In a leading article titled "Good morning Serbia" the paper argues that the victory of President Tadic's Democratic Party (DS) "poses considerable difficulties not only for the country's squabbling politicians but also for its European well wishers." Now we must wait and see which coalition partners the DS will choose: "To its credit, Europe moved swiftly during the earlier presidential election campaign to offer the Serbs real inducements to look West. Brussels offered to ease the visa regulations for Serbs, a vital issue for businessmen and tourists alike. It also promised closer trade and economic links. ... But now the EU must begin to deliver. This means translating promises into cash, and easing the still tough visa regime. ... The country lies in the heart of new Europe. It must take its deserved place among its westward-looking neighbours." (13/05/2008)

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

Talking to journalist Andrej Brstovšek, political scientist Miloš Bešić comments on the results of the Serbian elections. "These parliamentary elections in Serbia were the most important ever because they have shown that the Serb voter has begun to act reasonably, and that for the first time the Serb people have clearly chosen the path towards Europe." Bešić attributes this change to the fact that the European camp stressed issues like unemployment and living standards."At the same time there was never any talk of renouncing Kosovo. Instead it made the case that the European path was the best way to fight for Kosovo. ... Kosovo remains a key issue in political debates, however ... even the most passionate nationalists now admit in private that Kosovo is a lost cause." (13/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Serbia, » Kosovo
All available articles from » Andrej Brstovsek

Belgrade correspondent Hélène Despic-Popovic analyses current relations between Serbia and the EU. "The crisis that ... broke out after Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence showed that many Serbs do not want to sacrifice their national pride to join the EU. Pragmatists like Democratic President Boris Tadic maintain by contrast that Serbia 'must not remain isolated'. ... Nevertheless, Serbia cannot join a club whose members recognised the Kosovar Albanian majority's declaration of independence against its wishes. ... The Serbs took offence at the quick accession of Bulgaria and Romania, two countries which lay far behind the rest of Europe twenty years ago. Many believe the democratic governments rewarded them insufficiently for Milošević's fall, and feel they are not treated on equal terms with Croatia, which could join in 2010." (12/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Domestic Policy, » Europe, » Serbia
All available articles from » Hélène Despic-Popovic

Emil Spacyski comments on the election victory of the pro-European forces: "Bulgaria is glad to see its neighbouring country turn its back on militant nationalism and look to Europe. ... With these elections the Serbs have bid a painful farewell to Kosovo. ... Stubborn nationalism did Belgrade no good. Many Serbs have always had a progressive attitude, but they never formed the majority. Now we must keep in mind the great protests against the regime and the wars of the 1990s, as well as the fact that it was not Clinton's bombs but the pressure from the people on the streets that brought about Milošević's fall." (13/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Domestic Policy, » Bulgaria, » Serbia
All available articles from » Emil Spachijski

"Pope Benedict XVI has not criticised abortion in general but has accused Italy's lawmakers of having scorned human life for thirty years," the Italian daily La Repubblica writes. The Pope condemned the legalisation of abortion during an audience with Carlo Casini, member of the European Parliament and president of Italy's "Pro-Life Movement". "During the course of the audience, Benedict XVI stressed the sanctity of the existence of all human life. ... The Pope also promised Church support for families and in doing so expressed indirect criticism of the new Berlusconi government, which has abolished the Ministry for the Family. ... The leader of the Radical Party Panella described the Pope's words as slander against the state. The new minister for equality, Mara Carfagna, who is committed to promoting the culture of life and measures for raising the birth rate, was more cautious in her comments." (13/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Religion, » Health and Medicine, » Italy
All available articles from » Marco Politi

Antoine Basbous, head of the Observatoire des Pays Arabes (OPA), spoke with Ludovic Blecher about the current political situation in Lebanon: 2It is a civil war controlled by foreign interests. The spiritual head of the Iranian revolution and the Iranian President ... have been saying for months that imperialism and Zionism must be defeated in Lebanon. The country has been declared a field of operations for the Jihad. ... Hezbollah has been the major player in the country since the war against Israel in 2006. ... We are seeing an 'Iraqisation' of the conflict. Hezbollah will come out on top at first, because it has a structured army and money. But its occupation will soon turn against it. The Lebanese, who are predominantly Sunnis and do not share the values of the militia, see it as an occupying force. ... A gruesome and violent civil war between Shiites and Sunnis on the orders of Damascus and Tehran is in the offing." (09/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Middle East
All available articles from » Ludovic Blecher

