Downbeat in Davos as Europe confronts an end to peace and prosperity

Good morning. A Russian missile strike this weekend on a residential condo block within the central Ukrainian metropolis of Dnipro killed at least 30 people, with dozens still unaccounted for.

Moscow’s ongoing brutality will headline the agenda in Davos this week, alongside international commerce tensions and local weather change, as a bit of Europe’s ruling elite (and me) collect within the Swiss ski resort. In the meantime, just a few hundred kilometres north, the European parliament convenes in Strasbourg at the moment mired in disrepute over allegations of MEPs on the market.

Up the magic mountain

Davos is now not the undisputed excessive desk of globalised capitalism, however the love-to-hate-it occasion retains its attract for a lot of, regardless of a world panorama described by the organisers as “polycrisis”.

Struggle in Europe, raging inflation and inverting development, vitality shortages, and a commerce battle between the US and China (and the EU, for that matter): it’s sufficient to make any government vice-president choke on their lukewarm champagne.

As Gideon Rachman notes, this 12 months the World Financial Discussion board will fret over the end of peace, prosperity and global economic integration, quite than toasting their longevity as typical.

Ukrainian officers will roam the occasion searching for to safe as a lot extra monetary, navy and humanitarian assist potential, whereas scrutinising different delegates for indicators of waning dedication to the battle — which is profitable for arms firms however economically debilitating for nearly everybody else.

We’ll hear nothing of the type from European Fee president Ursula von der Leyen, however she’s going to as a substitute present extra element on her state aid and joint borrowing proposals to hit again towards Joe Biden’s €369bn inexperienced subsidy bonanza (even when many EU officers suppose she ought to first focus on it with them as a substitute of the 600-odd CEOs which have paid for the privilege).

US officers say they’re high quality with the EU rolling out comparable inexperienced handouts and don’t worry a subsidy battle. As such, the largest combat over Brussels’ magic cash tree will virtually actually be between EU member states.

Europe’s contribution to the Davos roll-call is led by German chancellor Olaf Scholz — the one confirmed G7 chief — and contains the prime ministers of the Netherlands, Poland, Greece, Finland and Spain, plus the Nato and ECB heads.

Lots of these will fill their speeches with dire warnings about local weather change, fearful that the litany of different international crises is distracting the elite from the largest certainly one of all.

Certainly, solely a sizeable snow dump final week prevented the unseasonably bare inexperienced slopes of Davos resembling the world’s most conspicuous promoting marketing campaign for international warming. A aid, too, for the plutocrats that introduced skis on their personal jets.

Chart du jour: Unequal Union

The EU’s richest 1 per cent pocketed €44 of each €100 created within the bloc between 2020 and 2021, whereas the underside 90 per cent shared lower than €10, in accordance with a report on international inequality printed by Oxfam at the moment.

Dishonourable members

No prizes for guessing what’s going to dominate the European parliament’s plenary in Strasbourg this week, writes our parliament correspondent Alice Hancock.

The Qatargate scandal, involving allegations of sacks of cash gifted to MEPs, has prompted a rush of navel-gazing and a race to reform one of many world’s largest democratically elected our bodies.

No formal debate on the subject is tabled however each political group desires so as to add their two euro cents on what ought to be performed, notably within the wake of 14 proposals sketched out by president Roberta Metsola final week.

At the moment Metsola may also announce the beginning of a course of to raise the immunity of two MEPs implicated within the scandal.

By scrumptious coincidence, the formal proceedings all through the week shall be dominated by debates on democracy and the rule of legislation, together with the EU’s response to protests and executions in Iran and judicial points in Morocco and Brazil — alongside ideas from particular visitor Ulf Kristersson, Sweden’s premier.

On the sensible entrance, parliament is ready to vote for a brand new vice-president to interchange socialist MEP Eva Kaili, who is in a Belgian jail, and on whether or not it ought to modify its procedures to permit the European Public Prosecutor’s Workplace to analyze two members on the administration of their parliamentary allowances.

So as to add to the enjoyable, von der Leyen and European Council president Charles Michel — by no means confused as greatest buddies — shall be collectively grilled on the outcomes of December’s EU leaders’ summit. Convey your popcorn.

What to observe at the moment . . . 

1. Eurogroup assembly of single currency finance ministers in Brussels, from 1500.

2. UK international secretary James Cleverly and Northern Eire secretary Chris Heaton-Harris meet European Commission vice-president Maroš Šefčovič to take inventory of progress on post-Brexit issues.

. . . and later this week

1. Particular deal with by von der Leyen at Davos on Tuesday at 1115, Scholz delivers his at 1545 on Wednesday. The event runs by means of Friday.

2. Nato’s Army Committee meets Wednesday and Thursday for in-person strategic discussions.

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