The eastern Finnish daily Karjalainen welcomes the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq but notes that enduring peace is still a long way off: "The withdrawal of troops from Baghdad has strengthened the Iraqis' national pride. The war in Iraq was begun with justifications that have proved to be false, and it was supposed to be short and effective. The battles and violence of these past six years have been a hard test for the Americans, Iraqis and the US's allies. The economic price of the war is incalculable but it has driven the United States into immense debt. Iraq has given America a new generation of young war veterans who will go through life with chaotic memories of war. … Iraq is now in a phase in which the path to democracy will be found within the country - or not be found at all. The fear of violence lives on because this is a fragile peace. In the elections next January the Iraqis will decide which direction their future takes." (02/07/2009)

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The daily Diena sees the withdrawal of US troops in Iraq as a sign of stabilisation and democratisation in the country: "The Iraqis have cause to celebrate. Only two and a half years ago, rocked by ethnic violence and terrorist attacks, the country was on the verge of civil war and ruin. Now things are relatively calm, even if there are still terrorist attacks and they have even become more frequent in the last few days. Notwithstanding, the political forces now compete in parliamentary elections rather than street battles. For President George W. Bush the war and occupation of Iraq six years ago were part of the war on global terrorism. The US's explanation for the war was called into question above all in the US itself, and the mistakes of the first phase of the war were obvious. Yet the great majority of Iraqis shows no regrets about the fall of Saddam Hussein and the freedom it brought. Now the responsibility for the security of the country is being passed on to an Iraqi government." (02/07/2009)

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All available articles from » Aivars Ozolins

The US troops leave Iraq in a better state than they found it in, writes the conservative daily ABC: "The Iraqis are justifiably happily celebrating the begin of the withdrawal of US troops. A survey of the results six years after the invasion and the overthrow of dictator Saddam Hussein reveals more light than shadows. Above all we can see a clear hope for the future of a country that is governed by democratic principles and that is seen as peaceful and prosperous in a region where such qualities are unfortunately seldom. For sure, during the occupation many mistakes were made and great dangers still loom on the horizon. But it cannot be denied that the situation in Iraq is improving and that the majority of leaders confront each other in a legitimate way and at a political and democratic level instead of going about killing each other." (02/07/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Domestic Policy, » U.S., » Iraq

Commenting on the withdrawal of US troops in Iraq the left-liberal weekly Népszabadság writes: "The US troops have withdrawn to their bases in Iraq. They are confident that the law enforcement agencies in independent and democratic Iraq are already in a position to ensure public security. If not they will return. … Today Iraq is apparently a half-way stable and democratic country. Saddam Hussein's brutal dictatorship is a distant memory. But what the Iraqis will no doubt remember is the wealth the country once enjoyed thanks to oil. During Saddam Hussein's times Iraq produced quantities of oil the likes of which one only reads about in fairytales. In the past six years not a cent has been invested in oil production. … With time this will also change. Once security has been ensured capital will begin to flow into the country. For Iraq is sitting on the world's third-largest oil reserves." (02/07/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » U.S., » Iraq
All available articles from » Endre Aczél

The liberal daily Corriere del Ticino comments on the economic situation in Iraq after the withdrawal of the US troops: "Iraq's main difficulty in constructing its Eldorado is that foreign oil companies still view the situation in the country as too uncertain and unstable for long-term investments. If anything, they prefer to cautiously start up joint ventures. That's also what we've seen with the only significant partnership to speak of, between British Petroleum and the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) for the development of the oil fields in Rumalia in southern Iraq. Without doubt the Chinese are the more eager of the two, which reflects China's unquenchable thirst for oil. ... It also shows that [the Chinese] are the most willing to close deals with a promising country like Iraq even before any signs of lasting stability appear." (02/07/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Energy, » Corporations, » Iraq
All available articles from » Gerardo Morina

The daily Dagens Nyheter takes a look at expectations regarding the Swedish EU Council presidency: "Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt is facing much tougher challenges than former Swedish prime minister Göran Persson [EU presidency 2001]. Sweden can gain a lot through this presidency, but it can also lose a lot. … It has the great pedagogical task of showing how to make economic growth compatible with environmental protection. … The Swedish preparations were comprehensive. Expectations are running high, both internationally and at home. A survey has revealed that nine out of ten Swedes are confident that Reinfeldt will be able to master the challenges." (02/07/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Sweden, » Europe

