Med Union and Eastern Partnership are Rivals in the EU-Vision Contest...
The French EU Presidency
Under the motto "a more protective Europe", France takes over the rotating EU Presidency in the second half of 2008 with a keen eye on energy, climate change, defence and immigration policy.
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Med Union and Eastern Partnership are Rivals in the EU-Vision Contest
Marek Swierczynski: Now the Lisbon Treaty is almost over and done with, the EU is encouraged to look south- and eastwards. Initiatives by France and a Polish-Swedish team aim at creating buffer-spaces between the EU and unstable regions, but could create tensions that challenge the bloc’s unity.The EU on a quest for meaning: What are Europe's final goals?
Although the "institutional relaunch" triggered by the Lisbon Treaty is likely to unblock the European Union's "deadlock", Thierry Chopin of the Robert Schuman Foundation says the text "only provides partial answers to the challenges faced by the Union," which in turn suffers from a "political deficit".MAIN FOCUS: Controversial ban on cluster bombs | 30/05/2008
In Dublin diplomats from more than a 100 countries have passed a treaty banning the use of cluster bombs around the world. However, the document allows for numerous exceptions. Europe's press discusses the effectiveness of the treaty given that while it has been signed by most EU states, important countries like the US, Russia, Israel and Pakistan were not involved in the negotiations.
