The idea of a European Monetary Fund should be taken seriously, writes the left-liberal daily De Volkskrant: "The Greek crisis has shown that Europe lacks instruments when one of the Eurozone countries gets into difficulties and needs some form of help. European politicians rightly hold the strong view that one cannot stand idly by when a Eurozone country is facing bankruptcy. The risk is too high that then other weaker Eurozone countries could get into trouble and the euro itself would be called into question. ... Can the [International Monetary Fund] IMF not intervene in such cases? There are arguments to support this: The IMF has already proven its worth in this area and Europe has little need of a new, expensive body. Yet Europe must be in a position to solve its own problems in the long term." (10/03/2010)

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

The Greek debt crisis could be a chance for Europe, writes business paper Expansión: "Crises force change. And the Greek crisis that has hit the Eurozone could turn into an unexpected opportunity to improve the foundations and the government of the single European currency. ... The surprising thing is that it was Germany, which up to now had always been reluctant to establish a political counterweight to the European Central Bank, that proposed the creation of the European Monetary Fund. The only explanation is that with this initiative it wanted to pre-empt other, more political and more ambitious alternatives preferred by France." (10/03/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Germany, » France, » Greece, » Europe
All available articles from » Federico Steinberg

Instead of a European Monetary Fund, what the Eurozone really needs is effective institutions, writes The Guardian: "If an EMF is ever set up (a big if, given that it could force the renegotiation of the Lisbon treaty), it will probably not be so useful. It is more likely to go in for finger-wagging at governments that exceed their borrowing limits, and it is certainly hard to see German voters funding such an institution and its war chest. If that is what Ms Merkel has in mind, she should be warned: it will do nothing to glue together a eurozone that is slowly coming unstuck. If a 16-nation economic club is to grow up, it needs serious institutions and regulators - and for member governments to recognise that they are in it together." (10/03/2010)

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

The Greek government expects the subject of measures against speculative deals to be dealt with at the next meeting of the G20 states, as Prime Minister George Papandreou explained on Tuesday in Washington following a meeting with US President Barack Obama. The liberal-conservative daily Corriere della Sera stresses that the prime minister did not cast himself in the role of petitioner when he explained his country's financial crisis: "The US thought it would be confronted with the desperate leader of a Balkan state. One who supplicatingly held out his hat, unable to restore order in his own country. Instead it faced a proud and sensible head of state who asked not for money but for political support in curbing Wall Street's speculative attacks against Greece. ... Whether the promises will be fulfilled remains to be seen. What is certain is that Prime Minister Papandreou returns to Europe having gained the respect of the Americans." (10/03/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Fiscal Policy, » Greece
All available articles from » Massimo Gaggi

At the outset of fresh negotiations on nuclear disarmament Russia and the US have agreed to seek a follow-up accord to the Start Treaty as quickly as possible. Nevertheless Moscow continues to insist that missile defence systems be included in the treaty, a position the business daily Hospodářské noviny finds incomprehensible: "Obama is now supposed to rethink what he has already rethought, and conclude that missiles and a radar station are just as unacceptable in Romania as in the Czech Republic and Poland, were they were initially planned. ... But a treaty that included missile defence would have no chance of being ratified by the American Senate. Russia should understand that with its deteriorating military arsenal it is the weaker negotiating partner. In nuclear matters Russia has more reason than the US to push for an agreement." (10/03/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Russia, » U.S.
All available articles from » Daniel Anýž

Seven Muslims were arrested in Ireland on Tuesday for plotting to kill the Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilks. For the daily Irish Examiner a case of the clash of cultures: "Yesterday's arrest of seven people in connection with an investigation into a conspiracy to murder a Swedish cartoonist is a stark reminder of the international sweep of terrorism. It is a reminder too of the kind of intolerance that has become unacceptable in the West. Lars Vilks' cartoon depicting the Prophet Muhammad with the body of a dog was offensive to some Muslims but that does not mean he can be murdered or abused in any way. None of those arrested have been charged much less convicted of anything so they, under our system, are innocent. The arrests does however highlight the great clash of cultures we will have to deal with sooner or later." (10/03/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Ireland, » Sweden, » Europe

European Human Rights Commissioner Thomas Hammarberg on Monday came out against banning the burka, as is being discussed for example in France. In the daily Le Temps he explains that a ban on the full body veil contravenes European values: "The partisans of a general ban on the burka and niqab have not succeeded in showing that this attire in any way undermines democracy or security, public order or morals. Their arguments are all the less convincing in that the number of women who wear such clothing is very small. It is also impossible to prove that these women are more subject to repression globally than others. ... We are right to protest strongly at regimes that oblige women to wear the full body veil. This is fundamentally repressive and inacceptable, but it can't be combated by banning this clothing in other countries. ... The awkward debate on banning the burka has created a rift in society. In general the state should on principle avoid passing legislation on how people should dress." (10/03/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Europe
All available articles from » Thomas Hammarberg

