"Ό,τι η ψυχή επιθυμεί, αυτό και πιστεύει." Δημοσθένης (Whatever the soul wishes, thats what it believes, Demosthenes)
Showing posts with label Germany. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Germany. Show all posts
Monday, February 22, 2016
Crowd cheer fire at hotel being converted into refugee shelter in Saxony.
The Guardian
22-2-2016
Suspected arson comes three days after protesters blocked bus carrying asylum seekers in east German state
A fire that destroyed a hotel being converted into a shelter for refugees in Saxony was cheered and celebrated by onlookers, German police have said.
The blaze at the building in Bautzen, eastern Saxony, began in the early hours of Sunday morning. Police are treating the incident as suspected arson. No one was injured.
Locals had cheered as the building caught fire, police said. “Some people reacted to the arson with derogatory comments and undisguised joy.”
Friday, February 19, 2016
Greece threatens to veto Britain-EU deal if states close borders to refugees
Europe’s negotiations about the UK’s membership and about the refugee crisis become entangled at Brussels summit
The Guardian
Greece is threatening to veto a new deal for Britain in the European Union if other member states close their borders to refugees.
The future of Britain’s EU membership has become entangled with the refugee crisis at a summit in Brussels, where the bloc’s leaders had been meeting to discuss the two issues separately.
EU leaders are grappling with how to deal with the biggest influx of refugees since the second world war, after more than one million people arrived in Europe in 2015. The movement of people has called into question the EU’s border-free Schengen zone and has thrown EU asylum rules into chaos. On Friday, Austria introduced daily limits on the number of migrants entering the country, triggering fears of further border closures.
The Guardian
Greece is threatening to veto a new deal for Britain in the European Union if other member states close their borders to refugees.
The future of Britain’s EU membership has become entangled with the refugee crisis at a summit in Brussels, where the bloc’s leaders had been meeting to discuss the two issues separately.
EU leaders are grappling with how to deal with the biggest influx of refugees since the second world war, after more than one million people arrived in Europe in 2015. The movement of people has called into question the EU’s border-free Schengen zone and has thrown EU asylum rules into chaos. On Friday, Austria introduced daily limits on the number of migrants entering the country, triggering fears of further border closures.
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Merkel unmoved by refugee crisis criticism
Deutsche Welle
Germany will stick to
its multifaceted response to Europe's refugee crisis, including aid delivered
via Turkey, Chancellor Angela Merkel has told parliament. She's also backed the
idea of a no-fly zone in northern Syria.
Merkel, in an address
to Germany's Bundestag on the eve of a two-day Brussels summit, said Europe
should work to improve the lives of refugees in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan as
the way to meet "our goal" of reducing migrant flows into Europe.
She described as
"intolerable" the situation for besieged civilians in and around
northern Syria's war-torn hub of Aleppo, saying "nothing should be left
undone" in trying to establish a no-fly zone to save "many human
lives."
NATO and Europe’s Refugee Crisis
By THE EDITORIAL
BOARDFEB. 16, 2016
The New York Times
The announcement last
Thursday that NATO would send ships to patrol the Aegean in an effort to break
up the smuggling rings ferrying desperate refugees and migrants from Turkey to
Greece is, at this point, more a symbolic show of solidarity than anything else.
Even so, it reflects a heightened sense of urgency about the refugee crisis and
sends a strong signal that the Western alliance stands ready to help Europe
cope with it.
Monday, February 15, 2016
Visegrad Group opposes Germany's refugee policy
Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic - known as
the Visegrad Group - are set to discuss border protection and the refugee
crisis. They might help Macedonia close its Greek border to migrants.
Deutsche Welle
The four Eastern European countries known for their
restrictive asylum policy are set to call for the closure of the so-called
Balkan route to migrants traveling to Western Europe, German weekly magazine
Der Spiegel reported.
The Visegrad countries - Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the
Czech Republic - invited representatives of Bulgaria and Macedonia to their
summit in Prague on Monday. Leaders of the Visegrad states are expected to
agree on helping Macedonia to block the migrants' path at its border with
Greece, according to diplomats quoted by Der Spiegel.
