Interviewed by Anne-Sophie Hojlo, Laure Delcour, research director at IRIS (Institut de Relations Internationales et Stratégiques) and specialist in Russian affairs and EU exterior policy, considers the meeting. "It is necessary to reach agreements on concrete subjects something that has yet to be achieved, especially on a European level. ... Russia is indeed going through a political evolution that can be worrying, but we cannot swing things the right way through condemnation. It is better to further integrate it in the concrete of nations, to 'socialise' it, in a way. New criticism would not be well perceived and would rather represent a bet in view of other Europeans who often criticised France for being too soft with Russia during the Chirac era." (10/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, francuski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Stosunki międzynarodowe, » Rozszerzenie UE, » Francja, » Rosja
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Anne-Sophie Hojlo, » Laure Delcour

According to Axel Veiel, the French president's stance towards Russia is more confrontational than that of his predecessor Jacques Chirac. "French-Russian relations would be in a sorry state were it not for the fact that Putin and his guest have something in common: they are both great pragmatists. Sarkozy's reproaches on the subject of Russia's human rights violations in Chechnya are therefore likely to be forgotten as soon as it comes to cooperating on an economic level to the advantage of both sides. ... Perhaps Sarkozy will even manage to convince his counterpart that it's in Russia's best interests to support Paris's policy on Iran and step up pressure on Tehran." (10/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, niemiecki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Stosunki międzynarodowe, » Polityka UE, » Energia, » Polityka gospodarcza, » Francja, » Rosja, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Axel Veiel

"Under President Sarkozy, France has adopted a tougher stance towards the Kremlin than it did under his predecessor Chirac," Christian Müller writes. "Before his first official visit to Moscow this week, the French head of state went to some trouble to allay the fears of former Soviet states in Eastern Europe that there would be a continuation of Chirac's policy of giving Russia's interests priority. ... The improvised triple alliance among Putin, Schröder and Chirac against Washington is now a thing of the past. ... German Chancellor Angela Merkel's tougher stance regarding Putin echoes that of Sarkozy, who is unwilling to let Berlin get the better of him either in this relationship or in its relations with the Eastern Europeans." (10/10/2007)

» Strona www (Link zewnętrzny, Neue Zürcher Zeitung)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Stosunki międzynarodowe, » Polityka UE, » Energia, » Polityka gospodarcza, » Francja, » Rosja, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Christian Müller

French philosopher André Glucksmann accuses Europeans of being too naive in its attitude towards Russia and Vladimir Putin. In an interview with Jan Rybar he explains: "Putin has the world's second-largest nuclear weapons arsenal at his disposal and controls huge amounts of gas and oil. No one controls him because there is no free press in Russia. It would be naïve to believe that this powerful man doesn't represent a threat. It pains me to see how little France, Germany and Italy have reacted to the warnings of their new EU and NATO partners. If the EU wants to continue to play an active role in the future, it is of primary importance that it agrees on a common energy policy." (10/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, czeski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Stosunki międzynarodowe, » Polityka UE, » Energia, » Rosja, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » André Glucksmann, » Jan Rybář

In an article written for Global Viewpoint, Salman Rushdie and Sam Harris berate the Netherlands for its unwillingness to continue covering the costs of personal protection for Ayan Hirsi Ali in the US. "It is important to realize that Ms. Hirsi Ali may be the first refugee from Western Europe since the Holocaust. As such, she is a unique and indispensable witness to both the strength and weakness of the West: to the splendor of the open society, and to the boundless energy of its antagonists. She knows the challenges we face in our struggle to contain the misogyny and religious fanaticism of the Muslim world, and she lives with the consequences of our failure each day. There is no one in a better position to remind us that tolerance of intolerance is cowardice." (10/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, niemiecki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Mniejszości, » Holandia, » USA
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Salman Rushdie, » Sam Harris

The Catalan writer Quim Monzó delivered an opening speech on Tuesday, October 9th, at the Frankfurt Book Fair where Catalonia is guest of honour. "Down the centuries, Catalan literature has never benefited from a serene atmosphere. ... Though political representatives have not accompanied the development of Catalan culture, Catalan literature is, clearly, one of the bases, one of the foundation stones of European culture. No other literature without a State in this Europe (that we too are now building) has ever been as solid, as malleable, as continuous. ... Many people have an idea of the world based on the current politico-cultural geometry, but I could tell them ... the first European treaties of medicine, diet, philosophy, surgery, or gastronomy were written in the Catalan language." (10/10/2007)

» Strona www (Link zewnętrzny, La Vanguardia)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Literatura, » Hiszpania
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Quim Monzó

Anthony Barnett, founder of the website, ponders democracy in the UK and the EU. "Here are two ostensibly democratic entities built on much learning and experience. The first regards itself as being the home to the 'mother of parliaments'. But now, more and more of its voters are going on a passive strike and declining to turn up at the polls. Should they be made to vote? But supposing they did, would they be any the wiser and the outcomes any better? Voting for the European Parliament (so-called, for it is not a true legislature) is catastrophically low. The EU generates a lot of legislation and sets standards for hundreds of millions - yet few feel that it enhances their collective 'self-determination'. Would it help to bring a representative cross-section together under conditions that allowed them as regular citizens to deliberate directly on the future of the continent? ... How can citizens engage in a fashion that gives legitimacy and credibility to the outcome?" (06/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, angielski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Anthony Barnett

