologies that claim to perform emotion or gender recognition,” said the experts, who include Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights while countering terrorism.

The Human Rights Council-appointed experts condemned the already “alarming” use and impacts of spyware and surveillance technologies on the work of human rights defenders and journalists, “often under the guise of national security and counter-terrorism measures”.

They also called for regulation to address the lightning-fast development of generative AI that’s enabling mass production of fake online content which spreads disinformation and hate speech.

Real world consequences

The experts stressed the need to ensure that these systems do not further expose people and communities to human rights violations, including through the expansion and abuse of invasive surveillance practices that infringe on the right to privacy, facilitate the commission of gross human rights violations, including enforced disappearances, and discrimination.

They also expressed concern about respect for freedoms of expression, thought, peaceful protest, and for access to essential economic, social and cultural rights, and humanitarian services.

“Specific technologies and applications should be avoided altogether where the regulation of human rights complaints is not possible,” the experts said.

The experts also expressed concern that generative AI development is driven by a small group of powerful actors, including businesses and investors, without adequate requirements for conducting human rights due diligence or consultation with affected individuals and communities.

And the crucial job of internal regulation through content moderation, is often performed by individuals in situations of labour exploitation, the independent experts noted.

More transparency

“Regulation is urgently needed to ensure transparency, alert people when they encounter synthetic media, and inform the public about the training data and models used,” the experts said.

The experts reiterated their calls for caution about digital technology use in the context of humanitarian crises, from large-scale data collection – including the collection of highly sensitive biometric data – to the use of advanced targeted surveillance technologies.

“We urge restraint in the use of such measures until the broader human rights implications are fully understood and robust data protection safeguards are in place,” they said.

Encryption, privacy paramount

They underlined the need to ensure technical solutions – including strong end-to-end encryption and unfettered access to virtual private networks – and secure and protect digital communications.

“Both industry and States must be held accountable, including for their economic, social, environmental, and human rights impacts,” they said. “The next generation of technologies must not reproduce or reinforce systems of exclusion, discrimination and patterns of oppression.”

Special Rapporteurs and other rights experts are all appointed by the UN Human Rights Council, are mandated to monitor and report on specific thematic issues or country situations, are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work.

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Sudan: Crisis fuels ‘desperate’ situation for civilians, as Security Council demands unhindered humanitarian access

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United Nations News

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2 June 2023

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Sudan: Crisis fuels ‘desperate’ situation for civilians, as Security Council demands unhindered humanitarian access

In a press statement issued late on Friday, the UN Security Council expressed its “deep concern” over the continued clashes, condemning all attacks on civilians, and calling for “rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian access throughout Sudan”.

The 15-member body emphasized the need for an immediate ceasefire, and reaffirmed it’s backing for the UN transition mission in Sudan, UNITAMS, to continue it work, despite the collapse of political momentum towards the move to civilian rule, that seemed so close just a few months ago.

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Council backs UN mission

The statement urged the mission’s “continued engagement, in full accordance with the principles of national ownership.”

The members of the Security Council underlined the need for strengthened international coordination and continued collaboration. They reaffirmed their firm support to African leaders involved in negotiations, and noted the African Union (AU) Roadmap for the Resolution of the Conflict in Sudan.

The Council also called for a resumption of a credible and inclusive political transition process, that takes into account the contributory role of all relevant Sudanese stakeholders.”

Turmoil on the ground

Since the conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces began, more than 1.2 million people have been displaced within the already impoverished country, and hundreds of thousands have fled across neighbouring borders. A rising death toll, rampant looting of humanitarian aid, and rising needs for assistance are growing concerns, UN agencies warned.

The situation was “particularly desperate” in Khartoum, where people were fleeing the violence or were unable to leave, said Patrick Elliott, head of operations for Sudan for the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFCR), briefing journalists at the UN in Geneva, who just returned from a visit to Port Sudan.

Tarik Jašarević, for the World Health Organization (WHO), said the numbers being provided from the Ministry of Health were an underestimate of the overall death toll.

Crippled health sector

Many health facilities are simply unable to function, Mr. Jašarević said, also raising concerns for around 20,000 pregnant women who are currently unable to receive pre-natal care.

Some 11 million people are in urgent need of health assistance in Sudan, including more than 2.6 million women and girls of reproductive age who have barely any access to contraception, pregnancy-related services, or treatment programmes for sexually transmitted infections, or response services for sexual violence, which is reported to be rising as the crisis escalates, according to the UN Population Fund (UNFPA).

