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Ex-Russian president warns NATO of nuclear miscalculation

Dmitry Medvedev believes that the Ukraine conflict is developing according to the worst-case scenario

The West is bringing the Ukraine conflict to a stage in which it could spiral into uncontrolled escalation with potentially global repercussions, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has said. This comes amid reports that many Western countries have allowed Ukraine to use foreign-made weapons to strike deep into Russia.

Writing on Telegram on Friday, Medvedev, who serves as the deputy chief of Russia's Security Council, stated that Western countries, which are said to have signed off on long-range strikes, must understand that their military equipment and personnel either operating in Ukraine or carrying out attacks on Russia from other countries, "will be destroyed."(...)

Alemania se une a EE UU y permite a Ucrania utilizar sus armas contra territorio de Rusia

El secretario general de la OTAN, Jens Stoltenberg, espera que Kiev haga un uso “responsable” de la munición aliada para atacar las posiciones en suelo ruso

Anti-money laundering: Council adopts package of rules

The Council today adopted a package of new anti-money-laundering rules that will protect EU citizens and the EU's financial system against money laundering and the financing of terrorism.

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"The new and stricter rules will strengthen our systems in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing. A new agency based in Frankfurt will supervise the work of actors involved. This will ensure that fraudsters, organised crime and terrorists will have no space left for legitimising their proceeds through the financial system."

Vincent Van Peteghem, Belgian minister for finance

With the new package, all rules applying to the private sector will be transferred to a new directly applicable regulation, while a directive will deal with the organisation of national competent authorities fighting against money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT).

The regulation exhaustively harmonises anti-money laundering rules for the first time throughout the EU, closing loopholes for fraudsters.

It extends the anti-money laundering rules to new obliged entities, such as most of the crypto-sector, traders of luxury goods and football clubs and agents. The regulation also sets tighter due diligence requirements, regulates beneficial ownership and sets a limit of € 10.000 to cash payments, among other things.

The directive will improve the organisation of national anti-money laundering systems setting out clear rules on how financial intelligence units (FIUs - the national bodies which collect information on suspicious or unusual financial activity in member states) and supervisors work together.

The package sets up a new European Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AMLA) that will have direct and indirect supervisory powers over high-risk obliged entities in the financial sector.

Given the cross-border nature of financial crime, the new authority will boost the efficiency of the AML/CFT framework by creating an integrated mechanism with national supervisors to ensure obliged entities comply with AML/CFT-related obligations in the financial sector. AMLA will also have a supporting role with respect to the non-financial sector, and coordinate and support  FIUs.

In addition to supervisory powers and in order to ensure compliance, in cases of serious, systematic or repeated breaches of directly applicable requirements, the Authority will impose pecuniary sanctions on the selected obliged entities.

The new anti-money laundering directive also prescribes that EU member states make information from centralised bank account registers – containing data on who has which bank account and where – available through a single access point. As the AML directive will provide access to the single access point only to FIUs, the Council today adopted a separate directive to ensure that the national law enforcement authorities will have access to these registers via the single access point. This directive also incudes the harmonisation of bank statement format. Such direct access and use of harmonised formats by the banks is an important instrument in fighting criminal offences and in efforts to trace and confiscate the proceeds of crime.

Next steps

This is the final step of the adoption procedure. The texts will now be published in the EU’s Official Journal and enter into force.

The AML regulation will apply three years after the entry into force. Member states will have two years to transpose some parts of the AML directive and three years for others.

AMLA will be based in Frankfurt and start operations in mid-2025.(...)

Germany says Ukraine can hit military targets in Russia with German weapons

Germany has followed the US in granting Ukraine permission to attack military targets on Russian territory using German weapons.

Steffen Hebestreit, spokesperson for Chancellor Olaf Scholz, said Russia had recently been launching “co-ordinated attacks” on areas around Kharkiv “from positions in the immediately adjacent Russian border region”.

He said western leaders were convinced Ukraine had the right under international law to defend itself against these attacks. “It can also deploy weapons that have been supplied [by the west], in compliance with its international legal obligations, to do that, including weapons that we have supplied,” he said.

Weapons supplied by Germany that might be used for such attacks include the Panzerhaubitze 2000 and Mars II rocket launcher.

