"Irish people can be proud of the Government's involvement in the major international treaty banning the use of cluster weapons to be signed in Dublin today. ... The treaty shows that a determined group of relatively small states, working closely with a coalition of non- governmental organisations, can make a real difference in international affairs. ... Two loopholes in the treaty could perpetuate existing armouries and allow them to be renewed if international vigilance and concern is relaxed. ... Nevertheless the moral and political force of this treaty should not be underestimated. Such a raising of awareness and consciousness plays an essential role in international affairs, providing a model of how governments and voluntary organisations can cooperate effectively. This is welcome indeed in a period when all too often the invulnerability of power is taken for granted." (30/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Relaciones internacionales, » Política de seguridad / Crisis / Guerras, » Irlanda, » Global

The leftist newspaper doubts the viability of the draft for a ban on cluster bombs. "This time the loopholes in the treaty are considerably larger and unfortunately also more dangerous [than in previous arms control treaties]. The [German] government is largely to blame. ... Fortunately, its calls for exemption from the ban or at least postponing its introduction for several years as far as the M-85 is concerned - which accounts for 95 percent of the German Armed Forces' entire cluster bomb arsenal - failed in Dublin. The foreign ministry's belated attempt to pass these demands off as 'compromise proposals' is simply grotesque. We can only hope that the German government keeps its promise to destroy the ammunition and does not try to flog it off for a profit on the global weapons market in the eight months that remain until the treaty enters force." (29/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Relaciones internacionales, » Política de seguridad / Crisis / Guerras, » Política interior, » Alemania, » Europa
Todos los textos disponible de » Andreas Zumach

The Spanish paper comments the signing of the ban on cluster bombs: "Spain has pledged to stop its production and destroy its remaining stockpiles. The deadline for fulfilling this obligation comes into effect once the agreement has been ratified, but nothing prevents us from starting right away. If one assumes that the text adopted in Dublin ... implicitly condemns the inhuman effect of cluster bombs, it is to a certain extent irresolute or even morally reprehensible to continue producing and storing them on the basis of formalities. ... Germany sees things this way, and so should the Spanish government." (30/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Relaciones internacionales, » Política de seguridad / Crisis / Guerras, » España, » Global

"In security matters, defence credibility is of utmost importance. A believable - and by that I mean adequately strong - defence is the best way to prevent wars. ... A small country will never be able to arm itself as well as a superpower neighbour, and so our defence acquisitions must be based on effectiveness. ... The cluster bomb agreement puts Finland in a difficult position, however it does seem to allow for weapons that self-destruct after a given time. ... The Dublin Accord will be made public today. ... The Finnish government must examine carefully whether it is possible or reasonable to sign the agreement. We must not endanger the defence of our country. Leading producers of cluster bombs like the US, Russia, China, Israel, India and Pakistan were not at the summit in Dublin." (30/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Relaciones internacionales, » Política de seguridad / Crisis / Guerras, » Finlandia, » Global

Lena Kolarska-Bobinska, director of Warsaw's Institute of Public Affairs, describes relations between France and Poland: "The French-Polish friendship has had many ups and downs, and has not always been exemplary. Many French, both politicians and people on the street, feared the economic impact of EU enlargement. In the eyes of the French, Poland seemed like a traditional, Catholic, economically weak country with a cheap work force. ... After Poland's decision to send troops to Iraq, President Chirac announced that Poland had missed a good opportunity to remain silent. The Poles welcomed the election of Nicolas Sarkozy as president, sensing a chance for improving relations between the two countries. ... Poland is in the midst of an upswing. ... And its clout within the Union will continue to grow. ... We must now go beyond symbolic gestures and determine areas for cooperation which will further the interests of both countries." (28/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Relaciones internacionales, » Francia, » Polonia, » Europa
Todos los textos disponible de » Lena Kolarska-Bobinska

The newspaper comments on Nicolas Sarkozy's European immigration policy initiative: "The French President has put his finger on the problem. We cannot go on acting as if Europe had unlimited intake capacity. Now is the time to adopt a reasonable approach to the problem of immigration. Furthermore, Sarkozy is to be commended for suggesting a common policy for the 27 states rather than acting on his own. ... The Spanish government is still stigmatised from having disregarded this precept when it ordered a mass naturalisation. Now it lacks arguments to criticise the Italian measures, and can is having difficlties finding an audience for its views on the French policy." (30/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Relaciones internacionales, » Política de la UE, » Migración, » Francia, » Italia, » España, » Europa

