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A rare role reversal played out in Washington on Thursday night, as the Senate took a break from debating the repeal of the Affordable Care Act to pass a bipartisan bill that will serve to alienate U.S. allies and isolate America.

That job, of course, is typically reserved for President Trump, but Congress showed decisively that the administration doesnt have a monopoly on the practice, voting 98-2 to apply new sanctions to Russia, Iran, and for good measure, North Korea, too.

The Iran sanctions threaten to blow up the Iran nuclear deal, a landmark foreign policy achievement of President Obamas, one negotiated with both European allies and with Russia and China. The Russian sanctions have been met with threats of retaliation not just from Russia but from the European Union, which is apoplectic that the U.S. is threatening to undo its regional energy policy. And the North Korean sanctions, well, nobody really knows what those will do.

The bill passed in the House 419-3 with little objection. When the Senate took up a similar sanctions bill last month against Russia and Iran, the measure passed overwhelmingly, with Sens. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rand Paul, R.-Ky., the only dissenting voices. They were again the only dissenters Thursday.

Sanctions bills against U.S. adversaries usually sail through Congress uncontested, and on a bipartisan basis. Few members of Congress want to vote against sanctions, fearful that the move could be spun into an attack ad that accusing them of being pro-Russia or pro-Iran.

Thebill has the enthusiastic backing of Democrats, who are looking to punish Russia for its election interference. Sinceseveral of the meetings between Trump administration and Russian officials reportedlydiscussed sanctions relief, coverage of the Trump-Russiascandal has dwarfed any discussion of how U.S. allies are likely to respond to new sanctions.

The sanctions may be a symbolic move for Congress, but they are very real to Europeans who do business with neighboring Russia. On Sunday, the European Union indicated that they would retaliate against additional sanctions on Russia, fearful that they would impact energy companies. A memo obtained from Brussels by the Financial Times said that the EU should stand ready to act within days if the bill was adopted without EU concerns taken into account.

Even the French government which has allegedly faced its own election inference by Russia spoke out against the sanctions. The French Foreign Ministry on Wednesday said the sanctions appeared to violate international law, and that the European Union would have to respond due to the impact on firms.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., told The Intercept that the concerns of U.S. allies come second to the need to punish Russia for its election interference. I just looked at the sanctions, and its very hard, in view of what we know just happened in this last election, not to move ahead with [sanctions], she said.

When asked about international repercussions, Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., a Senate newcomer who many are speculating for a presidential run, said she would be concerned about the response of allies. Thats part of the issue, isnt it? We have to think about it in the context of our partners and friends. I do have concerns, yes, she said after voting for the sanctions bill.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., said he was satisfied that the EU concerns had been addressed. I looked at those concerns last night, he said. I know there were a number of changes made to the legislation to address the legitimate concerns. In other words, my view is that we effectively addressed the major concerns that were expressed.

Yet Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., one of the leading champions of sanctions with Russia, said that it was the job of the EU to come around to the legislation, not for the legislation to be brought around to them. I hope theyll come around, he told The Intercept of the EU. Not that I know of, McCain said of any changes to the bill to accommodate them. Certainly not in the portion of the bill I was responsible for.

Another author of the bill, Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., an ardent foe of the Iran deal, said that very little was done to take the EU concerns into account. Not much, to be honest with you, he told The Intercept. There was some sense of the Congress that we should consult with our allies, and there was something actually done for more about U.S. companies than about Europeans about any joint ventures that might include a Russian partner on oil. But other than that, nothing much.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin, said that international allies concerns could be resolved diplomatically in the future. This would be the type of thing that in the ordinary course of diplomacy our secretary of state and secretary of commerce would be sitting down with leaders in the EU to resolve any misunderstandings. I dont believe the relationship of this administration with the EU has been that positive, and obviously theres some skepticism about what our motives are.

In addition, the new Iranian sanctions threaten to jeopardize the 2015 Iran deal negotiated by President Obama. Despite the fact the Trump administration has levied its own sanctions against Iran, the administration has certified that Iran is complying with the deal.

While the Iran sanctions bill was at an early stage, former Secretary of State John Kerry spoke out against it, saying it would jeopardize the Iran nuclear deal.

And Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has threatened to retaliate tit for tat. According to Reuters, Iranian state media quoted the president saying, If the enemy puts part of their promises underfoot then we will also put part of it underfoot. And if they put all of their promises underfoot then we will put promises underfoot.

President Trump has not taken a clear position on the bill. White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci told CNN on Thursday that the president may sign the bill into law as is, or may even consider vetoing the measure.