"As long as a coherent European strategy is lacking, it
is legitimate for the countries along the Balkan route to protect their
borders," Slovakian Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajcak told the German
magazine. "We will help them with that."
Tuesday, February 2, 2016
40 percent of Germans demand Merkel's resignation over refugee policy, poll says
Unhappy
with her government's refugee policy, four out of 10 Germans want Chancellor
Merkel to resign, a new poll has shown. The news came just after the ruling
grand coalition unveiled its new asylum package.
Deutsche
Welle
2-2-2016
While 39.9
percent of Germans surveyed by the pollster Insa for "Focus" magazine
said Chancellor Angela Merkel's refugee policy is grounds for her to step down,
45.2 percent of the more than 2,000 people polled said they did not believe she
should leave office. The remaining 15 percent did not state an opinion.
Merkel has
long enjoyed high popularity ratings among Germans but that support has
dwindled in recent months, particularly as the numbers of asylum seekers
entering Germany from the
Middle East and North Africa has increased.
Monday, January 18, 2016
Greece Seeks German Know-How to Tackle Tax Evasion
By THE
ASSOCIATED PRESS ATHENS , Greece — Jan 16, 2016, 4:04 PM ET
Greek tax
officials, initially numbering about 50, will be trained by the tax authorities
of North Rhine-Westphalia, a state noted for its success in persuading German
citizens to repatriate capital they had whisked abroad to avoid taxation. Their
efforts have resulted in 1 billion euros ($1.09 billion) in extra revenue since
2010.
Monday, January 11, 2016
Putin: US and NATO want to 'sit on the throne in Europe alone'
Deutsche
Welle
11-1-2015
Russian
President Vladimir Putin has defended his policies in Ukraine and Crimea and slammed NATO expansion
and the United States .
He also said he trusts German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Russian
President Vladimir Putin slammed western sanctions against his country as
"geo-political" rather than aimed at solving the crisis in Ukraine and criticized NATO expansion and the United States
for trying to impose its will, in a wide-ranging interview published Monday in
the popular German daily newspaper "Bild."
Friday, January 8, 2016
Police Report of Cologne New Year’s Eve Details Chaos, Overwhelmed Force
Angela
Merkel signals willingness to toughen deportation procedures
The Wall
Street Journal
By RUTH
BENDER
Updated
Jan. 7, 2016 4:18 p.m. ET
142
COMMENTS
A detailed
account of the mass assaults in Germany ’s
fourth-largest city on New Year’s Eve emerged Thursday, drawing a picture of
chaos and aggression that left police overstretched and attackers enjoying
virtual free rein.
An internal
federal police report dated Jan. 4 and seen by The Wall Street Journal
described scenes in Cologne of crying women fleeing sexual molestation from
crowds of men, passersby trying to rescue young girls from being raped, and
groups of intoxicated men throwing bottles and fireworks at a police force no longer
in control of the situation.
Tuesday, March 24, 2015
Merkel Points Tsipras Toward Deal With Greece’s Creditors
Patrick
DonahueJonathan StearnsAnthony Czuczka
7:57 PM EET
March 23,
2015
(Bloomberg)
-- German Chancellor Angela Merkel encouraged Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras to
follow the path set out by Greece ’s
creditors, saying his country belongs in Europe
and she wants its economy to succeed.
Deadlines Near as Greece and Germany Seek a Consensus on Debt
By ALISON
SMALEMARCH 23, 2015
The New
York Times
Sunday, March 22, 2015
The Greece Issue Breeds Brinkmanship in the Eurozone
By THE EDITORIAL BOARDMARCH 20, 2015
The New York Times
Nobody
expected that the discussions between Greece and the rest of the eurozone
about a new loan agreement would go smoothly. But things seem to be going even
worse than expected, with both sides sniping at each other and refusing to
engage in meaningful negotiations.
In Germany vs. Greece, who owes who?