An estimated 260,000 pregnant women in Sudan, including 90,000 expected to give birth in the next three months, could be affected by ongoing fuel shortages and power cuts that have already forced many hospitals to suspend emergency obstetric and neonatal care services, the agency said.

Fuel shortages threaten safe births

“We are running out of fuel,” said Sarah, a midwife at Khartoum’s UN-supported Ombada Hospital. “If the electricity cuts persist, we don’t know how we will be able to assist pregnant women giving birth a week from now.”

The agency is set to distribute 10 metric tonnes of life-saving sexual and reproductive health supplies to hospitals and health facilities, and could expand its pilot project to provide solar power, launched in 2022 in several hospitals in Sudan, to health centres in Khartoum, providing round-the-clock electricity for maternity wards, operating rooms, blood bank refrigerators, incubators, and medicine storage facilities.

Midwives at a UNFPA-supported hospital in Sudan before the crisis destroyed at least two out of three hospitals. (file)

UN food agency condemns looters

The World Food Programme (WFP) condemned on Friday the looting of humanitarian supplies at its distribution hub in south-central Sudan on Thursday, adding to $60 million in assets stolen since the start of the crisis in mid-April.

“This theft of humanitarian food and assets totally undermines these operations at a critical time for the people of Sudan,” the UN agency said. “This must stop.”

The WFP warehouses in El Obeid host one of the agency’s largest logistics bases in Africa and represents a “vital lifeline” for operations in Sudan and South Sudan, according to the agency.

“Millions will be impacted by this attack,” the agency warned, adding that initial reports suggest that food and nutrition supplies, vehicles, fuel, and generators have been looted in the most recent incident.

Since violence erupted, armed groups have attacked and looted WFP and partners’ storage facilities on multiple occasions and aid workers have been killed or injured, the agency said.

The ongoing violence could lead an estimated 2.5 million people in Sudan to “slip into hunger in the coming months”, the agency added.

Warning that acute food insecurity in Sudan could reach record levels, affecting more than 19 million people or 40 per cent of the population, WFP reiterated calls to all parties to the conflict to ensure the safety and security of humanitarian assistance, aid workers, and assets so that the agency’s life-saving work can move forward.

‘Fearlessly’ providing support

Mr. Elliott, of the IFCR, said a team had been established to support the Sudanese Red Crescent, which have been mobilizing daily to help those in need. Emphasizing the bravery of volunteers, who are “fearlessly” providing local support, he said an emergency funding appeal and reports of rising malnutrition were also among grave concerns.

While funding is yet to materialize to address the immediate needs in Khartoum and surrounding areas, he reported good cooperation between UN agencies who continue to reach communities in local areas and provide them with support.

Outside of Khartoum, volunteers were working with communities of internally displaced persons, he said.

However, in Port Sudan, the levels of malnutrition are significant, he added.

Security Council considers UN mission renewal

The UN Security Council is scheduled to meet on Friday afternoon to consider the Secretary-General’s latest reports on the country and take action on the potential renewal of the mandate of the UN Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS).

The 15-member Council had established the special political mission in 2020 for an initial year to assist Sudan, then had renewed it annually. The UN Mission mandate is set to expire on Saturday.

In Port Sudan, emergency food packages are distributed to people fleeing fighting in Khartoum.

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Time running out to save Myanmar’s Rakhine from hunger and disease post-Cyclone Mocha

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United Nations News

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2 June 2023

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Time running out to save Myanmar’s Rakhine from hunger and disease post-Cyclone Mocha

Some 1.6 million people in Rakhine, Chin, Magway, Sagaing, and Kachin states are in dire need of assistance after Mocha’s 250 kilometre per hour wind gusts destroyed homes, farmland and livestock.

Speaking from hard-hit Rakhine State capital Sittwe, UN Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative in Myanmar, Titon Mitra, said that time was of the essence as food reserves were being “completely wiped out”, water sources needed to be urgently decontaminated and the monsoon was just “a matter of weeks away”.

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Dire need for access

“The international community has to be given widespread access to the affected communities. And that’s a very urgent requirement,” he said.

Last month, the UN launched a $333 million Flash Appeal for Myanmar. While some assistance is coming through, Mr. Mitra said that it was “not anywhere near sufficient” for the time being due to a lack of access and support in rural areas remained “far from adequate”.

“Some regional donors have already provided some support and that’s been channelled through the military logistics as CSOs (civil society organizations) and UN organizations have got limited access at the moment,” Mr. Mitra said.

