"The EU mission in Chad could hardly have got off to a worse start. One mistake followed another: from the incorrect assessment of the situation to the arguments about providing helicopters and the delay in deployment to the obvious shortcomings in the communication structure of the French-led enterprise", says Christian Ultsch. "But it would be an even greater mistake to panic and abandon the Chad mission in haste. In that case, the European Union would lose its credibility concerning security policy, not just in Africa, in one stroke... The refugees need protection now, more than ever. Simply making off and watching from a distance how the refugees are murdered by Sudanese Janjaweed militias cannot be an option." (04/02/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, niemiecki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka bezpieczeństwa / Kryzys / Wojna, » Polityka UE, » Afryka, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Christian Ultsch

Nobody will miss the EUFOR troops who will not be deployed in the troubled region for the time being because of the war, Dominic Johnson believes. "But the country's civil groups above all will sorely miss more European commitment to promote democracy and the rule of law. Only last year did the government agree to take steps towards free elections and include the opposition in their preparation, responding to EU pressure. Instead of pressing ahead with them, the European Union focussed solely on its response unit backed by France. If even foreign countries cannot suggest alternatives to military means when dealing with Chad – who else can be expected to come down on the side of peace?" (04/02/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, niemiecki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Stosunki międzynarodowe, » Polityka bezpieczeństwa / Kryzys / Wojna, » Polityka UE, » Afryka, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Dominic Johnson

Bernard Bridel considers that Nicolas Sarkozy's hands are now tied when it comes to Chad. "Since the dramatic Zoe's Arch affair, in which he became spectacularly involved in to obtain the transfer to France of six French citizens condemned in N'Djamena of child abduction, the 'hyper president' has run up, one way or another, a debt with Idriss Déby. ... The difficulty for Paris today is of course to know how long to support its Chadian friend. The question is not just rhetorical and goes beyond Franco Chadian relations, to the degree that the rebel offensive -supported by Sudan- has delayed the installation of the European mission intended to ensure the safety of refugee camps in Darfur, eastern Chad. Diabolically complicated and risky, today's prevalent situation in Chad is as shifting as the sands in this immense region where France has got itself stuck countless times." (04/02/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, francuski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka bezpieczeństwa / Kryzys / Wojna, » Polityka UE, » Francja, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Bernard Bridel

Colette Braeckmann explains why Europe was so intent on deploying its forces. "To protect the Darfur refugees of course; to keep a closer watch on Sudan and its oilfields for sure; but also to prove its operational capacity to Africa. ... For a long time, the African countries committed to the protection of Darfur civilians, complained about the lack of enthusiasm from Europeans who had nonetheless promised to provide the African Union with financial and logistical aid. Their impotence opened the way for the internationalisation of the conflict. It was not difficult for the Khartoum authorities to slip a dreaded banana skin under the feet of Europeans: the Deby regime that Eurofor, even despite itself, helped, was undermined by 18 years of bad management ... . " (04/02/2008)

» Dalsze informacje (Link zewnętrzny, francuski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka bezpieczeństwa / Kryzys / Wojna, » Polityka UE, » Afryka, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Colette Braeckman

In an interview conducted by Catherine Portevin, the Polish philosopher and sociologist Zygmut Bauman considers that the role of modern intellectuals is to help people fight feelings of insecurity. "These days, fears are diffuse, scattered, and ill-defined. It is difficult to put a finger on them, to trace their origins ... This is what makes contemporary fears so difficult to temper and to impede. ... These uncertainties fuel and reinforce one another, forming a state of mind and feelings that only the term 'vague insecurity' aptly describes. We feel unsure of ourselves because we do not know where our fears come from or how to react. Thus we need intellectuals in order to become aware the reality of certain dangers that are invisible to the naked eye, and also to warn us against imaginary threats invented for political and commercial purposes." (30/01/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, francuski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Filozofia, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Zygmunt Bauman, » Catherine Portevin

