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Busse, Nikolas
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5 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.
EU turns a blind eye to scandalous corruption
The EU has reprimanded Bulgaria and Romania for serious shortcomings in the fight against corruption. The conservative daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung regrets that it is too late to impose legal sanctions on the countries: "The deadline expired at the end of last year without the two countries having come close to meeting the judicial standards customary in the rest of the continent. The EU Commission, after painstakingly recording all of the lapses year for year, now announces it will impose no further sanctions. This constitutes a scandal no smaller than the EU states' irresponsible handling of the euro stability pact, although in contrast to the currency crisis it may seem to be of less consequence. The EU demonstrates a patience with respect to Bulgaria and Romania as if we were dealing with agricultural reform somewhere in Africa. The fact is, however, that the citizens in the other 25 member states must go on sharing a legal apparatus with two countries with demonstrably corrupt and inefficient states."
» more information (external link, German)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Romania, » Bulgaria
Cyprus blocking Turkish entry to EU
The EU on Wednesday opened negotiations with Turkey on the issue of food safety. On the final day of its EU Council Presidency Spain gave at best a symbolic boost to the accession negotiations, according to an analysis in the conservative daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung: "There are only three negotiating chapters left that are not in some way being blocked by the EU. Eight central chapters alone, from the free movement of goods to agriculture, were blocked unanimously by all member states four years ago because of a customs dispute between the EU and Turkey: the issue is that Turkey is refusing to extend its customs union with the EU to Cyprus. Other chapters cannot be opened because individual members states have raised objections, most frequently Cyprus. If the EU continues to open only one or two chapters in half a year, then negotiations with Turkey will reach an impasse at the end of next year at the latest."
» more information (external link, German)
More from the press review on the subject » EU enlargement, » Europe, » Turkey
Germany's hesitancy based on constitutional law
The German government has still not said how much money it is ready to invest into rescuing Greece. One reason for this is is the eurosceptic attitude of the German Constitutional Court, the conservative daily Frankfurt Allgemeine Zeitung writes, defending the government from accusations of dithering: "In the heated public debate people have lost sight of the fact that constitutional issues have played a prominent role in the German attitude to Greece from day one. Like perhaps none of its predecessors, the current government has attempted to shape its policy so that it will stand up before the constitutional judges in Karlsruhe. That even goes for the words used by the chancellor and her ministers. The starting point of all reflection has been the idea that German law concerning Europe offers little elbow room for aid to other euro countries. ... Decisive for German policy should not be the fate of Greece or its interest burden, but the stability of the common currency and the solvency of German banks and insurance companies. ... Such a constraint on a country's Europe policy by its constitutional court is unknown in any other EU member state."
» more information (external link, German)
More from the press review on the subject » Fiscal Policy, » Germany, » Greece
The EU reform treaty
According to Nicolas Busse, we shouldn't be over-optimistic about the entry into force of a new EU reform treaty. "The most difficult obstacles will come after the summit: the reform treaty must then be ratified by all 27 member states, and the EU has often had nasty surprises during this phase. No one can tell today how the mood will develop over the next year in the individual countries. Can Gordon Brown afford to ratify the treaty without holding a referendum? Will the Irish, the Danes or another nation say 'no'? Will Nicolas Sarkozy win a three-fifths majority in the National Assembly?"
» full article (external link, German)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Constitution, » Europe
Acting against climate change
"Modern environmental protection is a European invention," writes Nikolas Busse. "No other group of states has been quicker or more committed to achieving a global agreement for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. And even today, it's the EU member states that bear the greatest brunt for implementing the measures stipulated in the Kyoto protocol – the key international agreement for fighting climate change.... The main problem for Europeans is the question of what will happen after 2012. There is still no follow-on agreement for after the Kyoto Protocol expires. The different delegations at the most recent climate summit in Nairobi last November couldn't agree on when to begin negotiations for a new protocol. In particular the developing nations appear reluctant to have restrictions on emissions imposed on them... This is why the European Commission has proposed a strategy for Europe alone for the period after 2012."
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More from the press review on the subject » Environmental Policy, » Energy, » Global
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