‘Depoliticization, demilitarization’ of aid

The UN official highlighted that a distribution plan has been submitted to the military authorities, stressing that “it needs to be cleared very soon, so international organizations with their CSO partners can move freely”.

More than two years since Myanmar’s generals staged a military coup, sparking widespread ongoing civil unrest and violence, Mr. Mitra insisted that “this really is a time for the depoliticization and the demilitarization of aid, because the needs are absolutely immense”.

Rural livelihoods in jeopardy

The recovery may take years, he added, pointing out that the majority of those affected were already “the poorest of the poor”.

Concerns are also mounting fast about the future of rural livelihoods, as some 1,200 square kilometres of land flooded due to Mocha, while rains combined with storm surges devastated agriculture and fisheries.

A local resident cleans up the extensive damage to his shop caused by Cyclone Mocha in Sittwe, Rakhine state, Myanmar.

Looming food security crisis

Mr. Mitra warned that the provision of relief itself was “not enough” and that if people are unable to plant food crops within the next few weeks, there could be a “major food crisis” emerging in the coming months.

“Households have completely lost their seed stocks. So we are anticipating, unless there’s an effective response, that food availability and affordability will become huge issues,” he insisted.

Earlier this week, the UN included Myanmar in a list of 18 “hunger hotspots” where critical food insecurity is projected to intensify.

‘Cycle of suffering’

Already before Mocha hit, 80 per cent of people in Rakhine were living in poverty and 200,000 were internally displaced. In 2022, half of the state’s population were cutting down on meals due to the economic crisis, according to UNDP data.

If swift action by the international community did not materialize, “we risk perpetuating an unending cycle of suffering”, Mr. Mitra warned.

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Lettori, 7 MEPs demand Commissioner Schmit for Justice at EU Court

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Henry Rodgers

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2 June 2023

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Lettori // John Gilbert (from FLC CGIL) addresses protesters outside Minister Bernini's offices. — John Gilbert (from FLC CGIL) addresses protesters outside Minister Bernini's offices. Photo credit: Henry Rodgers

Lettori case // 7 of Ireland’s 13 MEPs have signed a Rule 138 parliamentary question to Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights, Nicolas Schmit, asking if the Commission will immediately refer the long-running Lettori discrimination case to the Court of Justice of the European Union(CJEU) for what would be a fifth ruling in the line of litigation which extends back to the seminal Allué ruling of 1989.

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Failure to comply with the Lettori case law

The question was occasioned by Italy’s failure to comply with the ruling in enforcement case C-119/04 within the two-month period given by the Commission in its January press release announcing the movement of infringement proceedings to the reasoned opinion stage. Rather than paying the settlements due to Lettori for decades of discriminatory treatment as requested by the Commission, Italy, in a Decree Law of 04 May, “instead legislated for additional time to come up with additional legislation to supposedly meet Treaty obligations it has infringed for over 3 decades”, as the Irish MEPs word it in their question.

In a speech before the European Parliament on Wednesday, Dublin MEP Clare Daly, who drafted the parliamentary question, strongly denounced the ongoing discrimination against Lettori. The points covered in her speech are in continuity with points she has raised in a series of telling questions on the Lettori case to the Commission over the mandate of the present parliament.

7 MEPs co-sign the question to the EU about the Lettori

ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw== Lettori, 7 MEPs demand Commissioner Schmit for Justice at EU Court — GUE/NGL, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

MEP Daly’s influential, penultimate question, co-signed by 7 of her Irish parliamentarian colleagues and placed shortly before the opening of the infringement proceedings, is framed within the context of the benefits and the accompanying responsibilities of EU membership. Placing the circumstances of the longest-running breach of the parity of treatment provision of the Treaty before the EU conscience, her words, which succinctly define the core principle at stake in the Lettori case, are worthy of citation:

“Italian universities receive generous funding from the EU. Italy has received the biggest share of the Recovery Fund. Surely, the ethic of reciprocation demands that Italy obey the rule of law and implement the most recent CJEU ruling in favour of the lettori: case C‑119/04.”

In one of her first acts in office newly elected FLC CGIL General Secretary Gianna Fracassi wrote to Commissioner Schmit, also calling for the immediate referral of the Lettori case to the CJEU. That FLC CGIL would ask the European Commission to prosecute the country of which it is the largest trade union for discriminatory treatment of non-national workers is most probably a novelty in supranational trade union representations, and the step provides authoritative backing for the Lettori campaign. The letter, which was copied to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Italy’s Minister for Universities, Anna Maria Bernini, has also been sent to all of Italy’s MEPs.

