"There is no alternative to Brussels' clear-cut policy," says Daniel Riegger about the EU's calling off membership talks with Serbia. "Mladic's arrest is not merely a 'technicality', as Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica commented on the EU's cancellation of membership talks. It affects Europe's credibility and its inner cohesion. It's not just about geographical borders, it's about ideals and limits which are essential for Europe's identity and which would be overstepped with terrible consequences if the EU were to continue letting itself be manipulated regarding Mladic. The temporary defeat of the European constitution project demonstrates how fragile consensus is within the EU and how crucial it is to reaffirm its identity by coming to terms with the past." (04/05/2006)

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The daily calls the EU move "entirely appropriate" in light of Belgrade's failure to live up to its promise to surrender Ratko Mladic to the UN tribunal (ICTY). "How hard can it be to arrest a man recognised wherever he goes, in a country roughly the size of Scotland? ... Unlike Croatia in comparable circumstances last year, Serbia has produced little hard evidence of genuine effort to track down or isolate those of its indicted war crime suspects who remain at large. Yet it seems clear that the security services know where they are. Meanwhile, insisting on Mr. Mladic's surrender is by far the EU's most powerful lever in its dealings with Belgrade. To surrender that lever would be to surrender what credibility the enlargement process retains in the wearier capitals of 'Old Europe'." (04/05/2006)

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Henrik Brun, head of the newspaper's foreign affairs section, sees the cancellation as a resolute step towards upholding the EU's principles. "It's unfortunate for the average Serb. After all, EU membership, which is a far prospect for them, is an important motivating factor in the process of democratisation and reform. Of course Serbia, like a number of other Balkan states, must be accorded a place within the Europe of tomorrow... If the Serbs want to join the EU family they must show that they are willing to distance themselves from the crimes and criminals of the past. Up to now they have failed to do so. This is why the EU's policy regarding Belgrade is, unfortunately, necessary." (04/05/2006)

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"It was a real shock for the Serbian government, even though they had seen it coming for a long time," writes Peter Potocnik on the EU's cancellation of accession talks with Serbia. "It would have been surprising if the past few months of growing impatience in the hunt for the notorious general Ratko Mladic, both within Serbia and abroad, had been rewarded. Mr. Kostunica's government caved in to pressure because otherwise it would have lost the support of the Serbian parliament, where Milosevic's Socialists are bitter opponents of the tribunal in The Hague." (04/05/2006)

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According to columnist Dawid Warszawski, the Milosevic establishment is not at all worried by the cancellation of the association talks. "A free Mladic is a genuine obstacle to Serbia's European aspirations – and perhaps this is precisely why the Serb military doesn't want to hand him over. Part of Milosevic's establishment regards the EU as a threat to the Serbian national identity, and perhaps even to Serbian statehood. For them, not only the prospect of handing over Ratko Mladic, but also the beginning of membership talks is something bad. If this is the case, the general can sleep peacefully. And in view of the growing aversion within the EU towards further enlargement, Mladic and his protectors may yet be able to cause as much damage to their country as the recently deceased dictator did." (04/05/2006)

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The daily believes the European Commission acted in a rational manner, "as did the Serbian deputy prime minister, Miroljub Labus, the chief of negotiations with the EU. He automatically tendered his resignation, accusing his government of betraying the interests of its citizens. Unfortunately, Labus's departure could lead to others and trigger an anticipated election that would probably be won by nationalists who are prepared to govern alongside pro-Milosevic socialists. But it was unacceptable to continue allowing Belgrade not to assume its responsibilities. Serbia, or more precisely, the most recalcitrant wing of its government, is willingly and consciously distancing itself from the EU since it is proving incapable of breaking with the darkest part of its recent history..." (04/05/2006)

