04/02 – Today’s headlines from across the EU

EUROPEAN HEADLINES

FT Europe – ChemChina seeks to blunt Syngenta deal opposition. Bid to calm food security fears. Deal to face Washington scrutiny.

WSJE – Germany steps up security. Officials struggle to assess threats after inflow of migrants.

INYT – A snapshot of the refugee crisis in Europe. Forced from their homes by war and economic deprivation, tens of thousands of migrants made the perilous journey to Europe last month.

BBC Europe – Body of Italian student Giulio Regeni found in Egypt. The body of an Italian student who disappeared last week in Egypt’s capital Cairo has been found and shows signs of torture, officials said. Giulio Regeni, 28, disappeared on the evening of 25 January, after leaving his home in Giza to meet a friend.

FRANCE

Le Monde – Agreement reached in Brussels in order to avoid Brexit. David Cameron has obtained every improvement he has asked for in order to avoid a Brexit.

Le Echos – Sarkozy: “A massive fiscal counter-shock is necessary.” The President of Les Républicains proposes €25 billion worth of tax cuts in mid-2017. Privatisations, civil servants, retirement, expenses, the former Head of State’s plan.

GERMANY

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) – The Islamic State’s terrorist militia probably uses poison gas. Can ISIS produce mustard gas? Russian Air Force intensifies attacks.

Sueddeutsche Zeitung (SZ) – Cash payments only up to €5,000. The government wants to introduce a limit on cash transactions by the end of the year to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. But it will also have consequences on payments for second hand cars and craftsmen.

ITALY

La Repubblica – Italy to the EU: “The package of measures will not change.” Italy will not change its plans and continues to fight for more flexibility.

Il Sole 24 Ore – European stock markets plunge, the dollar collapses on the euro. The link between the price of oil and stock markets has been interrupted: crude was at $31.74, sustained by the fall of the dollar. The euro has reached up to 1.10, a record-high since October.

POLAND

Gazeta Wyborcza – Taking back Mount Kasprowy. Invoking defence regulations, members of PiS want to annul the sale agreement for a cable car station and land on Mount Kasprowy Wierch in the Tatra Mountains. They claim that foreign capital taking over land on the Slovakian border would expose Poland to security risks.

SPAIN

El País – Puigdemont takes advantage of the uncertainty and launches the creation process of secession laws. “It took too much time for them to realise that independence is serious”, the Catalan president stated. The PP, PSC and Ciudadanos will not take part in the process.

Expansión – Companies leave Podemos’ autonomous communities. Companies abandon the communities led by coalitions in which Podemos is taking part.

The Times – Revolution in cancer care saves thousands. The chance of dying from cancer has fallen significantly in Britain despite an increase in cases, according to a landmark study that hails enormous progress in detection and treatment.

The Guardian – PM’s hard line on UK self-rule woos Johnson. Signs of unity on sovereignty raise prospect of mayor joining campaign.