The Slovenian Presidency, ESI's Bosnia report, Bali conference, Kosovo etc.
UK, France clash on future EU vision
EU leaders have agreed to set up a reflection group of 'wise' people to help shape the bloc's long-term future, but divergences over the group's mandate have emerged right from the start.The Slovenian Presidency: In Brief
The Slovenian Presidency will focus on Western Balkans relations, energy and climate change, and the implementation of the new Lisbon cycle for growth and jobs when it takes over the EU helm from 1 January 2008.Slovenian Presidency wants further progress on Lisbon strategy
An update on the renewed Lisbon strategy on growth and jobs will be a key objective when Slovenia takes over the EU presidency from Portugal on 1 January 2008, according to Slovenian Minister iga Turk.Slovenia at Europe’s helm, John Palmer
On New Year's Day, 1 January 2008, the presidency of the European Union will pass for the first time ever to one of the so-called "new member-states" from central and eastern Europe - specifically from the Balkans. Slovenia takes over the running of the EU affairs until 30 June 2008 when the baton passes to France. The Slovenian presidency comes at a critical time in the affairs of the union, on the heels of the Lisbon agreement in December to sign the reform treaty, as the economic clouds gather across the globe and as Kosovo - and the Balkans regions generally - confronts the EU with some daunting challenges....
NEWS FROM ESI
Fortress Doboj
Only a few years ago the municipality of Doboj was known for the extreme (Serb) nationalism of the people who controlled it. Today it is a very different place, as we show in our new report: The Bosnian Fortress – Return, energy and the future of Republika Srpska.
What we have found after 18 months of research in Doboj belies the popular image of Bosnia and Herzegovina as a country on the verge of renewed conflict. All sixteen mosques in the municipality have been rebuilt. More than half the pre-war Bosniak population has returned. The current (SDS) mayor is actively seeking the electoral support of Bosniak returnees. A third of students in the local higher-education institutions are Bosniaks. There is no inter-ethnic violence. The local police and judiciary are multi-ethnic. These changes have been no less profound than those which transformed Western Europe in the 12 years after World War II.
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Our report concludes that the prosperity of Doboj depends on the wider economic success of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and on its ability to integrate into wider European markets. This process of functional economic integration works only when the EU itself is proactive. To find out more please visit our picture story Balkan energy and the future of Bosnia.
Bosnia’s political carousel , Peter Lippman
Between October and December 2007, Bosnia has experienced a startling roller-coaster of events. A governmental crisis that sparked fears of war led to a completely unexpected rapprochement among bitterly divided nationalist parties. The first few months of 2008 will show whether or not Bosnia has finally achieved a breakthrough in its built-in, long-term political stalemate.
Interview: Higher food and energy prices here to stay
After almost two decades as the head of BEUC, the European consumers' organisation, Jim Murray identifies emerging issues in consumer policy and shares his unique insight into EU presidencies in an exclusive interview.EU eyes common energy market with Mediterranean
Ministers from Europe, North Africa and the Middle East agreed, on 17 December, to a six-year Action Plan which ultimately aims to create "a common Euro-Mediterranean energy market" based on free competition and reciprocal access to energy markets.by Charles Grant with Tomas Valasek
Key EU health care report delayed
The EU delays unveiling controversial plans to give every citizen the right to health care across Europe.FRIDE - Political Islam and European Foreign Policy
Sarkozy and Carla Bruni
What France is really talking aboutSecret lobbying of Brussels condemned
Secretive national lobbying of Brussels by European Union governments was condemned in a "groundbreaking" court judgment that could radically alter the way laws are made in the blocBelgian king acts to end crisis
Belgium's caretaker prime minister has accepted a request from King Albert to form an interim government.Le traité de Lisbonne respecte les valeurs de la gauche
Mais oui, c’est vrai! Un post, un peu plus fouillé qu’a l’habitude, publié chez Rue89. Merci a eux.
DOSSIER: Bali, one step forward for the climate? | 17/12/2007
In Bali, Indonesia, the 187 countries of the United Nations managed on Saturday, December 15th, to reach an agreement on global warming. The so-called Bali Roadmap, which marks the beginning of negotiations due to last two years, is for the first time associating both industrialised countries and developing countries in the reduction of carbon gas emissions. The European press wonders if this agreement will lead to concrete action.
Taking U.S.-German Tie Personally
BERLIN -- Diplomats here are still buzzing over a relationship that almost nobody would have dared predict a few years ago. President Bush's current best friend in Europe, if not the world, may be a German: Chancellor Angela Merkel.
The Eastern dimension of EU's development policy
Friend or foe? Giles Merritt Deteriorating relations between Europe and Russia could turn into hostility unless we establish a new framework for communication
Telecoms: study hits out at EU network investment policy
European rules that enable new market entrants to use the incumbent's network under the Access Regulation are affecting investment in the sector and detrimental to consumers in the long run, says a new study supported by Deutsche Telekom.Hungary first country to ratify new EU Treaty
With the ink on the new EU Treaty barely having dried after last week's signing ceremony by heads of state and government in Lisbon, Hungary is hoping to set an example of the swift ratification needed to implement the institutional reforms by January 2009.EU R&D project agencies launched
Two executive agencies to manage the R&D project proposal and evaluation process for the EU's 7th Research Framework Programme (FP7) have been created to increase the efficiency of research management and liberate the Commission's resources for policy-making.Calling vodka 'vodka'? EU agrees new spirit drinks regulation
EU agriculture ministers have reached agreement on the new Spirit Drinks regulation, answering the thorny question of what can be labelled 'vodka' in a vote which has left traditional producers such as Poland "frustrated" with large producers in the UK.Le Monde L'Europe et le Kosovo
Brussels names first 'EU ambassador'
Sarkozy Makes Premature, Unnecessary, Familiar Statement on Kosovo
Nicholas Sarkozy stated last weekend that the issue of Kosovo's independence, "is not an affair of Mr. Bush or Mr. Putin, but one of Europe." (Le Figaro, in French). Another article by John Ward Anderson in the Washington Post reports:
"Kosovo's independence is inevitable," French President Nicolas Sarkozy told reporters after the summit. "It's an issue for Europe to sort out."
Don't be fooled: Bali was no breakthrough
by Simon TilfordThe United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali produced as much as it was ever likely to do. There was no breakthrough, contrary to the claims of some that attended the conference. Nobody should read too much into reports that the US administration fears its negotiators gave too much away. This is just news management, an attempt to create the impression that the US moved further than it did. The US gave nothing away. The aim of the US negotiating team in Bali was to prevent any international agreement that might demand the US cut its emissions, despite the fact the country could do this at relatively moderate cost according to its own Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This opposition stems partly from the personal intransigence of President Bush, but also reflects a deep-seated reluctance to allow the country’s freedom of action to be constrained by international agreements. It is another big blow to US soft power in the world.
Europe’s Russia question by GILES MERRITT
Friend or foe, or something uneasily in-between? That’s the question Europe is asking about Russia, and Russia about a newly aggressive Europe.Europe and Missile Defense: A Risky Nap
Alexander Bernhard Bitter of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), argues that missile defense for Europe is coterminous with NATO's mission. The European policy of waiting for a new US administration is flawed, as the financial burden of the endeavor could shift heavily toward Europe.Der Spiegel The World from Berlin: It's Up to Europe to Save The World
DOSSIER: Aid for the Palestinians | 18/12/2007
An international conference of donors in Paris has promised a total of 5.1 billion euros in financial support for the Palestinians. The EU has committed to payments of 440 million euros. Will that help create an independent Palestinian state?
