Neelie Kroes has said what many are thinking, writes the business paper Il Sole 24: "The words of the Vice-President of the European Commission, Neelie Kroes, conceal an obvious impatience with the way Greece is behaving. The Netherlands in particular - perhaps even more than Germany and Finland - is toying with the idea of abandoning Athens to its fate. The EU Commissioner's words are no longer an attempt to exert pressure on the Papademos government. In certain European circles the bitterness has taken on a whole new quality. Their trust in Greek politicians has been exhausted. They fear that the upcoming elections in April will only worsen the situation in the debt-stricken country, rather than improving it." (08/02/2012)

» more information (external link, Italian)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Greece, » Netherlands
All available articles from » Romano Beda
Who's saying what » Greece in dire straits, » Ways out of the debt crisis

Athens should immediately end its talks with the creditors and the troika and start working out a plan B with the Americans, writes the left-liberal online paper To Vima: "After the extreme pressure of the last two days and the idea of a 'special blocked account' is there anyone in Greece who still believes that the words 'bailout' and 'solidarity' can be in any way connected to what is being demanded of Athens - with a gun to its head? ... Greece still has the power to blow up the whole thing. And this is the only remaining alternative. What will happen then? After the country has gone through hell - which at this point is inevitable anyway - the same people who are now blackmailing the country and plunging it into the abyss will come back and resume talks. ... The only task for the Greek government now would be to prepare special mechanisms for surviving the days of the big shock. It must turn to international agents like the US, which by the way have remained silent so far." (08/02/2012)

» full article (external link, Greek)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Greece, » Europe, » U.S.
All available articles from » Giorgos Malouchos
Who's saying what » Greece in dire straits, » Ways out of the debt crisis

Even if EU Commissioner Neelie Kroes and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte are speculating openly about a Greek withdrawal from the Eurozone, allowing Greece to go bankrupt is a risk move, warns the left-liberal daily De Volkskrant: "In the countries of the north the euro crisis is being represented as a matter of budget discipline, yet Spain, a problem country, has always strictly adhered to the rules. The fundamental problem of the Eurozone is the enormous gap between the productivity of the northern countries and that of the southern ones. Greece is an extreme case, but Spain and Portugal will have great difficulties bringing their economies up to northern European levels. ... This structural fault of the euro makes northern Europe responsible for the crisis. Greece is rightly being called on to make greater efforts to put its finances in order. But northern Europe can be expected to show solidarity. The Greeks cannot be left to pay the price of the crisis alone." (08/02/2012)

» more information (external link, Dutch)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Greece
All available articles from » Peter Giesen
Who's saying what » Greece in dire straits, » Ways out of the debt crisis

Europe is putting the Greeks under too much pressure, writes the left-leaning daily Pravda and warns that this could trigger a social explosion that reverberates throughout the continent. "The picture of the European public being presented by the Greeks is unbelievable. The news about the negotiations between the government in Athens and the creditors is constantly accompanied by politicians and investors making disgruntled comments about the lack of progress being made. The remarks are always the same: Athens isn't moving forward, the reforms are inadequate. One hears much less about how harsh the cuts in salaries and pensions already are and how much public spending and debts have already been reduced. The real problem is the unrealistic expectations of the authors of the 'recovery programme'. Cutbacks alone won't trigger new growth but they may cause the already tense social situation to escalate." (08/02/2012)

» more information (external link, Slovak)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Domestic Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Social affairs, » Greece, » Europe
All available articles from » Ivan Lesay
Who's saying what » Greece in dire straits, » Ways out of the debt crisis

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's visit to Syria on Tuesday has made it clear that the Western and Arab world have resignedly left the field to Russian diplomacy, writes the liberal-conservative daily Corriere della Sera: "When even EU foreign minister Ashton is now vociferously demanding Assad's departure nothing can conceal the powerlessness of the West and the Arab League after the Russian-Chinese veto at the UN. Assad feels protected by an invisible armour, namely the repeated declarations that there will be no military intervention in Syria. Libya was a tough lesson and still is, even if few in the West are ready to admit this. It cannot be repeated. ... Damascus could trigger a chain reaction with unforeseeable consequences. Against this backdrop Russia is manoeuvring with all the deftness of a bear. Lavrov achieved next to nothing, and yet it would be wrong to describe his mission as insignificant. Russia is relying on a 'Yemeni solution' - a transitional phase after which Assad will be succeeded by someone agreeable to the Kremlin, who will protect its interests in the region." (08/02/2012)

» more information (external link, Italian)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Russia, » Syria
All available articles from » Franco Venturini
Who's saying what » Arabs fight for freedom