Journalist and writer Neal Ascherson points out that "the first student uprising in 1968, year of millennial hopes and young insurrections, took place in Warsaw. But the west's media commemorations of 1968 - selective, supercilious about such idealism, and yet faintly nervous in case a new generation feels tempted into imitation - overlook Poland entirely. ... At first sight, the causes of the March events in Poland seem quite unlike the backgrounds to the Paris May, the anti-war movements in the United States, the campus occupations in West Germany, Britain or Italy. The same question hangs over the 'Prague spring' the same year, whose energy came largely from student movements ... . Was there any connection, or was there simply 'something in the air'? ... There were convergences between east and west. ... The Utopia of all their futures was a revolution in which external authority was torn down and people took direct control of their own working lives." (01/02/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, angielski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Stosunki międzynarodowe, » Historia, » Polska, » Europa, » Cały świat
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Neil Ascherson

Romedi Arquint, former President of the Federal Union of European Nationalities, commemorates the 10th anniversary of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities in an essay. He calls for minorities' rights to be defended more firmly: "The convention's essential problem lies in the fact that it builds upon the foundation of the Western European states' concepts of the nation-state. But even in the second half of the 20th century, Western Europe did not succeed in questioning the concept of the nation-state and committing the modern state to a policy of diversity regarding issues of ethnicity. This is evident even in the language used. Whereas Switzerland, as one of the few multinational European states, speaks of communities of language and culture in its legislation, the concept of the national minority is a by-product of the idea of the nation-state. In addition, it comprises only the communities separated from their cultural motherlands by mostly artificial borders, but not the indigenous peoples such as the Romansh people and the Catalans who have no state of their own." (04/02/2008)

» Strona www (Link zewnętrzny, Neue Zürcher Zeitung)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Mniejszości, » Europa, » Cały świat
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Romedi Arquint

The Lisbon daily insists on the fragility of the victory obtained on February 3rd by Boris Tadic in the second round of Presidential elections. According to official preliminary results, he received 50.56 % of votes, against the 47.72 % received by the ultranationalist Tomislav Nikolic. "Tadic's victory, desired and supported by the West, reveals the extent to which the country is divided – a situation that once again places the president on a razor-edge, obliging him to act very prudently in order to maintain the calm in Serbia. But Tadic's success does not entirely depend on his ability to act: it also depends on the EU's attitude to Belgrade ... . Kosovo's independence is, it seems, a given, but the way it is sealed will lead to either war or peace in the Balkans. Though Tadic has won, he cannot afford to forget that he is only 100,000 votes ahead of his adversary." (04/02/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, portugalski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Stosunki międzynarodowe, » Rozszerzenie UE, » Europa, » Serbia

French Parliament is gathering on Monday, February 4th, in order to vote the revision of the preliminary Constitution necessary for the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty. For Guillaume Goubert, the treaty will reinforce democracy in Europe. "The bad functioning of European institutions gives too much power to EU administration. Not to reform this system means condemning ourselves to an on-going denunciation of 'Eurocracy'. It is generally considered that the European Treaty will raise Parliament's responsibility and that of the European Council, which will improve the democratic control of the system. ... The European construction has always progressed like this, ceaselessly returning to the drawing-board. Things could not be otherwise. The rapprochement of old nations can only be achieved with patience and perseverance." (04/02/2008)

» Strona www (Link zewnętrzny, La Croix)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Konstytucja UE, » Francja, » Europa
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Guillaume Goubert

On Sunday, several hundred people protested in Bucharest against the decision of the constitutional court declaring the existing rules for dealing with the Securitate files unconstitutional. To date, the decisions about which files would be made public were taken by an eleven-member governing council of CNSAS, the government agency responsible for dealing with the files, manned according to the parties' proportional representation in parliament. Andreea Pora comments. "In future, the issue will no longer be to shed light on the work of the Securitate, this question seems to be forgotten. Rather, it is above all about the struggle for the CNSAS archive. ... The government's sincerity regarding this project can be proven in just one way: The archive must be placed under the control of civil society, following the model of its German counterpart, not under the control of the parties. At least that must happen. Otherwise, one must consider it not only to be restoration, but a conspiracy." (04/02/2008)