FLC CGIL Union sides with the Lettori

As a percentage of the overall FLC CGIL membership, the Lettori component is negligible. That the union has come to side so strongly and so publicly with the Lettori is due to the tireless work and painstaking persuasion of John Gilbert, a Lettore at the University of Florence. Instrumental in organizing the December protest outside the offices of Minister Bernini, his well-received address to his colleagues on that occasion touched on many of the points raised in the recent FLC CGIL letter to Commissioner Schmit.

If the FLC CGIL request to the Commission to prosecute the country in which it is legally established is novel, the conduct of “La Sapienza” University of Rome-based Asso.CEL.L, an official complainant in the Commission’s infringement proceedings, is atypical of unions too. A policy of not taking contributions has freed Asso.CEL.L from any need to self-promote and in the process won it the confidence of Lettori nationwide.

Its well-designed website, which receives thousands of hits and attendant downloads per year, seeks to educate visitors to the site about what has become a test case of the enforceability of Treaty provisions in the face of opposition from an intransigent Member State. The Census page shows university-by-university the results of the national survey conducted with FLC CGIL, which documented to the Commission’s satisfaction the non-payment of the settlements due to Lettori under CJEU case law.

This Census is alluded to in the Irish parliamentarians’ question to the Commission. Containing details on the beneficiaries of the ruling in Case C-119/04, their years of service, the more favourable parameters won before local Italian courts, it is a data bank with reference to which the settlements due to the Lettori could easily be calculated and made. It is in this context that the good faith of the recent Decree Law, which yet again defers to future legislation the arrangements for the payments of the settlements to Lettori, must be questioned.

Awaiting the interministerial decree

Lettori - Announcement by Italian Ministry of Universities of an upcoming interministerial decree — Lettori, 7 MEPs demand Commissioner Schmit for Justice at EU Court 3

As yet another Pilar Allué Day (the annually commemorated date of 30 May 1989 and Allué’s first victory before the CJEU) goes by, lawyers for Asso.CELL and FLC CGIL still await the publication of the Interministerial Decree promised in the Decree Law of 04 May.

While a press release announces that Minister for Universities and Research, Anna Maria Bernini and Minister for Economy and Finance, Giancarlo Giorgetti, have signed the Interministerial Decree to provide settlements for reconstruction of career, much to the frustration of the Lettori the text of the legislation itself has not been made public.

Whether the reconstruction of career due is in strict accordance with the CJEU ruling in Case C-119/04 , or whether the Interministerial Decree will be yet another measure by means of which Italy again attempts to evade its obligations to the Lettori under the Court case law thus still remains to be seen. Given the track record of misinterpretation of the Court’s ruling, Lettori commemorating Pilar Allué Day this week were understandably sceptical.

Under the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament, the Commission now has 6 weeks within which to reply to the Irish parliamentarians’ question.

Influencers in France face jail under new laws

By

Gaston de Persigny

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2 June 2023

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Influencers in France can now be jailed if found to have broken new promotion rules after a law was officially passed, CNN reported. The tough new laws aim to protect consumers from misleading or false commercial practices online. They restrict the promotion of lottery games and betting and ban the advertising of goods such as tobacco. For the first time in Europe, this role is defined by law. On Wednesday, the cross-party legislation passed unanimously in a vote in the Senate after moving through the rest of parliament. Influencers are online personalities who have a large following and can set trends. Some of them encourage people to buy the products they advertise, but often don’t declare that they accept money in exchange for promoting them. French lawmakers said they had sought to “clarify the contours” of commercial activity and specify the “responsibilities and obligations” of influencers amid a rise in the number of defrauded online individuals.

Under their new laws, “participants with commercial influence” will not be able to advertise lottery or gambling games on platforms that do not have the capacity to prohibit access to minors.

Along with tobacco products, the advertising of cosmetic surgery, as well as some financial products and medical devices, will be banned. Violations can mean a sentence of up to two years in prison or a fine of up to €300,000. However, there are concerns about the authorities’ ability to monitor compliance with the new rules – especially when influencers’ accounts are visible in France but the person is physically outside the country’s jurisdiction. There are believed to be more than 150,000 influencers in France, according to data from its Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty.