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The Spanish writer Juan Goytisolo asserts that "it would take many Voltaires to help the Islamic world in 2006 to make up for lost time and overcome its ignorance and the sectarian struggles tearing it apart. The modification of the status of women, this 'noxious byproduct' of Biblical origin - the formulation is mine, not Voltaire's - constitutes a vital instrument for any modernisation program, and the few strides recently made in this direction must be applauded. But just like that Voltaire who radically struggled against intolerance, we have much to learn as well from the Voltaire who strove to pragmatically analyse the diversity and the paradoxes of the Muslim societies of his century - even if these societies are very different in the new millennium. There is nothing worse for our future than to resort - as do certain fanatical doctrinaires of our age - to the old spirit of the Crusades." (04/05/2006)

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The British analyst Mark Leonard attempts to reinstill some optimism in Europe in his essay 'Europa 21'. The daily republishes the work's preface, written by Romano Prodi. "After a formidable period of success - the introduction of the euro, opening up to the countries of Eastern Europe - the EU seems to be losing its way. It has been barely a year since the governments signed the treaty establishing the European constitution which has been effectively prevented from coming into force by the negative results in France and the Netherlands. ... The abrupt change in the political mood within the EU is nothing new. Periods of dynamism and great enthusiasm are followed by moments of slowdown and contagious skepticism ... It is urgent that we reestablish the confidence of all citizens in the European project. And one of the ways of doing this is to remind people that the history of the Community is a history of success." (04/05/2006)

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Around five million people live illegally in the EU, writes Viveca Dahl, commenting that the high number sends both an economic and a political message: "As far as the political message goes, an increasing number of politicians feel obliged to show consideration for citizens who feel bothered by immigrants, or who are even xenophobic. But in Germany the construction industry wouldn't function without the immigrants, and neither would the large Spanish greenhouses that supply all of Europe with vegetables… When will the millions of illegal immigrants in the EU get together and demonstrate like they've done in the USA? Do the laws first need to be tightened? Or do their numbers have to go up by an additional million?" (04/05/2006)

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The newspaper notes that prostitution is an international problem, commenting that the authorities in Germany expect tens of thousands of prostitutes to travel there for the World Cup: "In a country like Sweden, the law punishes people who use the services of prostitutes, and this is what should be done in Denmark, too. In Germany, however, prostitution is a legalised occupation and the purchase of sex is also legal. The German sex industry is growing quickly at the moment. However, even in Germany there can be no doubt that since the Wall came down Europe has confronted a major problem: organised, criminal trading in women at an international level... This is why we should support women's organisations in their campaigns to keep sport and the sex trade separate." (04/05/2006)

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Jean-Francois Verdonnet believes the elections being held in England on Thursday, May 4 will give voters free rein to vent their frustration with the government. "The democratic reaffirmation at the polls in May 2005 did not restore the state of grace that prevailed in the early years. Unkept promises in the Iraqi campaign, an economy running out of steam, public finances on the skids: the Kingdom's situation has lost some of the apparent luster that set the country apart from most states on the continent. In a different period, disappointing local elections would have been put down to a passing hiccup. But coming after a long period of governmental management - nine years - they will appear tomorrow in a different light, as a sign of repudiation, an additional blow to Tony Blair's authority." (04/05/2006)

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Hungary's foreign policy is "passive, unprincipled and at times inconsistent," the newspaper writes. "While our politicians never tire of using the meaningless phrase 'national interests', it remains unclear on exactly which principles Hungary's foreign policy is based on... Budapest frequently regards the EU as nothing more than a 'cash dispenser', while foreign policy beyond the EU is also determined by purely economic considerations. The country should focus on values, responsibility and long-term goals, instead of short-term economic interests." (03/05/2006)

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Lenka Zlamalova reports that there are signs that the Czech Republic's parliamentary elections, scheduled for early June, could culminate in the formation of a grand coalition between Social Democrats and Conservatives, similar to the one in Germany. Zlamalova is not much taken by the prospect: "Germany's experiences show that a grand coalition would be a very bad alternative for the Czech Republic. Chancellor Merkel is undoubtedly good at foreign policy..., but at home all the coalition has managed to do is convince the Germans, depressed after years of stagnation, that everything is going to get better. As regards concrete reforms, however, Merkel hasn't any to her name so far. The coalition agreement took a long time to produce and is very precise in its terms. This is why changing the tax system or the public health system will be a complicated process, as these things always are when two parties with little in common have to reach a consensus." (04/05/2006)

