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Alliance of Patriots, Alt Info and Georgian Dream #fundie #wingnut politico.eu

Dozens of far-right protesters attempted to storm the house of a woman who allegedly defaced an icon featuring Georgian-born Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin at the main cathedral in Tbilisi

The appearance in Holy Trinity Cathedral of an icon that features Saint Matrona of Moscow, a Russian Orthodox saint, blessing Stalin sparked uproar when it was recently discovered

It was donated to the church by the Alliance of Patriots, a pro-Russian conservative political party

Civil society organizations called on the Georgian Orthodox Church to remove the icon from the cathedral

However, church spokesperson Andria Jagmaidze dismissed the uproar as an anti-church campaign, saying “this is not an icon of Stalin” but rather an icon featuring Stalin

“Villains can be featured on icons too, such as Diocletian. But this is a different case, Stalin is not featured here in negative context,” he said

For Nata Peradze, who allegedly splashed paint on the icon, showcasing Stalin in church is “a weapon of influence”[…]
Far-right group Alt Info, which burned EU flags after Georgia received EU membership candidate status in December, besieged her apartment on Wednesday and attempted to storm the building several times, but were held back by police. She later reported that her friends had been attacked

Sovlab, which studies Georgia’s Soviet past, said the icon depicts Stalin in a positive light, and that displaying it at the church was an insult to his victims[…]
Officials from Georgia’s ruling Georgian Dream party dubbed the icon’s defacement as an “anti-Christian, anti-church and provocative act”

Wille Rydman #racist politico.eu

Finland’s right-wing coalition government has only been in office for a little over a month and has now been rocked by its third racism scandal, after a media report uncovered racist messages sent by the minister of economic affairs

Wille Rydman — of the far-right Finns Party — used racial slurs in private messages with his then-girlfriend in 2016, according to Helsingin Sanomat. According to the report, Rydman said he would rather ban headscarf-wearers than headscarves, and told his then-partner when she suggested giving her future children traditional Hebrew names: “We Nazis don’t really like that kind of stuff”

At the time Rydman sent the messages, he was a 30-year-old member of parliament for the National Coalition Party. He joined the Finns Party earlier this year and was appointed minister of economic affairs in June

On Friday morning, Prime Minister Petteri Orpo discussed Rydman’s messages with the chairs of the government parties. He wants to send a clear message “to Finns and to the outside world that racism will not be tolerated in Finland”[…]
The messages were given by Rydman’s ex to Helsingin Sanomat. In response, the minister on Twitter described the newspaper as “a platform for those who have already lied about me, repeatedly and demonstrably”

In June 2022, the same publication ran a report accusing Rydman of taking advantage of his political status to meet young women

The Finns Party has been hit by repeated scandals since it joined the coalition government of conservative Orpo

Muhoozi Kainerugaba #wingnut politico.eu

Ugandan president apologizes for general son who offered 100 cows to marry Giorgia Meloni

Ugandan leader’s son had threatened to invade Kenya.

The president of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, issued a statement Wednesday apologizing for social media posts from his son, an army general, who had threatened to invade neighboring Kenya.

The son, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, had also this week asked his more than 600,000 Twitter followers how many cows should be offered as a bride price for Giorgia Meloni, the likely next prime minister of Italy.

“Nkore cows. The most beautiful cows on earth,” Kainerugaba wrote, presumably referring to the Ankole cow breed native to Africa, adding that “in our culture you give a girl you like a cow.”

“I would give her 100 Nkore cows immediately! For being fearless and true!!” he wrote.

However, this apparent declaration of affection was followed by what appeared to be a threat: “If the Romans reject our cows that means we must capture Rome. That would take us days to do,” Kainerugaba — nicknamed the “tweeting general” — wrote.

On Tuesday, Museveni, an authoritarian leader who has held power since 1986, announced he was removing his son as commander of Uganda’s land forces but was also promoting him to a four-star general.

In Wednesday’s statement, the Ugandan president tried to calm tensions further. He criticized Kainerugaba for interfering “in the internal affairs of brother countries” but justified his promotion by saying that there are “other positive contributions the General has made” and calling him a “passionate Pan-Africanist.”

