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Transatlantic Relations News

Medvedev: The Arctic is best without NATO
17 September 2010 - Barentsobserver.com 
Russian President Dimitry Medvedev has stated that Russia is strongly against NATO involvement in the Arctic. He believes that countries bordering the Arctic will be able to solve their differences without intervention by NATO. He argued that the Arctic is a zone of peaceful cooperation and not one in which a military presence should be emphasized. Medvedev made the remarks on the same day that Russia and Norway signed a delimitation deal on the Barents Sea and the Arctic Ocean.
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Taliban stage pre-poll abductions
17 September 2010 - Al Jazeera
Taliban forces are said to have abducted more than twenty people with ties to Afghanistan's upcoming parliamentary election, including two candidates, as well as eight officials and campaign workers. Among the candidates kidnapped were Abdul Rahman Hayat, a candidate for the Wolesi Jirga (Afghanistan's lower house of parliament), as well as Qari Safiullah, of western Herat, who has been missing for three days, along with three campaign workers. Taliban spokesmen have warned of mass violence on election day, targeting polling centers, election workers, and security forces to dampen voter turnout. The United Nations' top diplomat in Afghanistan, Staffan de Masura, has estimated that a turnout of 5-7 million of the 11.4 million registered voters in Afghanistan would be considered a success. ISAF has already committed to back up Afghan security forces in case of "emergencies." Afghans are set to go to the polls tomorrow to elect 249 members of parliament.
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Ashton Designates Six New "Strategic Partners"
16 September 2010 - EU Observer - Andrew Rettman
At a meeting with EU leaders and foreign ministers in Brussels on Thursday, EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton indicated that Egypt, Israel, Indonesia, Pakistan, Ukraine, and South Korea would be added to the EU's list of "strategic partners."  Existing EU strategic partners already include Brazil, Canada, China, India, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, and the United States. While the term "strategic partner" does not have a clear definition in EU usage, it is believed to mean that the EU will boost the diplomatic relations with these countries, organizing summits and extra minister-level and expert-level meetings. The list that Lady Ashton presented is not yet official and was part of a brainstorming session on how to make the EU more effective in foreign policy.
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California braces for showdown on emissions
16 September 2010 - NYT - Adam Nagourey
In tough economic times, public support for a clean energy economy and environmental measures is being tested in California. Out-of-state companies are backing Proposition 23, a ballot initiative asking for a suspension of the Global Warming Solutions Act. It has more than $8.2 millions to finance the campaign. The oil industry is divided on the proposal and a number of Californian businesses powered by venture capitalists, who finance cutting-edge technology, depend on this law to exist. The supporters of the law, including Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, know that a fight is coming but they remain confident and are ready to send a strong message that “there’s no going back."

