Foreign leaders, countries, international bodies and major world entities of any kind are supporting the ‘stay’ option for Britain ahead of 23 June referendum, about the country’s position in or out of the European Union. The American President Barack Obama and the Chinese and the Indian governments have expressly supported the ‘stay’ option, to mention […]Why does the whole world want Britain to stay in the EU?
June 13, 2016 by Leave a Comment
Foreign leaders, countries, international bodies and major world entities of any kind are supporting the ‘stay’ option for Britain ahead of 23 June referendum, about the country’s position in or out of the European Union. The American President Barack Obama and the Chinese and the Indian governments have expressly supported the ‘stay’ option, to mention […]Has the treacherous theory about the ‘French patient’ finally prevailed?
May 30, 2016 by 1 Comment
The overwhelming labor reforms that the French government is currently finding very difficult to introduce, are also posing a crucial dilemma for the entire Eurozone. The ‘liberalization’ of the labor market has already traumatized Italy and the rest of the south European countries like Greece, Spain and Portugal. The northerners have already ‘solved’ this problem, […]The Monetary Union drives Europe into dangerous paths, CoR demands an EMU of regional content
April 11, 2016 by Leave a Comment
Last Thursday 7 April, the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) concluded that there is “No successful reform of the Economic and Monetary Union without a regional dimension”. Indirectly, this means the EMU remains a system just to support the banking industry. In other words, the banks are still completely unregulated, high flying and counting […]For how long will terror and economic stagnation be clouding the European skies?
March 28, 2016 by Leave a Comment
Some days ago the European statistical service, Eurostat confirmed that the inflation rate in the euro area for February was well into the negative part of the chart at -0.2%. This is an infallible sign that Eurozone remains in the stagnation or even the recession region of the economic cycle for a sixth year in […]Is there a chance for the West to win the war on terror?
March 24, 2016 by Leave a Comment
On the night of 13 November 2015 in Paris, after the ISIS operatives had hit almost simultaneously a concert hall, a major football stadium and some restaurants and bars leaving 130 dead and hundreds injured, the French President Francois Hollande said “we are at war”. Last Tuesday morning the same kind of ‘armed forces’ and […]Syria: Why did the US now take the Russian offer for a truce? What next?
February 29, 2016 by Leave a Comment
The US-Russia plan for a “cessation of hostilities” in Syria, endorsed by the UN Security Council on Friday 26 February kicked off in the early hours of Saturday and two days after is still more or less observed. Understandably the cease-fire may collapse at any moment but the US and Russia seem determined to keep […]The Syrian knot cannot be cut without devastating consequences
February 18, 2016 by Leave a Comment
Brussels seems quite lost with what is happening now in Syria. The statement issued last Monday 15 February by the European High Representative Mogherini and Commissioner Stylianides on the atrocious and murderous attacks on hospitals and schools in Syria stands as an infallible witness to that. At this point in time, the foreign powers, regional or […]One more country to test the EU project: Kaczynski’s Poland
January 14, 2016 by 1 Comment
Poland, with a population of 40 million or 8% of the EU is not the land locked and Russia loving Hungary that Brussels may easily pretend doesn’t exist. The October electoral triumph of the Eurosceptic, if not anti-EU, Law and Justice party (PiS) under the extreme right wing politician Jaroslaw Kaczynski, a rampant populist, decisively […]The 28 EU leaders unable to start a relevant debate on migration and Brexit
December 21, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The poor results of last week’s meeting of the 28 EU leaders are reflected in the triviality of the remarks by the Council President Donald Tusk, in summarizing the outcome of the 17 – 18 December gathering in Brussels. His most vivid comment was about the “hard work done and the extreme efficiency of the […]EU to manage external borders against the will of member states; Greece to be the first target
December 17, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Last Tuesday 15 December the European Commission adopted a groundbreaking proposal for the establishment of a powerful European Border and Coast Guard to ensure strong management of the Schengen area external borders and better administration of immigration flows. According to the Commission, this Guard should be able to intervene with or without the consent of […]EU: Turkey to shelter Syrian refugees and turn other immigrants back in return of €3 billion
December 3, 2015 by Leave a Comment
