Is ‘Obamamania’ Waning in Europe?
A brief selection of European news stories that typify what seems to be a general trend toward a return to more negative reporting about America, its people and its president.
Spain Steps Back from Universal Jurisdiction
The Spanish National Criminal Court (Audiencia Nacional) said on June 30 it was scrapping an investigation into a 2002 Israeli Air Force bombing in Gaza that killed a suspected Hamas militant and 14 civilians. The move comes just days after the lower house of the Spanish Parliament voted to limit the scope of a 1985 […]
As Goes the West, So Goes NATO
NATO has always been more than just a traditional military alliance because it has always been about more than just traditional military security.
A400M Project Highlights European Defense Paradox
France and Germany have decided to wait another six months before determining the fate of the troubled A400M military transport plane.
Franco-Spanish Sub Dispute Shows Challenges Facing EU Defense Market
As if to illustrate the challenges facing an integrated European defense market, the French naval shipyard DCNS is suing Spain’s leading state-owned shipbuilding firm, Navantia, for allegedly stealing trade secrets relating to the Scorpène submarine project.
Immigration Policy a Casualty of Unemployment in Spain
As the once-vibrant Spanish economy plunges deeper into recession, the government of Socialist Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero is struggling to staunch the country’s skyrocketing jobless rate. And among the first casualties is Spain’s famously lenient immigration policy.
NATO Struggles to find Unity of Purpose
US President Barack Obama’s debut NATO summit at the Franco-German border on April 3-4 was a triumph of style over substance. Although allies put on a public face of unity, they were unable to agree on any of the major problems facing transatlantic security. As NATO marks its 60th birthday, the Alliance is mired in […]
Europe Is Obama’s First ‘Global Test’
President-elect Barack Obama is already facing his first global test. It’s not coming from the usual suspects like Iran or North Korea, but from America’s “allies” in Europe.
¿Por qué los votantes irlandeses rechazaron el Tratado de Lisboa?
Los votantes irlandeses dicen ‘No’ a las ambiciones de las elites políticas europeas, que desean que todos los 27 Estados Miembros de la Unión Europea ratifiquen el Tratado de Lisboa.
Why Irish Voters Rejected the Lisbon Treaty
Irish voters said “No” to the superpower ambitions of European political elites, who want all 27 member-states of the European Union to ratify the Lisbon Treaty, which would turn the EU into a bureaucratic superstate.
Why France Wants to Rejoin NATO
French President Nicolas Sarkozy says he will decide by late 2008 or early 2009 whether France will fully rejoin the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
With ‘Old Europe’ Allies Like These…
The recent NATO Summit in Romania showed why there is trouble ahead for transatlantic relations—no matter who occupies the White House next January.
