Turkey continues to pay for her foreign policy choices. Fails in UN Security Council bid…

Venezuela Gets Security Council Seat; Turkey Fails  NYT > Turkey by By SOMINI SENGUPTA After two rounds of voting at the General Assembly, the five new rotating members will be Angola, Malaysia, New Zealand, Spain and Venezuela. Ankara strikes upbeat note despite failure in UN Security Council bid New Zealand and Spain win the seats in the … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: “Nationalists win Bosnia’s joint presidency… “Election gains for Hungary far right

Nationalists win Bosnia’s joint presidency: results Nationalist candidates from Bosnia’s Croat, Muslim and Serb communities won the country’s three-man presidency, election results showed Election gains for Hungary far right  BBC News | Europe | World Edition The far-right Jobbik party in Hungary makes gains in local elections dominated by Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s ruling nationalist Fidesz. Sarkozy strikes … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: Juncker hit by EP…”Commission to reject French budget…

Juncker bitten by the hand that fed him as the European Parliament undermines his Commission  Open Europe blog Juncker and Schulz in happier times… The letter from European Parliament (EP) President Martin Schulz to European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has now been published in full and contains an extensive list of questions for the UK’s Lord … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: Critical week for Juncker Commission… “Serbia hosts first gay Pride since 2010

  Make or break week begins for the Juncker Commission EurActiv.com The next 10 days could make or break a plan to reshape the European Union under new management, in an attempt to revive the economy and regain trust among its half-billion people. Belgium’s complex web of democracy  BBC News | Europe | World Edition Exploring Belgium’s … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: “French hostage beheaded in Algeria… “Hungary and the EU…

  Algerian militants behead kidnapped French tourist Algerian militants beheaded French tourist Hervé Gourdel, who was kidnapped by gunmen in what the group said was a response to France’s action against ISIL militants in Iraq French hostage beheaded in Algeria France confirms an Algerian jihadist group linked to IS has beheaded 55-year-old tourist Herve Gourdel, who was … Read more

Journalism roundup: Mapping Media Freedom in Europe

A Ushahidi platform to map media freedom in Europe here.  Index on Censorship and Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso are joining forces to map the state of media freedom in Europe. With your participation, we are mapping the violations, threats and limitations that European media professionals, bloggers and citizen journalists face everyday. We are also collecting … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: He is back (!) “Sarkozy announces return to politics

Sarkozy announces return to politics French ex-President Nicolas Sarkozy returns to politics, announcing on his Facebook page that he will seek the leadership of main centre-right party. Sweden: Immigrants dismayed by far-right gain  AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (IN DEPTH) Anti-immigration Sweden Democrats party – with roots in the neo-Nazi movement – recently won 12.9 percent of the vote. … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: Scotland says No.

Scotland votes ‘No’ to independence  BBC News | Europe | World Edition Alex Salmond calls for the pledge of more devolved powers to be carried out and David Cameron says the commitments will be honoured in full, as Scotland votes to stay in the UK. Scottish referendum explained for non-Brits – video theguardian.com – Alex Purcell … Read more

Back to West. Turkey announces EU accession strategy and says it plans to stop flow of IS fighters

Turkey announces EU accession strategy  EurActiv.com Turkey said today (18 September) that crises in the Middle East and elsewhere made closer co-operation between Ankara and the European Union essential and announced a new programme to revive the country’s stalled drive for EU membership. EU Minister promotes Turkey’s new EU strategy Turkey provides a more detailed account of how … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: “Voting begins in Scottish referendum

I hope Scotland leaves, and I hope England follows them open Democracy News Analysis – by Oliver Huitson Britain is a dying project. A Yes would not only be good for Scotland but good for England; a major blow for popular sovereignty against unresponsive, undemocratic and incompetent rule.   Vote Yes for the NHS – independence is … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: Referendum in Scotland, Change of government in Sweden, Germany anti-euro party makes strides…

‘No’ Votes Gain Ground in Scotland’s Referendum: Latest Poll  Mashable! by Brian Ries A new poll on Scotland’s referendum shows “No” voters — that is, Scottish voters againstindependence — have retaken the lead with less than one week to go. Thousands on streets for campaigns  BBC News | Europe | MAIN FOCUS: Change of government in Sweden | … Read more

Pentagon claims Turkey will contribute while a WSJ piece declares Turkey non-Ally…

Turkey will contribute in action against ISIL, Pentagon says Turkey will make contributions to military efforts against the ISIL militants, as it is a NATO member and has geographical advantages, Pentagon Spokesperson John Kirby says.   Our Non-Ally in Ankara Wall Street Journal–15 hours agoShare Since then Britain has categorically ruled out military strikes in Syria, … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: “New EU sanctions against Russia… “Scottish Referendum…

New EU sanctions against Russia come into effect  EurActiv.com The European Union put into effect on Friday (12 September) a new round of sanctions against Russia over its role in Ukraine, including restrictions on financing for some Russian state-owned companies and asset freezes on leading Russian politicians.   What impact could this round of Russian retaliatory sanctions have … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: “EU delays sanctions against Russia…Scottish referendum …”EU rejects Google’s antitrust deal again

  Parties back more Scotland powers  BBC News | Europe | The Scottish leaders of the three main pro-Union parties back more powers for Scotland on the day another poll suggests little between the two sides. Scottish referendum – A humble opinion from France Ideas on Europe In February 2005, three months before the French referendum on … Read more

Social fabric roundup: thousands of students placed in religious schools ‘against their will’

Turkey’s education row deepens as thousands placed in religious schools ‘against their will’ Turkey’s secondary education examination row has deepened, amid reports that thousands of students, including some non-Muslims, have been placed in Islamic vocational schools for the upcoming school year. Turkish policeman jailed for killing BBC News | Europe | World Edition A Turkish policeman … Read more