Kainerugaba’s comments on Meloni were not mentioned in Museveni’s statement.

José Gonzalez #wingnut politico.eu

The opening speech on the opening day of the new French parliament wasn’t quite what was expected — an emotional paean to when Algeria was a French colony

According to the rules of the National Assembly, the oldest lawmaker chairs the first session of a new parliament — that was José Gonzalez, 79 years old and a newly elected MP from the far-right National Rally

“To see you gathered side by side … beyond all our differences, is a symbol of French unity. This symbol of unity touches the child of a remote France that I am, torn from his native land and blown to the coasts of Provence by the winds of history in 1962. I left there a part of my France and many friends. I am a man who has seen his soul forever bruised,” he said before becoming overcome with emotion. He was given a round of applause by some other MPs

Gonzalez was born and raised in Oran, when Algeria was still a French colony[…]
After his speech, according to Libération, Gonzalez told journalists to “come with me to Algeria in the Djebel region, I will find many Algerians who will tell you: When are you [the French] coming back?” He added that “I’m not here to judge whether the OAS committed crimes or not”

The OAS (Organisation armée secrète) was a far-right paramilitary organization that carried out attacks, bombings and assassinations during the Algerian War. Their stated goal was to keep Algeria under French colonial rule. Some former members of the OAS joined the National Front[…]
The controversy risks complicating National Rally leader Marine Le Pen’s efforts to bring her far-right party into the mainstream. Le Pen has reportedly been coaching her 89 new MPs on how to behave well

Alexander Lukashenko #conspiracy #racist #wingnut politico.eu

Alexander Lukashenko has a lot of opponents at home, so now he’s making even more enemies abroad.

The authoritarian leader of Belarus has unleashed law enforcement against leaders of the country’s small ethnic Polish minority — accounting for about 3 percent of the country’s population of 9.5 million. Last week, Belarus ordered the arrests of four prominent ethnic Polish activists. Prosecutors cite “illegal mass undertakings” which purportedly honored “anti-Soviet gangs operating during and after the Great Patriotic War” who “plundered and murdered civilians and destroyed property” — in a likely reference to Polish partisans who resisted the introduction of communism after World War II. They said the community’s activities “aimed at rehabilitating Nazism and justifying the genocide of the Belarusian nation.”

It’s part of a ploy by Lukashenko to buttress his support at home. Before 1939, the western half of Belarus belonged to Poland, and Lukashenko regularly warns his countrymen about the military threat posed by Poland and about Polish nationalist aspirations to recover its lost territories, although no such movement exists in Poland. “There is a continuous buildup of military presence close to our western and northern borders. Poland and the Baltic states have become a training ground for regular drills and exercises of NATO troops,” Lukashenko warned in December.

In response to the arrests, Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki accused Lukashenko’s regime of taking “hostages”. The EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, called on Belarusian authorities “to immediately and unconditionally” release them. “Targeting Polish minority violates [Belarus’] international commitments for the protection of national minorities,” wrote Gitanas Nausėda, president of Lithuania.

Poles in Belarus are increasingly nervous. “It is anyone’s guess how wide the group of people [up for arrest] is. For now, we know of five, but each of us is entertaining the possibility that we could be next,” said Pisalnik.

Unnamed Dutch Rioters #psycho #wingnut politico.eu

Dutch rioters set fire to coronavirus testing center

A coronavirus testing center in a small Dutch town was set on fire by rioters angry at the country imposing a curfew.

According to local media, “dozens of youngsters” in Urk — a town of just over 20,000, some 80 kilometers northeast of Amsterdam — gathered in the harbor area just after the 9 p.m. curfew and set a drive-in coronavirus test center ablaze.

Mayor Cees van den Bos said he was “ashamed” and called in riot police. According to the Associated Press, local authorities issued a statement expressing their anger at the rioting, “from throwing fireworks and stones to destroying police cars and with the torching of the test location.”

“This is not only unacceptable but also a slap in the face, especially for the local health authority staff who do all they can at the test center to help people from Urk,” the local authorities said.