A genuine Turkish bazaar took place last Sunday in Brussels during the meeting of the EU heads of state or government with the Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. The horse-trading was about what it will cost the EU to stem of the flow of immigrants who pass through Turkey on their way to Europe. Finally […]A Sting Exclusive: Paris Climate Change Summit, a defining moment for humanity, by Ulf Björnholm Head of UNEP Brussels
November 27, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Written by Mr Ulf Björnholm, Head of the UNEP Brussels Liaison Office With world leaders and governments struggling to find solutions to immediate problems such as extreme poverty, terrorism, economic crisis, unemployment and migration, we now also need to collectively rise to the challenge to simultaneously counter a more long term, but equally serious, threat to […]EU responds to terror fallout by eroding borderless Europe and molesting the refugees
November 23, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The very title of the Press release which the extraordinary Justice and Home Affairs Council of the European Union issued after its 20 November meeting, is quite indicative of the multiple fractures that the Union suffers after the terrorist attacks, which took place in Paris on 13 November 2015. The title reads as follows: “Conclusions […]G20 LIVE: “United States and Turkey stand in solidarity with France and its people in handing the perpetrators of this crime and bringing them to justice”, US President Barack Obama underlines from G20 in Antalya Turkey
November 15, 2015 by Leave a Comment
It was just before noon on November 15 in Antalya when the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan gave a joint press conference with Barack Obama, president of the United States of America following the completion of their meeting in the context of the G20 Leaders’ Summit. The major topic that was discussed between the two leaders […]Why France, Italy and the US press Germany to accept a cheaper euro and pay for Greece
August 3, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Since last March the European Central Bank has being pumping at least €60 billion a month into Eurozone’s financial system, under its ‘expanded asset purchase program’, aimed at reviving the stagnating price level and energizing the sleepy real economy. The objective is to bring inflation close to 2%; the target rate set by ECB’s monetary […]Is the ECB enforcing the will of the big Eurozone member states on the small? Can the euro area live with that?
July 30, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Reviewing the political or economic events in retrospect always gives the observer a privileged position. This is the point where Benoît Cœuré – a Member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank – found himself at an interview last Monday. At some point he was asked if the ECB had suffocated Greece’s commercial […]What the world will look like after the Iran and 5+1 deal; the US emerges as major power broker in Middle East
July 23, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The first to travel to Tehran after the nuclear agreement was struck last week between Iran and the 5+1 (France, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, and the United States plus Germany) are the German Vice Chancellor Zigmar Gabriel and Laurent Fabius the French minister for Foreign Affairs. Understandably, French and German dignitaries are more welcomed […]Tsipras bewildered with Berlin’s humiliating demands; ECB expects political sign to refinance the Greek banks
July 13, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The Greek indecisiveness and procrastination and the deep division of the euro area countries, with Germany upholding an intransigent position have led to the humiliation of Athens, during the Saturday and Sunday late night meetings of the Eurogroup (the council of the 19 ministers of Eurozone) and the Eurosummit (the 19 heads of Eurozone state […]Greece’s future solely in the hands of Tsipras; he can direct the poor country any way he likes
July 9, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Greece is obliged by today or the latest tomorrow Friday morning to submit to its Eurozone partners a new program with more severe austerity and deeper reforms, if the country wants to stay in the Eurozone. Alas, this is exactly the program the Greeks rejected last Sunday in a referendum. In case the Athens proposal […]Greece: Tsipras’ referendum victory does not solve the financial stalemate of the country and its banks
July 6, 2015 by 1 Comment
The imperative economic realities for the Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras will not be altered noticeably after his crushing win in yesterday’s referendum. His ‘no’ (OXI in Greek) option marked an overwhelming victory meaning that the Greeks rejected the latest offer from the country’s creditors. To be reminded, during the past five months the Greek […]A Monday to watch the final act of a Greek tragedy; will there be catharsis or more fear?
