The signing of the treaty between Poland and the US divides the EU and NATO, writes the tabloid De Telegraaf: "For the first time since 1989 Poland is putting its trust in a foreign power and allowing it to establish a base on its own soil. The biggest EU country in Eastern Europe hopes this will bring it greater security, but in fact it is making itself the target of Russian missiles. A general in Moscow declared this week that nuclear weapons were being aimed at Poland. This poses a threat to the EU as a whole. Poland is no longer relying on NATO alone. The fear of potential Russian aggression has driven Warsaw to seek help from Washington directly. In doing so, the Poles have driven a dangerous wedge between NATO and the EU. Countries like Germany and France are anxiously striving to maintain good relations with the Kremlin. The situation in Georgia has changed everything. A new arms race now seems a distinct possibility." (21/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Poland, » Europe, » U.S.
All available articles from » Rob Savelberg

The liberal-conservative daily Dziennik supports the treaty for the construction of the US missile defence shield in Poland and calls on Warsaw to increase its own military defence budget. "If you ... look at the history of our country since 1989, yesterday's treaty is a further success in the process of bolstering Western structures. ... However this is not to say that the great and at times fierce debate that took place in Poland on this issue was unnecessary. ... If we do not invest billions of dollars in equipping the Polish army then no ally will do it for us. ... So we should see the defence shield above all as an opportunity and a challenge. If we add our own missiles to the battery of American Patriot [missiles] to create a non-virtual defence system, all the effort will have been worthwhile. ... If we just sit back in the belief that we have done our bit now that we have 'a major alliance', the American installations on Polish soil will remain primarily an American success." (21/08/2008)

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All available articles from » Michał Karnowski

The daily Delo argues that the agreement between the US and Poland is tightly bound up with the conflict in the Caucasus, despite Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk's protests that this was not the case: "Only the naïve would fail to make a connection between the rapid signing of the agreement and the Caucasus conflict and the revived Cold War rhetoric. The American missiles that Poland has been given all of a sudden, and that certainly will not be aimed at Iran, speak for themselves. ... Russia's response to the Polish-American plans is the stationing of missiles in Kalinigrad and Belarus. Following NATO's crisis meeting the old-new division within Europe which separates the Eastern European members from the 'old European' countries who know from experience that solid relations with Moscow have always been the key to stability have become visible again. And once again we have reached the Rubicon River, the point of no return. On the other side of that river is a new arms race and along with it a new Cold War."  (21/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Poland, » U.S.
All available articles from » Damijan Slabe

According to die tageszeitung newspaper, Russia would suffer most in the event of a new arms race: "Moscow's military is not really afraid of the defence system. Ten US missiles face thousands of Russian warheads in case of emergency. ... As always, what is at stake here is the respect and recognition of Russia, which cannot come to terms with the loss of its superpower status. The inclusion of the former satellites Poland and the Czech Republic in the US military sphere of influence is particularly galling for the political leadership, which sees that political clout does not grow along with the petrodollars. All the stronger is the effect of nostalgic memories of Soviet times. In the interest of Russia it remains to be hoped that the Kremlin will not overstep the mark and get involved in a new arms race. The ailing country could never survive that. The fate of the Soviet Union ... should serve as a warning to the leadership." (21/08/2008)

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All available articles from » Klaus-Helge Donath

Following the death of ten French soldiers in Afghanistan the debate about participation in international troops and NATO strategy has flared up once more in Belgium. The daily De Standaard writes: "There is no positive side to the Afghan issue. From a military point of view the area is out of control. The expelled Taliban even appear to be gaining ground once more. It would be morally reprehensible to give them free reign, so there is no exit strategy. But establishing peace, stability and prosperity at gunpoint has also proved to be a hopeless approach. The easiest thing to do is to stay out of the conflict. But then we forfeit our right to have a say. ... We cannot expect the Belgian government to find a solution single-handedly, and we cannot allow it to let others carry the burden and criticise from the sideline. But through its military involvement it has the opportunity and also the obligation to be involved in the search for a more sensible strategy." (21/08/2008)

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All available articles from » Bart Sturtewagen