Police were also called in Stein, a town of 24,000 in Limburg, close to the Belgian border, where a group of around 100 people refused to obey the curfew and pelted officers with fireworks, according to 1Limburg.

The Netherlands introduced a curfew from 9 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. that started Saturday night and will be in place until February 10. Anyone breaking the curfew must carry with them an official form with details of why they are outside, or risk a €95 fine.

Unnamed UK Government Officials #racist #wingnut politico.eu

UK to discriminate between EU countries on fees for work visas

Following the end of free movement, European Economic Area nationals must apply for a work visa in order to take up a job in Britain. But not all of them pay the same.

Irish citizens do not need work visas because of the Common Travel Area with the U.K., but five EU countries are not eligible for reduced fees: Bulgaria, Estonia, Lithuania, Romania and Slovenia.

Some of these EU countries are now demanding help from the European Commission to tackle the difference, arguing Brussels cannot allow the U.K. to breach the EU’s long-standing principle of non-discrimination among member countries.

The EU envoys are piling pressure on the Commission, saying this is the first example of the U.K.’s post-Brexit immigration rules treating EU nationals differently on the basis of their nationality. They warned post-Brexit Britain is likely to discriminate between EU citizens in other looming mobility decisions, for instance, when it decides whichcountries can participate in its Youth Mobility scheme — currently open to nine developed economies outside the bloc.

“In a couple of years’ time, depending who has negotiated what, different EU citizens will have different access to different programs and at a different cost,” a third diplomat said.

The same diplomat added: “The reduced visa fees controversy is just the first issue of a number of them which are simmering beneath the surface but will come to the fore sooner or later. It will be interesting to see if there’s going to be EU-wide coordination on this or not. It all goes back to: Are we all the same or suddenly we are not? Are we going to live up to EU solidarity? Are we going to stick together? There’s no EU competence on this so it throws the ball back to member states.”

Andrés Manuel López Obrador #moonbat #quack politico.eu

Mexican president slams Europe’s ‘excessive’ anti-coronavirus measures

Andrés Manuel López Obrador says ‘we do not need to exaggerate with authoritarian measures like curfews.’

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador defended his approach to tackling coronavirus as he slammed Europe’s — and especially France’s — “excessive measures.”

Speaking at a press conference Monday, the leftist president refused to bring in stricter measures to combat COVID-19 even as cases soar.

“Nothing is going to be closed, we can all look after ourselves,” he said, adding: “We have to guarantee freedom. We do not need to exaggerate with authoritarian measures like curfews.

“Why don’t people look after themselves, why do the authorities need to be behind people … giving them hand sanitizer as if they were children who cannot understand? No!”

He added that there are “huge demonstrations in Europe, France, because of the excessive measures governments are implementing there. Enough!”

At the weekend, more than 160,000 people protested across France against a bill introducing obligatory coronavirus vaccinations for certain professions and conditional access to cultural events, as well as travel, based on a health pass showing proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test. That bill became law on Monday. The number of protesters was up by some 50,000 on a week earlier. Around 35 percent of French citizens support such protests, according to a new poll.

But López Obrador said although “we have all lost loved ones and we all need to look after ourselves … we need to move on without being subjugated by the pandemic.”

Péter Szijjártó & Zbigniew Rau #wingnut politico.eu

Poland, Hungary to set up rule of law institute to counter Brussels

The two countries say they want to ensure they’re not treated unfairly under Brussels’ ‘double standards.’

Poland and Hungary plan to create a new institute to assess how the rule of law is being upheld across the EU, arguing they need to ensure their countries are not treated unfairly under what they describe as Brussels' "double standards."

Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó at a joint press conference with his Polish counterpart Zbigniew Rau on Monday said "the aim of this institute of comparative law would be that we should not be taken for fools," according to national media. Szijjártó added he had “had enough of some Western European politicians using us as a punchbag."

"When Poland or Hungary have been attacked over the rule of law so far, those attacks had nothing to do with the rule of law. They were used as a mere means of extortion," Szijjártó said, adding that he does not think the EU's forthcoming report on the state of the rule of law will be "fact-based."

