Facing the "same old three-way split" in the third election results in three years, Mary Dejevsky wonders "what are we to make of this, all those of us who applauded the Orange revolution from the sidelines ? Is it not frustrating that, even at the third time of voting, Ukraine still cannot resolve its contradictions ? Essentially it remains divided between its reformists and its conservatives, between its eastern and its western halves ... . Outside Ukraine, expectations of the Orange revolution were always too high, just as the Western response to the three-way stalemate at parliamentary elections 18 months ago was unnecessarily gloomy. That the outcome of those elections was essentially confirmed by Sunday's vote shows that it is finally time to accept Ukraine as it is, rather than as the West's many ideologues wish it were." (02/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, angielski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Ukraina
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Mary Dejevsky

Although Ukraine is politically divided, the newspaper writes, the gap separating it from the EU is relatively small. "Because even Viktor Yanukovich's [pro-Russian] party wants EU membership and is no longer as willing to let Moscow dictate to it directly as it once was. The EU should get its act together and make it clear that the community is prepared to satisfy Ukraine's hopes for membership - naturally on the condition that the country fulfils the criteria and that clear commitments are made on both sides." (02/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, duński)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Rozszerzenie UE, » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Ukraina, » Europa

Reinhard Meier sees the strong election results for Yulia Tymoshenko's party as an indication of the successful democratisation of the country: "It seems that a functioning political pluralism is beginning to take root in Ukraine. Observers concur that, in contrast to the situation before the Orange Revolution, all the parties have made a big point of observing the rules of democracy. ... This is not to say that everything is perfect in Ukraine regarding democracy. In particular the supporters of the Orange parties, who fought so passionately and with such determination for a new order, have suffered bitter disappointments over the past three years. Nonetheless, as these parliamentary elections clearly confirm, Ukraine, which has existed as an independent state for only sixteen years, has moved a big step closer to the Western European concept of democracy." (02/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, niemiecki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Ukraina
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Reinhard Meier

Three years after the Orange Revolution, politicians in Kiev are back to square one - the only difference is that the three leading parties have moved closer to the centre, Endre Aczél writes. "Yushchenko is no longer the darling of the West and Yanukovich is no longer 'Putin's lapdog' (as the leader of the opposition in Hungary, Viktor Orbán, once described him). For her part, Yulia Tymoshenko no longer wants to re-assess the privatisation of national assets that were flogged off for a pittance and she's no longer as eager to chastise the oligarchs as most Ukrainians were three years ago. Today these politicians are making an effort to maintain good relations with Russia and take the strategic interests of Russian President Vladimir Putin - who is apparently securing himself a position of power for the long term - into account. This also goes for the pipelines that transport Russian oil and gas to Europe via Ukraine." (02/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, węgierski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Stosunki międzynarodowe, » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Ukraina, » Rosja
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Endre Aczél

Bogdan Chirieac analyses the elections in Ukraine from a Romanian perspective. He points out that Ukraine supported the US in Iraq and Afghanistan, and that consequently Washington has not ruled out NATO membership for the country. Russia, on the other hand, openly declared that gas would be made cheaper if Yanukovich came into power. "The EU is better informed than America and has not openly taken sides in Ukraine - perhaps because Europeans know that Ukrainians will never be Westerners. The country's deep ethnic and cultural ties to Russia will remain intact, irrespective of who leads the country. ... Unfortunately for Romania, Ukraine remains an aggressive state; ultra-nationalist and far removed from European values, particularly concerning minority rights or good neighbourly relations." (02/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, rumuński)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Stosunki międzynarodowe, » Rozszerzenie UE, » Ukraina, » Rumunia
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Bogdan Chirieac

Interviewed by Ariel Herbez and Olivier Dessibourg, the former Swiss astronaut Claude Nicollier considers the future of aerospace science. He predicts the development of utilitarian projects in orbit around the earth. "The fabulous progress accomplished in 50 years, which has completely changed our lives, will continue. ... And this is capital: the development, for example, of far more efficient video conference calls in 3D, giving the impression of really being together, should allow a considerable reduction of business trips for business men and women as well as politicians, thus contributing most significantly to the environment. ... The [mining] exploitation of a territory such as the moon, where there are no living species, is ethically conceivable, granted, of course, it is equitably shared among Earthlings and is not a conquest. The idea of moving very pollutant industries there in the long-term is also very appealing." (02/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, francuski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Nauka/ Badania naukowe, » Cały świat
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Claude Nicollier, » Olivier Dessibourg, » Ariel Herbez

Jean Daniel, chief editor of the weekly, considers that "France would never have bcome the most marvellous machine in the world for fabricating French people from elsewhere without the Catholic Church, that took these immigrants of the same faith under its wing, and above all without the republican, secular obligatory school system. In bygone days no family was without a happy memory of a school teacher. Often, when reading the biography of a writer or artist, one finds the same remark: 'At the age of 10 or 12, a teacher singled me out and helped me out' ... . What was the black smock that Jules Ferry wanted us all to wear everywhere in France? It was the exact opposite of the veil. It was a way of imposing equality on all children, of effacing the distinction between rich and poor and children of different races and religions.” (27/09/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, francuski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Integracja, » Historia, » Francja
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Jean Daniel

"The council of Europe proclaimed this coming October 10th 'European day against the death sentence', despite the veto waved by Poland, which, as could be expected, is opposed to the creation of his day”, comments the Portuguese university scholar Carla Machado. Warsaw had proposed to create a 'defence of life day' instead, which would at once condemn the death penalty, abortion and euthanasia. "Curious, but not particularly innovative, the Polish attempt to compare the death penalty to abortion. ... The Polish attitude should make those concerned about radical Islamism or Turkish EU accession stop and think. Poland is already here ... and it does not seem to be showing any signs of the famous tolerance or open attitude to civilisation which is said to characterise European culture." (01/10/2007)

