The Italian police have arrested the alleged boss of the powerful Neapolitan Casalesi clan. Nicola Schiavone is suspected of succeeding his father, the notorious “Sandokan”, as the top boss of the clan after his father was sentenced to life in prison. In an open letter published by the left-liberal daily La Repubblica Roberto Saviano calls [...]
The European Union in its present form is threatened with failure, Bernard Guetta writes in the daily Libération. What the EU lacks is political unity and democratic rules, he says: “The EU could fall apart tomorrow. … It could very quickly go down in history as a missed opportunity. What threatens the EU most is [...]
The recent elections in Slovakia as well as those in Hungary and the Czech Republic have strengthened the conservative parties. Apparently the citizens of the post-communist countries of Central and Eastern Euope are rethinking their previous attitudes, writes Klaus Brill in the left-liberal Süddeutsche Zeitung: “They mistrust politicians who promise them social benefits. The majority [...]
The traditional parties in Europe, the social democratic and the Christian democratic parties, are not offering any answers to the big changes at present. This is another reason why right-wing extremist groups are gaining ground in several European countries, writes Lluís Bassets in his blog Del Alfiler al Elefante for the left-liberal daily El País: [...]
Until Hungary expressed doubts about its own solvency the euro was blamed for the crisis. But the European crisis could also be a chance for Europe, writes economist Peter Lains in the business paper Jornal de Negócios: “The financial crisis disrupts European integration and exposes the divisions within the continent. But they should be left [...]
The Bulgarian political scientist Ivan Krastev has argued that Romania and Bulgaria are in a better position to overcome the crisis because they are used to cinching in their belts. Dan Alexe argues in the daily România Liberă that Eastern Europeans are as a whole better prepared than Western Europeans: “Romanians and Bulgarians are so [...]
The international financial and economic crisis is showing the world that it needs better mechanisms for making global decisions, writes philosopher Daniel Innerarity in the left-liberal daily El País: “Conflicts, crises and disasters bring many inconveniences but at least they have something positive: an integrating function, because they show that there is no alternative but [...]
The French economist and historian Nicolas Baverez questions the unity of the EU in the daily Le Monde, fearing that the member states are slowly drifting apart: “Not only has Europe systematically done too little too late since the beginning of the Greek crisis in October 2009, it has also not stopped drifting apart and [...]
More and more Greeks are losing their jobs owing to the economic crisis. Salaries are being drastically cut in both the public and private sectors. The Greeks feel more alone than ever, writes Nikos Konstantaras in the Sunday edition of the daily Kathimerini: “The crisis has rocked our lives and is redefining the way we [...]
An art robber staged a spectacular coup in Paris in May, stealing five extremely valuable yet uninsured paintings from the Museum of Modern Art. The theft shows above all what high risks Europe’s under-financed museums are willing to take, writes the Sunday edition of the conservative Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung: “An abyss is opening in the [...]
