Highlights of the week of February 20 to 26
Borrell urged to accelerate weapons deliveries to Ukraine
This week marks the first anniversary of the war in Eastern Europe. But on the eve of the anniversary, at the EU Security Council in Munich, Jaurep Borrell called on the alliance countries to accelerate the supply of ammunition and weapons.
At the moment there is almost no action on the Ukrainian front. However, this relative calm is highly fragile. According to Borrell, Ukraine can go on the offensive as soon as the snow melts and the troops have a chance to advance quickly. The scale of this offensive depends directly on the equipment of the army.
The former Spanish minister of foreign affairs has also named the war in Ukraine a threat to security throughout Europe. That argument was the main one in the urge to speed up the delivery of weapons, which, according to experts, may take several months. Some of the agreements are designed for the fall of 2023.
Such claims are quite expected, but it should be recalled that a few months ago Borrell himself said that the stock of weapons and equipment that Europe can supply to Ukraine has been "exhausted".
It is unclear whether the European economy will be able to cope with the impressive demand of the military-industrial complex.
U.S. will deny migrants for asylum
"Fresh" initiatives from across the ocean. The Biden administration is working on a regulation that would ban granting asylum and even entry over the Mexican border to third-country nationals.
There is, however, a necessary clarification: only if these citizens have not previously applied for asylum in other countries.
Basically, instead of a total ban on entry, there will be very serious restrictions that could affect thousands of migrants. According to the American press, more than 12,500 Russian migrants have crossed the border with Mexico into the United States.
Of course, no one is saying openly whom this measure is aimed against specifically. However, the political context allows us to make some assumptions.
Another interesting fact about the initiative is this has already happened before in recent U.S. history. Biden's predecessor, Donald Trump, tried to legalize an identical bill back in 2019. Back then, a federal appeals court rejected the document. It is very likely that this time too, the new administration will face legal obstacles.
It is worth noting that the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) also announced its intention to oppose the bill.
Britain liked working four days a week
Last year the United Kingdom launched a six-month experiment with a 4-day workweek. At the end of that project, employers rated their employee satisfaction at 7.5 on a 10-point scale.
Of course, the experiment was not nationwide. A total of about 3,000 people from 61 companies took part. The scope ranged from the banking sector to fast-food restaurants.
As a result, the majority of employers decided to stay with the new model, as employee turnover and the number of absenteeism has decreased dramatically. However, it is worth clarifying that all the innovations mostly impacted small and medium-sized businesses. Large companies, as always, are stiff and do not like radical changes.
The four-day workweek has been debated in the European community for quite some time, and test results show its effectiveness.
Not only does employees' productivity improve, since they no longer have time for irrelevant meetings or discussions, but also their psychological and physical well-being.
