Where in the world is Tuvalu?|Page 8

NEWEUROPE17th Year, |Number 864 | December 13 - 19, 2009 | € 3.50 www.neurope.eu

Nabucco, and some other pipelines, are com-mercial projects, Andrey Klimov a member ofthe Committee on International Affairs andHead of the Sub-Committee on EuropeanCo-operation in the Russian Duma, told NewEurope in an interview in Bonn. He was askedif Bulgaria’s increased support for the Nabuccopipeline at the expense of the Russian-backedSouth Stream was affecting Moscow’s rela-tions with Sofia and with the EU. “As Mr.(Russian Prime Minister Vladimir) Putin said,it is not a Russian question, but it is question

of European Union or Bulgaria, to take part ornot to take part in projects like Nabucco. “Ifpeople in the European Union, Bulgaria, pre-fer to have stable energy supply from Russiathey have to have these pipelines. If they pre-fer to have something without a real base,without oil fields, without gas fields, it’s up toyou. You can think about a pipeline, from, let’ssay Mercury or from the Moon. But it’s not sorealistic. We prefer to have real deals, like thisNord Stream on the northern part fromEurope.”

Asked now that the EU has a new CouncilPresident and High Representative, who isPutin going to call, Klimov said: “...I believethat Mr. Putin, as chair of our government,may and must have better relationship withMr. Barroso, with the Commissioner, theCommission and the Chair of theCommission, and of course we will see whatwill be the role of the new President of thisunion of European States, and then ofcourse we will have some changes maybe inour protocol.”

But Russia waits for EU to define future relationships

·Page 5

Barroso still on speed-dial

PESPoul Nyrup Rasmussen, the now re-elected President of the PES, talks ofthe coming year, politics in Europetoday and what he would like to seehappen at the Copenhagen ClimateConference.

·Page 2

OSCEAs Kazakhstan prepares to assume theOSCE chairmanship next year, KanatSaudabayev, Kazakhstan’s Secretary ofState and Minister of Foreign Affairs,talks about the group’s priorities.

·Page 7

BULGARIATzvetan Tzvetanov, Bulgarian DeputyPrime Minister and Minister ofInterior, talks about the fight againstcorruption and organized crime.

·Page 2

PRESIDENCYJean-Claude Juncker, Prime Minister ofLuxembourg gives his thoughts on thefuture of Europe and the new CouncilPresident.

·Page 3

IN THIS ISSUE EU Policy

Romania’s EU role takes on some

roots, and fiscal hopes|Page 5

EU-World

EU lawmakers ignored as bank

data is handed to US|Page 14

Jerusalem should be a shared

capital, EU tells Israel|Page 15

Energy & Climate

Europe needs all the pipelines it can get,says Finland’s FM|Page 16

Europeans to connect their supply of off-shore wind power|Page 17

Oil battle bubbling within OPEC|Page 18

Country newsGerman factory orders post surprise fall in October|Page 23Italy, Russia reach key transport agreements|Page 25Latvia may adopt euro in 2013 if deficit falls|Page 30Papandreou, Papaconstantinou urge calm in the face of pressure|Page 31Ukrainian banking system gets hard lessons from crisis|Page 36Russia, India seal nuclear, defense, trade deals|Page 39

Editorial & Opinion

State support for the needy banks|Page 4

EU: In Putin We(have to) Trust|Page 17

Pages 10-13

FOCUS

Like the whole world, Russia too awaits for Europe to define the new roles born under the Lisbon Treaty,. But for now, the priority contact for Russian Prime

Minister Vladimir Putin remains European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso

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INTERVIEW

Page 2 | New Europe NEW EUROPEDecember 13 - 19, 2009

Time to find out justwho governs London The credit crunch in the West, the subsequent realeconomy recession and the uncertainties which stillhaunt the international economic environment and theeconomic theory, are being swiftly depicted and pre-sented in what is happening over the past weeks inLondon, more precisely, in and around the Royal Bankof Scotland. This British colossal bank, along with theAmerican investment banks of New York, spearheadedwhat happened in our financial world during the pasttwo years. At the end, RBS along with its US counter-parts, was saved by the state and the central banks. Afterthe huge direct state aid, however, the Royal Bank ofScotland ended up as a state entity, with the Britishgovernment controlling around three-quarters of itscapital. All those developments changed our perception of theeconomic play. The most important economists startedquestioning even the basics of the theories behind use-ful tools of modern everyday market practice. In thisrespect, the bonuses, that investment bank managersreceive at the end of each year were criticized and impli-cated as the most dangerous practice, which may soonlead again to a new credit crunch worse than the lastone. On top of that, one after the other, western gov-ernments started strongly opposing the practice ofbonuses, even demonizing extra pay as an easy target, infront of a hostile public opinion against banks. In such an environment, the Royal Bank of Scotland,despite having lost GBP 1.8 billion during the thirdquarter of the year, and being nationalized, with theChancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling being itsmain shareholder, did not hesitate to announce that itwas ready to hand out GBP 1.5 billion to its investmentdepartment personnel as 2009 bonuses. It was likeopening Pandora’s Box. Darling reacted so strongly thathe said at an interview that he would “not be held as ahostage to ransom.” The RBS ‘s management reactionwas equally aggressive. They threatened to quit enmasse, including large numbers of investment person-nel. In short, they were ready to ruin the bank, if theboss, Darling, did not agree to hand out the bonuses. No other working class group had ever reacted in this

way, actually threatening their employer to quite enmasse and leave the “shop” in ruins. At this point itshould be mentioned that the average bonus for theRBS investment managers was estimated at least atGBP one million, and one can imagine that the upperfloors personnel would receive many times this. Theirpay has been like this for many years now so most ofthem can live happily ever after without needing towork. In short, the Golden Boys said that either theywork for millions, or they don’t work at all. There must be a well-hidden secret here that makesthose people so powerful. It is not difficult, however, tounveil it. The idea is that given that investment banksare free to undertake whatever risks they like, say, forexample, Dubai, in whatever market they choose - saygold - then the short-term profits are so huge that evenstate bureaucracies and governments can participate inthe party. The secret is that they are allowed not to haveadequate reserves to face huge future risks that thoseinvestments many imply. For example, if gold prices falldrastically, it is more than certain that a large number ofthose banks will be found in a mess and will start againclamoring for state aid to stand on their feet. We had ataste of this with Dubai. Until that dreadful day comes,however, the short-term profits are huge, create so manyjobs and contribute largely to the poor British GrossNational Product. So the government in London saysnothing about its real powers, which include the intro-duction of checks and balances. Instead, 10 DowningStreet tries to solve the problem at the end of the line,not the beginning, by threatening the Golden Boys.Unfortunately, they are free to play the tunes.

NE Notebook

Bulgaria has been moving closer and closerto the center of the EU. How are you goingabout achieving this?The new Bulgarian government is doingeverything possible to meet the require-ments of the European community. Themain accent is the fight against corrup-tion and organized crime. The legisla-tion amendments we are introducing inBulgaria at the moment will be benefi-cial for the realization of a very positivepolicy course corresponding to the EUrequirements.

You are responding to criticism that was

made by the EU. What concrete steps areyou taking to combat organized crime andcorruption?We have established special unitsbetween the prosecution office, Ministryof Interior (MVR,) State AgencyNational Security (DANS). We alreadyhave accusations been raised againstabuses that reflected in losing millions ofeuros. There have already been effectiveand efficient results in the fight againstcorruption and organized crime; againstspecific cases and individuals.

Has the EU been supportive and helpful inthat respect?

Bulgaria is now a partner in the solidaritythe EU is offering. One of the prioritiesfor the new Bulgarian government is theinstrument Schengen, as you knowBulgaria is an outside border of the EU.All the activities we organize in that direc-tion are with compliance with theEuropean Commission, the check upsthat are performed in the air, lands and seaborders, we have already organized a verygood administrative capacity, we haveequipped the border check points with theequipment needed so that we are able toperform our functions and responsibilities.With the transparent programme we arecarrying out we target at the Euro fundsbeen unfrozen in order to complete ourfight against corruption.

One other issue is of Nabucco and SouthStream. Where is Bulgaria going on theseprojects?South Stream is a project that needs to

be totally compliant with the EU inter-ests and the interest of Bulgaria as well.Every geo strategic project connected toenergy must meet the interests of theEuropean Union. In that regard Bulgariais a reliable partner of the EU. I havealways said that the policy course of theEuropean Union can be much strongercompared to the separate countriesthemselves.

