Austria introduces diesel subsidy for farmers to cope with rising price

Austria will start subsidizing the costs of diesel fuel for its farmers to help them cope with rising prices and reduce the impact of persistent drought on their livelihoods.

Tensions in the Middle East are disrupting fuel supply and pushing up diesel prices, weighing on the country's economy.

Maria Trunner, a farmer in Vienna who took over her father's wheat and soybean farm 12 years ago, has been forced to rethink her choice of crops. At that time, growing machinery-intensive crops was far less expensive.

"The extra costs we are facing now are enormous. A tractor like this one holds just over 200 liters of diesel, and that only lasts a full day of working when you are ploughing," she said.

Relief is on the way, as the government has introduced a diesel subsidy of 18 U.S. cents per liter for farmers, covering this year and next year.

However, the harvest may still fall short. Over the past six months, many regions of Austria have experienced their driest conditions in 140 years.

"It's brilliant that the diesel subsidy is coming now. Otherwise, many farms wouldn't be able to find the cash to pay for the fuel before the harvest," said Trunner.

Experts warn that this year's harvest could be down by as much as 30 percent. Combined with soaring costs for diesel and fertilizer, many farmers say their livelihoods are at serious risk even as consumers face spiraling food costs.

"I think this year has been an extremely difficult one. We are experiencing severe droughts. And, of course, we would have liked to see more financial support for farmers. But with tight budgets, we have to be grateful that we've managed to secure any support at all," said Norbert Walter, President of the Vienna Chamber of Agriculture.

Even with the diesel subsidy, the cost of operating tractors remains too high for many farmers, prompting some to switch away from wheat and towards vegetable crops that require less machinery.

"If there are alternative crops that require less use of the tractor, it might well be more financially viable," said Trunner.

Austria introduces diesel subsidy for farmers to cope with rising price

The Chinese and Indonesian navies successfully completed a naval navigation exercise in waters east of China's Taiwan Island on Wednesday, according to Chinese military authorities.

The exercise involved the Chinese naval vessel Honghe and Indonesian Navy frigate KRI I Gusti Ngurah Rai, a military statement said.

During the exercise, the two warships formed a naval formation and conducted practical drills covering maritime communications, formation maneuvers, underway replenishment, and a parting ceremony.

During the communications drill, crews from both navies practiced real-time maritime information exchange, tactical order transmission, and flag semaphore signaling.

"In this joint exercise with a foreign navy, all tactical communication brevity codes and signal flag procedures strictly followed international standards, effectively validating our maritime communication and information exchange capabilities with naval vessels of other nations,"said Gao Yongjie, an officer aboard the Chinese naval vessel Honghe.

After that, the two vessels transitioned to an underway replenishment exercise. Operating under a pre-coordinated replenishment plan, both ships executed precise maneuvering to assume their designated replenishment stations.

"At-sea replenishment places high demands on ship maneuvering and command coordination. Through this exercise, we have continuously refined the at-sea replenishment command procedures with the Indonesian naval vessel, enhancing our mutual coordination and interoperability," said Jin Xiasheng, another officer aboard the Honghe.

The exercise demonstrated the two navies' willingness and capability to conduct practical cooperation and jointly contribute to regional peace and stability, said a statement from the Chinese military.

China, Indonesia wrap up naval navigation exercise in waters east of Taiwan Island