"Against all expectations Lithuania now has the prospect of a stable government coalition," writes the conservative daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. "In the second round of the parliamentary elections the Conservatives and the two liberal parties won nearly all the parliamentary seats available to them. ... In view of the looming economic crisis it is good to hear that the four parties are willing to make their own interests subordinate to those of the country. The forces that ruled the country in the past four years did the opposite, but the economy grew regardless. Nonetheless, in addition to party and state interests there are also the personal financial ambitions of the politicians - and there are those within the smaller parties of the future alliance who are not beyond all suspicion. Considering the voter turnout of only 32 percent the new government cannot count on having already gained the trust of the people anyway." (28/10/2008)

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According to daily Postimees the prospect of a centre-right coalition is a sign of political maturity. The Lithuanians, it writes, have snubbed the populist parties: "The Lithuanians were weary of the social democratic government and are now expecting changes. Admittedly, this leaves open the question of whether the Homeland Union will indeed be able to execute its plans within a four-party coalition. Moreover, the Social Democrats have already expressed the hope that this alliance will not last long. But in the present situation in which the Baltic states have already been named as the next victims of the financial crisis, stability and cooperation with the opposition are vital." (28/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Lithuania

The daily newspaper Lietuvos Zinios voices doubts about the future government's programme: "At the risk of sounding trite: it's still our purses that are the top priority. The conservatives have already promised to revise the trickiest points of the budget drawn up by the Kirkilas government for next year. In addition they want to introduce tax relief and get rid of red tape without any further charitable social acts. ... This however means that Kubilius alone will bear the responsibility for higher heating and electricity bills and for our shrinking purses." (28/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Energy, » Economic Policy, » Lithuania
All available articles from » Jurga Tvaskiene

This Tuesday the environmental ministers of the Nordic states will meet in Helsinki to prepare for the EU Climate Summit scheduled for early December in the Polish city of Poznan. In the Swedish daily Aftonbladet Eva Franchell criticises how dependent environmental and climate protection are on the economic situation. "In times of crisis we prefer to look at the price rather than at the environment. And indeed, why should we invest in climate compensation when even the leading EU politicians can't reach a consensus on climate policy? ... The Nordic countries must actively work towards the signing of a binding global climate treaty in Copenhagen next year. They must drag hesitant EU members like Italy and Poland along with them. The bad [economic] times cannot serve as an excuse. Environmental protection must not be guided by quarterly statements. ... If we had invested more in the issues of the future we would perhaps be in a better position than we are now." (28/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Environmental Policy, » Finland, » Denmark, » Sweden, » Norway, » Global
All available articles from » Eva Franchell

Two and a half years before Hungary takes its turn at holding the EU Council presidency for the first time, György Fóris reflects on the country's negative image. "For years we were seen as the EU's model pupil. ... But after EU accession [2004] our appalling deficiencies gradually came to light. First the forint [Hungary's currency] collapsed, then the budget deficit and the national debt got out of control, and finally Hungary was the only country that was unable to fulfil a single Maastricht criterion [prerequisite for joining the monetary union]. ... After years of watching its image deteriorate, Hungary's EU presidency in two and a half years' time could present the opportunity to improve our country's reputation. ... If, however, Hungary's functionality and performance leave much to be desired, if the nation is continually forced to feel ashamed of its economic figures, ... if it is constantly in the role of petitioner and having to justify itself to others - while an endless internal battle drags on in the background - the 'weight' of its council presidency will be greatly reduced." (28/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Economic Policy, » Hungary, » Europe
All available articles from » György Fóris

In the parliamentary elections in Italy's northernmost state of South Tyrol the Christian Social German-speaking South Tyrol People's Party (SVP) won less than 50 percent of the vote for the first time in 60 years. The Italian daily La Repubblica describes the outcome of the elections as a slap in the face for the party. Most of the votes the SVP lost went to the right-wing populist Freedom Party. "The cold wind blowing from the right, which is sweeping across all of Europe, is blowing across South Tyrol too. The moderate centralist SVP has lost more than seven percent. But with more than 48.1 percent of the vote it has still managed to maintain an [absolute] majority [in parliament]. What has most affected the party is the desertion of the German-speaking voters. The Edelweiß party has lost its votes to the Freedom Party, which thanks to its xenophobic policies has managed to triple its vote to become the second strongest party in South Tyrol. ... It was able to maintain its majority above all thanks to the votes of the Italian population in South Tyrol." (28/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Minorities, » Italy
All available articles from » Roberto Bianchin

The EU Commission will publish its Progress Report on Turkey on 5 November. The newspaper Philelefteros has the following to say about the Turkish position in negotiations to resolve the Cyprus conflict: "It is important to convince the Turkish Cypriots that the future of the country can and must be a shared one. The future of Cyprus lies not in a division, not in the creation of two states, and not in a confederation, which is the ultimate goal of Ankara and the Turkish-Cypriot leadership. If the future of the country is to be a European one, ... then the direct discussions must be conducted in the framework of negotiations on one of the European foundations. ... The Commission will not help by demanding less from Ankara with respect toTurkey's obligations towards the Republic of Cyprus. A tactic of this kind ... encourages Turkey to retain its radical theses in the Cyprus conflict." (27/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » EU Policy, » Cyprus, » Turkey