Tzvetan Tzvetanov is Deputy PrimeMinister and Minister of Interior ofBulgaria

Bulgaria fighting corruptionINTERVIEW WITH TZVETAN TZVETANOV

Between planning the week in Copenhagen and having justwrapped up the Party of European Socialists Congress inPrague, Poul Nyrup Rasmussen the now re-elected Presidentof the PES, took some time to answer questions from AliaPapageorgiou on the coming year, politics in Europe todayand what he would like to see happen at the CopenhagenClimate Conference COP15 continuing in Denmark until18 December.

How do you evaluate the role of socially driven policy in thenext five years given that the unemployment levels couldreach up to 30 million people Europe-wide in 2010?

Today’s social ills are as pressing as they were in the 19thCentury when our forefathers formed the first socialist tradeunions and political parties. Almost half of the world’s pop-ulation – living on less than two dollars a day – has children

who go hungry or die. The most extravagant wealth coexistswith the most grotesque misery. There are over 22.5 millionunemployed people in Europe alone. Eighty million are liv-ing under the poverty line. Our values and our cause -democracy, freedom, solidarity, human dignity, equality andsocial justice – drive us just as they did the founders of ourparties. We must be the progressive party of conviction andaction. Human progress and sustainable development is thecentral focus of PES policy.

Are you worried about the rise of conservatism in Europe?

The Center-Left has lost elections on the way into the crisis– people were not convinced that it was the failure of Right-Wing ideology. Now we’ve got to win them back for the wayout of the crisis. Fighting mass unemployment and definingthe way forward. The PES Congress in Prague this weekcommitted to shaping a new vision and presenting a newprogram for progressive societies. We received a‘Mandate forChange from our member parties. All PES members havecommitted to a new strategy, which will lead us back toinfluence and power. We leave the past behind.

What is the bare minimum that Europe should expect fromthe UNFCCC Climate Conference in Copenhagen?

In Copenhagen the governments must agree on a frameworkfor a global agreement with binding emission reduction tar-gets for developed countries and clear commitments byemerging economies. We need a binding roadmap to finalizean agreement before summer next year. The PES decided attheir congress in Prague that the EU should unilaterallydecide to reduce their emissions by 30% until 2020.

INTERVIEW WITH POUL NYRUP RASMUSSEN

PES looks to 2010

New Europe talks to Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior

Mr. Prime Minister, Europe hasgone through the struggle and nowwe have The Lisbon Treaty, what isthe future for Europe?

The Lisbon Treaty and ratificationof the Lisbon treaty is of the essen-ce, now we are facing prevent chal-lenges; one concerning the generaleconomic and financial situation.Europeans as member of EuropeanUnion, we have to further developfor a common exit strategy. Thesecond point is that we have tomake sure as Europeans that wewill never fall back in the situationwe had before the crisis started.Third point which to my view isvery important would be to estab-lish common social rules, not doingexactly the same things in everyw-here but put ourselves on an agree-ment as far as the certain numberof minimum rules concerning theworking people.

Now we had a very low turnout thelast European election. What wecan do to give people the instiga-tion to vote again?

We have to tell Europeans thatthey can be proud of what theEuropean Union has achieved sofar, we have peace on this dangero-us continent, peace is not an everlasting stable element, we haveenlarged the EU by peaceful meansto the East and center of Europe,

we have achieved the creation ofsingle currency, nobody in factbelieved 15 years ago that wewould be able to achieve this andso instead of criticizing the EU,they are aware that no criticism hasto be accepted if we should upholdthe achievements of the EU. Weshould not divide Member States

and Prime Ministers when we aregathering for the EuropeanCouncil into two blocks, the win-ners and the losers. No winners, nolosers for Europe. Europe has to bethe winner.

One Europe, but certain countriesfor instances UK opts the stay out

of the Eurozone. How will it playout in the future?I do think that part of the Britishresistance to the crisis is due to theeuro, because the euro is givingeconomic and monetary stability tothe continent. So even those whoare out of the Eurozone area havebenefited from the euro. And 10-

15 years from now I am totallyconvinced that the UK will be amember of the Eurozone.

Greece is facing particular econo-mic trouble at the moment. Whatis the way out for this country?

I do not think that this wentwrong, telling the readers thatGreece is facing a state default arewrong. I do not think that Greeceis facing state default but Greecehas to do is to consolidate its pub-lic finance in a way that in theshort and medium run Greece willappear as a civilized county. I amfully convinced that Greekgovernment will take effectiveaction, the Greek government hasto take effective action.