Homo sapiens can be divided into two kinds of people, writes medic Loránd Bertók in the conservative weekly Nagyítás. According to him there is the playful kind Homo ludens and Homo formans, who is only human in form: "Homo ludens does not strive to gain an advantage (more food, benefits, power) but pursues activities that he enjoys … and which in many cases his contemporaries would consider useless and incomprehensible. … Admittedly: some of his thoughts and discoveries can be of great advantage to mankind. But they can also cause great damage if they are used to bad ends (for example gun powder, nuclear and biological weapons and so on). The playful type produces the scientists, inventors and artists of this world. Basically it is them we have to thank for mankind's progress. … Homo formans, those who are only human in form, we meet every day. We have all encountered those mountains of flesh with an intimidating presence and aggressive nature. This type has always been around. Its frequency depends on the intellectual and moral level of the zeitgeist of a given period. The higher the intellectual-moral level of a society, the less frequently we encounter Homo formans, and the less influence he has." (10/03/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Weltanschauung, » Global
All available articles from » Loránd Bertók

The European aerospace corporation EADS and its US partner Northrop Grumman have dropped their bid for a contract worth billions of dollars for building a new tanker aircraft for the US air force. The Neue Zürcher Zeitung sees another full-blown scandal in the offing: "Apparently the parameters for the call for bids were altered in favour of Boeing, which is why Northrop Grumman threw in the towel even before the deadline was up. [It] is certain that now the best product won't win, and when you look at the specifications published for Boeing's 767 tanker so far you can't help getting the feeling that the final version will be considerably more expensive. So all in all it's an unsavoury story that could mar transatlantic relations. Defence cooperation, it seems, is only worthwhile for America if is goes in just one direction."  (10/03/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Corporations, » Europe, » U.S.
All available articles from » Jürg Dedial

Ten years ago the new economy's Internet bubble burst, since which investors have become increasingly wary of the stock market. The business paper Les Echos analyses the origins and the consequences of the Internet bubble: "The stock market, which incurred heavy speculation losses in the last five years, wasn't totally wrong at the end of the 1990s. Certainly, at the time too many startups were undiscriminatingly financed with Internet bubble dollars. But the market's big error was more with tempo than with content. The Net's potential has always been real, it was just necessary to wait a bit longer for the promising young firms to reach their objectives. The stock market may have put too much money a little too early into such firms, but it didn't toss billions to the wind. ... Above all , the Internet bubble didn't pull down the rest of the economy with it when it burst." (10/03/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Online media, » Financial Markets, » Global
All available articles from » David Barroux

Artur Domosławski's new biography on Polish journalist Ryszard Kapuściński puts a dent in the myth surrounding the reporter and raises once more the question of how the country should deal with its communist past. More like Germany deals with its past, the conservative Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung suggests: "The Kapuściński biography has caused controversy not just because it divests a celebrated and internationally renowned author of his heroic status but also because it is in sum directed against strict condemnation of the so-called communist regime. ... The discussion about the biography fits in with the debate that has been going on for years about how to assess the old regime and above all about how the history of the Polish people should and could be written. ... An in-between is lacking, such as a tribute to the thousands of dissidents who took part in the Solidarność movement and ultimately brought about the change of system. ... Not a few look with envious eyes to Germany, where the dissidents of the GDR and the demonstrations of 1989 - which although relatively modest compared to what happened in Poland - are nonetheless constantly being honoured." (10/03/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » History, » Remembrance culture, » Germany, » Poland
All available articles from » Karol Sauerland

Following the sex abuse scandals in which Catholic priests have been implicated, Germany's Bishop's Conference will meet with Pope Benedict XVI. The celibacy rule is the fundamental problem at the root of the abuse and must therefore be seriously called into  question, writes Swiss theology professor Hans Küng in the daily De Standaard: "Is the Church not also entitled to a mea culpa from the Pope? And shouldn't such an expression of remorse be coupled with improvement by finally allowing the celibacy rule that was barred from discussion during the Second Vatican Council be openly and freely subjected to the assessment of the entire Church? The same openness with which the Church is currently trying to deal with the problem of abuse is now required to deal with one of its most important structural causes: the celibacy rule. The bishops should boldly and forcefully propose this to Pope Benedict XVI." (10/03/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Germany, » Global
All available articles from » Hans Küng

After activities organised around International Women's Day, Polish feminist groups want to hold action days in April to bring out the positive aspects of female sexuality. The Polish news magazine Wprost welcomes the breaking of another taboo: "The feminist milieu in Poland has crossed yet another boundary. It has taken a ... taboo as the central element of its ideology and approach. ... In this way April is to become the official month of - please excuse the word - the pussy. After the demonstrations on Monday feminist organisations are once more striking while the iron is hot and scheduling the first official Pussy Days for April! The idea is to improve the acceptance of the word, they say: ... 'Our goal is to give the word 'pussy' a more positive resonance and to start a common search for other terms and ways of discussing the female body without scientific or medical - or for that matter vulgar - overtones on the one hand, and which stress on the other hand the joyful, positive aspects of female sexuality'." (10/03/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Poland
All available articles from » Irena Szafrańska

In the 20th century Romanians traditionally moved from the country to the city. But the reverse trend has been observed for roughly a decade, writes the daily România Liberă, although exclusively among pensioners: "It's not hard to see why the elderly are moving back - it's still possible to live on pensions in the country where costs are lower and you can possibly grow your own vegetables in your garden. This is what sets the trend. Rural populations aren't aging because young people are leaving, but because old people are coming back. ... The Romanian villages are becoming old age homes. But under such conditions the possibility of modernising the villages is slowly dwindling. The problem is no longer how to keep young people in rural areas, but how to ensure a good life for the 56 percent of Romanian pensioners now living in the country." (10/03/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Migration, » Demographics, » Romania
All available articles from » Mircea Kivu