Today, March 10th, was to be proclaimed a "European Day against the Death Penalty" by the EU. However the initiative failed after Poland exercised its power of veto. Adelheid Wölfl criticises Poland's blocking manoeuvre: "In the Polish election campaign both the PiS and the Samoobrona (Self-Defence) party support the death penalty for sex murderers for populist reasons. That's bad enough, but their attitude reveals something much worse, namely that they have failed to understand the achievements of Europe's Enlightenment or the lessons the two world wars and the dictatorships have taught us. One of the cornerstones of modern Europe is the tenet that the death penalty is incompatible with human rights. It's disgraceful that fifty years after its founding, the European Community still hasn't reached a consensus on this issue." (10/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, niemiecki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka UE, » Polska, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Adelheid Wölfl

"[The Basque separatist organisation] ETA confirmed on Tuesday, October 9th, its intention to resume assassinations", notes the Bilbao daily following the terrorist bombing in this Basque town yesterday. "The bomb planted in the car of Gabriel Gines [the body guard of town councillor Juan Carlos Domingo] takes us back to the era when the organisation tried to annihilate and neutralize all those it singled out as 'enemies'. Whether it was the body guard or the town councillor who was the target, the bombing should be interpreted as an attack against the democratic system, represented by all town councillors as well as those who risk their lives protecting them against terrorism. ... This assassination attempt eliminates any doubt over the gravity of the threat posed by the organisation which has broken the so-called 'peace process' and has announced that it will attack the State on all sides." (10/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, hiszpański)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Hiszpania

First the Romanian Minister of Agriculture Decebal Traian Remes was filmed taking a payoff - or to be precise: sausages, schnapps and a hefty envelope. Then news came from Brussels that millions in subsidies for Romanian farmers couldn't be distributed owing to Remes' omissions: "In any country that doesn't want to be called a banana republic, a minister accused of such things would be forced to resign. ... But we're in Romania and it's likely that Remes will keep his position and at worst be annoyed that the press has the effrontery to publish the pictures. Brussels has given Bucharest a month to set up agencies for paying out the subsidies, but it's unlikely that Remes will be able to achieve in one month what he failed to do in six." (10/10/2007)

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

"[UK] postal workers are in the midst of their second strike this month as part of the most serious industrial action to hit the mail industry in 20 years", notes Michael Savage."The dispute is over pay, job cuts and pensions. Last week's walkout was over modernisation plans which the CWU [Communication Workers' Union] claims will lead to the loss of around 40,000 jobs from the mail service. ... Could this dispute hasten the end of the letter? It's certainly a possibility. The addressed letter market is shrinking in the UK as people turn to more instant electronic forms of communication, such as email and text. The number of items sent in the UK shrank by 1.6 per cent last year. As more and more people in business purchase devices that can receive emails on the go, this trend will continue. The current wave of industrial action will only serve to hasten the change as businesses are forced to consider alternatives to Royal Mail." (10/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, angielski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Ruchy społeczne, » Wielka Brytania
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Michael Savage

The warning Brussels has issued to Italy concerning its public deficit (the highest in Europe) leads the editorialist Dario Di Vico to consider how best to deal with the Italian deficit. "Some exemplary attitudes in Europe, such as Belgium's and above all Ireland's show that the best option is to gradually decrease the debt thanks to the consistent benefits of budget and growth. No country has extracted itself from its debts without an economy with sustained growth. [Italy] cannot be an exception. This is why a tax reduction along with courageous spending cuts ... should be among the choices under consideration that cannot be put off forever." (10/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, włoski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka gospodarcza, » Włochy
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Dario Di Vico

To prevent its national champion in the energy sector, Mol, from being taken over by Austria's OMV, the Hungarian parliament has passed a law aimed at protecting companies against foreign takeovers. Levente Tóth criticises the "Lex Mol": "For a long time now the government and parliament have been dancing to the tune that best pleases Mol. But the real issue here is who will end up controlling the oil business in the entire region, and our government as well as the opposition can now hope for praise from the management at Mol. It's about time that Mol gave us something in return for all these favours." (10/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, węgierski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Przedsiębiorczość, » Polityka gospodarcza, » Węgry, » Austria
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Levente Tóth

"False asylum requests, family fraud, illegal border crossing, EU common policy... The current debate on immigration seems polarised by the abuse and dangers created by the entrance of foreigners into France. The new Cité Internationale de l'immigration offers a totally different view of the subject, keen to 'dedramatize the debate' without turning a blind eye or exagerating", writes the daily in its editorial as the museum opens on Wednesday, October 10th. "Good and bad immigrants? Forced immigration and chosen immigration? The view it offers us of the past two centuries is quite different. A 'host land', but also a 'hostile land', the country has always displayed ambivalence regarding 'its' foreigners." (10/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, francuski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Wystawy / Muzea, » Migracja, » Integracja, » Mniejszości, » Francja

The German Peter Grünberg, one of the two winners of the 2007 Nobel Prize in physics, was born in the former West Bohemian city of Pilsen (now Plzen in the Czech Republic) from which his family was expelled in 1946. Zbyněk Petráček reflects on how the Czechs should deal with this. "A symptom of their uncertainty is the coverage of the event by the CTK news agency. Initially Grünberg was referred to as a 'German with Czech roots' but this was then revised to a 'German - born in Pilsen'. This country has a number of Nobel Laureates who are Czechs from an ethnic point of view but not by citizenship, including Bertha von Suttner. ... However you can't turn back the clock and we don't want to. Nonetheless, should the city of Pilsen be looking for someone to name a street after, the name Grünberg is still up for grabs." (10/10/2007)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, czeski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Historia, » Niemcy, » Czechy
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Zbyněk Petráček