Joe Biden allows Ukraine to use US weapons to hit targets in Russia

Shift by Washington comes after weeks of pressure from Kyiv and its allies

US President Joe Biden has approved Ukraine’s use of American-made weapons to strike within Russia as long as the targets relate to Moscow’s offensive in the Kharkiv region, a US official said on Thursday.

The decision marks an important shift from Washington’s previous position that Ukraine should not use US weapons to strike targets in Russia — and follows growing pressure on Biden from Kyiv and its allies.

“Over the past few weeks Ukraine came to us and asked for permission . . . that went right to the president. And as you heard, he has approved the use of our weapons for that purpose,” secretary of state Antony Blinken said on Friday in Prague. He added that the US would continue to adapt its policies regarding the use of its weapons by Ukraine.

Ukraine requested permission during a video call with top US officials on May 13 to use US weapons systems against targets in Russia that were being used for its assault on Kharkiv, according to a US official. The request was approved in recent days by Biden.

Germany announced on Friday that it was following the US in allowing Ukraine to use German-supplied weapons to attack military targets in Russia.(...)

Primer fallo a favor de las ‘cláusulas berlinesas’ en los contratos de alquiler

Una sentencia de un juzgado de Barcelona da la razón a los propietarios del inmueble

La regulación de los alquileres en Catalunya aprobada a finales de 2020 llevó a algunos propietarios a incluir la llamada cláusula berlinesa en los contratos de arrendamiento. Esta medida, utilizada por primera vez en Berlín, ciudad que fue pionera en el control de rentas, implica que el contrato incorpora dos precios. El primero hace referencia al tope que marca la ley, mientras que el segundo es el pactado en el mercado entre ambas partes. De esta forma, los propietarios se reservaban el derecho de subir los precios en caso de que el Tribunal Constitucional tumbase la normativa, como finalmente ocurrió en marzo de 2022.

Tras meses de debate público sobre su legalidad, el Juzgado de Primera Instancia número 55 de Barcelona acaba de fallar a favor de la existencia de estas cláusulas. El caso se refiere a un arrendatario, que en el momento de aplicar la renta pactada a precio de mercado, presentó una demanda ante el juzgado solicitando la nulidad de la referida cláusula por considerarla abusiva. La sentencia ha desestimado íntegramente las pretensiones del inquilino, confirmando la validez y la aplicación de la medida pactada por las partes.

En la decisión del juzgado, ha sido clave que el recurso de inconstitucionalidad ya estuviera interpuesto porque demuestra que la normativa pudiese ser anulada era una posibilidad conocida. Por otro lado, también se destaca que la actuación del arrendador fue transparente y clara en la redacción del contrato de alquiler.

La argumentación del demandante señalaba que la Ley de Arrendamientos Urbanos no permite que haya actualización en cualquier momento, más allá de la actualización anual del IPC. “Es algo discutible, porque se admite que se puedan pactar bonificaciones y reducciones”, señala el socio del despacho CIM Tax & Legal, Carlos Muñoz, que ha defendido a la propiedad en este proceso. Sin embargo, el abogado apunta que realmente en este caso no hay una actualización, sino uno, que se encuentra limitado por la regulación.

La sentencia puede ser recurrida, pero marca una primera tendencia

Muñoz reconoce que se trata de una sentencia de primera instancia y que, por tanto, no sienta jurisprudencia y puede ser recurrida a instancias superiores. Sin embargo, subraya que marca una primera tendencia en este tema. En este sentido, apunta que estas cláusulas se han vuelto a recuperar desde la aplicación de la ley de alquileres aplicada por el Gobierno y que, de momento, sólo se está aplicando en Catalunya. “Con los recursos de inconstitucionalidad que quedan por resolver, este fallo judicial cobra especial relevancia”, comenta el abogado.

El Tribunal Constitucional rechazó la semana pasada varios recursos en contra de la nueva Ley de Vivienda que se centraban en materia de competencias administrativas. Sin embargo, quedan por resolver todavía varios escritos que entran en el fondo de la cuestión.

China’s 60 Million Homes Are Hard to Sell Even in Big Cities

Housing inventory is at a historic high, S&P analyst says
Oversupply is most acute in the nation’s capital city


The central bank recently announced a 300 billion yuan ($41 billion) initiative for local governments to purchase unsold homes. Photographer: Andrea Verdelli/Bloomberg

Chinese policymakers have identified reducing a glut of housing inventory as the key to ending the nation’s unprecedented property slump. It’s easy to see why.

