Have the article read by OpenAI (Beta). Please note that AI translations may take some time to process.Munich (dpa) – According to management consultants McKinsey, the European car industry needs a new China strategy. In the world’s most important car market, European manufacturers have lost around 5 percentage points of market share since 2019, and new competitors hold a 51 percent share of the global market for e-cars. “Greater adaptation to Chinese customer tastes with a strong focus on the latest technology, connectivity, driver assistance systems and consumer electronics” could stop the erosion in China, industry experts wrote in a study published on August 30.
More research and development in China are also needed. While European manufacturers need four years from concept to pilot phase of a car, the best Chinese manufacturers manage this in two years. At most 20 percent of the workforce in the European car industry have software skills, “in the case of the challengers from the USA and China, the proportion is 45 percent,” the study says. Chinese manufacturers have a cost advantage of 20 to 30 percent for e-cars. Energy costs for the European car industry are two to three times higher than in China and the USA.
However, the European car industry “can still act from a position of strength,” says McKinsey industry expert Andreas Cornet. It generates three times as much turnover as the Chinese carmakers, scores with customer understanding, design and brands, employs 14 million people and is an innovation driver with 30 percent of all research and development spending in the EU. European manufacturers have announced more than 150 new e-models by 2030.
However, the dependence on China for batteries is huge. “90 percent of the capacity for refining lithium is in China, more than 70 percent of the cells are manufactured in China.” By 2030, a huge gap in batteries looms. “Europe could be 500 GWh short of local capacity,” the consultants write. Europe needs 20 additional battery factories, which cost 35 billion euros. The supply of semiconductors is also not secured. “37 new plants with an investment volume of 190 billion euros could mitigate the risk.” In order to be at the forefront of driver assistance systems and autonomous driving, European companies should cooperate more in the use of data and the definition of technical standards, the expert added. (August 30)
European Court of Human Rights: Elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) are undemocratic
Sarajevo (FENA) – In the case of Kovačević v. Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), the European Court of Human Rights found that the current political system in Bosnia and Herzegovina prioritizes ethnic representation over political, economic, social, philosophical and other factors, which reinforces ethnic divisions in the country and undermines the democratic character of choice.
The court stated that the international obligation of Bosnia and Herzegovina to reform the electoral system was unfulfilled. After becoming a member of the Council of Europe in 2002, Bosnia and Herzegovina undertook to “within one year, with the help of the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission), review the electoral legislation in accordance with the standards of the Council of Europe, and amend everything necessary.”
Since then, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has regularly reminded Bosnia and Herzegovina of this obligation and called on the country to adopt a new constitution with the aim of moving from the “ethnic principle to the civic principle.” The court did not find any reason to depart from its judicial practice, especially from the rulings in the cases Sejdić and Finci, Zornić and Pilav. In those, the court found discrimination against persons who do not belong to the “constituent nations” of Bosnia and Herzegovina and those who do not meet the combination of conditions of ethnic origin and place of residence with regard to their right to run for the House of Peoples and the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Slaven Kovačević, who lives in the Bosniak-Croat Federation, complained that in the elections for the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, his choice was limited to those candidates who declare themselves as Bosniaks and Croats. He was unable to choose any other candidates. At the same time, the residents of Republika Srpska only have the right to vote for those candidates who declare themselves as Serbs. In addition, those who do not declare themselves as members of the “constituent peoples” have no right to run for the presidency at all.
The court took the position that real political democracy, based on the free right to vote, best contributes to the preservation of peace and dialogue. Therefore, as stated, voting in elections must be based on political and not ethnic criteria. Even if some forms of ethnic representation were to be retained, it is added that these would have to be secondary to political representation and should not discriminate against “other citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina”. (August 29)
Bulgaria received strong support for its accession to Schengen at the Strategic Forum
Bled (BTA) – Bulgaria’s Schengen membership was the central topic of all bilateral meetings of the Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Maria Gabriel during the Strategic Forum in Bled. Hungary, France, Slovenia, Portugal, Sweden and Croatia expressed strong support for the country’s accession.
The panel “EU – a leader in decision-making” discussed the need for future reforms of the EU, enlargement and the expectations of the member states. Gabriel emphasized that the balance between expectations and results should be the focus of debates. The Schengen membership of Bulgaria and Romania and the criteria that both countries have been fulfilling for years was cited as an example. (August 28-30)
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