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Brazil opposed to NATO role in South Atlantic
16 September 2010 - UPI
Brazil has announced its opposition to any NATO presence in the South Atlantic or any attempts to forge links with nations in the North and South Oceanic Regions, senior government officials in the capital of Brasilia said. This announcement coincided with statements from several Latin American countries, worried that North American and European countries will attempt to undermine regional petrol interests. This could be a serious blow to current talks between the European Union and South America's Mercosur trade bloc, which are focused on the creation of an independent commercial bridge between the two regions.  This would give Mercosur greater access to European commodity markets while allowing Europeans to share in Latin America's import boom. Earlier in the year, leaders of Latin American countries met to discuss joint military integration, excluding the United States and Canada. This week, however, Brazilian President Lula da Silva announced that he backed equal partnerships for bilateral cooperation between Latin American and NATO countries.
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Op-Ed: Yanukovych's Democratic Steamroller
16 September 2010 - New Atlanticist
The government of Viktor Yanukovych has begun to assert itself in decidedly undemocratic ways. On September 7, it pushed a bill through Ukraine's parliament that effectively denies the citizens of Kiev, the nation's capital, self rule, handing over the functioning of the city to the Kiev City State Administration, appointed by the President himself. This measure may give Yanukovych increased control in a politically decisive area that hurt his credibility during 2004's Orange Revolution. In addition, on September 9, three judges on Ukraine's Constitutional Court resigned, all critics of Mr. Yanukovych. This action may allow Yanukovych to further expand his presidential powers.
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Europeans' Afghan Apathy and Consequences for NATO
16 September 2010 - New Atlanticist
In Europe, public support for NATO's mission in Afghanistan is continuing on a downward trajectory, according to a Transatlantic Trends study released by the German Marshall Fund of the United States, which also found deep political divisions between European and American respondents on how to handle Iran's ambitions to become a nuclear power. While 51 percent of Americans expressed confidence that Afghanistan could be stabilized in the near future, only 23 percent of Europeans articulated a similar view (only 34 percent of Britons, 18 percent of French, and 10 percent of Germans). A whopping 64 percent of Europeans are calling for troop levels to be reduced from Afghanistan. The Dutch have already proven that under Article 5 of the NATO Charter, they can unilaterally withdraw, as Europeans are quickly souring on NATO's continued role as an "out-of-area" force.
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Britain facing a new wave of terrorist attacks, M15 warns
16 September 2010 - Telegraph UK
In a public speech on Friday, Jonathan Evans, the head of M15, Britain's counter-intelligence and security agency, argued that UK Intelligence officials face serious terror threats on two fronts: from a new generation of Al Qaeda extremists and Islamic militants, and also from Irish nationalists domestically, adding that it was only "a matter of time" before Somali extremists struck inside the country. Pointing the situation in Northern Ireland, Evans said there had been a "persistent rise in terrorist activity and ambition over the past three years as terrorist are using sophisticated weaponry. While the percentage of plots linked to Al Qaeda has dropped to 50 percent, the agency has seen a substantial increase in threats from Somalia and Yemen.
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Spinelli Group Seeks Supporters to Boost Federalism
16 September 2010 - EurActiv
On Wednesday, several prominent members of the European Parliament launched the Spinelli Group, which will be a network aimed at overcoming nationalism and promoting federalism in Europe. The group currently has 33 members, with such notable European Union supporters as former Commission President Jacques Delors, former European Parliament President Pat Cox, former German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer, and the Parliament's current Vice-President Isabelle Durant as founders of the Group. The Group plans to organize shadow conferences to take place before regularly scheduled EU Council meetings in order to present European interests to the heads of state and government before they make their decisions.   The Group is named after Altiero Spinelli who founded the European federalist movement and is considered one of the founding fathers of Europe.
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Sarkozy Defies EU Criticism on Gypsy Expulsions
16 September 2010 - The Washington Post - Raf Casert
An EU summit on Thursday between heads of state and government originally convened so that leaders could discuss crafting a unified European foreign policy.  But it ended in discord when French President Nicolas Sarkozy took the podium to defend his country against criticism for deporting Roma. This week, EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding compared the deportations to World War II-era atrocities, prompting other European heads of state and EU leaders to agree with Sarkozy that Reding had gone too far in her condemnation. Participants in the summit stated that emotions flared behind closed doors between the French President and European Commission President Jose Maunel Barosso over the expulsions. Sarkozy, in defending his country, also insisted that the current deportations were a matter of national security and would continue.
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Georgian President addresses European People's Party Congress
16 September 2010 - Trend - N. Kirtskhalia
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili discussed issues related to EU-Georgian cooperation in a speech to the European People's Party in Brussels. Saakashvili will follow up on this meeting on Thursday, when he meets with the Chairman of the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Commission.
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Missile Defense Key to Boosting Russia Ties: NATO
16 September 2010 - Reuters - David Brunnstrom
In a speech that NATO Secretary-General will make in Rome on Friday, Fogh Rasmussen will state that Russian involvement in a planned missile defense shield in Europe will pave the way to progress on other fronts such as reducing nuclear weapons. But he will also argue that Russia's continued presence in Georgia will hinder such efforts at cooperation. Russian President Dimitry Medvedev has been invited by NATO to join the Lisbon Summit in November. Russia has been cautious about the planned defense shield, while NATO has attempted to emphasize its role against combating Iran, not Russia.

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WTO slams Boeing's massive state subsidies: France

16 September 2010 - The Sydney Morning Herald

The World Trade organization decried Boeing's massive state subsidies on Wednesday, arguing that the measures hurt its rival, Airbus.  French Ecology and Transport Minister Jean-Louis Borloo stated: "Without going into the details, the summary of the panel's conclusions criticizes the massive subsidies received by Boeing which violate WTO rules and finds in favor of the essence of the European Union's complaint." Observers hope the WTO's judgement will resolve a dispute between the European Commission and the United States over aerospace funding. An estimated $23 billion of subsidies for Boeing were disguised as defense research, officials in Brussels claim.

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EPA begins phase out of Climate Leaders Program

