The UN climate change negotiations are concluding tomorrow in Bonn after ten days in the German city aiming at developing the final text for the Paris agreement rulebook. However, this is not going to happen before COP24 scheduled in December 2018, according to the Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Patricia […]Climate negotiations on the road to a strong Paris agreement rulebook
May 9, 2018 by 3 Comments
The UN climate change negotiations are concluding tomorrow in Bonn after ten days in the German city aiming at developing the final text for the Paris agreement rulebook. However, this is not going to happen before COP24 scheduled in December 2018, according to the Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Patricia […]Macron and Trump press Merkel to recycle the German trade surpluses
May 7, 2018 by Leave a Comment
The divisive effect on Europe that Donald Trump’s trade war has generated, takes on new dimensions now. Only the European Sting highlighted this aspect, when the President of ‘America first’ fired the first shots, igniting the trade skirmishes. The differences, about how to respond to the US trade aggression, between the French President Emmanuel […]Britain aligns with EU rivaling US on trade and Iran, abandons bilateral ‘Midsummer Night’s Dream’
May 3, 2018 by Leave a Comment
Last Sunday 29 April, Britain determinedly joined the other two major European Union powers, Germany and France in cautioning the US not to activate its super levies of 25% and 10% on imports of steel and aluminum respectively. Donald Trump, the president of ‘America first’, on 23 March had announced the imposition of the above […]Business uncertainty rises as US grants only temporary exception to EU for steel and aluminium tariffs
May 2, 2018 by Leave a Comment
Trump’s America first decided last Monday to prolong negotiations on steel and aluminium tariffs with Canada, the EU and Mexico till June 1. This announcement was made just a few hours before the temporary exception expires preventing retaliation and massive impact on the relationship between the U.S., EU, Canada and Mexico. However, the EU officials expressed […]The ECB must extend its money stimulus beyond 2018: Draghi reckoning
April 30, 2018 by Leave a Comment
Last Thursday, 26 April Mario Draghi, tactfully left it to be understood that Eurozone may not any more grow so fast as we all knew it was doing until recently, and, consequently, the inflation goal of close to 2% may not be achievable. He communicated that by not repeating what he had said on 8 […]Macron crowned king of Europe in Washington D.C.; just a working meeting with Trump for Merkel
April 26, 2018 by Leave a Comment
A rare service Donald Trump is currently doing for the Europeans is that he offers them a platform for important common action to be undertaken by the French President Emmanuel Macron and the German Chancellor Angela Merkel. They are both visiting the White House this week, but expect quite different reception from Trump; pompous state […]Germany resists Macron’s plan for closer and more cohesive Eurozone; Paris and Berlin at odds
April 23, 2018 by Leave a Comment
Last week, surprising everybody, Francois Villeroy de Galhau, Governor of the Bank of France and member of European Central Bank’s Governing Council said that the decision to stop ECB’s extraordinarily accommodating monetary measures this year, is premature. So, according to him, the central bank must continue applying its extra relaxed measures well beyond this year. […]The West cannot ignore Russia; dazed Germany sitting on the fence
April 19, 2018 by Leave a Comment
After the missile attacks by the Western trio of US, Britain and France against Damascus and other positions in war torn Syria, the Russian overlords and Assad regime in that part of the world, continues pursuing their agenda, as if nothing happened. From a certain angle truly nothing has changed regarding the military and political […]The missiles fired against Damascus, Syria divided Europe deeply
April 16, 2018 by Leave a Comment
Last Friday night till the early hours of Saturday morning the US-France-Britain alliance attacked the Assad/Putin regime of Damascus, with a precipitation of missiles. Seemingly though, the hits have had a greater political impact on Europe than in Syria itself. Germany and Italy, the other two major European Union countries with strong interests in the […]Is the advent of nationalism to destroy economic neo-liberalism?