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has announced that she will accompany French President Nicolas Sarkozy to several election campaign events to support him in his battle to be re-elected. Merkel's lobbying is hardly surprising given that Sarkozy's re-election is in her own best interests, the left-liberal daily Der Standard comments: "It is an affront that as chancellor she is not willing to receive the rival candidate (Socialist François Hollande) even briefly in Berlin, as has been standard practice in the past. But it is pretty revolting to see how the two are currently exploiting the Greek crisis for their conservative slogans. The two Conservatives Merkel and her obedient servant Sarkozy ... must really be in a panic to resort to such base tactics. The chancellor fears that her austerity dictatorship would soon come to an end if Hollande took the helm in Paris in May. But the whole affair has an interesting new aspect: European politics has definitely become domestic politics, and vice-versa - now even at the highest level of power politics." (08/02/2012)

» full article (external link, German)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Domestic Policy, » Elections, » Germany, » France, » Europe
All available articles from » Thomas Mayer

The Romanian Prime Minister designate, Mihai Răzvan Ungureanu, plans to present his new cabinet today. Although it will presumably contain many new faces the string-pullers will be the same, complains the daily Adevărul: "The same figures of the [conservative ruling party] PDL will remain behind the scenes.They are trusted cronies who know how to handle a new government. And the power struggle between the various party factions which did so much damage to the previous government will also continue. For the new prime minister that is precisely the problem. To what extent will his ministers be dancing to other pipers? The Ungureanu government will present new faces from the PDL. But from a political perspective that won't mean anything more than a new hairdo. Only after he is sworn in will we see if Ungureanu is content with merely a new hairstyle or whether he wants to adopt another style of government, too. He's got nothing to lose." (08/02/2012)

» full article (external link, Romanian)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Romania
All available articles from » Ion M. Ionita

Anyone who is caught evading more than a million euros in taxes in Germany must reckon with an unconditional prison sentence, the Federal High Court rules on Tuesday. The decision is a just one, the left-liberal daily Süddeutsche Zeitung applauds: "Evading one million in taxes = prison. That may sound brutal but it's quite normal. It only sounds brutal because until now harsh penal justice has mainly been reserved for the little man on the street: fare dodgers, petty fraudsters and drug addicts. It may be that the jubilation over the ruling on criminal sentences for tax offences is motivated by envy: most people lack both the means and the possibilities to evade a million euros or more in taxes. But the penalties for tax evaders are being made more severe not because of the social envy of the low earners, but to correct an existing imbalance." (08/02/2012)

» more information (external link, German)
More from the press review on the subject » Tax Policy, » Justice, » Germany
All available articles from » Heribert Prantl

Viktor Orbán's right-wing conservative government has launched a charm offensive to woo Germany in recent days. However this new tack complete with a dose of self-criticism is not the result of the government realising its mistakes but rather a lack of funding, writes the left-liberal daily Népszabadság: "It's been a long time since so many Hungarian politicians travelled to Germany as in recent days. In addition to János Martonyi and the chairman of the ruling party Fidesz, János Lázár, a delegation of the foreign policy parliamentary committee was also in Berlin. ... Martonyi said after a meeting with his counterpart Guido Westerwelle that he aims to dispel Germany's worries regarding the policies of the Hungarian government. ... For his part Lázár practised the art of self-criticism during his visit, saying that the Hungarian government had not consulted its European partners as much as it should have done up to now. ... It is a welcome development that leading politicians of the Orbán government want to correct the tarnished image of Hungary they themselves have created. A little support from Germany in the negotiations with the EU Commission and the International Monetary Fund about a loan for Hungary would certainly come in very handy." (08/02/2012)

» full article (external link, Hungarian)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Politics, » Germany, » Hungary
All available articles from » András Dési
Who's saying what » Resistance to Hungarian government

The current system of a multipolar world is dysfunctional, the defence expert Arlé Malz writes in the liberal-conservative daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung: "The change demanded by Russia, China and India from a unipolar to a polycentric world has become a reality without a sustainable system emerging as a result. This in turn has repercussions on the financial markets, which skid from one crisis to the next in ever shorter cycles. Until now the pragmatic action on the part of all those involved in handling immediate crises has managed to banish the sense of disaster. By contrast creeping risks such as climate change or the global food shortage are put up with, and decisions regarding them are put off. For that reason it would be short-sighted to elevate pragmatic action to the status of a recipe for success. The jostling to establish a sustainable supra-national system for the 21st century must go on. But for the time being not even the contours of such a system can be discerned." (08/02/2012)

» more information (external link, German)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Weltanschauung, » Politics, » Society, » Global
All available articles from » Arié Malz

