The Spanish newspaper El Mundo comments: "Like their American counterparts, European manufacturers are now demanding state help to the tune of 40 billion dollars - part of which will be incurred as losses - to cushion the impact of their heavy drop in revenues. Some oppose this financing on the grounds that it would mean a regression to protectionism and a breach of the rules of the free market. Those are respectable arguments. But no government - least of all Spain's - can afford the luxury of not taking action and risking the loss of a key economic sector." (18/11/2008)

» Dalsze informacje (Link zewnętrzny, hiszpański)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka gospodarcza, » Hiszpania, » Europa

The Süddeutsche Zeitung opposes state help for the automotive industry. "Hundreds of large companies have gone under, often with dire consequences for their workforce, and yet others have always taken their place. Why should a couple of companies now be protected? And why these companies, why now? Why should the state prolong their business life? And how attractive is a rescue whose only effect can be to perpetuate these companies' agony for years in the belief that the automotive industry is another coalmining industry? The plans to rescue car manufacturers now being negotiated amount to a welfare-state solution to the crisis. Their aim is that the money now being spent will at one point be recouped. But this will not and cannot happen. ... Entire economic sectors will have to invent themselves anew, and politicians should not get in their way." (18/11/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, niemiecki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka gospodarcza, » Niemcy, » Cały świat
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Thomas Steinfeld

Ahead of his visit to the US, Sweden's Foreign Minister Carl Bildt takes a pessimistic view of the plans to bail out the US auto industry with state assistance in his blog. He points out that president-elect Barack Obama is being forced into action: "This will be a landmark decision that maps out the direction of his policies. Not least the trade unions that supported him are insisting on billions in aid for the car industry. But if he is generous with aid that would show that he's susceptible to such demands and that they will influence his future economic policies. ... Structural changes are also needed. No doubt there is a surge against this in the debate in Washington and in Chicago, too, where the new policy is being formulated. They used to say that what was good for General Motors was good for the US. But we're living in a different world now. And it could very well be that what is good for General Motors is not good for the US. And certainly not for the rest of the world either." (17/11/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, szwedzki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka bezpieczeństwa / Kryzys / Wojna, » Polityka gospodarcza, » USA
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Carl Bildt

The Italian daily La Repubblica declares the automobile industry dead: "The age of the automobile as a means of private transport and as a product are coming to an end. It uses up too much of everything, both in production and consumption: too much energy, raw materials, water, space and time. Yet it has gained such a high status in our society that the transition to alternative forms of transport - and why not, to less mobility - will be a long and difficult process." (18/11/2008)

» Dalsze informacje (Link zewnętrzny, włoski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Przedsiębiorczość, » Rynek konsumencki, » Cały świat
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Luciano Gallino

The murder trial of Anna Politkovskaya, the Russian journalist killed in October 2006, has begun in Moscow. The Times writes that President Dmitry Medvedev now has the chance to show that the Russian judiciary really is independent: "Mr Medvedev, a lawyer by training, now has an opportunity to make good his pledge to boost respect for the law. Like his predecessor, he maintains a pretence that the judiciary is independent of the Kremlin. But this does not mean that he should withhold comment on this case. On the contrary, he should make a public statement supporting the decision to open the Politkovskaya trial to the media. He should advocate long-term protection for its participants at taxpayers' expense if they request it. ... Creating genuine independence for the judiciary from the other branches of Russia's government is the single toughest challenge facing its outnumbered reformers. ... Politkovskaya deserves justice, and her country needs it." (18/11/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, angielski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Rosja

The most wanted activist of the Basque underground organisation ETA in Spain, Garikoitz Aspiazu - alias "Txeroki" - has been arrested in France. El País newspaper comments: "It is still too early to know what political consequences the arrest of the man considered one of the key ETA leaders, and who spoke out against the ceasefire in 2006, will have. By contrast it is certain that it is currently impossible to initate a peace process similar to that of 2006. As Michael Burleigh - author of the monumental history of modern terrorism - explained not long ago in this paper, it was not negotiations that led to the end of the IRA [Irish Republican Army]. On the contrary, it was the infiltration of British spies that precipitated its collapse. Burleigh concluded that one can negotiate with terrorists about leaving the organisation once a group has been smashed, but never beforehand." (18/11/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, hiszpański)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka bezpieczeństwa / Kryzys / Wojna, » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Wielka Brytania, » Hiszpania, » Irlandia