The country has the equivalent of 60 million unsold apartments, which will take more than four years to sell without government aid, according to Bloomberg Economics. The oversupply is dragging down prices at the fastest rate in a decade, giving people less reason to buy a home. The situation is worst in the capital city.

To break this vicious cycle, the central bank recently announced a 300 billion yuan ($41 billion) initiative for local governments to purchase unsold homes. On the demand side, it urged cities to reduce minimum downpayments and mortgage rates to entice buyers. But it remains to be seen whether the steps will succeed in shrinking supply and ending the crisis.

“Housing inventory is at its highest in China’s history,” said Jay Lau, a property analyst at S&P Global Ratings. “The latest property policies could be a temporary confidence booster.”

Below are charts that show the scale of China’s problem with unsold housing.

Top Cities

Even in China’s four tier-1 cities, where the market is relatively resilient, it will take an estimated 27 months to sell the supply of new homes as of April, according to China Real Estate Information Corp. That is the longest in at least seven years. By comparison, the US has about nine months’ supply of new homes, according to the US housing department.



Three of China’s biggest cities — Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou — have rolled out major easing for homebuyers, slashing downpayment requirements and allowing room for cheaper home loans. Analysts expect Beijing, the other tier-1 city, to do the same. China’s capital has the longest monthly overhang in unsold homes, according to CRIC.

There’s no guarantee that the loosening will revive home sales immediately. Homeowners even in big metropolitan areas are losing conviction in their decades-long belief that property is a reliable store of wealth, according to Yan Yuejin, director of E-house China Research & Development Institute.



“There is a fundamental change in homebuyers’ confidence over the biggest cities in the long term,” Yan said. “While low-tier cities have higher outstanding housing stock, the major inventory issue lies in bigger ones.”

As of April, about 80% of China’s cities had an inventory absorption pace that was worse than a “warning line” of 18 months, according to CRIC. That’s even after developers refrained from offering new projects amid lackluster sales, leading new supply to shrink 20% from March.

Floor Space

The challenge looks just as daunting when measured by floor space. Residences completed by developers but unsold expanded to 391 million square meters nationwide as of April, the highest since 2017, official data show. Including properties that are almost finished and approved for presale, the stock is much larger at about 1.8 billion square meters, JPMorgan Chase & Co. estimates. Most of the excess sits in lower-tier cities, according to S&P.



China’s support package announced on May 17 is estimated to translate into 500 billion yuan of credit to help government-backed firms buy housing stock from developers. Yet that is unlikely to make a big enough dent in the supply, according to economists.

Reducing the inventory to a more optimal level through government-backed acquisitions would require 5 trillion yuan, according to JPMorgan analyst Karl Chan. CGS International Securities HK’s Raymond Cheng estimates 1 trillion yuan to 2 trillion yuan of funding is needed.

There are also questions over the program’s implementation as smaller trials earlier have struggled to get traction amid questions over the incentives for local governments, developers and banks.

Developer Relief

Not all of China’s developers will be able to tap the property-purchase plan to swap inventory for much-needed cash. Many have pledged a large part of their real estate held for sale to secure loans, making it tough for them to divest the assets, said Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Kristy Hung. KWG Group Holdings Ltd., for example, pledged 92% of its properties held for sale as of the end of last year, according to BI.

[img]https://i.imgur.com/TLrrNI8.png[img]

The rescue fund might have more meaningful impact in injecting liquidity for China Vanke Co. and Longfor Group Holdings Ltd., whose unpledged properties held for sale exceeded their short-term debt as of last year, BI estimates. They now have the option to offload slow-selling inventory to local government-backed firms at a discount to beef up cash.

US to offer Ukraine security pact as tensions rise between allies

Agreement next month aims to placate Kyiv officials who fear relationship with Washington has hit a low

The US is close to signing a new bilateral security pact with Ukraine in a signal of support aiming to assuage Kyiv after “tense” relations that some Ukrainian officials say have hit their lowest ebb since Russia’s full-scale invasion.

The agreement would be the most significant in a series of deals Ukraine has struck with Nato countries that lays out commitments on long-term support, including military training, intelligence sharing and economic assistance.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s frustration with Joe Biden was laid bare this week, when the Ukrainian president rebuked his US counterpart in unusually blunt terms, saying Biden’s plan to attend a Democratic fundraiser rather than Ukraine’s peace summit on June 15-16 was “not a strong decision”.

