Section: European Voice (EU)
Ukraine mulls technocratic government
KIEV — A close ally of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko told POLITICO that he plans to convince Arseniy Yatsenyuk, the country’s prime minister, to resign in the coming days. Once out, the goal would be to replace the chronically unpopular Yatsenyuk with a reform-oriented “technocratic” government potentially led by Finance Minister...
The Old World’s moment of Trump reckoning
PARIS — After a long period of being in denial about the strange events across the pond, many European politicians and diplomats are finally confronting the mind-boggling prospect that they could soon be dealing with an American president even worse, as they see it, than George W. Bush. And the very real fear is that if Donald Trump does get...
Commission proposes visa-free travel for Georgia
The European Commission on Wednesday proposed lifting visa restrictions for the people of Georgia, a reward for the country’s successful implementation of judicial reforms. “Today’s proposal recognizes the efforts of the Georgian authorities to carry out far-reaching and difficult reforms with a significant impact on the rule of law...
Ukrainian pilot gives Russia the middle finger
A Ukrainian pilot on trial for killing two Russian journalists made a defiant stand in court Wednesday as an increasing number of countries and MEPs called for her to be released. Nadiya Savchenko, a Ukrainian military pilot, jumped on the bench and gave judges the middle finger as she gave her closing statement in the case, five days after she...
The Pentagon’s secret foreign aid budget
Last month, the Obama administration released its 2017 budget proposal, including thousands of pages on the nearly $600 billion request for the Pentagon. That money is earmarked for a wide array of projects—$1.8 billion in procurement of equipment for the Special Operations Command, for instance, and $1.2 billion for the chemical and biological...
5 takeaways from Slovakia’s election
BRATISLAVA — Slovakia’s parliamentary election produced more confusion than clarity. There’s no obvious path to a stable government, raising the prospect of political crisis just months before the country takes over the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union. Although Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico’s...
Enough: NATO should stop feeding the Russian troll
For many years NATO attempted to use dialogue as the basis for its partnership with Russia. The Alliance operated in the spirit of trust and transparency. But this trust was, too often, abused: Russia disregarded the principles laid down in the 1997 NATO–Russia Founding Act; withdrew from the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty; violated the...
Gulag Archipelago by Vladimir Putin
KUCHINO, Russia — Secrets were forbidden in camp Perm-36. Guards searched everywhere for them, even in prisoners’ eyes, ears and teeth. Ukrainian poet Vasyl Stus, imprisoned in the Soviet Gulag system for almost half his life, managed to keep his scribbled on pieces of paper and hidden in the crevices of his cell. They were later smuggled...
Busting 3 Brexit myths
LONDON — Three years ago, British Prime Minister David Cameron transformed “Brexit” from buzzword into real-life politics. In 15 weeks’ time, Brexit might become reality when British citizens choose whether to stay in the EU — and the rest of Europe will find out if the EU should bother celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome...
Obama accused of ‘paralysis’ on genocide label for ISIL
U.S. lawmakers are cranking up the pressure this week on the Obama administration to formally declare that the Islamic State is committing “genocide” against Christians, Yazidis and other minorities in Syria and Iraq — a weighty designation with legal and moral implications. But the administration is struggling over what to do — sources say some...