Photo by Atypeek Dgn: https://www.pexels.com/photo/french-flag-against-blue-sky-5781917/

In Moscow, a miraculous icon, which previously belonged to a Ukrainian temple, was stolen under the nose of the FSB

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Newsdesk

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2 June 2023

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The icon of the Virgin Bogolyubskaya was stolen from the Church of St. John the Evangelist in the center of Moscow, just 350 meters from the building of the Federal Security Service (FSB) on Lyubyanka Street, Russian media reported. However, an interesting clarification is that until about two weeks ago, the icon was located in the church of the Ukrainian city of Khartsysk on the territory of the separatist Donetsk People’s Republic, from where it was illegally exported. It was written in 2011. On May 9, 2023, the icon began to flow abundantly, believers took this as a sign and were convinced that it heals. Then the icon was taken temporarily to Moscow.

Now the icon has been taken by several women who have been captured on video. It is assumed that among them there are those who came from the occupied Mariupol. It is also reported that one of the women called the rector of the temple, Father Pavel, and explained that the icon was hers and that’s why she took it. Russian police have launched an investigation:

“Everything was fine until May 30th. It was then that three “demonesses” catched on the security video came to the church on New Square and violated the eighth commandment. According to information from the authorities, one of them has already found a bad name in Mariupol. There she deceived people, posing as a “sister of mercy”, and also robbed temples. For destructive activities, the security service of the Donetsk People’s Republic recommended that she leave the territory and not discredit either the Russian Orthodox Church or Russia. As you can see, it didn’t work.”

Source: Telegram/printscreen

MeToo – More has to be done to tackle sexual harassment in the EU

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European Parliament

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2 June 2023

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More has to be done to tackle sexual harassment in the EU — More needs to be done to tackle sexual harassment in the EU, says MEPs

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Evaluating what has been done to fight against sexual harassment by EU institutions and countries, MEPs call for better reporting procedures and support for victims.

On Thursday, MEPs adopted the report by 468 votes in favour, 17 against and 125 abstentions. The report highlights that, although governments and organisations have made changes to tackle sexual violence and to support victims since the MeToo movement went viral in 2017, in some EU countries there has been little or no progress.

Parliament calls on member states to pro-actively introduce legislation and policies that tackle sexual violence and harassment. These are not currently defined and criminalised at EU level, which means that those affected do not have the same rights across different member states. MEPs want a common EU approach, reiterating their call for the EU to identify gender-based violence as a new area of crime and for sexual harassment to be a criminal offence.

Employers should take measures to provide a safe working environment, taking into account remote working and the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic, say MEPs. Member states should ensure that all workers, at the start of their contract, receive information on anti-harassment procedures and policies in place.

EU institutions need more stringent sanctions and faster procedures

Since 2018, measures to prevent and tackle harassment in the European Parliament have been strengthened, but MEPs say more needs to be done to raise awareness of reporting procedures and support available to victims to prevent all forms of harassment. Sexual and psychological harassment cases in Parliament are still under-reported, MEPs point out, because victims do not use the existing channels for multiple reasons. Procedures in harassment cases can take years, causing unnecessary harm to the victims, they say. Parliament’s two Advisory Committees dealing with harassment complaints should conclude cases brought before them as quickly as possible, and at the latest within six months.

MEPs welcome the anti-harassment training offered in Parliament, but are concerned that only 36.9% of Members have attended so far this term – 260 Members out of 705. They call for a public list on the Parliament’s website of Members that have completed the training and those who have not.

EU institutions should conduct an external audit on the situation of harassment in their institutions, the text notes, including a review of existing procedures and systems that deal with cases of harassment, to make the outcome of the results public and to make reforms based on these recommendations.

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EP Vice-President and lead MEP steering the report through Parliament Michal Šimečka (Renew, Slovakia), said: “I welcome the fact that all the democratic groups in the European Parliament take the issue of sexual harassment in the EU seriously, which has resulted in immense support from MEPs during the vote. We owe it to victims and to all European citizens to lead by example, by adopting better support mechanisms and more efficient anti-harassment policies. This proposal is a testament to the broadly shared vision of a harassment-free EU.”

Japan will extract electricity from the Sun

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News desk

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2 June 2023

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The technology will be tested in 2025.

Japan is preparing technology that will allow it to “harvest” electricity from the Sun and send it to Earth. The technology was tested once in 2015, and in 2025 the first larger-scale test is expected, reports Engadget.