» Strona www (Link zewnętrzny, Público)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka UE, » Polska, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Carla Machado

Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday announced plans to head the pro-Kremlin United Russia party's list and become prime minister. Marcin Wojciechowski is appalled, seeing a threat to democracy. He warns that Putin's party could win as much as three-quarters of the vote and thus be in a position to make whatever changes it pleases to the constitution. According to Wojciechowski, Putin's candidacy is "the culmination of a meticulous plan implemented by Putin during his two terms as president. It began with the war against the Chechen terrorists and the removal of rebellious oligarchs and independent media. Then the opposition was marginalised, non-governmental organisations came under attack, an espionage mania was whipped up and the free governor elections were abolished." (02/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, polski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Rosja
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Marcin Wojciechowski

For days now trucks have been stuck in long queues at the Finnish-Russian border. Last Saturday the tailback exceeded 50 kilometres, prompting Finland's President Tarja Halonen to intervene. She met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and by the next day the tailback had halved in length. Björn Mansson comments: "Russia is a strange country, but its bureaucracy is even stranger. Now we've had a taste of it, but what's really behind it all?... The answer is the pipeline between Russia and Germany through the Gulf of Finland. Initially Tarha Halonen had spoken out in favour of a route that would take the pipeline across the Estonian side, which is safer from an environmental point of view. However Estonia rejected the plans and now the northern alternative is being tested." (02/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, szwedzki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Stosunki międzynarodowe, » Energia, » Infrastruktura / Komunikacja, » Estonia, » Finlandia, » Rosja
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Björn Mansson

Since the beginning of his term in office the new Romanian Justice Minister Tudor Chiuariu has been under attack because of the procedures employed for advertising posts in his ministry. The minister had access blocked to a blog in which young judges commented on the procedures. Dorin Petrisor comments: "Many judges, in particular the younger ones, use the internet to divulge their views. They use blogs to comment on the sleazy side of the Romanian judiciary and expose dirty dealings within the ministry of justice. One of these judges described in his blog irregularities in the way the ministry advertises open posts. He pointed to conflicts of interest and demonstrated how the minister had modified the regulations for advertising posts to establish his own rules. It was nothing less than an indictment of the fatuousness with which the judiciary is administrated." (02/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, rumuński)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Rumunia
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Dorin Petrisor

The daily laments "Ireland's shameful exit from the Rugby World Cup", regretting that "For once, an Irish team travelled to a global tournament with genuine expectation. ... Ireland's coach said in the weeks preceding the tournament that 'winning the World Cup is a possibility if we do certain things right'. The gulf between that aspiration and the actual performances delivered on the pitch over the last four weeks has left supporters, who travelled in their thousands to Bordeaux and Paris, saddened, bewildered and angry. What is beyond doubt is that no Irish rugby team has ever had so much time and money devoted to its preparation. In those circumstances, and where performances fall so far short of expectation, for any credible review the coach's position must be re-considered. The rugby-paying public will expect to see accountability - on and off the pitch." (02/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, angielski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Sport, » Irlandia

Ronan McDonald lectures in Modern English Literature at the University of Reading. He considers that "The critic has a vital role to play in culture and one that is under threat. ... Controversial artists have often been brought to a resistant public by prominent critics. Clement Greenberg did it for Jackson Pollock. John Ruskin did it for Turner. But are there now critics of sufficient authority to perform this role? Is this because we are all critics now? ... Bloggers and reading groups often claim that they would rather get recommendations from someone they know, someone with similar tastes. One problem with this is that the public are relying on a reviewing system that confirms and assuages their prejudices rather than challenges them. ... Without critics of authority, the size and variety of contemporary criticism may ultimately serve the cause of cultural banality and uniformity." (02/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, angielski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka kulturalna, » Wielka Brytania, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Ronan McDonald

The journalist Edouard Launet presents an exhibition about sexuality during major wars in the Musée de L'Armée in Paris. "The unveiling (of some 480 objects and images) remains very decent, even if what is evoked is sometimes a bit heavy. … Needless to say, sexuality is exacerbated in times of conflict, and that it sometimes takes on singular forms. This is what 'Amours, Guerres et Sexualité' (Love, War and Sexuality) is all about. The exhibition ... is more or less chronological, from mobilisation -where posters are eroticised to convince men to join up and women to participate in the war effort – to the end of the conflict, times of excess and reunions. Or of grief. We can see how the feminine image is used differently according to countries and cultures. The American army had no problem with pin-ups, whereas in France, after a very prudish period between the two world wars, portrayals were far more chaste." (02/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, francuski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Wystawy / Muzea, » Francja
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Edouard Launet

Ministers of Justice and of Foreign Affairs in EU countries recently gathered in Lisbon for an informal summit. The editorialist Andrea Bonanni noted that Italian was not used, which caused the Minister of Justice Clemente Mastella, to leave the meeting. "English, French, German, Portuguese, and Slovenian. Ministers present were given the choice of these five languages to listen to interventions and making their own propositions. The choice of languages offered by the Portuguese presidency seems however difficult to contest. With 23 different languages, the informal business lunch would have lost its spontaneity ... . If Mastella is right and the Portuguese have a point, the fact remains that Italy has failed to impose its language as a vehicle in the Union ... . It finds itself in an inferior position because its political employees have precarious grasp of foreign languages." (02/10/2007)

» Strona www (Link zewnętrzny, La Repubblica)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka UE, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Andrea Bonanni