European Union approves visa facilitation for Ukraine
The Council of the European Union approved the signing of agreements between the EU and Ukraine on visa facilitation and readmission. The visa agreement provides for simplifying the procedure and rules for issuing single-entry visas valid for up to three months, as well as multiple-entry visas for certain groups of citizens.
As reported by RIA Novosti, the simplified procedure applies to members of official delegations, entrepreneurs and representatives of commercial organizations, journalists, cultural and scientific figures, students and schoolchildren, and participants in international sporting events. The visa fee will be €35.
The agreement also standardizes visa fees, clearly regulates visa processing times. According to the readmission agreement, Moldova and the EU commit to identifying on their territory people who have illegally entered and are staying in the country, and to deport them to the states of which they are citizens.
Britain tightens rules for teaching foreigners high-tech skills
The United Kingdom is introducing new rules for applications from foreign postgraduate students for training in a number of high-tech specialties in order to strengthen the non-proliferation regime of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), the UK Foreign Office reported.
"Following the example of governments around the world, the British leadership is working hard to stop the spread of knowledge and skills that could be used in the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and their delivery means," said the Foreign Office statement.
As reported by RIA Novosti, to enroll foreign students in postgraduate and master's programs, as well as for research in a number of fields such as medicine, biology, physics, mathematics, aircraft construction, and other sciences for more than six months, they will now need to obtain a special certificate called ATAS.
The abbreviation, amusing for Russian-speaking readers, stands for "Academic Technology Approval Scheme". "ATAS was created to ensure with full confidence that those persons who are not involved in WMD programs are enrolled for training in a number of 'sensitive' disciplines in the UK," the British Foreign Office explained.
The scheme began operating in pilot mode on November 1, and from November 30 it became mandatory for the list of specialties, the full version of which is available on the Foreign Office website. There, applicants can also obtain the ATAS certificate online by filling out the necessary forms. The Foreign Office assures that this will take applicants no more than half an hour and will not cost a penny. Applications are reviewed and approved on average within ten working days, after which applicants can apply for a student visa.
100,000 Eastern European citizens work in Holland
According to statistics, currently the number of citizens working in the Netherlands from countries that became EU members since 2004 is 100,000 people. This is 1.5% of the total working population of the Netherlands.
The majority in this group are from Poland, the rest are from the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, and the former Baltic states. Recently, the number of arrivals from Bulgaria and Romania has increased. As reported by RUS.nl, despite these countries being EU members, Dutch enterprises are required to obtain special work permits for their citizens.
Illegals intimidate British truckers
Illegal migrants trying to enter the UK are intimidating truck drivers during their stops at the French port of Calais. Organizers of illegal migration estimate the cost of delivery from the mainland to the island at €400-500, and if the driver refuses to let an illegal immigrant into the truck's cargo area, pressure is exerted on him, Sky News reports.
The leadership of the Road Transport Association expressed concern about the increasing attacks on drivers. The organization believes this is due to intensified checks on the French side of the English Channel. In this regard, the Association proposes increasing the number of police patrols maintaining order in truck parking lots.
More than 500 British immigration service employees work in Calais. They check 70% of all trucks passing through Calais daily. To detect illegals, they use both specially trained dogs and electronic sensors capable of detecting the breath or heartbeat of a person hidden in the cargo area.
Since immigration services usually intercept migrants before they board the ferry to the UK, truck drivers are increasingly becoming targets of attacks, who are demanded to hide and transport illegals. As reported by Lenta.ru, the Border and Immigration Agency stated that they are aware of this problem and, together with the French police, will take measures to ensure driver safety.
UK population could double in 75 years
The population of the United Kingdom, currently just over 60 million people, could almost double in 75 years, according to a forecast by the UK Office for National Statistics.
The agency published two forecasts, "pessimistic" and "optimistic", which were calculated based on different models of migration, birth rates, and life expectancy in the country, RIA Novosti reports.
The most likely scenario is that by 2031 the United Kingdom will have a population of 71 million, and by 2081 - already 85 million. If the UK remains an attractive destination for immigrants in the coming decades, coupled with an increase in birth rates and life expectancy, the country's population could reach 75 million by 2031. By the middle of this century, the 90 million mark will be exceeded, and by 2081 the number of inhabitants of the British Isles will approach 110 million.
The symbolic milestone of 60 million people was surpassed by the United Kingdom in 2006. The country's population growth is driven both by migration (about two-thirds of total growth) and by the natural excess of births over deaths. The average life expectancy in the UK is now 77 years for men and 81 years for women.
In 2006, over 590,000 people moved to the UK for long-term residence, while about 400,000 left the country. A number of politicians and public figures have repeatedly warned that stricter restrictive measures on the entry of foreigners need to be adopted.
“These calculations of population growth are another unambiguous reminder of what could happen to our population and our country if the government does not take tough and effective steps,” warned Sir Andrew Green, head of the monitoring organization Migrationwatch UK.
EU updates blacklist of unsafe airlines
The European Union has updated the blacklist of airlines banned from flying in EU airspace. As reported by European Commission spokesperson Michele Cercone, by decision of European aviation authorities, one Pakistani and one Surinamese airline have been removed from the list, having met EU requirements for ensuring the safety of their aircraft.
At the same time, according to Cercone, the EU considered it premature to remove “Ukrainian-Mediterranean Airlines” from the blacklist, while noting progress in measures taken by the carrier to comply with European flight safety standards.
The European Commission representative also noted that the EU executive will continue to check Russian airlines for compliance with safety standards, against which Russian aviation authorities have imposed “operational restrictions”, RIA Novosti reports.
The EU updates the list of unsafe carriers every three months. This is already the sixth revision. The first blacklist of unsafe airlines according to the EU was published by the European Commission in March 2006. In coordination with EU countries, the European Commission is also entitled to remove from the list airlines that prove their aircraft comply with European safety requirements. In total, the EU blacklist currently includes over 100 airlines, mainly from Southeast Asia and Africa, as well as Afghanistan, Iran, Ukraine, and Kyrgyzstan.
EU bans trade in dog and cat fur
The Council of the European Union approved in second and final reading a draft directive introducing a ban on trade, import, and export of dog and cat fur and products made from it in the member states of this regional organization, a press service representative of the EU Council told RIA Novosti.
He recalled that in June of this year, the draft of the corresponding EU directive was approved by the European Parliament. Under the new legislation, which will come into effect on December 31, 2008, sellers of fur products in EU states are required to provide full information about what they are made of. Violators of the EU directive will face heavy fines.
The European Commission, which drafted the legislative initiative, also proposed that EU countries create a system of information exchange to identify and combat the practice of trading dog and cat fur.
Often it is sold to clothing manufacturers under the guise of synthetic fur or fur of wild animals, which is used to make warm shoes, gloves, and stuffed toys. According to Belgian animal protection societies, over 2 million cats and dogs are slaughtered annually in Asian countries for the industrial use of their fur.