One Zelenskyy-appointed senior government official who spoke to the Financial Times about the US-Ukraine relationship said: “We are farther apart than ever since the war started. It is very, very tense.”

However days before the peace summit, Zelenskyy and Biden are expected to sign a bilateral security agreement on the sidelines of the G7 meeting in Italy next month, US officials told the FT.

The pact has been negotiated during weeks of increasingly strained relations between Kyiv and Washington. Zelenskyy’s office this week issued a memo to officials and MPs, seen by the FT, that instructs them to criticise both Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping for not attending the summit. “If they don’t [attend], then what is their real interest?” the memo wrote.

Several Ukrainian officials said that Kyiv’s bitterness over lack of top-level US support for its peace summit initiative was just one of many points of friction with Washington and other western partners that have erupted at a particularly difficult time for Ukraine’s leadership.

More than a dozen current and former Ukrainian officials and G7 country diplomats in Kyiv who spoke to the FT point to a clutch of contentious issues. These include Congress’s six-month delay in approving US military assistance; the expected lack of substantive progress towards Nato membership for Ukraine at the alliance’s Washington summit in July; the Biden administration’s prohibition on Kyiv’s use of American-supplied weapons inside Russia; and Ukraine’s drone strikes on Russian oil refineries.

Ukrainian attacks on two radar systems that form part of Moscow’s nuclear warning system over the past week have been a particular point of conflict with Washington, which is worried that it may provoke Moscow and further escalate the war.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy is flanked by Belgian defence minister Ludivine Dedonder and prime minister Alexander De Croo this week after Belgium agreed to provide Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets © Olivier Hoslet/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Other points of concern relate to diverging strategies on how Ukraine can achieve victory and what that victory might look like, as well as Zelenskyy’s little explained removal of top government and military officials the US had worked closely with.

Several Ukrainian government officials and diplomats from G7 nations cited the firing of commander-in-chief Valery Zaluzhny in February and infrastructure minister Oleksandr Kubrakov this month. Both men were well respected and enjoyed close working relationships with US and EU officials. The officials told the FT that G7 ambassadors have warned Zelenskyy’s government about what they see as disruptive and inexplicable moves.

The fraying relations and discord come as Ukrainian forces struggle to hold their defensive lines against a bigger and better-armed Russian army in the east, and while Zelenskyy is under huge pressure to mobilise more men and take other unpopular decisions to bolster the war effort.

Zelenskyy’s press secretary did not immediately respond to questions about relations with Biden’s White House.

The Biden administration has been among Ukraine’s most steadfast supporters, committing more than $175bn in emergency assistance to the country since the start of Russia’s all-out invasion in February 2022. Biden has repeatedly stated that the US would stick by Ukraine’s side for “as long as it takes”.

A US official said while there were points of disagreement in any bilateral relationship, there had been positive developments that had cheered officials in Kyiv. These include the US approval for Kyiv’s use of long-range 300km Atacms missiles and Congress passing $60bn of aid last month.

The US official also said Ukraine’s request to use US weapons to strike inside Russia was relatively recent, coming three weeks ago when Russian forces opened a new front in the north-eastern Kharkiv region. The official said the request is being evaluated by the Biden administration, suggesting a shift was possible soon.

But a second senior Ukrainian official said Zelenskyy has grown more “emotional and nervous” over the situation on the battlefield and what they say the president sees as Washington’s eagerness to start negotiations with Russia, despite the White House stating in public that it is entirely a decision for Kyiv to initiate such talks.

Zelenskyy “thinks they want the war to go away before the [US] election”, the official said. He added that the Ukrainian president was also unhappy with the Biden administration’s insistence that Kyiv not hit Russian oil infrastructure over fears of raising global gas prices in an election year.

A third senior Ukrainian official used the word “paranoia” to describe the feeling inside the presidential office in recent months, as Zelenskyy and his team have worked to prepare for next month’s peace summit. “Zelenskyy has deep anxiety about the military situation but especially about the peace summit in June,” the official said.

A woman holds a portrait of a Ukrainian soldier at a memorial area in Kyiv © Roman Pilipey/AFP/Getty Images

The Ukrainian president has tried to attract leaders from as many countries as possible to his summit in Switzerland, with the aim of uniting the global community against Vladimir Putin’s aggression. The Russian president has not been invited.