Menendez said he wasnt overly concerned with the European reaction, and that it was up to the administration to smooth it over. Ive lived through this through every sanction Ive ever authored and it will take the administrations leadership to make sure we bring our allies together, he said.

Top photo: Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., leaves a meeting of GOP senators in the U.S. Capitol on June 22, 2017, in Washington, D.C.

Excerpt from:
With the European Union Livid, Congress Pushes Forward on Sanctions Against Russia, Iran and North Korea - The Intercept

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission launched legal action on Saturday against what it sees as Polish government attempts to undermine the independence of judges.

It gave Warsaw a month to respond.

EU commissioners decided to launch the "infringement procedure" for violating European Union law at a meeting on Wednesday, the first step in a legal process that may end at the bloc's top court, pending publication of Poland's new law.

The Commission is concerned about discretionary power given to Poland's minister of justice to prolong the mandates of judges who reach retirement age, as well as to dismiss and appoint court presidents.

"The new rules allow the minister of justice to exert influence on individual ordinary judges through, in particular, the vague criteria for the prolongation of their mandates thereby undermining the principle of irremovability of judges," the European Commission said in a statement on Saturday.

It said a key legal concern was the introduction of different retirement ages for female judges (60) and male judges (65).

Polish President Andrzej Duda on Tuesday signed into law the bill on ordinary courts, but, in a move welcomed by Brussels, blocked two other bills that would have empowered the government and parliament to replace Supreme Court judges.

Poland's eurosceptic, nationalist government has rejected Brussels' objections as "blackmail" and unjustified criticism, but has said Warsaw was open to talks to resolve the dispute.

Commission First Vice President Frans Timmermans sent a letter on Friday to Poland's foreign minister reiterating an invitation to him and the justice minister to meet in Brussels to relaunch dialogue.

He said on Wednesday that the Commission could trigger Article 7, a legal process of suspending Poland's EU voting rights, if Warsaw went ahead with plans to undermine the independence of the judiciary and the rule of law.

The European Commission also this week gave Poland a month to respond to concerns for the rule of law raised by the EU executive in an unprecedented process launched last year.

Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop; editing by Jeremy Gaunt

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EU starts action against Poland over judiciary reforms - Reuters

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It is the latest clash between the EU and Poland after the bloc waded into Warsaw's plans for judicial reforms.

The ruling comes as part of attempts to save the trees at the UNESCO World Heritage-listed forest, as a European Union lodged case against Warsaw looks likely to drag on for years.

A spokeswoman for the European Court of Justice (ECJ) gave no immediate reason for the interim ruling, but it follows a legal appeal from the European Commission earlier this month.

In an interim decision, the ECJ said the logging should stop immediately as it could cause "serious and irreversible damage" to the forest. The main case filed by the Commission against Warsaw at the ECJ could take years to conclude.

The European Commission says the ongoing logging at the forest, which is near the city of Hajnwka, violates the blocs wildlife protection laws.

Straddling the border between Poland and Belarus, Bialowieza is one of Europe's oldest and last remaining ancient forests.

Covering around 350,606 acres, it is made up of mixed forest, wetlands and river valleys.

The forest is home to Europes largest herd of bison, and more than 250 bird species - some incredibly rare.

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Environmental campaigners have held regular protests at the site as part of efforts to halt the logging, with UNESCO appealing to Poland to stop chopping down trees.

Despite the outrage, Poland's right-wing, eurosceptic government says the process is necessary to protect the forest from beetles, thus safeguarding local communities living in the area.

Warsaw officials have also increased the quota of wood that can be harvested there.

Environmental activist group ClientEarth welcomed the decision, saying continued logging would cause "serious and irreparable damage to this priceless natural environment".

Agata Szafraniuk, the group's lawyer said: "In the history of the EU, emergency measures like this ban have only been used three times in nature conservation issues.

"So far there is no case in which an interim measure of the court was not respected.

If Polish authorities do not follow that decision, it will be a serious conflict with the EU law."

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However, Poland's Environment Minister Jan Szyszko - himself a hunter who enjoys the backing of forester and hunting lobbies - claims that more than one million trees will be cut down in Bialowieza this year to curb a bark beetle invasion.

Should Poland lose the main case at the ECJ, it faces a fine in excess of 3.58 million (4 million), as well as the possibility of daily penalties of up to 268,500 (300,000) for each day Warsaw defies the court's decision.

The Polish logging issue has deeply divided the countrys citizens, and has intensified tensions with Brussels.