Naming one example of what he described as Brussels' double standards, Szijjártó said Poland was criticized for transforming its judicial system although Spain has "exactly the same" regulation.

"If something is good in Spain, then why is it bad in Poland?" he asked.

Steuersklav Erei #fundie politico.eu

The UK is already a member of the WTO, a founder member no less (as are at least all EU15 member states). An WTO member’s tariff schedules are its own concern, unless another WTO can successfully challenge that those tariffs are discriminatory. The WTO tariffs published by the U.K. government are either the same as those as the EU (i.e. very high in the case of beef and dairy imports) or lower (0% for car parts, for example, but the EU rate of 10% for finished car imports).

It’s not clear exactly why a WTO member should wish to challenge the UK’s tariff schedule, not least because it is politically obvious that the UK is on a mission to reduce its tariffs via free trade deals with other WTO members. The WTO combats protectionism, not free trade.

As for your comment about the Irish border, the provisional plan laid out by the UK government is to Northern Ireland into a giant free trade port for the time being, which is something which has several precedents around the world (e.g. Shenzhen). This may well be challenged by another WTO grouping (i.e. the EU), but there are two safeguards for the UK. First of all WTO rules permit local tariff exemptions on national security grounds (and EU propaganda over the past 2 years has done its best to depict Ireland as a war zone about to erupt). Second of all, the UK is co-signatory to a bilateral international Treaty (the 1998 Good Friday Agreement), the spirit of which safeguards an invisible border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. International Treaties have the same weight as international trade laws, which means there would be 10 fruitful years of work for international lawyers to rule whether the GFA or WTO rules take precedence. By the time they rule in 2030 the Republic of Ireland will have been ejected from the EU anyway.

“The UK is already a member of the WTO”
If you read the list of countries _not_ being a member of the WTO, you’ll notice that I did _not_ list the UK. The UK is a member of the WTO but it does not have a WTO schedule.

The idea of NI as a separate WTO geographical area was floated by the EU while there was debate about a border in the Irish Sea. As you yourself mention, there is ample precedent for this solution, e.g. Hong Kong.

Whether the UK can uphold a national security claim exemption is far from certain. So far only one country has successfully argued a national security case. Ukraine vs. Russia, where the WTO sided with Russia.

The US rejected the UK proposed schedule on the same grounds as Argentina did, they wanted easier access for their beef exports. Do you think they’ll just give up the advantage of the lack of an approved schedule grants them?

As you state, it will take years for the legal wheels to turn, there can, however, be very little doubt that the ruling will not be in favor of the UK.

Is that the kind of behavior we can expect for the UK from now on? Flaunting of international laws and treaties because by the time the judges rule the ruling will be irrelevant?

God riddance, buccaneers and pirates of the worst kind.

It’s probably pointless debating with emotional and Hans Christian Anderson-like Anglophobes like you, but here goes. The UK has published its tariff schedule, and the USA and Argentina are free to dispute these at leisure. By the time their WTO lawyers report back the UK will have secured free trade deals with both those countries anyway (call free trade ‘piracy’ if that makes you feel warm inside).

As for the Irish border, there will be a solution. The EU will enforce a surveillance regime close to Republic’s border with Northern Ireland, at ports and airports in the Republic of Ireland, and at ports of entry in the EU26 if necessary. In other words, the EU will cut the Republic of Ireland out of the EU. It’s your arrogant gamble that backfired, so enjoy,

I see you have both wet imperialistic dreams and the capability of building straw man arguments.

A straw man is a form of argument and an informal fallacy based on giving the impression of refuting an opponent’s argument, while actually refuting an argument that was not presented by that opponent. One who engages in this fallacy is said to be “attacking a straw man.”

My piracy argument was based on you proposing to knowingly violate international treaties simply because the legal wheels turn slowly. The stuff about free trade is a straw man, and what is worst, you know it.

Your FTA’s with the US and Mercosur (or Argentina specifically) is pie in the sky dreams. You cannot at this stage know what is possible and what isn’t.

Even TM, BJ, JRM et. al. have conceded that as of today the technology for safekeeping a border simply isn’t there. Do you by chance have some wonder technology nobody else has heard of or is it simply you failing to realize the obvious?