Your name was up against HermanVan Rompuy for the EuropeanCouncil President position? Do wehave full confidence to trustHerman Van Rompuy?

I’ve known Herman Van Rompuyfor 20 years. I am the only one in theEuropean Council who knows him.Yes, the others do know him for 10months so, and I am convinced thathe will be a strong president. Thosewho are speculating that he will be aweak president, they will learn thathe is a strong guy.

Jean-Claude Juncker is PrimeMinister of Luxembourg

INTERVIEW

New Europe | Page 3NEW EUROPEDecember 13 - 19, 2009

This has been a very successfulnew year for the EPP. You havecontrol of the Parliament, you aredoing well in the Commission, andof course Lisbon has been finallyapproved. Where are you going togo from here?

I think it is our responsibility toensure that the European Uniondevelops in the right way, that wecan live in peace, that we are com-petitive as Europeans with thecompetition in the world, withChina, with our friends in theUnited States, and others. And, ofcourse, we have to solve the greatchallenge and problem of climatechange, and the European Unionhas taken the lead. This is veryimportant, so we are there in theEuropean Peoples Party, and ourgroup in the European Parliament,are in the center of European deve-lopment. The one loss that the EPP has hadis with the UK Conservatives lea-ving the group. Has that been agreat loss for the EPP?

No, of course we regret very much

that the British Conservatives leftour group in the EuropeanParliament, which I chaired forseven-and-a-half years, and I didso much to keep them in ourgroup, and it’s a great disappoin-tment that the leader of theConservative Party in Londontook another decision. I think thisis a strategic mistake, but evenwhen they have left us, we remainthe biggest group in the EuropeanParliament. We remain committedto the European Project and this

European project in the 21st-Century is a project now for theyoung generation. The 21st-Century is the century for youngpeople and we are working forthem that they have a good futureon our European continent.

Well, on the subject of theConservatives, there is talk thatEdward McMillan-Scott will becoming to join the EPP. Wouldyou welcome him or any other con-servatives?

I personally would welcome himvery much. He believes in theEuropean unification, and he alwa-ys defended in a good way the inte-rests of his country, the UnitedKingdom. But at the same time healways has been a good Europeanand I always have had, on a perso-nal basis even, a very good relationwith Edward McMillan-Scott.

But the withdrawal of theConservatives seems to be a sym-ptom of growing euroskepticismwithin Europe and there is moreand more distance between the

citizens and the institutions. Arewe in a situation now whereLisbon has been approved that wecan be a bit more outward looking.How are you hoping to engagewith euroskeptics and the morequestioning citizens?

This is of course something wehave to look at. It is very importantthat the political parties, theEuropean parties, the members ofParliament on the national level, onthe local level, on the Europeanlevel, have a close relation with ourcitizens and I am not pessimistic. Ithink that if we improve our rela-tions, and if the media, especiallytelevision, are more open for infor-mation about the European Union,I think it will be possible to bringthe people nearer to the EuropeanUnion again, and my experience isthat there is a deep sense of thepeople, that they want a united andstrong Europe that defends ourvalues and in the heart of ourEuropean project is the dignity ofthe human being, are humanrights, democracy, legal order, peaceand solidarity between the people

in Europe. This is our ambition,these are our values, and let us fightfor them peacefully.

I have got to ask you about the newCouncil President and the HighRepresentative. Now these peopleseem to be evolving their own jobdescriptions and their own appro-aches to the task. How would youlike them see develop in these newroles?

I think both personalities, HermanVan Rompuy as President of theEuropean Council, and LadyAshton as the Foreign Minister, soto say, High Representative andVice President of the Commission,they are very able and committedpersonalities and if I would have togive advice to them, then I wouldencourage them to take strong lea-dership for the European Union, sothat the European Union is visiblein the European Union and in theworld.