Representatives from more than 80 countries have confirmed their attendance, according to the memo and Zelenskyy. Meanwhile, Russia has been working to convince developing countries to sit it out.

Zelenskyy’s office wrote a memo on May 26 that outlines talking points for officials and MPs to use when speaking with western partners and media about the summit, and specifically instructs Ukrainian officials and lawmakers to pile public pressure on Biden and Xi.

“It is unlikely that the world will understand President Biden and President Xi if they do not join in the realisation of such undeniably just goals and bringing peace closer.”

Zelenskyy himself criticised the lack of response from the Biden administration during a visit to Brussels on Tuesday. “I am aware that America supports this summit, but we not aware on which level,” Zelenskyy said.

“I believe that the peace summit needs President Biden,” Zelenskyy continued. “His absence will only be a personal, standing applause to Putin.”

US officials say that Ukraine scheduled the summit in Switzerland for June 15 and 16 despite being told that Biden would probably be unable to attend. A senior official will represent the US at the meeting.

“The US and President Biden has been there for President Zelenskyy and for the people of Ukraine, and that will continue regardless of who sits in what chair at the peace summit,” White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said on Wednesday.

Several members of Zelenskyy’s own government said they are beginning to worry about the methods employed by their president to communicate with the US. One said that Zelenskyy was “very irritated” with Biden, adding they were concerned about “openly provoking” the White House.

“What do you say in America?” a fourth Ukrainian government official asked the FT. “Do not bite the hand that feeds you.”

El problema de la vivienda amenaza el crecimiento económico, según el Consejo Económico

Una cuarta parte de la población se encuentra en riesgo de pobreza y exclusión social, según resalta la memoria socioeconómica y laboral de 2023 del organismo

La magnitud del problema en el acceso a la vivienda trasciende los límites del sector inmobiliario y corre el peligro de afectar a la economía española. Esta advertencia es una de las principales reflexiones que recoge la Memoria Socioeconómica y Laboral 2023 elaborada por el Consejo Económico y Social (CES), y que su presidente, Antón Costas, y el responsable de la Comisión de Trabajo que la ha redactado, José Ignacio Conde-Ruiz, presentaron este jueves en la sede del organismo en Madrid. Otra de las denuncias que subraya el informe es que más de una cuarta parte de la población (26,5%) se encuentra actualmente en situación de pobreza y riesgo de exclusión social, pese a la mejoría del mercado de trabajo y al buen comportamiento de las finanzas del país. Algo que ambos responsables han calificado de “inaceptable”.

“Aunque, a nivel general, podemos sacar pecho [acerca de la evolución de la economía española en 2023], a la vez, es posible decir que hay una serie de elementos que resultan advertencias importantes para el mantenimiento de este cambio. Y, entre ellas, está que el problema de la vivienda puede acabar estrangulando el buen comportamiento de la economía y del mercado laboral”, ha reflexionado Antón Costas. “No lo digo en el sentido de que pueda llegar a crear una crisis económica, pero sí de que pueda afectar a otras actividades y sectores, como, por ejemplo, el turismo”, ha matizado.

Conde Ruiz, por su parte, ha resaltado que la memoria también relaciona los problemas del sector inmobiliario con otros fenómenos como la movilidad de las personas, y, por extensión, de los trabajadores. “La vivienda repercute en la eficiencia, puesto que la movilidad es fundamental, porque si no hay viviendas, nadie va a ir a los sitios donde pueden necesitarse trabajadores, por mucho que los salarios sean altos”, ha indicado.

El economista, al tiempo, ha recordado que las economías de aglomeración —esto es, cuando varias empresas conviven en una misma ciudad, por ejemplo, y esta concentración de trabajadores provoca que se creen distintos servicios y negocios alrededor—, son “un fenómeno global” y actualmente “se está dando en algunas zonas en detrimento de otras”, lo que puede generar “cuellos de botella”.

Ambos intervinientes han justificado la falta de una evaluación de los efectos de la Ley de Vivienda, aprobada hace un año, por considerar que todavía no ha pasado el tiempo suficiente para hacer un análisis “tajante y con datos”.

