December 22nd, 2010
BRUSSELS – On December 31st the Belgian Presidency of the European Council is coming to an end. Both Presidents Barroso and Van Rompuy congratulated Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme for the effective presidency and the true community spirit the government had shown. Indeed for a Kingdom which shows little bravura for eliminating its own political divide, Belgium succeeded remarkably well to unite the 27 on more than a few critical issues.
Perhaps it is ’surprise’ that generated the presidential praise? With the country plunged into permanent political chaos since 2007, the ruling government coalition collapsed once again (the third time in … Continue Reading…
Posted by Bruno Lete in European Union, Politics | Comments (0)
December 21st, 2010
MINSK—Peace and quiet reign on Independence Square — Christmas trees sparkle in the snow, the traffic is flowing, people are heading home to prepare for the holidays. Yet on Sunday, this square in the center of the Belarusian capital witnessed the largest protests against dictatorial rule in a decade, when thousands of President Alexander Lukashenko’s riot police and army troops brutally cracked down on tens of thousands of peaceful protesters. All normal? Not quite.
Nearly 400 people were arrested after the protests, including most of the nine candidates that challenged Lukashenko in Sunday´s election. Five of the contenders were severely beaten and … Continue Reading…
Posted by Joerg Forbrig and Pavol Demeš in Central and Eastern Europe, European Union, Global Governance, Russia, Transatlantic Relations, Transatlantic Take, United States | Comments (0)
December 20th, 2010
On both sides of the Atlantic budgets are under severe pressure. Governments are seeking to improve the effectiveness of development resources. Last week, the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development unveiled the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review, which seeks to bring a more unified, focused and results-based approach to U.S. civilian power. Starting in January 2011, under the Lisbon Treaty, the European Union will launch a new European External Action Service to strengthen policy coherence in areas such as development. Such initiatives could lead to better planning and management of scarce resources with a stronger focus on … Continue Reading…
Posted by Richard Manning in Uncategorized | Comments (0)
December 20th, 2010
On both sides of the Atlantic budgets are under severe pressure. Governments are seeking to improve the effectiveness of development resources. Last week, the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development unveiled the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review, which seeks to bring a more unified, focused and results-based approach to U.S. civilian power. Starting in January 2011, under the Lisbon Treaty, the European Union will launch a new European External Action Service to strengthen policy coherence in areas such as development. Such initiatives could lead to better planning and management of scarce resources with a stronger focus on … Continue Reading…
Posted by Andrew Natsios in Uncategorized | Comments (0)
December 20th, 2010
WASHINGTON — Reflecting on the past year in transatlantic relations, it is tempting to compose a scorecard of successes and failures, or a short list of critical events. Many of these items have been discussed in Transatlantic Take when they were front page news. In truth, 2010 is a hard year to rate in transatlantic terms because there have been few clear-cut outcomes, and many open questions remain. Four defining issues, all unresolved, are emblematic of challenges that are likely to be critical in 2011 and beyond.
First, domestic developments remain … Continue Reading…
Posted by Ian Lesser in Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, Economics, European Union, International Security, Iran, NATO, Russia, Transatlantic Marketplace, Transatlantic Relations, Transatlantic Take, Transatlantic Trends, United States | Comments (0)
December 16th, 2010
Ten weeks after the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, which brought the United States into World War II, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt rallied a still-reeling American public with a patriotic radio address on Washington’s Birthday. Furious that U.S. military forces had been mocked by the Axis powers as “weaklings” and “playboys,” Roosevelt famously shot back: “Let them tell that to the Marines!”
Besides being an interesting tidbit from history, a version of that message should be considered as part of the foreign aid policy debate in Washington today. Why? On this side of the Atlantic, as in Europe, domestic budget pressures … Continue Reading…
Posted by James Kunder in Uncategorized | Comments (0)
December 16th, 2010
NEW YORK – The current eurozone crisis does not stop at the old continent’s edge. Corporations on these shores are paying close attention to what happens in Greece, Ireland, and the rest of the struggling European economies. And if they aren’t paying attention, they should be.
Contrary to prevailing wisdom, Europe remains hugely important to the bottom line of Corporate America since the global footprint of U.S. multinationals is largest across the Atlantic. Notwithstanding all the chatter about the rise of China, for many U.S. firms, as Europe goes, so goes their global earning.
U.S. affiliates in Europe rank among the largest … Continue Reading…
Posted by Joe Quinlan in Economics, European Union, International Regulatory Cooperation, Transatlantic Marketplace, Transatlantic Relations, Transatlantic Take, United States | Comments (0)
December 14th, 2010
BUCHAREST—Few may know that the game known to some as football and to others as soccer was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2001. The nomination letter by Swedish politician Lars Gustafsson observed that sports—of which football was “the greatest sport of all”—play a valuable role in international relations by enhancing “the understanding between people of different races and religions in different countries.” Two weeks ago, at the Zurich headquarters of FIFA, international football’s governing body, it was decided that Russia would host the 2018 World Cup, entrusting the country with its second major international sporting event in a … Continue Reading…
Posted by Alina Inayeh in International Security, NATO, Politics, Russia, Transatlantic Relations, Transatlantic Take | Comments (0)
December 10th, 2010
CANCUN — It is hardly news anymore when international talks on climate change fail to produce a breakthrough agreement. But the real story of the annual UN climate conference, which concludes Friday in Cancun, Mexico, is what was happening on the sidelines of the conference.
Last year’s summit on climate change in Copenhagen was ruined by the weight of excessive expectations and unbridgeable gaps between developed and developing countries. The talks did not quite break down — the Copenhagen Accord was a face-saving agreement that allowed the talks to reconvene this year — but they were traumatic for all involved. The … Continue Reading…
Posted by Thomas Legge in COP16, Climate, Economics, Energy, Environment, European Union, Global Governance, Transatlantic Relations, Transatlantic Take, United States | Comments (0)
December 9th, 2010
CANCUN–Kermit the Frog knew it all along: Green is cool. And it seems that more and more humans, in particular those working on climate change, are beginning to follow his logic.
While the negotiations at COP16 in Cancun still promise to deliver some results by the end of the week – notably on deforestation efforts in the developing world and financing – it is clear that whatever will be agreed upon won’t be enough to keep global warming under 2 degrees Celsius, which scientists have set as the rough limit to avoid disastrous climate change. And the question remains if countries … Continue Reading…
Posted by Christina Elvers in COP16, Climate, Energy, Environment | Comments (0)