The German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung describes the party conference of France's Socialist Party (PS), which was held last weekend in Reims, as a "debacle". "Why shouldn't the party patched together by François Mitterrand from several smaller parties and clubs at a party conference in Epinay in 1971 split up into its individual components once more? For a decade now the French Socialists have had no success at a national level, their (several) wings represent ideologically irreconcilable positions and their leading figures can't stand each other. ... The delegates failed to reach a consensus about the candidate for the party leadership [at the conference]. Now the members are to achieve this through a primary election. Everything points to a duel between the unsuccessful presidential candidate [Ségolène] Royal and Martine Aubry, the mayor of Lille. ... But whatever the outcome, it's already clear that it will lead the party into a test of endurance." (18/11/2008)

» Dalsze informacje (Link zewnętrzny, niemiecki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Francja
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Günther Nonnenmacher

On Monday Skopje lodged a complaint against Greece before the International Court of Justice for blocking the Former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia's (FYROM) bid to enter Nato. It contends that its neighbour has failed to meet obligations arising from a bilateral agreement signed in 1995. In the daily paper I Kathimerini, renowned journalist Stavros Lygeros criticises Skopje's approach: "It is true that a veto would be in breach of the interim agreement. ... But Greece did not exercise its right of veto because there was no need to. Officially the FYROM has remained outside Nato because that is what Nato decided, and not because of a veto from Greece. There are therefore insufficient grounds for a lawsuit. At a political level this step by Nikola Gruevski [prime minister of FYROM] will cause a breakdown in negotiations over the name [Macedonia]. Neither of the two countries has officially withdrawn from the negotiations but any possibility of reaching an agreement on a treaty has basically been eliminated." (18/11/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, grecki)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Stosunki międzynarodowe, » Polityka bezpieczeństwa / Kryzys / Wojna, » Grecja
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Stavros Lygeros

Le Monde celebrates the agreement for withdrawal of US troops from Iraq by 2011 as a diplomatic success: "The 'security agreement' between Iraq and the US that was passed by the Iraqi government on November 16 is a fundamental step for both states more than five years after the Bush government's war on Sadam Hussein's regime. ... None of the leaders in Baghdad desires a hasty withdrawal of the American army. The heads of the Iraqi army, starting with the ministers of the interior and defence, repeat that their 700,000 troops will still need help for logistics and training 'in the years to come'. It is possible that the agreement will be revised before the end of 2011, and that American troops will remain in Iraq after that. Nevertheless the calendar now agreed on signifies the transition from war to military cooperation. And that is an enormous step forward." (18/11/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, francuski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka bezpieczeństwa / Kryzys / Wojna, » USA, » Irak

The Czech Republic commemorated on Monday the 19th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution which put an end to the communist regime of the CSSR. Jan Jandurek reflects in the liberal daily Mladá fronta DNES on the current surveys in which many Czechs have expressed feelings of nostalgia for the communist era. "People are now saying that all was not bad under commusnism. True, there was no unemployment in the forced labour camps, for example. ... Often we strike everything unpleasant from our memory, especially since we know that everything turned out well in the end. But we also know that a political prisoner who toiled in the uranium mines does not have much reason for nostalgia, because history lives on inside him. Practically none of the crimes committed by the Communists have been avenged. And yet they destroyed so much: institutions, schools, political parties, associations, small and mid-sized businesses and private farms, all of which were the bearers of historical memory. Physical liquidation and deportation also had a role in interrupting continuity and effacing tradition. ... No, just like on the Titanic, all was not bad in the CSSR. But all in all it was quite a catastrophe." (18/11/2008)

» Dalsze informacje (Link zewnętrzny, czeski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Historia, » Czechy
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Jan Jandourek