The Berlin correspondent for the Irish Times, Derek Scally, writes that the judgement of Germany's Federal Constitutional Court on the Treaty of Lisbon will change the EU: "Politicians, lawyers and advisers have begun the revision of the law governing Bundestag participation in EU matters to get it passed before election day. Germany is determined not to be the last EU state to ratify. The verdict throws up interesting questions, particularly about its consequences. Will it create a new EU dialogue in the Bundestag? Will it encourage other European parliaments to demand a greater say over the transfer of competences to the EU? 'The Basic Law says Yes to Lisbon,' was the summing up of constitutional court vice-president Andreas Voßkuhle. Just as the Lisbon Treaty will change the EU, so too will this verdict. Even after ratification, the German parliament and its highest court will continue their watch." (02/07/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » EU Constitution, » Germany, » Europe
All available articles from » Derek Scally

On Tuesday Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader announced his resignation from all government and party posts. The daily Dnevnik speculates on whether he was honest about the reasons for his stepping down: "Numerous affairs at state institutions that cost the state budget a lot of money, political and economic crimes as well as a disproportionate growth in the number of criminal offenders are just part of his bad legacy. Nor is [Sanader's] party as strong as he claims, even though it was Sanader who after the death of Franjo Tuđman [the first president after Croatia declared independence and leader of the conservative HDZ party] woke the party from the dead and breathed new life into it. … Moreover it's not true that he is retiring from politics to work in peace somewhere in the vineyards of Dalmatia. He thought up the position of honorary chairman of the HDZ and put new faces at the head of the party and in ministerial posts in the last minute and thus secured continued influence over the party and the government." (02/07/2009)

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All available articles from » Zoran Senkovic

The Polish opposition party Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) has accused the government of being ill-prepared for the current floods in the country. In the conservative daily Dziennik Kamil Durczok has a hard time swallowing that: "I must say I find it funny that the first people to start hurling accusations at the government are the Democratic Left Alliance. When I heard on Tuesday that the former minister and current deputy chairman of the SLD, Jolanta Szymanek-Deresz, wanted to ask the Civic Platform [the ruling party PO] why it had not done all it could to limit the damage despite the warnings, I immediately asked myself if the Left doesn't have major memory problems. Let's not forget that during the huge floods of 1997 the government in power at the time was totally unprepared for the crisis. And that was the government of Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz [of the SLD]. Back then it took people a lot longer before they started criticising the behaviour of the SLD." (02/07/2009)

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All available articles from » Kamil Durczok

Domingos Amaral takes stock of US President Barack Obama's first six months in office in the daily Correio da Manhã: "Taking a look at the world, we must sadly state that little has changed. Fresh bomb attacks shook Iraq shortly before the troop withdrawal ordered by Obama, and the situation will certainly worsen. There were protests in Iran but nothing will change. The stubborn president [Mahmoud Ahmadinejad] and the Ayatollahs render negotiation with Obama impossible. War rages in Afghanistan and there's no end in sight. In Pakistan the situation is unstable and dangerous, and no one can say what the future holds. In Israel the hardliners in power are making minimal concessions on a future Palestinian state while continuing to allow settlements [in the occupied territories]. As far as the Palestinians are concerned, Hamas has changed even less. Even if Obama's speech in Cairo means a major change in US policy in the Middle East, the repercussions have been slight until now. And if we look at North Korea, whose dictator [Kim Yong Il] is becoming increasingly provocative, we can say that Obama has not changed the world." (01/07/2009)

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Journalist Lluís Foix reflects on the extent of the economic crisis in his blog: "They say that when Groucho Marx was asked how he was doing he would reply: Compared to who? If we compare ourselves with millions and millions of women and men on the rest of the planet we must inevitably conclude that this is more a crisis of excessive wealth, of opulence; a crisis that no longer allows us to spend several weeks on holiday in South East Asia or Alaska, as we grew used to doing in the past few years of indulging in immoderate consumption. I spent the past three weeks in East Africa taking part in a course on current issues together with Africans who did not talk of the crisis because they have been living in a crisis since they were born, and will probably never reach our level of general prosperity. … The serious crises will become less only once wealth is distributed in a more rational and humane way." (02/07/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Economic Policy, » Africa, » Europe
All available articles from » Lluís Foix

