Prof. Dr Wolfgang Schumann's Bookmarks

Mea culpa 

Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev said Bulgaria deserved to be criticised in the Commission's report, the Bulgarian press reported. 

"There are grounds for criticism, to be honest," Stanishev told the press in the Black Sea city of Varna. “The truth is Bulgaria is learning how to work with European money," he added. 

The opposition has attacked the government, including over Bulgaria’s decline compared to Romania. A no-confidence motion is expected to be voted upon in Parliament today, but the coalition government controls 150 out of 240 MPs and is expected to survive. 

More interestingly, a poll showed that a majority of Bulgarians were siding with the Commission and believe that the EU should indeed freeze its subsidies. The perception among ordinary citizens, shows the study by the Alpha Research Institute, is that this money is not reaching them. Thus many Bulgarians welcome funding cuts as a way of hurting the corrupt political class. 

The Italian senate's unanimous support for the Lisbon treaty on Wednesday (23 July) should help force Ireland into a revote, Italian politicians have said, with Ireland looking increasingly likely to stand out as the only EU country not to ratify the text.

"If ratification takes place in the other 26 states, in the autumn we will be able to ask Ireland to find a solution which will not block the integration process and go to the European elections with the new rules foreseen in the Lisbon treaty," the senate's foreign affairs committee head, Lamberto Dini, indicated.

Twenty one out of 27 EU states have definitively ratified the EU treaty despite the Irish No vote in a referendum in June. The Spanish, German and Polish parliaments have also approved the text, which now awaits the signatures of the respective heads of state.

The Swedish parliament is set to pass the treaty without serious opposition when it begins its autumn session in September. Czech Prime Minister Miroslav Topolanek this week pledged the full support of his divided ODS party when parliament votes in autumn.

Nine EU states are getting ready to reinforce their legal co-operation at the EU level by agreeing a common divorce law, by-passing Sweden's veto and posing questions about a "two-speed Europe."

France, Italy, Spain, Greece, Austria, Hungary, Slovenia, Luxembourg and Romania are set to implement the so-called enhanced co-operation procedure, while other countries - including Germany, Belgium, Portugal and Lithuania - are also currently considering joining the initiative, according to the AFP news agency.

If the nine countries go ahead, it will be the first time the legal mechanism - allowing a minimum of eight EU states to present the European Commission with a demand for "enhanced co-operation" - will have been activated.

Provided that the commission accepts the move, it then has to be approved by a qualified majority of the bloc's 27 member states.

Enhanced co-operation is seen as one of the ways to avoid EU-wide paralysis, which may increasingly come into play if the EU fails to quickly overcome the Irish No vote and implement the new Lisbon treaty.

"On behalf of the Office of the Prosecutor, I would like to congratulate the Serbian authorities … on achieving this milestone in co-operation with the ICTY," UN prosecutor Serge Brammertz said in a statement following the arrest.

"This is a very important day for the victims who have waited for this arrest for over a decade," he added.

For his part, EU enlargement commissioner Olli Rehn called the moment: "historic for international justice."

It is also "very important for Serbia's European aspirations" and "proves that the new government of Serbia has the determination to turn the page, leave the nationalist past behind and move towards a European future," he added.

In addition, Gruevski urged Athens to recognise the existence of the Macedonian minority on its territory and grant them the right to education in their own language as well as to foster their culture and traditions. 

Greece immediately reacted. In response to Gruevski's letter, Greek Foreigh Minister Dora Bakoyiannis said on Tuesday that the extreme nationalism from Skopje "sows the wind, but reaps whirlwind". 

Bulgaria could face further sanctions in the area of justice and home affairs, including having its membership of the EU's borderless Schengen area delayed, after recent reports from Brussels highlighted the country's problem with corruption.

A group of member states, including the UK, France and the Netherlands is pushing for tougher sanctions against Sofia, Dutch daily NRC Handelsblad reported on Thursday (17 July).

Brussels is to call on Sofia "to cleanse its administration" and make sure that EU money is not "siphoned off by corrupt officials, operating together with organised crime."

Both reports, leaked to the media, have provoked an outcry in Bulgaria and opposition parties have called for a non-confidence vote against the government next week, in addition to starting an impeachment procedure against the president.

Croatia will be ready to join the EU in 2009 and its membership is not going to be delayed by the EU's current institutional "crisis", Croatian President Stjepan Mesic has said.

"I understand European countries, including France, which intend to solve the EU's institutional problems before proceeding to any new accessions … [But] we will speed up the rhythm of our reforms and be ready in 2009 to join the EU as its 28th member," Mr Mesic told French daily Le Figaro in an interview published on Tuesday (15 July).

Description

Kosovo, which seceded from Serbia in February of this year, is one of Europe's most under-developed economies and is highly dependent on foreign subsidies.

From 1999 to 2007, when under the direct administration of the United Nations, Pristina benefitted from over €3.5 billion in reconstruction assistance.

However, the official unemployment rate remains a worrying 43 percent, with youth unemployment estimated even higher, at around 60 percent.

Kosovo's economy grew by 4.4 percent in 2007, with an inflation rate of 13.6 percent as of April, 2008.

The largest chunk of money for Kosovo is to come from the European Commission, followed by an American contribution of some $400 million. Beyond the EU's own funds, member state Germany has pledged €100 million, and the UK has confirmed an aid package worth £23 million.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has warned Europe against falling into institutional paralysis in the wake of Ireland's rejection of the Lisbon treaty and said he hopes to propose a solution to the situation before the end of this year.

In a passionate speech in the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Thursday (10 July), Mr Sarkozy said that nothing was worse for him than "immobility" and stressed the EU should not let itself be paralysed because of yet another "institutional psycho-drama."

Paris' "absolute priority" in the next six months will be tackling climate change, notably by pushing for the adoption of legislative proposals on how to reduce CO2 emissions by 20 percent by 2020 – a goal agreed by EU leaders last year.

Harmonising the 27 member states' immigration policies and strengthening the bloc's defence capacity are the other main policy areas outlined by the president.