The European Commission proposed a package of measures on Wednesday in the hope to protect European households and industries from energy crisis and accelerate the shift to clean and homegrown energy.
In a statement, the commission said that, for the second time in less than five years, Europeans were paying the price of Europe's dependency on imported fossil fuels. Since the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East, the European Union (EU) has spent an additional 24 billion euros on energy imports due to higher prices, without receiving any extra energy.
The package, called "AccelerateEU," includes both short-term and structural measures to reduce dependence on volatile fossil fuel markets and strengthen Europe's resilience through homegrown clean energy and electrification.
According to the commission, the proposed actions include closer coordination among members on refilling underground gas storage, the use of flexibilities in filling rules, and any exceptional releases of oil stocks. A new Fuel Observatory will also be established to track EU production, imports, exports and stock levels of transport fuels.
The commission said measures to protect consumers and industry from price hikes may include targeted income support schemes, energy vouchers, social leasing schemes and lower excise duties on electricity for vulnerable households. It also said it would adopt a State Aid Temporary Framework to give national governments additional flexibility to support the most exposed economic sectors.
The commission said it would present an Electrification Action Plan by the summer, including an electrification target and measures to remove barriers in the industrial, transport and building sectors. It also said it would present a legislative proposal on network charges and taxation to ensure that electricity is taxed less than fossil fuels.
The commission said the measures would be discussed by EU leaders at the informal European Council in Cyprus on April 23 and 24.
EU proposes measures to address energy crisis
EU proposes measures to address energy crisis
EU proposes measures to address energy crisis
Japan's ongoing push to revise its pacifist constitution and expand military buildup escalate regional tension, warned Japanese lawyer Kyoko Oe, who urged adherence to pacifism and vigilance against the government's dangerous moves.
Since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi took office last October, the Japanese government has renewed its push to revise the country's pacifist constitution and accelerated a series of military expansion measures, including increasing defense spending, deploying long-range missiles, and easing restrictions on arms exports.
Speaking on the dangerous policy shifts, Oe criticized the Takaichi administration for bypassing public will.
"We believe that when Japanese citizens are not demanding constitutional reform, pushing it forward through a parliamentary majority clearly violates the principle of popular sovereignty and the obligation to respect the constitution. Moreover, the content of the revision itself is extremely dangerous. [The government] is attempting to change pacifist principles of the Japanese constitution -- the most fundamental part -- and abandon basic concepts, including the renunciation of war and not maintaining military forces," said Oe.
The Japanese government has aggressively accelerated war readiness even under the current constitution, said Oe, adding that amending it will grant the Self-Defense Forces even greater freedom of action at the constitutional level.
"If the constitution is amended, the Self-Defense Forces will gain greater freedom of action at the constitutional level than they have now, and legal interpretations will develop in that direction. Even while the current constitution remains effective, the Japanese government has already forcibly advanced war preparations. For example, manufacturing long-range missiles, which were previously considered unacceptable to possess, and deploying them domestically; conducting joint war games and military exercises with the United States; and massively manufacturing and exporting weapons overseas," said Oe.
The lawyer also criticized Takaichi's provocative remarks on China, saying they have sharply strained bilateral ties and undermined peace and stability in the region.
"We believe that due to Takaichi's remarks made last November, China-Japan relations have become very tense and are deteriorating. Legal experts believe that Takaichi's remarks contain multiple obvious errors. Takaichi should frankly retract the relevant remarks and apologize. Only by building mutual trust with neighboring countries can we maintain our peace, and the peace of East Asia and even the peace of Asia. We believe that what the Takaichi administration is doing runs completely counter to what the Japanese people truly wish to achieve," Oe said.
Japan's constitution revision, military buildup fuel regional tensions: lawyer