Relations between Poland and EU officials have become increasingly strained following the PiS governments tight control of state media and the courts, as well as the countrys refusal to take in migrants.

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Protesters shout slogans during a protest in front of the presidential palace in Warsaw

A local group of nationalist activists in Bialowieza has described environmentalists "green terrorists, vowing to confront them.

In response, Greenpeace Poland spokesman Krzysztof Cibor said: "The defenders in the Bialowieza forest are vigilant, but we all hope that nothing bad will happen."

Polish environmentalists claim Mr Szyszko's real motives for continued logging are purely political and economic, with logging increasing revenues within the local community - one of the poorest in Poland.

Poland still has several days to react to the ECJ interim decision.

Should Poland lose the main case at the ECJ, it could be fined a lump sum of more than 4 million euros and possible daily penalties of up to 300,000 euros for every day in which Warsaw fails to adhere to the court's decision.

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It comes as the ruling Law and Justice party (PiS) clashes with the EU.

On Monday, President Andrzej Duda vetoed two of three flagship judiciary reforms that had triggered large protests in Poland and European Union warnings of legal action over concerns the move would undermine Polish democracy.

The judiciary overhaul, coupled with a drive by PiS to expand its powers in other areas including the media, has provoked a crisis in relations with the executive European Commission in Brussels and sparked one of the biggest political conflicts since Poland overthrew communism in 1989.

Though many Poles view their judiciary as corrupt and dominated by communist-era ways of thinking, others see the PiS-driven reform efforts as a power grab inimical to democracy.

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End of the EU? Brussels takes massive swipe at Poland as crisis continues - Express.co.uk

Jean-Claude Juncker leads a European commission cabinet, or college, that is entirely white. Photograph: Stephanie Lecocq/EPA

The EUs executive has been accused of being blind to black and minority ethnic communities after they failed to feature in a new diversity initiative to make the European commissions senior posts more representative.

Under a new Diversity and Inclusion Charter launched by the German commissioner, Gnther Oettinger, who was accused last year of racism and homophobia the commission has set as its goal the creation of a better workplace for all including women, staff with disabilities, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual and intersex (LGBTI) staff and older staff. The commission announced a target of having at least 40% women in management by 2019.

In a letter to Jean-Claude Juncker, Syed Kamall, the Tory MEP who leads the European Conservatives and Reformists group in the European parliament, said he welcomed attempts to ensure the EU better represented those it served.

But Kamall added that he was very concerned by the failure of the commission to make mention of a need to tackle the lack of ethnic and racial diversity within EU institutions.

Every commissioner in Junckers cabinet, known as the college, is white. They are nominated by the member states but their appointments are approved by the European parliament.

Within the European parliament, of the 776 MEPs elected in 2014, fewer than 20 are thought to be from a minority ethnic background, although no official statistics are held.

As a group leader in the European parliament, an institution whose motto is united in diversity, I find the lack of racial and ethnic diversity within the European institutions deeply concerning, Kamall wrote to Juncker.

Since I became an MEP in 2005, I have seen very little progress in terms of representation of the black and minority ethnic (BME) communities within the institutions, with representation of staff and members falling far below what is representative of BME communities in many of the member states which we represent We need only look at the commission college, and amongst senior staff at the European commission, to see the lack of representation of officials from BME communities in our institutions.

Kamall, a Muslim born in Islington, north London, who is of Indo-Guyanese descent, said he feared the UKs exit from the EU in March 2019 would only reduce the representation of minority ethnic groups in Brussels.

Whilst the UK may be leaving the European Union, my fear is that with its departure, we will see a far diminished BME representation here in the parliament and elsewhere in the European Union institutions, he wrote. We as institutions are best served by reflecting the diversity which exists in our own society. A diversity of views, religions, ethnicities, gender, and sexuality, increases tolerance, makes for more inclusive policy-making, and makes us more representative of our citizens.

The failure to include mention of minority ethnic groups in the diversity initiative was said to be particularly concerning as the commissioner had spoken with the European parliaments anti-racism and diversity group about its inclusion, it was claimed.

Alfiaz Vaiya, the campaign groups coordinator, said: We are surprised that the commission and commissioner have failed to include race, religion and belief in the initiative despite repeated assurances that they would be included.

A commission spokesman said: Based on the feedback we received, the new strategy focuses specifically on the four target groups. Naturally, diversity and inclusion goes beyond that and we are fully aware that, in a changing world, we have to adapt and do more to be representative of our society. After all, we want to remain an attractive and motivating place to work in for all members of our society.

