Europe Allowing Their Bridges To Burn!

Europe In Crisis!

Climate, Fascism, Capitalism, Low Birth Rates and Neo Colonialism setting Europe on Fire!

Europe's energy system faces an unprecedented crisis. Supplies of Russian gas—critical for heating, industrial processes, and power—have been cut by more than 80 percent this year. Wholesale prices of electricity and gas have surged as much as 15-fold since early 2021, with severe effects for households and businesses.With persistent upward pressure on prices, the European Commission has urged EU countries to reduce their public spending to avoid further fuelling inflation, notably by phasing out energy aid granted to households.

While energy prices at wholesale markets have returned to pre-2022 levels after spiralling following the Russian aggression in Ukraine, so-called “core inflation”, which measures price increases for goods outside the energy and food sector, has been higher than expected.

In March 2023, core inflation reached a record level of 7.6%, meaning that is now the main driver of overall inflation, replacing energy costs, according to data from the European Commission.

“While headline inflation continues declining, core inflation is proving more persistent,” Valdis Dombrovskis, executive vice-president of the European Commission, told journalists on Wednesday (24 May). To tackle overall price rises, it would therefore not be sufficient to only rely on the European Central Bank, which has reacted by increasing interest rates to reduce investment activity, the Commission argues. In its so-called European Semester Spring Package, an annual recommendation given to EU countries for next year’s budget, the Commission thus urged governments to reduce public spending, to not further fuel price pressures.

“Fiscal policy should not contradict monetary policy,” Dombrovskis said. “Therefore, we are calling for a more prudent fiscal stance of member states,” he added. The reduction of public spending should primarily happen by phasing out energy aid measures taken by EU countries in order to protect their citizens from spiraling energy prices after the start of the war in Ukraine, the Commissioner said.

FRANCE is bracing itself for “catastrophic” food shortages and price hikes after this summers extreme heatwaves. After four severe heatwaves this year record high temperatures have wreaked havoc on crops and could have a devastating impact on the availability of food across the rest of Europe. The average cost of pasta surpassed $2.20 per kilogram in Italy, where approximately 60% of the population eat it every day, according to the Washington Post.

Earlier this month, it was reported that more than 40 countries had shown interest in joining BRICS, including 22 countries which had formally requested to join. According to research from Human Reproduction that was published in the BBC, Europe witnessed a 14 percent decline in its overall birth rate in 2021.In 2022, about 3.9 million babies were born in the European Union, a 20% decrease from the year before.