As for the UK forcing Ireland to leave the EU and signing up as a vassal state of the UK. Good luck with that. The best I can describe that as the UK trying to build the Empire v2.0

The EU, not the UK, will force the Republic of Ireland out of the EU. The USA and Argentina will want free trade deals with the UK because of its huge foodstuffs market. And using WTO trade articles in order to safeguard the spirit of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement is not violating international Treaties (I’ll let the EU do that).

Shall we leave things at that? You are very boring.

Capt Europe #fundie politico.eu

Top trolling by this person i’d never heard of before but will now follow with interest

Anyone know anything about Russian Chinese relations in the years following the Soviet Sino war?

Russia’s entire history is one of bring invaded from Genghis Khan to the 3rd Reich.

At the moment the 4th EU Reich is on the borders of Russia when I do believe the Ukraine is meant to be a buffer ground to make Russia feel safe, but who cares about international treaties

Most worrying thing I’ve seen in my life time was a couple of years ago when i saw Gernan tanks labelled with the iron Cross on trains heading towards the Ukraine.

It’s almost as if the 4th Reich wants to start a war with Russia

Where you on the ground in Ukraine on a field mission where you observed those terrifying tanks?

Hi X KM

It’s no laughing matter, you deluded little Europeaners are very dangerous people and you’re going to start a war.

Just look at your allies, Iran and China.

Actually Capn’ it looks like the EU are going to stay out of a war. Or maybe two. Three if Trump goes after China, Iran and Venezuela. But if you want to play Robin to Trump’s Batman then have fun. We will watch your future career with great interest.

Hi Peter Monta

We in the West look at the speeches made in the EU Parliament by Junker Verhofstadt and Mama Merkel and we see the speeches of tyrants.

The West has failed in its duty to maintain Western Values in European nations much to our shame and European powers are now doing what they do best, starting wars

Capt Europe #fundie politico.eu

[This person is a prolific anti-EU troll at Politico]

There are 2 types of people in Britain.

1. Those that believe in Trade deals.

2. Those that believe in democracy

I hope those that believe in Trade deals have the courage of their convictions and are willing to give their lives for what they believe in because I believe in democracy, and I’m quite prepared to commit the ultimate sin for what I believe in

Blue Bell #fundie politico.eu

“It is our aim to protect European economic operators engaged in legitimate business with Iran,” they said.”

Money, money, money is all that matters to the EU institution. Where is the consideration of the longer term consequences of their actions.

At some point it is going to be necessary to take action against this proliferation of dictatorial regimes. Better it is done as quickly as possible rather than delay and face far worse consequences.

“Several senior EU ministers assured Zarif of their support for Tehran over the phone. “Mogherini and the European ministers — reiterated their commitment to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and emphasized the efforts to maintain financial channels with Tehran and the continuation of Iran’s oil and gas exports,” IRNA reported.”

With the lack of appreciation on display by Europe of the peace kept by the US over many decades the ingrates are now siding with dictatorial regimes against the US. To say that Europe is short sighted is too kindly an explanation – Its motivation is shown in the unedifying display of them constantly falling over themselves after money, money, money to the exclusion of other considerations. It is shameful.

“All that glisters is not gold;
Often have you heard that told.
Many a man his life hath sold
But my outside to behold.
Gilded tombs do worms enfold.”

I would bid ‘a gentle riddance’ of those who reiterated their commitment to the deal.

DJT’s administration has in fact been clear that the sanctions on Iran should not harm the civilian population i.e. that funds would be available to be spent on food and medicines thereby protecting the civilian population.

The Iranian regime has not been spending the funds from oil and its banking sector on the civilian population but on their military ambitions.

With the sanctions clampdown, Trump is seeking to push Iran to end uranium enrichment outright, and halt its ballistic missile development and its support for proxy forces in Yemen, Syria, Lebanon and elsewhere in the Middle East. They are a destabilising influence in the region – civilians in the region are suffering from their activities. In Yemen children are starving to death and in other areas they are subjected to sights and experiences no child should ever suffer.

Europe WAKE UP to what these people are doing in your name!