April 5, 2018 by Leave a Comment
All major stock exchanges suffered severe losses on the first day of this week not because Tesla and facebook stocks are falling, or even because the Chinese announced on Sunday night their retaliative import tariffs of 15% to 25% on 128 US products; all that was known and probably discounted for during the past few […]Mainland Europe adopts Germanic cartel business patterns
April 2, 2018 by Leave a Comment
As in VW’s diesel engines emissions scandal, in the case of Estonia’s half banking system working as mafia’s financiers, it was the Americans to unveil the wrongdoings. Is it by chance or the Europeans are looking the other way, when it comes to their own dirty laundry? Those calculated frame ups are not only meant […]Putin becomes the ‘perfect enemy” for the West
March 22, 2018 by Leave a Comment
Putin, after having won last Sunday’s presidential election in Russia with a landslide of 76.7% is now turning to the West for détente. According to Reuters, he said “had no desire for an arms race and would do everything he could to resolve differences with other countries”. Only a few days ahead of election Sunday […]Trump’s trade war splits the EU; Germany upset with Juncker’s “we can be stupid too”
March 19, 2018 by 1 Comment
The US-EU trade war starts on 23 March, with the first shot fired by Washington at 12:01 a.m. (04.01 GMT). From what we know so far, from that minute onward the American customs authorities will impose extra tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, set by President Trump at 25% and 10% respectively. However, it seems […]Trump systematically upsets global order and trade: Where does this end?
March 8, 2018 by Leave a Comment
The extra import tariffs Donald Trump, the ‘America first’ President, the US is to impose on steel (25%) and aluminum (10%) imports have provoked a tsunami of reactions and widespread consequences without and even within the country. The European Commission President reacted swiftly and stated the EU is to retaliate with tariffs of an equal […]Italian elections: a long political limbo is ahead
March 7, 2018 by Leave a Comment
The outcome of the Italian general elections of last Sunday was disappointing leaving the country and the European Union in shock. The win of the two anti-establishment parties together with the fact that no single party managed to get the mandate of an overall majority leaves the country in a political uncertainty where a coalition […]Draghi tells the EU Parliament his relaxed policies are here to stay
March 1, 2018 by Leave a Comment
The too slow or non existing pace of wage increases is the main reason for the non revival of inflation in Eurozone. This is what Mario Draghi told the Economic Committee of the European Parliament last Monday. He added that this is why the economic slack in the euro area may be larger than we […]Germany readies to pay for the Brexit gap in EU finance
February 26, 2018 by Leave a Comment
As expected, last Friday’s informal European Council of the 27 EU leaders didn’t produce any tangible result regarding its main agenda item; the future of Europe. The EU leaders just quarreled on who is to cover the hole in the budget, after Britain’s contribution ends with Brexit. In relation to this perennial question of money […]Germany to re-invent its security position in Europe and a chaotic world
February 22, 2018 by 1 Comment
At the Munich Security Conference of last week, the hottest criticism for the Grand Coalition agreement of Angela Merkel and Martin Schulz, coming from within and without the country was about not spending enough on armaments and security. The American Defense Secretary Jim Mattis focused on that Germany must spend 2% of GDP on defense, […]EU budget: Will Germany alone manage Britain’s gap?
February 21, 2018 by Leave a Comment
The EU budget will be the main topic of the EU summit which will be held in Brussels on Friday. The leaders of the 27 member states have to deal with the annual gap that UK will leave after Brexit occurs ensuring that the priorities set for the Union will be adequately funded. According to […]Germany may have a stable and more cooperative government
February 8, 2018 by Leave a Comment
The center right and center left German mainstream political parties agreed yesterday evening to form a new grand coalition government. It will be the third time since 2005 the two Christian parties and the socialists jointly govern their country. The socialists will control the Finance, Foreign and Labor ministries, with Martin Schulz, the Social Democratic […]Healthcare for refugees: a necessary symbiosis of medicine and politics
February 6, 2018 by Leave a Comment
This article was exclusively written for the Sting by Ms Janatana Karunakumar, a 3rd year medical student at Georg-August-University in Göttingen, Germany. Ms Karunakumar is affiliated to the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA). The opinion expressed in this piece belongs to the writer and does not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view on the topic, nor The European […]‘Safe Eurobonds’: a new trick to betray the south euro area countries
February 1, 2018 by Leave a Comment
All along the years after the 2008-2010 financial crisis, which in the European Union took the form banking/government debt breakdowns starting with Greece, there were cries for the creation of a solid Eurozone. In every respect, these calls amounted to demands that super prosperous Germany accepts some degree of risk-sharing with the rest of the […]Trump reshapes the Middle East at the expenses of Europe
January 25, 2018 by 3 Comments
Trump’s completely unwarranted aggressiveness towards the rest of the world took a violent thrust this week. His vice President Mike Pence speaking at the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, announced a speed-up of the relocation of the US embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv. The move is now to be completed before the end of next […]What Merkel and Macron are to tell Trump in Davos?