La memoria completa, de 509 páginas, y repartida en distintos bloques, analiza desde el comportamiento macro que tuvieron las finanzas del país en el último ejercicio, hasta el impacto de las políticas sociales sobre el bienestar de los ciudadanos. En este punto, Costas ha sentenciado que la pobreza “no es solo un problema moral”, sino también económico, puesto que, de acuerdo con diferentes estudios internacionales, “las inversiones en la infancia son las que presentan unas mayores tasas de retorno”; y político puesto que “estás impidiendo el desarrollo de un cuarto por ciento de la población de tu país”.

Niveles prepandemia

El informe del CES también señala que el consumo en los hogares españoles se mantuvo fuerte pese al aumento de los tipos de interés y los altos precios, algo que se produjo gracias a la mejora del empleo y los salarios, la confianza del consumidor y el acceso al crédito. Sin embargo, indica que “la inversión sigue débil”, ya que aún no se han recuperado los niveles prepandemia. Sin embargo, indica que espera que esto mejore con el Plan de Recuperación, Transformación y Resiliencia (PRTR) y una disminución de la incertidumbre.

En el ámbito laboral, el texto detalla que 2023 fue positivo con récords de empleo y reducción del desempleo, y que los salarios mejoraron gracias al V Acuerdo por el Empleo y la Negociación Colectiva (AENC). Un pacto bilateral, alcanzado entre sindicatos y patronales, que en opinión de Costas de muestra ser “muy poderoso” por los distintos efectos positivos que ha provocado sobre la economía —como el aumento del gasto—, y que evidencia como el diálogo social es un “activo intangible importantísimo para el buen funcionamiento de la economía y la sociedad”.

Respecto al hecho de que a lo largo del año pasado se alcanzasen menos acuerdos a tres bandas, Costas le ha quitado hierro, y ha concebido la actual “sequía” a un “cambio de ciclo”. Sin embargo, el presidente del CES ha insistido en que las conversaciones entre los representantes de los trabajadores y de los empresarios —cuyas principales organizaciones están representadas dentro del órgano consultivo del Gobierno en materia socioeconómica y laboral y, por tanto, comparten las conclusiones que se presentan en este informe— siguen siendo fluidas y eficaces.

Fed’s Williams says inflation is too high but will start coming down soon

NEW YORK — New York Federal Reserve President John Williams on Thursday said inflation is still too high but he is confident it will start decelerating later this year.

With markets on edge over the direction of monetary policy, Williams offered no clear signs on where he is leaning as far as possible interest rate cuts go. Instead, he reiterated recent positions from the central bank that it has seen a “lack of further progress” toward its goals as inflation readings have been mostly higher than expected this year.

“With the economy coming into better balance over time and the disinflation taking place in other economies reducing global inflationary pressures, I expect inflation to resume moderating in the second half of this year,” Williams said in remarks at the Economic Club of New York. “But let me be clear: Inflation is still above our 2% longer-run target, and I am very focused on ensuring we achieve both of our dual mandate goals.”

For nearly a year, the Fed has been in a holding pattern, keeping its benchmark borrowing rate in a range between 5.25%-5.5%, the highest in more than 23 years.

Williams called policy “well positioned” as the Fed seeks to keep the labor market strong and bring inflation back to its 2% target. Most inflation indicators are near 3% now; a key reading from the Commerce Department is due Friday.

Inflation as measured through the Fed’s preferred yardstick — the personal consumption expenditures price index — is expected to come in at 2.7% for April, according to the Dow Jones estimate. Williams said he expects PCE inflation to drift down to 2.5% this year on its way back to 2%.

“We have seen a great deal of progress toward our goals over the past two years. I am confident that we will restore price stability and set the stage for sustained economic prosperity. We are committed to getting the job done,” he said.(...)

— Se está dando la noticia del envío a Ucrania de asesores o instructores militares del Estado francés como si se tratara de dos cosas: 1.º Un «desembarco» en Ucrania. 2.º Una «toma de liderazgo» en una supuesta coalición de países prestos a ayudar militarmente a Ucrania, nada de OTAN.

Demasiado bombo y platillo, ¿no creen? Encaja, a la perfección con nuestra tesis de que estamos ante el mutis anglo invicto, con una 'mise-en-scène' francesa, único Estado 'atómico' de la UE, para que la derrota cuente en el marcador de esta.

Formaría parte de esta 'mise-en-scène' un enfriamiento de los lazos intra-OTAN, algo que es verosímil tras las elecciones norteamericanas de noviembre.