Earlier this year Oettinger was accused by rights groups, including Oxfam International, of being unfit to run the human resources portfolio in the commission because of his divisive record of racist, sexist and homophobic remarks.

Last year he was forced to apologise for referring to Chinese people as slitty eyes and making disparaging remarks about women, same-sex marriage and Belgian politicians in a speech.

After being criticised by a Chinese government spokesperson for a baffling sense of superiority, Oettinger admitted to not showing due respect. I can now see that the words I used have created bad feelings and may even have hurt people. This was not my intention and I would like to apologise for any remark that was not as respectful as it should have been, he said.

Originally posted here:
EU criticised for leaving out ethnic minorities in 'diversity' drive ... - The Guardian

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union warned on Wednesday that it was ready to act within days to counter proposed new U.S. sanctions on Russia, saying they would harm the bloc's energy security.

Sanctions legislation overwhelmingly approved by the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday has angered EU officials: they see it as breaking transatlantic unity in the West's response to Moscow's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and its support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.

Brussels also fears the new sanctions will harm European firms with connections to Russia, and oil and gas projects on which the EU is dependent.

"The U.S. bill could have unintended unilateral effects that impact the EU's energy security interests," EU chief executive Jean-Claude Juncker said in a statement issued after a meeting at which European commissioners were united in their views, according to a senior EU official.

"If our concerns are not taken into account sufficiently, we stand ready to act appropriately within a matter of days. 'America First' cannot mean that Europe's interests come last," he said, mentioning President Donald Trump's guiding slogan.

A EU document prepared for the commissioners, seen by Reuters, laid out the EU's plans to seek "demonstrable reassurances" that the White House would not use the bill to target EU interests.

The bloc, it says, will also prepare to use an EU regulation allowing it to defend companies against the application of extraterritorial measures by the United States.

If diplomacy fails, Brussels plans to file a complaint at the World Trade Organization. "In addition, the preparation of a substantive response that would deter the U.S. from taking measures against EU companies could be considered," it says.

However, most measures taken by Brussels would require approval from all 28 EU member governments, which could expose potential differences in individual nations' relations with Moscow and Washington.

Despite changes to the U.S. bill that took into account some EU concerns, Brussels said the legislation could still hinder upkeep of the gas pipeline network in Russia that feeds into Ukraine and supplies over a quarter of EU needs. The EU says it could also hamper projects crucial to its energy diversification goals, such as the Baltic Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) project.

The new sanctions target the disputed Nord Stream 2 project for a new pipeline running from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea. But the EU note says: "the impact would in reality be much wider."

A list prepared by the EU executive, seen by Reuters, shows eight projects including those involving oil majors Anglo-Dutch Shell, BP and Italy's Eni that risk falling foul of the U.S. measures.

Voicing frustration at the fraying in the joint Western approach to Moscow, Juncker said "close coordination among allies" was key to ensuring that curbs on business with the Russian energy, defense and financial sectors, imposed in July 2014, are effective.

EU sources said Juncker told Commissioners the risk to EU interests was collateral damage of a U.S. domestic fight between Trump and U.S. lawmakers.

It was unclear how quickly the U.S. bill would reach the White House for Trump to sign into law or veto. The bill amounts to a rebuke of Trump by requiring him to obtain lawmakers' permission before easing any sanctions on Moscow.

Rejecting the legislation - which would potentially stymie his wish for improved relations with Moscow - would carry a risk that his veto could be overridden by lawmakers.

European energy industry sources voiced alarm at the potentially wide-ranging damage of the new U.S. measures.

"This is pretty tough," one industry source told Reuters. "We are working with EU officials to see what safeguards can be anticipated to protect our investment and give us certainty."

Five Western firms are partnered with Russia's Gazprom in Nord Stream 2: German's Wintershall [WINT.UL] and Uniper, Anglo-Dutch Royal Dutch Shell, Austria's OMV and France's Engie.

But EU officials warn the U.S. measures would also hit plans for the LNG plant on the Gulf of Finland in which Shell is partnering with Gazprom.

The EU document shows they might jeopardize Eni's 50 percent stake in the Blue Stream pipeline from Russia to Turkey as well as the CPC pipeline, carrying Kazakh oil to the Black Sea, involving European groups BG Overseas Holdings, Shell and Eni .

It further warns that BP would be forced to halt some activities with Russian energy major Rosneft.

Additional reporting by Philip Blenkinsop and Robin Emmott; editing by Mark Heinrich and Mark Trevelyan

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EU warns US it may respond swiftly to counter new sanctions on Russia - Reuters