Alberto Sotillo reflects in the daily ABC on how various countries deal with the legacy of their civil wars: "The wounds of a civil war never fully heal. Not even in the USA where so many films have been made, novels written and research done about the complexity of this episode [of the civil war]. But at least in that country no-one thinks in the current political discourse of instrumentalising the fact that the dividing line between the states that will be voting for [the republican presidential candidate John] McCain and those that support [Barack] Obama is similar to the boundary that divided the Confederation of the south from the Union of the north in the war of secession. ... In Italy, too, the turbulent episodes of the fascist era, which in many ways resembled a civil war, have not been forgotten, any more than the fog that surrounds the history of the resistance and the collaborators during the Nazi occupation of France, nor the tacit passivity with which Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany. ... There are intelligent countries which know that history is a dangerous tinderbox and is therefore better left to the historians. There are countries that act rashly, like the former Yugoslavia, which managed to turn its confrontation with its history into a brutal war the wounds of which have not yet healed. And in between there are countries that take it entirely for granted that it is up to a judge to evaluate history." (28/10/2008)

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All available articles from » Alberto Sotillo

In the business paper Les Echos, Maria Nowak, chairwoman of the French Association pour le Droit à l'Initiative Economique (ADIE) calls for the reform of capitalism: "In order to tear down the wall between financial and social economy we must begin to make a distinction, as [historian] Fernand Braudel advocated, between capitalism and the market economy. In his work 'The Dynamics of Capitalism' he quoted [the founder of the former Soviet Union] Lenin, for whom 'capitalism means ... producing for the market ... Ten or twenty large firms are everything, millions of small ones are nothing'. By contrast the market economy is a system that gives everyone an opportunity, because, as Adam Smith advocated, through effective control of civil society the authorities can offer the small actors protection against the attacks of the big ones. ... If we agree with this analysis we must not fall into the temptation of doing things by halves. The agenda for the next major international summit should include not only rules for better risk control, but also rules on the finality of finances that ... serve the interests of all the citizens of the world. ... By democratising access to loans and gearing it towards the real economy and by tearing down the barriers between society, the world of finance and the economy, we would give back to people who are excluded from the working and financial world the right to act on their own economic initiative and help many of them to overcome the crisis." (28/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Corporations, » Consumers, » Economic Policy, » Global
All available articles from » Maria Nowak

Kari Heimonen, professor of economics at the University of Jyväskylä, writes in a guest editorial for the daily Helsingin Sanomat that Iceland should introduce the euro in order to overcome the financial crisis. "The global financial crisis has hit the little island nation Iceland hardest. It is clear that it will not be able to survive this situation on its own. ... In principle Iceland could introduce the euro unilaterally without the approval of the ECB. ... Euros can be bought freely on international currency markets. A small economy does not need a huge volume of euros in cash. Prices would have to be given in euros instead of Icelandic krona and the euro would become legal tender. ... The euro would solve Iceland's currency problems. The Icelandic economy would then see encouraging growth." (28/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Economic Policy, » Europe, » Northern Europe

In view of the financial crisis and growing unemployment the daily Politiken believes it is high time for reforms on the Danish labour market. "With respect to the contract between generations it is particularly important for politicians to launch new reforms that noticeably raise the educational level of young people and increase the willingness of people in middle age to work longer ... The [conservative-liberal governing party] Venstre and the Social Democrats are making a big effort to emphasize their differences of opinion. But all parties that call themselves 'economically responsible' should be getting together this year to work out [a compromise] that puts an end to the accounting practices of the past years. Now the period of no reforms must come to an end." (28/10/2008)

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The Nazi satire "Gitler Kaput!" is causing a furore in Russia. Sonja Zekri plays down its historic references in the Süddeutsche Zeitung: "It did not come as a complete surprise when the Peterburg communists called for a distribution ban on Veisburg's Nazi revue and appealed to all 'communists, patriots, veterans, youth organisations' and even the Church to mobilise support against "Gitler Kaput!" The filmmakers [above all the producer Sergei Livnev] countered dialectically, pointing out that, to paraphrase Marx, it was precisely laughing that hammered the last nail in the coffin of fascism - and all other ideologies. That is perhaps a bit optimistic. But in a country that uses its past as a kind of box of theatrical props to adorn itself with major Soviet or Tsarist feats and indeed with anything that has the appearance of being big and strong, "Gitler kaput!" is a refreshingly irreverent little film" that has little to do with the past and far more to do with the patriotism of the modern Russian jetset." (28/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Film, » History, » Germany, » Russia
All available articles from » Sonja Zekri

A cookery programme to be broadcast by the Belgian public TV station VRT in which Hitler's favourite dish was to be prepared has aroused indignation. The programme was withdrawn at the last moment on Monday evening. Justifiably, according to film director Luckas Vander Taelen writing in his column in the daily De Morgen: "No-one at VRT would even dare to suggest broadcasting a culinary programme about the Belgian mass murderer [Marc Dutroux], who killed children in the most gruesome way. So why is it OK to make a programme featuring the greatest mass murderer of all times? ... I don't want to know how he cooked his trout. And in my opinion a public station should not be broadcasting any program that allows even the slightest ambivalence about the figure of Adolf Hitler. The master of propaganda [Joseph] Goebbels loved images that made Hitler look ordinary and congenial: the man behind the Führer together with Eva [Braun] or with his dog or stroking children's heads." (28/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Audiovisual Media, » History, » Belgium
All available articles from » Luckas Vander Taelen

The conservative daily The Daily Telegraph is calling for a memorial to the Bomber Command in London - the division of the Royal Airforce that was responsible for destroying German cities during the Second World War: "The courage and sacrifice of the aircrew of Bomber Command cannot be measured by statistics. Yet to think of the 55,573 pilots and crew (average age: 22) killed out of the 125,000 who flew sorties is to begin to see what their duty meant. Duty - in night after night of courage, the outcome of which was never certain - might lead to the ultimate sacrifice. They readily went beyond the call of duty too, as the 19 Victoria Crosses of Bomber Command bear witness. ... The thousands who survive from their number quietly remember their comrades who were lost. How strange then that our capital still lacks a memorial to Bomber Command." (28/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » History, » Germany, » United Kingdom