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Martinotti, Giampiero
2 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.
Sarkozy breaks a taboo
In his speech in Douaumont near the battlefield of Verdun, French president Nicolas Sarkozy has commemorated those who deserted the French army in World War I. A taboo has been broken, writes the left-liberal daily La Repubblica: "Remembering the deserters, the soldiers who refused to obey and were shot to set an example, is the first political rehabilitation by a French president of the 675 soldiers who were executed between 1914 and 1918. ... Sarkozy has found the right tone for commemorating the soldiers whose memory is tinged with dishonour. ... Former French prime minister Lionel Jospin had also flirted with the idea of such reparations ten years ago. His successor, although he is conservative and a staunch supporter of the nation's values, is now the one to break the taboo. ... France is not the first country to have taken this step. The UK has passed a law rehabilitating its 360 executed soldiers. In Italy, by contrast, the 750 soldiers who were condemned to death and shot remain forgotten."
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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » History, » France, » Europe
Political triumph
La Repubblica sees Ingrid Betancourt's liberation as the triumph of Colombia's more aggressive strategy over France's bargaining tactics. "[Colombian President] Álvaro Uribe meted out his diplomacy carefully; he kept his American allies, who have supported the Colombian army for five years, up to date while saying nothing to the French, who placed too much emphasis on the need to negotiate and on the mediation of Hugo Chavez, no friend of Uribe's. ... This gambit was not just a military success and proof that the FARC can be infiltrated; it is also a political triumph. Sarkozy has conceded this. He decided not to travel to Bogotá and instead to be content with receiving Ingrid Betancourt in Paris today. His joy is somewhat dampened by his regret at only having played a minor part in the action."
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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » France, » Latin Amerika, » U.S.
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