The daily comments on the way the EU is handling the Cyprus problem. "Since 1960 Turkey's strategic goal has been the dissolution of the Republic of Cyprus and the creation of two separate states on the island. ... The Greek side rejects this approach because it presents obvious problems and does not allow for reconciliation. ... EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn has not adopted a clear stance on this issue. Nonetheless, this matter cannot simply be left to the political will of the two sides. The Republic [of Cyprus] has made its position as an EU member clear. ... At the same time it must inform the European Commission that this issue requires a careful and serious approach. It cannot allow ... the backing of catastrophic political strategies in Cyprus simply for the sake of facilitating Turkey's process of integration into the EU. This could have repercussions for Europe as a whole." (29/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Ampliación de la UE, » Política de seguridad / Crisis / Guerras, » Política de la UE, » Grecia, » Chipre, » Europa, » Turquía

Macedonia faces an important election, yet the results will merely confirm the status quo, comments the newspaper: "The political crisis in Macedonia - the conflict over its name, its NATO accession, its association with the EU and numerous domestic political problems which have accumulated during the past 17 years - cannot be solved by magic. ... Yet there is one simple reason why the political landscape cannot be restructured. The former Yugoslav Republic lacks both parties and leaders that could present an alternative to the existing groups. In other words, there is no one who could break with the old mould and unite the voters who feel insulted, pessimistic and in despair after the fiasco of the NATO summit in Bucharest and criticism from Brussels." (30/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Relaciones internacionales, » Ampliación de la UE, » Sudeste de Europa, » Bulgaria

Christopher Street Day (CSD) celebrations are planned once more in Riga this year. But in the run-up to the event the plans are already meeting with heavy media protest. Juris Kaza writes that Latvian society is only damaging its own credibility: "The true debate is not about the rights of gays and lesbians, but about freedom of opinion. ... Both the political elite and the citizens are becoming increasingly removed from Western democracy and the duty to respect basic human rights like freedom of speech and assembly. This is happening not only in Latvia, but also elsewhere in Eastern Europe, and shows that these countries are gambling away the trust placed in them when they joined the EU." (30/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Minorías, » Letonia
Todos los textos disponible de » Juris Kaza

"'No dogs or Romanians allowed'. By no means just a bad joke, this inscription was written on a sign hanging before a store on the Spanish island of Mallorca. The Romanian press was understandably indignant. ... The Spanish example clearly shows that something is out of whack in Western Europe. Not only are the children and grandchildren of the Turkish, Arab and Pakistani guest workers who immigrated here in the 1960s presenting us with a steadily growing problem. Now dangers are also emerging in the East, with the Central Eastern European masses who entered the EU just a short while ago. ... Europe is in a state of malaise. It senses that multiculturalism is in its death throes, but can offer no alternative. Europe lacks the energy to provide new immigrants with clear rules and guidelines. ... The Western European states put so much energy into easing integration for immigrants that these people no longer have to fit in at all, and have turned away from their host countries in disdain." (30/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Política interior, » Integración, » Minorías, » España, » Europa
Todos los textos disponible de » Gábor Borókai

"Gazing briefly at the Eurovision song contest this week I could not rid my mind of a quite different image, that of NATO's multilateral force headquarters in Kabul", Simon Jenkins writes. "There was the same belief that, simply by being international, a so-called community of nations was forged. For Eurovision and NATO, read the Olympics and Burma, read the Moscow cup final and Darfur. Read the European parliament, Fifa, the World Bank, the Organisation of African Unity. I was brought up to regard 'international' as synonymous with saintly. It was a concept to supplant the rude nationalism of the 20th century in a worldwide concord of peace. ... Today the word 'international' suggests tailored suits, tax-free salaries, white Land Cruisers and Geneva. The Eurovision contest is run by the European Broadcasting Union with 400 staff in Switzerland, with no risk of oversight or reform. It takes after the International Olympics Committee, which now charges its host taxpayers $20-30bn for two weeks of extravaganza in the name of bogus world brotherhood. ... Until internationalism can acquire a more robust accountability, there will be more Burmas and more Iraqs. The superpower and the nation state will reassert global sovereignty. International must stop flying first class." (30/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Relaciones internacionales, » Movimientos sociales, » Global
Todos los textos disponible de » Simon Jenkins