Finland, Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia were founded almost at the same time, but they have major historical differences, Risto Uimonen writes. "Only Finland managed to remain independent of the Russian Empire for the entire 90 years, although its independence hung by a thread during World War II. ... The little countries' interests were ignored by the victors after the war. ... It is understandable that the Balkan countries wanted quick access to NATO, bearing in mind their difficult history. The countries are still hardly capable of defending their independence in a pinch. They need the additional protection offered by the military alliance to be able to live in peace. ... The Finns believe in the strength of their own army, and place their hopes in diplomacy and avoiding crises through intelligent conduct. But that may prove wishful thinking now that their nuclear neighbour is once more flexing its muscles." (13/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Finland, » Russia, » Baltic States
All available articles from » Risto Uimonen

Former Russian President Vladimir Putin is now Prime Minister of Russia. Cristian Campeanu comments: "Russian politics will continue on the same familiar course as before - Putinism. We must expect a consolidation of the authoritarian regime in domestic policy. ... A second element of Putinism is 'state capitalism', the form of quasi-fascist corporatism in which the majority of Russian companies belong to the state and are led by high-ranking government functionaries according to capitalist principles. These companies, which command huge financial resources, are not only needed for maximising profits but also for advancing Moscow's political interests. Gazprom, one of the largest companies in the world, is a fitting example. ... Today governments like Italy, Germany and Austria work according to the principle: if we cannot beat the Russians, we are better off doing business with them. The capitalism of the Russian state has many converts in Western Europe who have grown tired of liberal capitalism, and there is also an increasing number of those who support the theory that we should adapt to Moscow." (13/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Enlargement / Neighbourhood Policy, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Domestic Policy, » Russia, » Romania
All available articles from » Cristian Campeanu

An estimated 3.5 million people living in the Netherlands will end their holidays today. Thanks to the "convenient timing" of public holidays this year, many people have been off work for the past two weeks, the Dutch daily De Volkskrant reports. "In conjunction with the school holidays this means that this year not only in the summer, but also in the spring, the Netherlands has been paralysed for an extended period of time. If the Christmas public holidays are also conveniently timed, the whole thing will be repeated in the winter. ... The question is whether the interests of the leisure industry and the furniture branch are more important than the loss in production for the economy as a whole and the inefficient use of public facilities and infrastructure. Easter, Whitsun, and even Christmas have lost much of their original meaning through the process of secularisation. Those who want to celebrate these days for religious reasons can naturally continue to do so on the Sunday in question. The phenomenon of a second Easter, Whitsun and Christmas day is unknown in many countries. ... These are good reasons to put these days to discussion and perhaps exchange them for the holidays of other religions, for example." (13/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Economic Policy, » Netherlands

Every state needs a ministry of peace, Federico Mayor Zaragoza writes in an article published in the Spanish daily La Vanguardia: "In the new millennium, the power of reasoning and awareness of the power of the people will assert themselves inexorably. ... This new force will defend human dignity vehemently but without violence and overcome social inequality - that great injustice which allows 60,000 people to die of hunger daily ... while three billion dollars are invested in weapons. ... The ministries that were once ministries of war and then became defence ministries should be renamed ministries of peace. The time has come for all armed forces ... to be used to secure peace, not only once in a while but on a permanent basis. ... If we want peace we must pave the way for it." (13/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Spain, » Global
All available articles from » Federico Mayor Zaragoza

"It is so British to let our firms become foreign," argues Tracy Corrigan with an eye to recent decisions by several British companies to shift their headquarters to Ireland for tax reasons. "What makes a company British has also become increasingly difficult to divine. ... None of the once reliable business markers - where a company pays tax; where shares are listed; where products are sold or where most staff are based - quite does the job any more. ... There is something very British about our willingness to accept the transformation of corporate Britain, without making, well, much of a fuss. The UK is more open than any other country to foreign takeovers. Since the start of the decade, UK businesses worth 1,200 billion dollars have been bought by foreign companies, compared with 500 billion dollars in Germany and less than 300 billion dollars in France." (13/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Corporations, » United Kingdom
All available articles from » Tracy Corrigan