Over 100,000 people gathered in the Estonian capital Tallinn to commemorate the "Singing Revolution", a peaceful protest staged against the Soviet regime 20 years ago, with a singing festival. The daily Postimees writes that in doing this the Estonians have demonstrated political maturity and sent a message to the current government: "The people at the singing festival yesterday have proven that it is they who define the state, as Article 1 of our constitution stipulates. This was a clear message to our politicians and elected representatives. No one can claim today that Estonia has not developed into a civilian society. The question now is how we can further develop this system. But the people have shown that they have earned the necessary trust to do this." (21/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Social movements, » History, » Estonia

Just one day after the bomb attack in Algeria more than 50 people have died in two new terrorist attacks carried out by Islamic fundamentalists south east of the country's capital, Algiers. The daily La Repubblica claims the attacks are connected to the impending begin of Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting. "The massacres are proof that the Islamist terrorist groups have reorganised and despite the siege of the region are coming down from the mountains of Kabylie to spread terror in the cities. ... The approach of Ramadan has woken the terrorists from their slumber. It is regarded as a good time for waging jihad [the holy war] and paradise is said to await those who die as martyrs during this time. ... Meanwhile fear is growing, particularly in Algiers, where memories of the double suicide attacks of 11 December 2007 against the headquarters of UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the Supreme Court are still fresh." (21/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Domestic Policy, » Religion, » North Africa
All available articles from » Fabio Scuto

The daily newspaper Dnevnik criticises Europe's widespread anti-smoking laws, drawing parallels to the anti-smoking campaign in the Third Reich: "Tobacco is 'race poison', and cigarettes are an attribute of 'ignoble races' like Gypsies and Jews. The lungs of 'the chosen people' should remain pure, however, according to just a few of the postulates of National Socialist ideology and practice. To avoid being misunderstood: of course smoking is harmful, and non-smokers need protection. Nevertheless the anti-liberal spirit which is gradually (as in the US) becoming established in the EU, the militant intolerance toward smokers and the series of bizarre restrictions call to mind Adolf Hitler's manic fight against smoking." (21/08/2008)

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All available articles from » Alexander Andreev

Forty years ago today Warsaw Pact troops marched into Prague and put an end to "Prague Spring", the attempt at reform in Czechoslovakia. Helsingin Sanomat newspaper links the events of 1968 to politics in Europe today. "Not an enemy country, but an allied state was occupied, the belief in 'socialism with a human face' and the future of the entire 'socialist community' was endangered. ... The occupation was a shock for the ... rest of Europe. .. The Western defence alliance NATO saw no chance to take countermeasures. ... The Warsaw Pact no longer exists today, but NATO was not disbanded. On the contrary, it began to expand to the East. ... NATO has even shown itself ready to cooperate with Russia, however developments in European security are at odds with the agenda of the Russian leadership. ... Russia's new foreign policy strategy is a repetition of the hostile attitude to NATO expansion. ... In 1968 the Soviet Union proclaimed its right to push through its own interpretation of socialism, and now Russia has given itself the right to defend its population from bellicose developments in neighbouring countries. The difference between ... the two attitudes is alarmingly small." (21/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » History, » Czech Republic, » Slovakia, » Russia, » Europe

Christoforos Fokaidis, President of the youth organisation of the Cypriot Christian Democratic party Democratic Rally (DISI), writes in the daily Politis about the European unification process: "Contrary to what people claim, the Treaty of Lisbon does indeed strive to make the Union more democratic and responsible and increase the participation of its citizens. Through a series of measures, such as strengthening the role of the European Parliament, but also that of the national parliaments, ... a small but important step is being made towards the democratic legitimation of the Union. It is difficult to predict ... where this European experiment will end. But what is certain is that so far it has managed to meet global challenges much more effectively than the nation state and also to harness the advance of the global economy with democratic rules. This is why the process of European unification is not just an extension of globalisation, as many claim, but rather an answer to globalisation and to the weakness of the nation state - in particular the smaller ones." (20/08/2008)

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All available articles from » Christoforos Fokaidis