"When ten years ago the European heads of state and government decided to establish the European Economic and Monetary Union, many were doubtful about the project. Critics claimed that a new currency, a new central bank and a new economic policy would create confusion and damage credibility. They were wrong. After the first ten years the project has earned itself a B plus grade. ... The first ten years have been successful ones for the union. The dollar no longer reigns supreme, the European Central Bank no longer bows to the US Federal Reserve and Finland, too, has benefited from the community. ... Within the space of a decade the euro has become the second-most powerful currency in the world, a currency that can be relied on and which has brought stability to the global economy as a whole. ... But ten years are still a short period of time. If the seams of the EU's economic policy come apart owing to the continent's economic problems, the Union's valuation will go down. The end result could still be confusion and lack of credibility." (30/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Política de la UE, » Política financiera, » Europa

The Swiss daily discusses the "milk strike" in a commentary: "The 'milk strike' recently called by a splinter group of farmers is first and foremost a ... media event. The impact of the action has been pretty modest so far. ... The strikers are hoping their initiative will turn the price of milk into a moral issue. ... But first of all their direct market partners, the milk processors, are also facing higher costs, and secondly the price of milk is not a moral issue. On the contrary, since the state stopped controlling the price it obeys the rules of the market. ... The price of milk in Switzerland remains considerably higher than in the rest of Europe. In view of the opening of borders this is a significant competitive disadvantage. Switzerland's agriculture must adjust itself to growing competition if it wants a future for its products. The present situation would thus be a good opportunity to continue reducing the difference in prices for Swiss and European milk for the sake of sustainable success on the market." (29/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Comercio, » Europa Occidental

The newspaper calls on readers to rethink their approach to air travel: "The flying public would be wiser to accept that the age of cheap air travel is over, and tailor their plans accordingly. ... But consumers cannot claim to have been ambushed by events - or by the airlines. The rising cost of jet fuel, which mirrors that of crude oil, is a long-term development, amply forecast, that cannot be absorbed by savings elsewhere in airlines' business models precisely because modern air travel is so energy-intensive. Almost any wage earner in the developed world with a modicum of financial discipline can afford, even at current fares, to cover in seven hours a distance than until the jet age would have taken seven days. This is little short of miraculous, but it is a miracle achieved only by burning roughly 70 tonnes of fuel. ... On the price of fuel, passengers have all the information they need - including that it is cheaper to stay at home." (30/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Energía, » Infraestructuras / Tráfico, » Consumidor, » Turismo, » Gran Bretaña, » Global

Under Estonian law the crown is the only legal tender in Estonia. Now a test carried out by the newspaper Postimees has shown that tourists in the Estonian capital of Tallinn have no problems paying in euros. According to the newspaper the law is obsolete: "The main thing is that both sides are happy with the transaction, especially considering that the crown is tightly linked to the euro at an exchange rate of 15.6466. ... It may be that officially Estonia has no other currency apart from the crown, but the reality has been different for a long time now. And what are you supposed to do with a tourist who gets into your taxi late at night and only has euros? ... The main thing is that you can pay with crowns everywhere. The law dates back to 1992, when it was still important to protect our currency from a loss of confidence. But in the run-up to conversion to the euro it no longer makes sense." (30/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Política financiera, » Estonia

The Czech Republic's pop icon Karel Gott became a father for the fourth time yesterday. His youngest offspring, another daughter, will be given the name Nelly Sofie. The left-wing liberal newspaper notes that exotic names are very fashionable in the Czech Republic at the moment: "Although 95 percent of parents still give their children traditional names, names like Melanie, Tiffany and Nicolas are also becoming increasingly common. One reason for this lies in the growing number of immigrants. Their choice of names is guided by their own national or religious customs. But old Czech names like Matylda or Kajetan are also becoming popular again. ... People just want to be different. Parents tend to forget that a name can also be a curse for a child." (30/05/2008)

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Más de la revista de prensa sobre el tema » Cultura cotidiana, » La República Checa
Todos los textos disponible de » Mirek Kašpar