In a referendum held just under five years ago, the Swedes voted unequivocally against introducing the euro. According to the newspaper, opponents and advocates of the euro alike have made the mistake of focusing almost exclusively on economic arguments. It adds that this is still the case today. "The strongest argument in favour of the euro was ultimately a political one, but the European project has never really made headway in Sweden. The main advantage of a 'yes' vote would have been that Sweden would have become a thoroughgoing member of the European community. ... The most important argument in favour of a new referendum is not the possible losses in trade revenue but the fact that the euro zone is expanding. Poland and Slovakia plan to convert to the euro in the near future and Denmark is holding a referendum about its EU reservations, one of which was the switch to the euro. By clinging on to its crown, Sweden is forced to remain in the waiting room while more and more countries enter the European salon." (13/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Economic Policy, » Poland, » Slovakia, » Denmark, » Sweden

During the Second World War Irena Sendler saved the lives of 2,500 children from the Warsaw ghetto while working for the Council for Aid to Jews (Żegota). Yesterday this woman, one of the "righteous among the nations", died in the Polish capital. Wladyslaw Bartoszewski, who like Sendler also worked for Żegota, met her 65 years ago. "Today I remember those times. We were participants in the events back then. Irena Sendler would call me 'Ludwik' and I would call her 'Jolanta'. … I hadn't spoken to her for several years. Our lives took very different directions. I am around ten years younger than her. I was never one of her close circle of friends. Ewa Junczyk-Ziomecka of the presidential office was the one who began to stir up interest in her nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize. Death has ended these efforts. For me she was one of the most deserving and important rescuers of other people I ever met. ... The death of a witness of the events is always the end of a chapter - only the written word remains." (13/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » History, » Poland
All available articles from » Wladyslaw Bartoszewski

An Estonian court has ruled that the ban on the screening and distribution of director Kadri Kousaar's film "Magnus" will continue. A family had filed a suit against the film about a suicide, claiming it violates their personal rights. The Estonian news portal Delfi criticises the ruling: "The decision to ban the film for seven years is nothing but a demonstration of the power of the judiciary. It protects the interests of the plaintiff at the cost of cinematic art and society as a whole. 'Magnus' is a professionally made film that has been doomed by the fact that it is based on a true story." The portal points to the success it has had at foreign film festivals and sees it as a lesson for parents: "The film shows what can happen when they withdraw their love and affection. Without being excessively sentimental the story remains moving and thought-provoking." (13/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Film, » Crime and Law, » Estonia

Reinhard Göweli writes that people who receive gifts of tickets to the 2008 UEFA European Football Championships may face unpleasant financial consequences: "Of the 1.13 million tickets available for Euro 2008 games in June, tens of thousands are given away as gifts to employees and business partners. Roughly 15,000 are distributed in the form of VIP tickets among especially important partners, customers, top employees and decision makers." The consequences of such gifts may be unpleasant, however. "Because of the exceedingly high ticket price - and the even higher price of VIP packages - there is tax liability for tickets. ... Normally you would have to fork over up to 8,000 euros for a VIP package for the Euro 2008 finals in Vienna at the end of June. As a result, the tax authorities can demand that you pay taxes on that amount. High earners will have to pay 50 percent - or 4,000 euros - in taxes for the pleasure of witnessing the Euro 2008 finals." (12/05/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Sport, » Austria
All available articles from » Reinhard Göweli

The French parliament has passed new and tougher anti-doping legislation under which the criminals pulling the strings behind the athletes will face prison sentences of up to seven years. The Danish daily Jyllands-Posten comments: "The French initiative sends a clear warning signal: doping fiends will no longer be able to escape the civil law system and hide behind the courts of sports organisations, which impose a maximum penalty of disqualification in the form of a long quarantine. Let us hope the French signal ... will get through above all to the biggest rogues in the organisations that cynically manipulate the athletes." (13/05/2008)

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