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"Unionists, ecologists, pacifists, economists and libertarians are gathering today in Athens," the daily reports as the Greek capital plays host to 15,000 activists and 8,000 police deployed for the opening of the 4th European Social Forum (FSE). "They will have to overcome the bitter taste of London," the newspaper observes, referring to the third Forum in October 2004, which left the impression that the movement was running out of steam and "tarnished the image of those who seek an alternative to globalisation". The event offers "an opportunity for the country to reaffirm its geostrategic and geopolitical position. If there is no true organisation in the proper sense of the term, there is a real anti-globalist tendency in Greece, deriving from our history, in the Balkans and in Turkey." (04/05/2006)

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Europe should relax its inflation criteria for euro-zone hopefuls Estonia, Lithuania, Slovenia, Latvia and Slovakia, urge Willem Buiter and Anne Sibert, of the London School of Economics (LSE) and the University of London, respectively. "All candidate countries easily meet most of the Maastricht criteria for eurozone membership. They satisfy the exchange rate and interest rate criteria and only Slovakia narrowly misses one of the two fiscal criteria. This is in contrast to Belgium, Germany, France, Italy and Greece, which, if they were not already eurozone members, would not be able to join today, as they do not meet the fiscal criteria. ... The Maastricht criteria have been violated in spirit and letter so frequently and opportunistically that little further damage would be done by an interpretation that differs from the one favoured by the ECB and the Commission but respects the spirit and letter of the treaty." (04/05/2006)

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The German writer Anne Weber signs a petition against 'the censorship of Peter Handke's work', which includes a play that the Comedie-Francaise dropped from its season schedule due to the political commitments of the author. Some forty personalities have signed the petition - including Elfriede Jelinek, Emir Kusturica or Patrick Modiano. "Peter Handke went to Slobodan's Milosevic's burial. It is not for us here to decide whether he was right or wrong to go. The issue is whether this action justifies the reestablishment in France of a form of censorship exercised by the self-righteous. In reality, censorship was already evident before this cancellation, which is merely the (temporary) result of a systematic banishment of Peter Handke that's been underway for several years now. ... Fortunately, this work does not need to be defended. It is above the critics." (04/05/2006)

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Gabriela Walde went to see French collector Francois Pinault's exhibition at the newly opened Palazzo Grassi in Venice and hopes for more. "Pinault may have plenty of money but he lacks the courage to buy less established or experimental pieces of art. The museums, strapped for cash, are finding it increasingly difficult to do this kind of thing, but Pinault can afford to take the risk... Pinault wouldn't be who he is if he didn't have a master plan for creating an international empire. Some are already referring to it as 'Guggenheimisation'. He's already bought the old theatre, a ruin, behind the Palazzo Grassi, and he wants to turn the old customs house, the Dogana di Mare, which stands opposite to San Marco and has a wonderful view of the lagoon, into an additional exhibition hall. The Guggenheim Museum had these ambitions, but it lacked the money." (04/05/2006)

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Frie Leysen, the director of the KunstenFestivaldesArts, an inter-cultural event taking place in Brussels, believes that art can foster communal debate in Belgium. "For me, a great artist is someone who offers us a different way of seeing, someone able to present something through an interesting prism. My hope is that artists constantly challenge our biases, jolt us from our reassuring convictions," Leysen explains in an interview with Laurent Ancion, William Bourton and Jean-Claude Vantroyen. "When the festival was created in 1994, we wanted to speak out about the fact we disagreed with the verbal violence and community aggressiveness of Belgian political discourse. Instead of discussing these things in a café, as is the wont in Belgium, we wanted to create a platform that would allow us to bring these issues alive. The political world is so slow!" (04/05/2006)

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