The German government has passed a new foreign trade act giving it a right of veto when foreign investors from outside the EU and the European Free Trade Association seek to acquire a stake of more than 25 percent in German companies. The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung criticises the law: "Anyone who lacks the seal of approval must be prepared for the German government to start looking into their every intention. ... The grand coalition [of the social democratic SPD and the conservative CDU] has justified this encroachment into capital transactions saying that in addition to profits, some new investors could also be interested in gaining political control, and even in destroying the German economy. In such cases politicians would be not entirely helpless even without the new law. ... [For that reason] the law could become a boomerang for the Germany as an economic location. The already scant capital could ... decide to take a wide berth around Germany, which is poor in resources. Our economy has more to fear from this danger than from any harm that might be wreaked by hostile investors." (21/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Corporations, » Economic Policy, » Germany
All available articles from » Heike Göbel

Yesterday, the British Competition Commission ruled that airport operator BAA will have to sell several airports in London and Scotland. The Times describes the decision as one of the bravest and most sensible made by an official British body. "The proposal to break up BAA ... is excellent for two broad reasons. First, competition generally yields better results, in terms of both customer service and economic efficiency than monopoly, regulation and central planning. ... This particular break-up will protect London from a big environmental blight and the British economy from a serious blunder ... to expand Heathrow. ... It may be true that extra runways at Heathrow would relieve London's air travel problems. But it is equally possible that competition would deliver big improvements - as it did in telecoms and electricity distribution - by squeezing greater efficiencies out of existing resources. ... Unfortunately for Labour, yesterday's report means that Mr Brown has again chosen exactly the wrong issue on which to take his resolute stand." (21/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Infrastructure / Travel and Transport, » Corporations, » Economic Policy, » United Kingdom
All available articles from » Anatole Kaletsky

Sweden's teachers know too little about the Holocaust. This is the conclusion of a study carried out by the state authority "Living History Forum". But the study's questions were far too specialised and it did more harm than good, writes the Stockholm paper Dagens Nyheter: "The situation is even graver because the topic is so important. It is unworthy to transform the death and suffering of millions of people into subtleties which the authority wants to render significant. Because that is exactly what is happening: if teachers know too little, then we need the 'Living History Forum'. And this situation is not eased by the fact that there are indeed gaps in our knowledge. The study distracts from questions that really are important: what kind of gaps do teachers have in their knowledge? Can they get students to recognise historical connections and have them draw their own well-balanced conclusions?" (21/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Education, » History, » Sweden

Philippe Douste-Blazy, former French foreign minister and Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations, critises in the daily Le Figaro the decision not to hold the 2016 Olympics in Doha, the capital of Qatar: "The Olympic Games are without doubt the most important sporting event, because of their ability to mobilise the nations of the world for the values sport mediates. ... Several European, American and Asian cities have had the privilege of being chosen to organise the games. Other regions of the world, by contrast, have never had this chance. This holds primarily for the Arab world, which together with Latin America and Africa is one of the only geographic and cultural regions never to have organised them. ... But at least Latin America has had several chances to host the Football World Championships. ... The rejection of Doha's candidacy is historically unfair and technically unjustified, and represents a missed symbolic and political opportunity: ... the possibility to create a historical precedent ... but also to counter the radicals who are so good at exploiting feelings of frustration and humiliation in this region of the world." (20/08/2008)

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All available articles from » Philippe Douste-Blazy

Photos of Spanish athletes making "slit-eyed" gestures before leaving for the Olympic Games in Beijing have sparked new discussion on intolerance in Spain. The Guardian argues that the reactions to the incident also showed the prejudices which the rest of Europe has regarding Spain: "In terms of tackling racism in sport, Spain is indeed dragging its heels and needs to get its house in order. ... However, the reactions of the past few days have more than occasionally gone beyond criticising the behaviour of individuals and those within the sporting arena and into the realms of national temperament, and yes, even race. Media commentators and sports fans alike have put the incident down to unique backwardness of the Spanish people, of whom no more is to be expected. ... Such a reliance on sweeping generalisations is hardly likely to solve the problem that does exist and, in a week when the BNP enjoyed its annual jolly to the countryside and a London teenager died in an apparently racist stabbing, it may even prompt some Spaniards to dismiss genuine concerns as mere hypocrisy." (20/08/2008)

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All available articles from » David Hewitt