In 2015, scientists from the Japanese space agency JAXA managed to send 1.8 kilowatts of energy over 50 meters away. The small test proved the applicability of the technology, which Japanese scientists have been developing since 2009.

Over time, the project has grown into a public-private partnership, being developed by JAXA scientists, experts from universities and private companies. The test in 2025 envisages putting into orbit a group of small satellites. They will collect solar energy and send it to ground stations.

The satellites will convert the energy into microwaves. This makes it easy to transmit them over long distances and means they can be used 24/7 whether it’s cloudy or not.

The concept dates back to 1968. Several countries are trying to implement it, and so far Japan seems to be at the forefront. Even if the 2025 test is successful, it will only be the beginning of the technology becoming mainstream. Much more work will be needed to perfect the equipment, as it is currently very expensive: generating 1 gigawatt of electricity this way costs about $7 billion.

Photo by Bhupendra Singh: https://www.pexels.com/photo/photography-of-hand-during-sunset-760680/

Egypt starts construction on the world’s longest man-made river

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Newsdesk

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2 June 2023

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Egypt has announced plans to build an artificial river 114 kilometers long. The project, estimated at $5.25 billion, will improve food security and increase the country’s agricultural exports.

The national project called “New Delta” is now under construction in the Western Desert. The main objective of the project is to expand the area of agricultural land in Egypt. According to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Said Hussein Khalil Sisi, the New Delta project will be the largest construction project in the history of modern Egypt. The course of the river will pass along the new Rawd Al-Farag-Dabaa road.

Photo: Asharq Business اقتصاد الشرق

MEPs endorse plan to provide more ammunition for Ukraine

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European Parliament

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1 June 2023

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MEPs endorse plan to provide more ammunition for Ukraine

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On Thursday, Parliament backed a draft bill to increase European production of missiles and ammunition for Ukraine.

The Act in Support of Ammunition Production (ASAP) aims to accelerate the delivery of ammunition and missiles to Ukraine and to help member states restock their arsenals. By introducing targeted measures, including €500 million in financing, ASAP aims to ramp up the EU’s production capacity to address the current shortage of defence products, specifically ground-to-ground and artillery ammunition, missiles and their components.

The European Commission will identify, map, and continuously monitor the availability of these defence products, their components, and the corresponding raw materials inputs. The proposal establishes mechanisms, principles, and temporary rules to secure the timely and lasting availability of these defence products for their buyers within the European Union.

The effectiveness of this regulation will be evaluated by mid-2024, taking into account the evolution of the security context. Based on the results, the extension of these measures and the allocation of additional budget may be considered.

The European Commission tabled the ASAP legislation on 3 May 2023, and MEPs agreed the same month to trigger Parliament’s urgent procedure process to speed up the bill’s approval.

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The EP’s negotiating team leader Cristian Bușoi (EPP, RO) said: “Today’s decision marks a significant step forward for the security and defence of our Union, and particularly in our steadfast support of Ukraine in the face of the ongoing Russian aggression. It will boost our capacity to respond to security challenges. It is a victory for Europe and for our collective security. Parliament is now ready to negotiate with Council and we hope to reach an agreement as soon as possible.”

Next steps

The legislation was adopted with 446 votes to 67, with 112 abstentions. MEPs will now start negotiations with Council, with the aim of reaching a political agreement, which MEPs would then vote on in plenary in July.

In parallel, MEPs are working on the European Defence Industrial Reinforcement through the common Procurement Act (EDIRPA) to support collaboration between member states in the defence procurement phase to fill the most urgent and critical gaps.

Latest news of Europe and the world.

‘Urgent red lines’ must be drawn

Real world consequences

More transparency

Encryption, privacy paramount

Council backs UN mission

Turmoil on the ground

Crippled health sector

Fuel shortages threaten safe births

UN food agency condemns looters

‘Fearlessly’ providing support

Security Council considers UN mission renewal

Dire need for access

‘Depoliticization, demilitarization’ of aid

Rural livelihoods in jeopardy

Looming food security crisis

‘Cycle of suffering’

Failure to comply with the Lettori case law

7 MEPs co-sign the question to the EU about the Lettori

FLC CGIL Union sides with the Lettori

Awaiting the interministerial decree

Evaluating what has been done to fight against sexual harassment by EU institutions and countries, MEPs call for better reporting procedures and support for victims.

EU institutions need more stringent sanctions and faster procedures

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On Thursday, Parliament backed a draft bill to increase European production of missiles and ammunition for Ukraine.

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Next steps

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