Suchergebnisse

It is argued that Europe isn't the good 'global citizen' it claims to be in that its foreign policy preoccupations tend to internal, and the 'European economy' is better described as a heterogeneous entity than a single movement. The article also takes to task Europe's social model as being unfriendly to immigrants and its health care as being mostly substandard for the insured. Adapted from the source document.

In this section on the Capabilities, Trends & Economics of regional military defense capabilities, the military trends & priorities of Europe are assessed. A discussion of the European defense debate characterizes diverse national defense policies as a hindrance to a cohesive approach within the European Union. Discussion of NATO operations identifies current deployment & limited capabilities in Iraq & Africa, cooperation, & future NATO expansion. The European Security & Defense Policy (ESDP) national force developments address conflict, & terrorism in individual countries. The strengthening euro, & new initiatives by the European Defense Agency (EDA) indicate growth that is further supported by Italian, French, Greek, & UK military fiscal policy. Analysis of the non-NATO European defense identifies challenges to Croatia, & downsizing and budget cuts for Sweden. A detailed assessment follows of NATO & non-NATO countries military capabilities that inventories troops, organizations by service & equipment, deployment, & foreign forces. Tables. J. Harwell

The most significant development in Europe during the year to mid-2013 occurred shortly after it began, with a declaration from Mario Draghi, president of the European Central Bank (ECB). He said in July 2012: 'Within our mandate, the ECB is ready to do whatever it takes to preserve the euro. And believe me, it will be enough.' While this statement caused a flurry, it would obviously not have been sufficient by itself, after three years in which Europe's authorities had failed to convince the financial markets that the measures they were taking would, indeed, be enough. But two months later, Draghi revealed that the ECB would underpin the debt of any country that undertook satisfactory reform measures, by buying its bonds. The comfort to the markets provided by this guarantee meant that the ECB did not, in fact, have to make any such purchases, because the market interest rates of Spanish and Italian debt fell to such an extent that the need for them to negotiate financial rescues, conditional on economic reforms, receded. Adapted from the source document.

In his regular column for Juncture, John Curtice looks at British public attitudes towards Europe and questions whether apparent moves towards Euroscepticism by politicians and the public are real or just par for the course.

The question of how to manage the pressure on defence budgets remains at the forefront of many defence ministers' minds, though circumstances vary across countries. Governments are applying a range of strategies to cope with the impact of the financial and economic crisis. While some have initiated austerity measures and seem destined for an extended period off defence cuts, the procurement cuts and delays so far announced do not yet reflect this reality. Adapted from the source document.

US-European relations, domestic politics in Germany, France, Italy, and Great Britain, the Bosnian crisis and its perception in the Islamic world, and the Nordic countries in the post-cold war era; 8 articles.