A wonderful article here by Paul Reynolds, World affairs correspondent of the BBC on Gordon Brown being the first European leader to meet President Obama. The UK cherishes the “special relationship” with the US, and UK conservative politicians often point to it as an alternative to involvement in the EU. However, as though Reynolds says “when it comes to substance, Britain counts for a good deal less than some other players – notably the EU as a whole, in which Germany above all has the key role”.
Merkel, Sarkozy & Berlusconi try to come to terms.
The Articel goes on to outline some of the differences of opinion on future financial regulation that will be discussed by the G20. The Czech Prime-minister (as head of the Czech Presidency of the EU) is quoted as saying “If I put it very tenderly, the divergence in opinions was rather big.” So the compromise I reported had been reached by the EU on for the G20 talks on global financial regulation may not be that secure.
A few months ago, I wrote about the early stages of the conflict in Ukraine through the lens of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. While it appears likely that the war will carry on into the foreseeable future, enough time has passed for us to make an honest assessment of each side’s relative […]
The Ukrainian Army has made dramatic strides in the last few weeks. Ukraine’s tactical commanders have outfoxed their Russian counterparts, and by issuing a feint towards the south the UA has been able to earn substantial gains in the north of their country. The impact of these efforts have been compounded by the steady stream […]
In mid-May the Irish political party, Sinn Féin, won the plurality of seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Many American readers might not fully understand the significance of Sinn Féin’s political victory- but rest assured that subjects of the United Kingdom and a wide range of political movements the world over have heard the message […]
The first wave of the Russian offensive in Ukraine has fallen short of Russian autocrat Vladmir Putin’s ambitions. Most analysts deduced that Putin had hoped to achieve a decapitation strike of the Ukrainian government- taking Kiev and replacing Ukrainian President Vladimir Zolinski with a pro-Kremlin voice. Kiev has been threatened repeatedly through the course of […]
On the weekend of March 26th, the notorious MS-13 gang went on a massive killing spree in El Salvador which left more than 70 people dead by Sunday. Even for a country where powerful gangs hold massive sway, this recent tragedy stands out considering that it was the bloodiest day on record since the civil […]