June 22, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Today’s Eurogroup summit of the 19 euro area heads of state and government is convened by Donald Tusk, the President of European Council in order to bluntly present Alexis Tsipras, the Greek PM with a final ultimatum; ‘comply or leave the Eurozone’. Of course this initiative was not Tusk’s, given that his mandate is rather […]EU to lead one more fight against climate change at G7 summit
June 3, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The UN talks that are being held in the context of a 10-day climate conference in Bonn are highly crucial for the preparation of the final agreement that must be signed at the climate summit in Paris in 6 months from now. Therefore, officials from 190 nations are gathered in the German city to discuss […]EU’s core members are eyeing larger parts of arms trade and of world map
May 14, 2015 by 1 Comment
Last Friday, 8 May, the European Commission released two documents setting a path for defense and security cooperation within the EU. The reports will be presented in an upcoming discussion by the competent 28 Ministers on 18 May and the Heads of State and Government in the European Council of 25 June. The two documents […]Can Greece’s democratic institutions keep it in Eurozone?
March 16, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Paris, Washington and Brussels categorically reject the idea of a Grexit, while Berlin is still loudly insisting that the Eurozone can weather at a cost Greece’s secession. Behind closed doors though, the German decision makers are also not at all sure about that. Greece’s exit from Eurozone has lately become the talk of the town […]The West and Russia accomplished the dismembering and the economic destruction of Ukraine
March 2, 2015 by Leave a Comment
With the Minsk Agreement the West and Russia finally got what they wanted or close to that from Ukraine, not minding much about leaving the miserable country in ruins, its map ruthlessly chopped and the economy in a perfect chaos. On the one side the EU or rather Berlin and Paris plus Washington and on […]Europe, US and Russia haggle over Ukraine’s convulsing body; Russians and Americans press on for an all out civil war
February 9, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Germany and France are alarmed at the prospect that the Americans could turn Ukraine into an unbelievable inferno, by overtly delivering heavy armaments to Kiev. In such an event implications on Europe’s security will be vast. The French President François Hollande and the German Chancellor Angela Merkel rushed to Moscow last Friday and met the […]Paris, Rome, Brussels and Frankfurt to confront Berlin over growth and the Athens enigma
February 2, 2015 by 1 Comment
After the Commission’s taciturn approval of the excess deficits in the government budgets of France and Italy last October and the decision of ECB in Frankfurt to print one trillion euro two weeks ago, the ongoing arduous handling of the new Greek singularity of Alexis Tsipras by Paris and Rome may consolidate their prevalence over […]Charlie’s tragedy energized deeper feelings amongst Europeans; back to basics?
January 15, 2015 by 1 Comment
With a superfluity of hypocrisy and a thirst for positive media exposure the European political leaders marched last Sunday in the streets of Paris, to tell the world ‘Je suis Charlie’. It’s most uncertain if anyone of them knew what the ‘Charlie Hebdo’ was before the atrocity in the premises of the journal. Bernard Holtrop, […]To all far-right partisans who exploit Charlie Hebdo atrocity: a peaceful reply given by a peaceful student
January 9, 2015 by 1 Comment
Written by Arif Shala, Executive Director at the Institute for Economic Development Studies Migration refers to change of residence, it is a more or less a permanent movement across space. People “emigrate” from one country and become “immigrants” in the new place of residence. With migration being a reality rather than a fiction, it is […]The EU moulds a new compromise for growth and financial sustainability
October 16, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The whole world knows that the European Union has for decades been powered by a strong force; the Berlin – Paris axis. At times, when this relationship broke down, the EU came to a standstill. Obviously now this is again the case. Towards the end of last month the newly appointed French Prime Minister, Manuel […]There is a way for Eurozone to reach a sustainable growth path
September 22, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Slowly but surely Euro area inflation rate heads for the zero zone, making decision makers nervous and everybody else, especially the unemployed young even more pessimistic and passive about their present situation and the future prospects. And all that is happening in this part of the globe where only a few years ago the Europeans […]France breaks budget promises once again and the EU’s finance offices are shaking
September 16, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Last Wednesday, just two days before Eurozone’s finance ministers met for informal talks in Milan, the news had come in: France will not achieve a 3% EU budget deficit target this year. During a conference in Paris, the French finance minister Michel Sapin said that the country’s budget deficit will be around 4.4% of GDP in 2014 […]What has changed in the French politico-economic horizon
April 4, 2014 by 2 Comments
Last Sunday evening, the verdict was in. The party of the right, for many the right party, won the municipal elections in a background of large abstention. Already the first round, had left the left party in a bad shape. This was confirmed in the second round, as the Socialist Party suffered an electoral defeat […]