The Czech Republic is scrapping plans to build 18 new nuclear reactors by 2060 and will instead focus on expanding the Temelín nuclear power plant, the new Czech minister for economic affairs, Martin Kuba, announced during his first press conference on Tuesday. With the decision he distances himself from the plans of his predecessor Martin Kocourek, who resigned amidst allegations of dubious financial dealings. The business paper Hospodářské noviny goes even further: "How much energy do we actually need? What does it mean that there will be less emphasis on nuclear power than planned? How will this affect energy prices? ... Kocourek was serious about building 18 new reactors without ever talking seriously about the costs. Never mind that the Czech Republic is a neighbour of Germany, which has just said goodbye to nuclear power, and Austria, which is allergic to anything nuclear in the Czech Republic. It's a disgrace that Kocourek was sacked from government only because of his financial dealings." (08/02/2012)

» more information (external link, Czech)
More from the press review on the subject » Energy, » Economic Policy, » Czech Republic
All available articles from » Petr Šabata
Who's saying what » Nuclear energy on trial

The Finnish trade deficit reached a new record in 2011 at 3.6 billion euros. For several years now exports have been on the decline as a result of the dwindling importance of Nokia and its subcontractors. It's high time Finland did more to boost its exports, writes the business paper Kauppalehti: "Which sector could be the export locomotive of the future? Cleantech is the experts' usual answer. It comprises global growth sectors like energy, transportation technologies, water, recycling and clean industrial processes. The sectors on the rise are mining and renewable energies. Here we have a strong know-how in terms of machines and production facilities, and the demand is global. Finland's problem is the slow growth in the Eurozone. ... In exports, short-term and long-term measures are needed. And policies introduced in competing countries must be reacted to more swiftly. Export guarantees and export financing must be rationalised and promoted. Then next on the list is research and development, as well as tax policy." (08/02/2012)

» more information (external link, Finnish)
More from the press review on the subject » Energy, » Trade, » Industry, » Economy, » Finland

The extreme cold snap that has had Europe in its grip for the past two weeks has claimed 300 lives, 135 in Ukraine alone, 68 in Poland and 60 in Russia. These figures show how precarious life in Eastern Europe remains, writes the left-liberal daily Frankfurter Rundschau: "The bitterest example is Ukraine. ... Oligarchs have amassed billions and flaunt their luxury yachts and other status symbols. The general populace, by contrast, is freezing and hungry. ... But there's still much to be done in the EU - as well as in Europe's economic miracle, Poland. ... More than a dozen people have died of carbon monoxide poisoning in their homes because their heating systems were defective. ... The West-East divide remains vast in Europe. It can only be overcome when the EU and its strongest members like Germany and France place social harmonisation high on their agendas." (08/02/2012)

» full article (external link, German)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Economic Policy, » Europe
All available articles from » Ulrich Krökel

Around 200 Church dignitaries and experts are discussing sexual abuse in the Catholic Church at a four-day Vatican conference that ends on Thursday. The left-liberal news portal Polityka Online applauds the conference's objectives but demands more transparency: "Zero tolerance for sexual abuse in the Church. This is what the psychologists and pastors should have in mind in discussing the paedophile scandals. With this conference the Vatican is sending a message to the world that it is indeed taking this disgusting matter seriously, that it condemns it and is not afraid to face up to the truth. ... But it remains unclear whether media representatives will be given access to the conference, and Pope Benedict XVI refuses to appear in person. His presence would add weight to the conference and make the Church's message even more credible. This doubt must be dispelled before the end of the conference. If it isn't, the impression will remain that the conference was little more than a PR stunt." (08/02/2012)

» full article (external link, Polish)
More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Crime, » Vatican
All available articles from » Adam Szostkiewicz

Eight women with university degrees have applied without success for a cleaning job at the prosecutor's office in the northern Bulgarian city of Pleven. If academics can't even get cleaning jobs there's no alternative but to emigrate, writes the daily Trud: "In times of crisis and rising unemployment a growing number of people are willing to take on any job they can get just to survive. It's most difficult for university graduates and young people. Hundreds of thousands of them now scour the country for work - a completely new trend in Bulgaria, which would have been unthinkable just a few years ago. Nevertheless the decision by Pleven's prosecutor's office is logical. They're looking for a cleaning lady, not an expert in economics or finance. So the 'superfluous' graduates and many other young Bulgarians have no other choice but Terminal 2 at Sophia Airport. No doubt our academics will get jobs as cleaning staff abroad." (07/02/2012)

» full article (external link, Bulgarian)
More from the press review on the subject » Migration, » Labour market, » Bulgaria
All available articles from » Irena Nikolova