Brexit, migrants and taxing Google _ big stakes at EU summit

20/10/2017 12:26

        Brexit is Europe's big worry but isn't the only global problem that the leaders of 28 EU nations are trying to resolve at their latest summit.
        
        Here's a look at what the leaders are grappling with at meetings that resume Friday:
        
        BREXIT BURNOUT
        
        British Prime Minister Theresa May came to Brussels on Thursday trying to reinvigorate divorce talks with the EU that are bogging down. Her EU partners said she's made progress, but want more "meat" — notably about the exit bill, or how much Britain will pay for its previous EU commitments. Other leaders also appeared to resist May's push for speedier talks on post-Brexit trade. The refrain among EU leaders: "unity" in the face of a fractured Britain.
        
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        SPAIN'S SEPARATISTS
        
        All eyes were on Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on the summit's first day, as his government moved to take away autonomy from Catalonia while it threatens to break away. But the EU firmly refused to intervene in the standoff. While Rajoy won unconditional support from France's president, other countries stayed largely mum — perhaps hoping the Catalonian separatist spirit doesn't spread to other independence-minded regions.
        
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        TAXING INTERNET GIANTS
        
        France's President Emmanuel Macron made progress on his push to make companies like Amazon pay taxes where they make profits, and not in tax havens. The 39-year-old president wants Europe to embrace startups and be a bigger player in the digital economy but says it won't work without a "level playing field" when it comes to taxes. The EU leaders asked for proposals on a new Europe-wide tax policy by early next year.
        
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        COUNTERING TRUMP ON IRAN
        
        The EU leaders came to unusually easy unanimity on the Iran nuclear agreement: They embraced it, even as President Donald Trump denounces it. That's in part because the deal allows for renewed trade with Iran — a longtime European trading partner — in exchange for curbs on Iranian nuclear activities. But the EU is also afraid of growing global tensions, and argues that abandoning the deal now could torpedo any effort to negotiate with North Korea over its nuclear ambitions.