By Anthony
Faiola March 22 at 3:30 AM
“We
thought, Germany
should start by paying its own debts before demanding the Greeks pay theirs,”
said Lange, a 55-year-old social worker.
Monday, March 16, 2015
Germany and Greece should look to Goethe to resolve their standoff
The
Guardian
Paul Mason
Two hundred
years ago Germany ’s
great poet and statesman performed a U-turn that some would like to see Angela
Merkel copy
On a quiet
street in central Athens
stands the bronze, modernist facade of the Goethe Institut, which has been
teaching German and spreading enlightenment about German culture since 1952.
Last week, the Greek government threatened to seize the building, together with
holiday homes and other German assets. Greece
is claiming €341bn (£240bn) in second world war reparations from Germany – and if the government does not
confiscate the Goethe Institut, there are numerous people in Athens ready to do it “from below”.
Germany Won’t Negotiate With Greece Over Compensation for Nazi Atrocities
By ANDREA
THOMAS
Updated
March 11, 2015 2:02 p.m. ET
The Wall Street Journal
BERLIN—Berlin
on Wednesday rejected mounting calls from Athens that Germany should pay
compensation for Nazi atrocities in Greece, further souring the mood between
the eurozone’s main paymaster and Greece’s cash-strapped government.
After a
Greek government minister suggested Athens could
seize German assets, a German government spokesman dismissed the threat as
groundless and urged Athens
to focus on a more pressing issue: Fulfilling the conditions for the release of
much-needed financial aid.
Friday, March 13, 2015
Germany Urges Greece to Honor Commitment
Angela
Merkel’s spokesman insists that crisis isn't a ‘private feud’ between Athens and Berlin
The Wall
Street Journal
By ANDREA
THOMAS
Updated
March 13, 2015 11:26 a.m. ET
Schaeuble's Right, The Most Likely Cause Of Grexit Is A Mistake, Human Error
Forbes
By Tim
Worstall
This is
something that I’ve been saying for some time now, that if Greece really does leave the euro
then the most likely cause of it doing so will be that someone has made a
mistake. Now, I believe that Greece
should leave (in common with many economists): but just about every European
politician believes that it should not. And most Greek politicians believe that
it should not leave, as is also the express wish of most Greek citizens. Given
that it is the politicians actually running things here then there seems to be
no good reason why Greece
either should or will leave.
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Germany used legal tricks to avoid WW2 reparations: Greece
BY LEFTERIS PAPADIMAS
ATHENS Tue Mar 10, 2015 4:04pm EDT
(Reuters) -
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras accused Germany
on Tuesday of using legal tricks to avoid paying reparations for the Nazi
occupation of Greece
and said he would support parliamentary efforts to review the matter.
His
comments are likely to heighten tensions between Athens
and Berlin as Greece 's new, leftist government
struggles to persuade its euro zone partners to renegotiate the terms of a 240
billion euro ($260 billion) bailout.
Germany's Merkel narrowly avoided bigger revolt on Greece - sources
BY MATTHIAS
SOBOLEWSKI AND STEPHEN BROWN
(Reuters) -
German Chancellor Angela Merkel narrowly averted a far bigger rebellion last
month on Greece's bailout extension among her conservatives, many more of whom
would have voted 'Nein' but for her finance minister's powers of persuasion,
lawmakers said.
Tuesday, March 10, 2015
A new low for German-Greek relations?
Yesterday's
threat by Greek Defence Minister Panos Kammenos of the Independent Greeks to
'flood' Europe with refugees including
potential IS members has arguably brought German-Greek relations to a new low.
Pawel Swidlicki, Policy Analyst
http://openeurope.org.uk/blog/new-low-german-greek-relations/
9 March
2015
Since it
came to power, the SYRIZA-Independent Greeks coalition has effectively written
the textbook of how not to negotiate in Europe .
Irrespective of whether one agrees with them on substance, they spend too much
political capital on pointless posturing and divisive rhetoric. However,
despite the lack of success so far, it appears that some in Athens are now seeking to ramp up the
rhetoric as opposed to dialing it down.
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