France could announce sending military trainers to Ukraine soon, diplomats say

PARIS, May 30 (Reuters) - France could soon send military trainers to Ukraine despite the concerns of some allies and criticism by Russia, and may announce its decision next week during a visit by the Ukrainian president, three diplomatic sources said.

The diplomats said Paris hoped to forge and lead a coalition of countries offering such assistance to Kyiv's war effort even though some of its European Union partners fear it could make a direct conflict with Russia more likely.

France would initially send a limited number of personnel to assess the modalities of a mission before dispatching several hundred trainers, two of the diplomats said.

Training would centre around demining, keeping equipment operational and technical expertise for warplanes to be provided by the West, they said. Paris would also finance, arm, and train a Ukrainian motorised brigade.

"The arrangements are very advanced and we could expect something next week," said one of the sources.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is due in France on June 6, the 80th anniversary of D-day, when Allied soldiers landed in Normandy to drive out Nazi German forces during World War Two. He will hold talks with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris the next day.

Ukraine's top commander said on Monday he had signed paperwork allowing French military instructors to visit Ukrainian training centres soon.

Ukraine's Defence Ministry, in a "clarification", said Kyiv had been expressing interest in a project involving receiving foreign instructors since February.

Russian President Vladimir Putin portrayed the presence of regular French military in Ukraine as a step towards global conflict.

TALK OF A COALITION

France has trained about 10,000 Ukrainian troops since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, but has done so within the EU. The new mission would not be under EU or NATO auspices, the diplomats said.

Speaking after a Franco-German cabinet meeting this week, Macron did not deny the possibility of sending instructors following the Ukrainian comments, saying that he did not comment on "rumours or decisions that could come."

France's defence ministry said training on Ukrainian soil was among subjects that had been discussed since February.

"Like all the projects discussed at that time, this track continues to be the subject of work with the Ukrainians, in particular to understand their exact needs," it said.

Baltic states have in the past indicated they could join France in such a project.

"Lithuania is ready to join a coalition led by France for example which would train soldiers in Ukraine," Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis told France's LCI television on May 20.

EU defence ministers on Tuesday debated the idea of training Ukrainian forces in Ukraine but did not reach a common position, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said.

(This story has been corrected to fix the spelling of Josep Borrell in paragraph 16)

France leads initiative on sending military trainers to Ukraine

Paris and Kyiv in talks ahead of D-Day anniversary when Volodymyr Zelenskyy will visit France

(...)Estonia’s Prime Minister Kaja Kallas told the Financial Times earlier this month that there were already “countries who are training soldiers on the ground” in Ukraine. She argued that if training personnel were attacked by Russian forces it would not automatically trigger Nato’s Article 5 mutual defence clause: “It is not how it works. It’s not automatic. So these fears are not well-founded.”

President Zelenskyy’s office declined to comment on Thursday. The French defence ministry said it was still working with its Ukrainian counterparts “in particular to understand their exact needs”.

Asked for details on Tuesday at a press conference in Germany alongside chancellor Olaf Scholz, Macron did not deny the plans, but said he would “not comment on what were uncoordinated and unfortunate communications”.

“I will have the opportunity when president Zelenskyy comes to France next week to receive him and to express myself very precisely on what we are going to do,” he said. 

Eurozone unemployment falls to lowest level since 1999

Eurozone unemployment dropped further in April, falling by 0.1 percentage points as a strong jobs market took the rate to its lowest level since the formation of the currency bloc in 1999. 

The euro area’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate fell to 6.4 per cent, with just under 11mn people unemployed, according to data from Eurostat, the EU’s statistics agency, on Thursday. This was down from 6.5 per cent in March.

Across the wider EU region the figure was 6 per cent, amounting to 13.1mn people, a reading that remained flat on the previous month.

China Vanke in Advanced Talks With Banks for $6.9 Billion Loan

China Vanke Co., the Chinese state-backed developer that’s become the latest flashpoint in the nation’s property crisis, is in advanced talks with major banks for a loan of about 50 billion yuan ($6.9 billion), people familiar with the matter said.

If signed, it would be the largest loan in Asia Pacific, excluding Japan, since Taiwan-based National Housing and Urban Regeneration Center’s $14 billion deal in 2022, according to Bloomberg-compiled data. Talks over the facility, led by Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, began a few months ago after financial regulators instructed the banks to offer funding support to the developer, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the matter is private.(...)