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Gibier, Henri
5 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.
Berlin and Paris still under pressure
Europe's heads of state and government must not rest on their laurels after the EU summit in Brussels, the business paper Les Echos writes: "The image of Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy stripping away 50 percent of Greece's bank debts is a perfect illustration of the need for solidarity in the European project. Nevertheless we should not be content with what is quite literally solidarity by default. The Franco-German duo must now invest the same energy into creating an institutional framework that is better suited to the constraints imposed by an expanded Union. Too many crucial details remain to be concretised for anyone to say right now whether the Eurozone bailout is a miracle or a sleight of hand. Vital now for Europe is to learn to do without either."
» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Banks, » Germany, » France, » Europe
Wanted: a strong president
The new EU president must be strong but should not be called Tony Blair, writes the daily Les Echos: "The closer the deadline comes, the more it seems clear ... that the president of the European Council should be chosen according to the same model as the head of the European Commission: a facilitator, a man who doesn't make waves. In short an anti-Tony Blair. Apart from his attitude to the Iraq war and the knee-jerk opposition of the British to European integration, the former British prime minister apparently has too many handicaps for his old dream to come true. This should not serve as an excuse to put a second José Manuel Barroso in his place. ... To a large extent the person who finally is appointed will be obliged by the Treaty of Lisbon to invent the post. So regardless of who's the right person for the job ... it does require a certain personal aura."
» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » EU Policy, » Europe
Two days in September
One year after the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy the business daily Les Echos compares two momentous September days: "September 15, 2008 will no doubt long remain the worst bank insolvency in history. On that day Lehman Brothers disappeared from the horizon on Wall Street with the same speed as the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center disappeared from the Manhattan skyline seven years earlier. Within a few hours on September 11, 2001 the airplanes stopped flying one after another. This time around it was the banks that all at once stopped lending. A large sign with the words 'Closed due to general mistrust' went up at all the counters of the global capital market. Of course globalisation is the link between these two very different events, both of which clearly demonstrate its strength, but also its weaknesses."
» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » Banks, » Global
Henri Gibier on the French model
Henri Gibier writes in the business daily Les Echos that the series of reform measures introduced by President Nicolas Sarkozy have brought France back into line with the other world economies: "Old reflexes are hard to shake. In an attempt to discredit [US President] Barack Obama's healthcare reforms the Republican camp has been evoking the spectre of the 'French model'. No doubt a synonym for state intervention, waste and inefficiency. In the spring however quite another message - this time much softer on the ears - came to us from England. The London magazine 'The Economist' launched a surprising 'Vive la France!' It was a celebration - albeit rather distant - of our welfare state and its budgetary and social 'automatic stabilisers', so precious in times of crisis. This double Anglo-Saxon vision nevertheless puts us in the same trap: that of the 'French exception'. ... In pursuing its current course [of reform], France is strengthening its chances of not missing the global recovery boat as it has so often in the past."
» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Economic Policy, » France
A new president for a new America
The business newspaper Les Echos believes change is the top priority for the US now: "America has elected its new president, but the rest of the world will have to reckon with a new America. ... Last night's elections bore testimony to a desire for change ... [The new president's] task is to persuade and seduce rather than prevail. In short, he is there to give us back a more lovable America."
» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Domestic Policy, » U.S.
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