For the first time the British-Dutch oil company Royal Dutch/Shell is without a Dutchman at its helm. The Swiss national Peter Voser took over as CEO from Jeroen van der Veer on July 1. The liberal daily NRC Handelsblad assesses the consequences for the Dutch: "Formal ownership and where a company's headquarters are located have little to do with creating prosperity on location. But a business like Shell is more than that. Head offices have charisma. That holds not only for the top posts but also for less visible things like international political and economic authority. ... The world is entering an era of increasingly scarce natural resources and growing demand. That has far-reaching geopolitical consequences. For that reason every expertise channel, every direct presence in the energy world is important. Van der Veer's departure is ... a further step in the slow dissolution of the centuries-long bond between Shell and the Netherlands. With his departure the Dutch have once again become a little less significant." (02/07/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Corporations, » Netherlands

Carlo Petrini, founder of the Slow Food movement in Italy, comments on the reform of the EU's fruit and vegetable directive in the left-liberal daily La Repubblica. In his opinion the repeal of aesthetic standards for such products is not enough as a proof of quality: "A mini cultural revolution that apparently favours small farmers who offer products they grow themselves without using sprays and with small cosmetic flaws. The syllogism doesn't work the other way round though. … Just because a product is unappealing and ugly doesn't mean it's good and healthy. … Consumers still have two criteria [by which they can judge the quality of a product]. The first is the certificate of origin. … The second consists in the markets of the farmers themselves, which are not just full of good but also aesthetically pleasing things." (02/07/2009)

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All available articles from » Carlo Petrini

The left-liberal daily Süddeutsche Zeitung comments on the enormous success of the Love Parade, the techno demonstration that took place in Berlin from 1989 to 2006: "The Parade's victory march began - not by accident - on Berlin's Kurfürstendamm, right where the former West was at its 'Westest'. Far from wanting to anticipate anything, techno culture was fundamentally against anticipation. But putting it like that also fails to hit the mark because it implies a direction, whereas the whole movement was about the timelessness of ecstasy, the joy of repetition, about interiority, concentrating on the moment and your own body. ... [With rave culture] everything merged together in the present, an endless moment with neither past nor present, without extension, an eternal loop. All that suits the atmosphere of the divided metropolis of West Berlin to a 'T', like the calm in the eye of the hurricane. The culture of the Love Parade blends technological advancement with a disinterested attitude to progress, the joys of the mass with absolute indifference to the power it could have. It was all about living the ready-made urban idyll, a cultural technology for which the old West Berlin offered the perfect preconditions." (02/07/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Music, » Public Culture, » Germany
All available articles from » Jens Bisky

China has postponed the introduction of its controversial Internet filter software Green Dam in the wake of massive international protest. The Financial Times calls the software a tool for Internet censorship: "If the object of Green Dam were really to shield children from all explicitly sexual content, then there is a widely available range of tested web-filtering software that works. China, by contrast, in recent weeks blocked access to many websites, including Hotmail and Twitter, ahead of the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. ... It is an attempt to build a vast cyber dam alongside the existing Great Firewall. The idea of government-sponsored filters on the desktop is a step too far, a chilling tool of social and political control. Taken to its extreme, it is an attempt to roll back the Web 2.0 revolution, the growth of user-generated content that turns users into producers as well as consumers. That would stifle a great deal more than political debate and dissent." (02/07/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Online media, » Media policy, » China

The Copenhagen daily Kristeligt Dagblad criticises athletes who make a demonstrative show of their religion: "A massive display of religious convictions will almost always meet with rejection from some people. We don't need this in the world of sport. Just as sport should not be politicised, it should not be made to represent certain religious views. Sport and religion should be kept just as separate as politics and religion. What's more, one would hope not to see footballers and other athletes running around with 40 degrees religious fever. They can pray in the changing rooms, but on the field we should stick to the principle that religion is a private matter." (02/07/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Sport, » Denmark