January 22, 2018 by 1 Comment
Donald Trump, the American President, is to deliver the closing speech at this year’s World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of 23-26 January in Davos, which as usually is set in the unsullied Alpine landscape. Perhaps, he has something new to say about how America sees Europe. Most probably though, he is simply to repeat his […]What will Germany look like after the next election?
January 11, 2018 by Leave a Comment
Last Thursday this newspaper came out with a lead story about European countries having problems producing viable governments. The article was entitled “Minority governments ‘à la mode’ in Europe but can they last long?” It seems conformist Germany answers this question in the negative. According to an opinion poll published this week and reported by […]How a possible EU budget deficit affects the migration crisis
January 10, 2018 by Leave a Comment
The migration crisis has been long plaguing Europe but the year passed revealed that the situation is getting better and better with arrivals and deaths to be decreased to a great extent. According to IOM, the UN Migration Agency, 171.635 migrants and refugees entered Europe by sea during 2017 compared to the 363.504 arrivals in […]Erdogan’s Turkey in dire straits for flip flop policies in the Middle East
January 8, 2018 by Leave a Comment
Last week a US federal court convicted Mehmet Hakan Atilla, an executive of Turkey’s state-owned Halkbank. This is a major financial institution of this country, controlled directly by the government. Attila found guilty on five accounts, for evading the American sanctions imposed on Iran. Most of those punitive measures were lifted in April 2015, in […]Minority governments ‘à la mode’ in Europe but can they last long?
January 4, 2018 by Leave a Comment
With the Italian elections set for 4 March and anticipated to produce a hang parliament, four out of the five bigger European countries will be in political limbo for a good part, if not for the entire new year 2018. France is the only exception in this Euro-plague of political uncertainty. In some cases the […]Europe’s far-right launches attacks on neighboring nations
December 21, 2017 by Leave a Comment
This newspaper had predicted that Europe’s extreme right wing, almost fascist political parties, unable to deliver their phoney promises after reaching government posts, will try to play the aggressive chauvinism card. Old Continet’s’s nations have paid dearly in the past millennia for jingoism and chauvinist violence. However, after many decades of peace in Europe and […]Migration crisis update: lack of solidarity not only among EU leaders but also EU officials
December 20, 2017 by Leave a Comment
It was two days ago, on the anniversary of the International migration day, when the United Nations urged everyone to contribute to make migration safer in the world. The EU leaders gathered on December 14-15 in Brussels to discuss among others how to tackle refugee crisis. The key point which created disagreements was the letter from the […]Draghi keeps the euro cheap, helps debt refinancing, recapitalization of banks and growth
December 18, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Last Thursday, the European Central Bank decided to keep flooding the Eurozone with hundreds of billions, despite strong objections coming from the frugal German-Dutch duo. Mario Draghi was adamant about that. It’s interesting to follow his response to a journalist’s remark, who reminded him that the “Dutch Central Bank President Klaas Knot said in a […]Is Germany’s political landscape becoming a breeding ground for extremism?
December 14, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Last Week, the German center left Social Democratic Party (SPD) decided to cooperate once more with the country’s conservatives, the Christian Democratic Union and its Bavarian sister Christian Social Union. They are to negotiate the formation of a grand coalition government, understandably under Chancellor Angela Merkel. This development may now seem the only mathematically possible […]VW diesel scandal and climate change: can increased independent car checks lead to cleaner mobility?
December 13, 2017 by Leave a Comment
It was last Thursday when the European Parliament together with the Council and the Commission agreed to enhance the car testing system by providing extra checks to the cars that are or will be placed in the market based on the proposal of the European Commission made on January 2016. Despite the fact that this […]