In the liberal weekly Heti Világgazdaság the president of the Foundation for the Civil Rights of the Roma, Aladár Horváth, ponders the consequences of Barack Obama's election to US president for the Roma ethnic minority. "The question most frequently asked among members of Hungary's Roma minority these days is: Is it conceivable that one of them could one day be at the head of the state? ... At least Obama's resplendent success can give the countless poor Roma children a glimmer of hope: Yes, we can. ... Only a few potential Obamas will manage to break out of the cut-off world of the Roma ghettos. ... A future Barack is more likely to come from one of those ambitious Roma families that have already succeeded in getting a foothold in the majority society and sending their children to school. ... The young Roma politicians and intellectuals are still too weak to break through the thick walls of social and racist marginalisation. ... Nonetheless, Obama could perhaps effect a change in the political discourse on the Roma in Hungary. But when will the mutual fear, the misery and the violence rooted in marginalisation finally come to an end? After all, we're talking about human lives here, people!" (18/11/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, węgierski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Integracja, » Mniejszości, » Węgry, » USA
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Aladár Horváth

The UK's largest tourism fair, the World Travel Market, has just ended in London. The daily newspaper Delo writes that Slovenia cut a poor figure at the fair. "Slovenia really does have some beautiful scenery to offer, but is that the Slovenian tourism industry's key selling point? We are competing with even our neighbouring countries in this respect. Why didn't it occur to those whose job it was to promote Slovenia at the London travel fair to put up a big poster showing a photo of Queen Elizabeth II's visit to Ljubljana? ... Why didn't they have a poster pointing out that the Soča river at Bovec made such an impression on Disney producers that they filmed the second part of the Narnia trilogy there. Was this simply false modesty or yet another missed opportunity?" (18/11/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, słoweński)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Turystyka, » Słowenia
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Mateja Gruden

The Bulgarian daily Standart comments on the claims of Bulgarian politicians that the economic crisis will soon drive many emigrants to return to Bulgaria. "The politicians name higher salaries as the main reason for emigration. Consequently the social minister is offering salaries of 700 euros to emigrants who are prepared to return. But please let's not deceive ourselves - our emigrants in other European countries do not have a higher level of prosperity, they have higher standards! Our emigrants would come here to invest their money but they won't because you can't make plans for the future here. ... And there's another reason why they won't come back: the peace and order in the countries where they now live. When emigrants tell us about this and we raise our eyebrows in incomprehension, they explain that over there people have hopes for the future. That hospital staff don't expect bribes from you, that the police and the courts do their job after a robbery and that children go to decent schools that teach them a system of values." (18/11/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, bułgarski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Polityka wewnętrzna, » Bułgaria
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Martin Karbovski

Balsas news portal warns that the current boom Lithuanian and Latvian ports are enjoying may not last long: "Entrepreneurs and politicians in Lithuania and Latvia are delighted that in spite of the financial crisis the flow of Russian ships has continued to pass through their ports unabated. However rather than speaking in our favour, this can be explained above all by the fact that Russia has imposed an economic blockade on Estonia in the wake of the dispute over the bronze statue in Tallinn. This is now working to our advantage, but only temporarily: Russia is well known to proceed according to the motto 'divide and rule'. Moscow always alternately singles out one of the three Baltic countries as its victim. First it coerces one, then the others." (18/11/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, litewski)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Infrastruktura / Komunikacja, » Polityka gospodarcza, » Litwa, » Łotwa, » Estonia
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Laimantas Jonusys

A few months ago the Romanian parliament passed a bill that foresees a salary increase of 50 percent for the country's teachers, but so far nothing has actually been done to implement it. The newspaper Romania Libera writes: "In reality this perpetual state of expectation perfectly describes the education system of the past 18 years. It has waited for money, for reforms, for decentralisation, for changes in examination structures, and in a few years' time it will be waiting on pupils because of the decline in the birth rate. ... In the midst of this chaos dominated by expectations there are only a few reforms by the ministry of education that could mark any considerable improvement to the education system: namely that which introduces a more specialised university education for future teachers. ... With the knowledge they acquire graduates don't even achieve the minimum grade they need to pass the exam that allows them to work as teachers. The 30 hours of teaching courses and two or three hours of teaching experience leave them totally unprepared to face a class. As long as this remains the case there can be no talk of interesting lessons or well-trained teachers." (18/11/2008)

» Artykuł (Link zewnętrzny, rumuński)
Więcej z przeglądu prasy na temat » Rumunia
Wszystkie dostępne teksty » Daniel Popa