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

The OSCE has criticised the conditions for observing the Russian presidential elections, whereupon Russia has accused the organisation of sabotage. Askolds Rodins considers the Russian presidential campaign a farce in any case: "Officially, there are four candidates, but everyone knows that incumbent president Putin himself has already selected Medvedev as his successor. Even though there are debates between the candidates on state-run radio and television, Medvedev does not participate in them. Putin, too, did not deign to take part in such debates four years ago, as if this were beneath him. Apparently, this is the new trend in Russia. A framework for elections is created in such a way that the OSCE observers see no more reason to accompany the process of their own accord." (04/02/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, łotewski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Rosja
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Askolds Rodins

As Poland and the US have reached a general agreement about building US missile defence in Poland, Russian ambassador to NATO Dmitri Rogosin criticised Poland sharply, recalling the consequences of Poland's positioning in World War II. This was how Poland had lost almost one-third of its population. Paweł Wroński is appalled: "What are these words supposed to mean? That World War II was justified? That it was caused by Poland's policy of confrontation? Rogosin is thought to be a nationalist in Russia, and his party 'Rodina' is considered part of political folklore. However, he has been an official representative of the Russian state for a month and enjoys President Putin's full confidence. If the will to improve Polish-Russian relations means accepting such views, then it is better to remain with 'a policy of confrontation', as Rogosin called it." (04/02/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, polski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka bezpieczeństwa / Kryzys / Wojna, » Polska, » Rosja, » USA
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Pawel Wronski

The international book fair in Turin, to be held May 8th -12th, is due to receive Israeli writers as guests of honour. This choice has triggered a polemic in Italy, where a boycott has been called for. The editorialist and Italian deputy Khaled Fouad Allam, of Algerian origin, deplores this campaign. "The book fair is a laboratory for freedom among men and cultures. It is humanity that will loose out if this freedom is restricted. We should not however overlook the question of the Palestinian drama and the urgency of a Palestinian State capable of living democratically alongside the State of Israel. We Arabs, meanwhile, if we wish to progress, should understand the fundamental significance of forgetting or remembering a martyred population's bloodshed and tears." (04/02/2008)

» Strona www (Link zewnętrzny, La Repubblica)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Literatura, » Włochy
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Khaled Fouad Allam

Denmark is discussing the suggestion to abolish the three characters æ, å and ø from the Danish alphabet so that Danes can surf the internet more easily. The newspaper comments: "Social Democrat Mogens Jensen and [Søren] Krarup of the Danish People's Party... agree for a change: no snipping off bits of the Danish language just because the language of the internet is English! ... Parents might stop giving their babies names with any of these three characters so that they can get jobs with international corporations when they grow up!... By the way: The last letter in the Danish alphabet [å] was stolen from Swedish and was introduced in Denmark only in 1948 in the course of a language reform. If we could do without it before then, we might be able to in future as well." (04/02/2008)

» Strona www (Link zewnętrzny, Dagbladet Information)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Styl życia, » Dania

The weekly suggests we can identify a "distinctive European identity" in toy brands such as Denmark's Lego or Germany's Playmobil. "In Europe they are cultural giants, vying for top spots in markets such as France and Germany. In their designs, business models and philosophies, they offer a striking snapshot of European aspirations, anxieties and foibles... . Last Christmas, when American press articles advised parents in a funk about Chinese safety standards to buy Playmobil, Lego and the like, because they were made in Europe. ... Examination of Playmobil figures reveals interesting things. Playmobil tanks and warplanes 'could certainly make big money,' says Mrs Schauer [Playmobil's chief executive] , since children write in demanding such things. But Playmobil will not make them. Europe's history, especially Germany's, rules it out." (31/01/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, angielski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Styl życia, » Handel, » Europa