16 September 2010 - Environmental Leader 
Who killed the energy and climate bill? 
15 September 2010 - Newsweek - Daniel Stone
While Daniel Stone wonders how the climate change and energy legislation could have died in the U.S. Senate this summer, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today that it will phase out the Climate Leaders Program to its partners. The EPA wants to promote the climate programs offered by a number of nongovernmental organizations and the mandatory greenhouse gases Reporting Rule adopted in January 2010. This measure disappointed some partners, who saw  “a unique value in national level leadership initiatives.” Stone argues that only the White House can relaunch the debate on climate and energy in Congress as Congress itself is too divided. The future direction of the climate change debate is still an open question.
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As Europe Kicks Coal, Hungarian Town Suffers
15 September 2010 - NYT - Elisabeth Rosenthal
In Europe, as in the US, coal exploitation has always been a polluting but influential industry. Some regions and communities are built on it, such as the town Oroszlany in Hungary, where more than 15% of the population works in coal mines. Employment and heating are the two main issues this town has to face today with the closure of Vertesi’s plant by 2014 and of the mine by the end of the year. The European Commission, which has fallen short of its greenhouse gas emission targets, decided to fix a final deadline to the law phasing out subsidies to the coal industry. With the global recession, some countries are requesting more time but the European Commission is set on achieving its environmental goals.
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EU to Call on Israel to Extend Settlement Halt: Draft
15 September 2010 - Reuters - Luke Baker
At a one-day summit in Brussels, EU leaders are expected to call on Israel to extend a moratorium on settlement building in the West Bank.  In a draft of the summit conclusions, the EU calls for restraint and for Israel to refrain from any actions that would hinder the progress of direct peace negotiations taking place between Israeli and Palestinian leaders.  Israel's ten-month moratorium on settlement building in the West Bank is set to expire at the end of September.  The United States has also encouraged Israel to extend the freeze on building in the area, which Palestinians want as a part of an independent state.
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Europeans Like Obama But Fret Over Some Policies
15 September 2010 - The New York Times - Judy Dempsey
The annual Transatlantic Trends Survey was published Wednesday, revealing that most Europeans favor US President Barack Obama. But the survey also brings to light growing doubts that Europeans have about Obama's handling of foreign policy issues like Iran and Afghanistan. Although Obama's approval ratings fell from the previous year from 83% to 79%, the ratings are much higher than Obama's predecessor George W. Bush. Additionally, over half of Europeans polled said that they support the United States as a strong leader in global affairs. Transatlantic differences were revealed on issues like Afghanistan, where 51% of Americans felt optimistic about stabilizing the country and only a quarter of Europeans felt the same. The survey was conducted in eleven EU countries, Turkey, and the US.  Also of note, the survey found that respondents in Europe believe that the use of the euro has been bad for their economy.  However, 63% said that being a member of the EU was a good thing.
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News Analysis: Ministers Seek to Amplify Europe's Voice on Global Stage 15 September 2010 - The New York Times - Stephen Castle
In a summit on Thursday, European heads of government and foreign ministers are expected to address setting new priorities on foreign policy for the EU. The EU, which has been trying to amplify its voice on the global stage and recently moved to create its own diplomatic service, still faces the daunting task of blending the national policies of its twenty-seven member states into one coherent European view. The movement has faced countless set backs, with the most recent coming Tuesday when the United Nations General Assembly rejected EU efforts to give a greater role within the UN to European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton.  
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France Makes Crucial Move to Raise Age of Retirement

15 September 2010 - The New York Times

France's lower house today passed President Sarkozy's pension reform package, which includes a highly controversial increase in the minimum retirement age from 60 to 62. Lawmakers approved the bill by a margin of 329-233 as protesters rallied outside the National Assembly building. The Senate is expected to begin its debate on October 1st. Though the vote was not in doubt because of Sarkozy's vast majorities in both houses, this remains a politically decisive moment for the French president, who has staked his reputation in this overhaul, declaring it to be his last major legislative measure before the Presidential Election in the spring of 2012. At 60, France's retirement age is one of the lowest in Europe, and Sarkozy and his allies hope that an increase will pare down deficits in the future.

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EU fails to get prominent UN role

15 September 2010 - Telegraph UK

The EU is running into significant stumbling blocks in its attempt to gain similar rights and powers as full-feldged nation-states in the United Nations General Assembly. Arab, African, Latin American, and Caribbean countries rallied against the proposal in a Monday vote, meaning that President Herman Van Rompuy will not be able to address the assembly next week. The EU hopes to attain the same speaking rights for Mr. Van Rompuy and Baroness Ashton (the European Commission's High Representative for Foreign Affairs) as Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton would have during a UN Debate, a right currently denied to other regional organizations. Lady Ashton stated Wednesday: "We are simply asking for the fact of Lisbon to be recognized."

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Armenian President invited to NATO Summit in Lisbon
15 September 2010 - Newsam
The President of the Republic of Armenia, Serzh Sargsyan, has been invited to the NATO Summit in Lisbon in November in the wake of successful NATO-Armenia cooperation. NATO has conducted joint exercises with Armenia under the NATO Individual Partnership Program, and Armenia has been involved in peacemaking operations in Kosovo and Afghanistan. At the summit, the two sides will discuss the future of their partnership.
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Rights group decries Kazakhstan's lack of media freedom
14 September 2010 - AP - Peter Leonard
In the wake of Kazakhstan's successful bid to chair the OSCE, a media advocacy group has accused the country of tightening restrictions on the press despite its pledges to do the opposite. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) stated that the government has failed to decriminalize libel and has increased restrictions on the internet. In fact, most of the major media outlets are owned by the state or the ruling party. In response to the criticisms, Kazakh Foreign Ministry spokesman Askar Abdrakhmanov said that the report was unjustified and that Kazakhstan was working to improve freedom of the press. According to CPJ, past crackdowns on the press have included jailing journalists, blocking access to  internet websites, legal assaults on major opposition newspapers, and libel suits.
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