Hans-Gert Pöettering discusses theEPP’s vision for Europe and the lossof the UK Conservatives

INTERVIEW WITH HANS-GERT PÖETTERING

The EPP wants an EU that can take on the US and world

INTERVIEW WITH JEAN-CLAUDE JUNCKER

Eurozone President gives his thoughts on the future of Europe and the new Council President

ANALYSIS

Page 4 | New Europe NEW EUROPEDecember 13 - 19, 2009

State support for the needy banksIn the aftermath of the last credit crunch, which forced the gov-ernments of the US, the European Union countries and a largenumber of other industrial or developing countries, to supportthe banking sector with a round sum of 11 trillion dollars, somecountries now face the difficult problem of cutting publicdeficits that have grown to double digit percentages of theGDP. For example, Ireland and Greece in the Eurozone havenow in front of them the painstaking task to cut the state bud-get deficits to acceptable Treaty of Maastricht levels. Bothcountries have accumulated public deficits during 2009, in theregion of 12% to 14% of the GDP, spending a hell lot of moneyto either support the banking system, as is the case in Ireland,or aid the ailing real economy, as did Greece. Now both coun-tries are on the verge of social unrest after their governments areto present state budgets with severe cuts in public spending. The same is also true for a large number of countries includingthe US and Britain. In those cases, however, their special political weight does notpermit rating firms such as Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s andFitch to undervalue the creditworthiness of their state borrow-ing. The freefall of the value of the dollar and the Britishpound, however, have been depicting the implicit fall of credit-worthiness in those two cases. On the other hand, the threeorganizations did not hesitate to question the credit rating ofIreland, Greece, Portugal, Italy and probably Spain. At this point, it must be mentioned that those three rating firmsface judicial proceedings in US and British courts, for havingfailed altogether to see the least of the last credit melt comingor the subsequent real economy recession, which has hauntedthe international economy for two years now.It is a shame to watch Moody’s, S&P and Fitch to have “sealed”

the credit rating of Lehman Brothers with their highest marks,equal to US state bonds and move to downgrade Ireland andGreece with neither of the two having failed in any respect theirdebt obligations. Actually, it seems that the three rating firms are trying to regaintheir lost dignity at the expenses of small countries, such asIreland and Greece, without any remorse. And this, despiteknowing that the social equilibrium everywhere in the world isnow very unstable, after two years of crisis, falling employmentand lower pay. In any case, this is not a question of the three firms having - ornot -any sense of social responsibility. It a straightforward legalcase of Moody’s, S&P and Fitch “guiding” the credit markets tothe direction of their liking. What about the large investmentsbanks in New York and London which keep betting state sup-port money on markets like gold and bonds? Or, are the threerating firms paving the way for the rest of Wall Street organi-zations? All and all now, in the aftermath of the largest crisis of the last70 years the governments which used taxpayers money to savethe banks are now having problems making ends meet. Thehuge state budget deficits cannot go on forever. Despite thoseproblems, the large banks of Wall Street demanded andWashington and other governments agreed, to keep billions ofstate support at the disposal of banks. It is not clear where this arrangement may lead. Western gov-ernments may end up clamoring for the mercy of China to lendthem the hundreds of billions that the western banks need tokeep themselves going. At the other end of the picture, hundreds of millions of peopleare threatened with losing their jobs, not to say anything aboutthe Third World countries where the undernourishment hasreached levels unseen before over the past years.

NE ECONOMIC ANALYSIS

NEWEUROPE

EDITOR

Alexandros Koronakisthe.editor@neurope.eu

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NE 15 YEARS AGO

There was good news and bad news 15 years ago this week for former Soviet Republics and ex-Communist coun-tries who wanted to get into the European Union: some of them were on track and some of them weren’t. The luckyones seemed to be those in the northern part of East Europe, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia,who were closer to meeting the criteria for getting into the EU and emerging from the colossal shadow ofCommunism and the destructive effects to their economies and had kept them in a deep industrial recession andhoped to join the EU in five more years – which wouldn’t happen.

Okay, the first one who shows her face gets it! |(ANA/EPA/JALIL REZAYEE)

The Shooting Gallery

INTERVIEW

New Europe |Page 5NEW EUROPEDecember 13 - 19, 2009

We just had some elections in Ro-mania, and it’s not good for theparties that associate with the EPP,but it seemed to be quite narrow.What’s happening?Yes it was a very close election, butbasically at this moment, there areopportunities to have a Right-Winggovernment in Romania and astrong transparent governmentwhich include also my politicalparty, the Hungarians. That’s whyit’s important these days to be at the

congress of the EPP, because wehave to be strong. There was also adebate in Romania regarding inwhich direction we will go for thenext five years. Basically now, wehave an obligation to form a go-vernment as soon as possible. Andof course this atmosphere of thecongress, this leadership of Europewill be useful also for Romania be-cause we have a recession, we haveproblems, we need to help ourselvesand we need an opportunity to im-prove. Romania is the seventh big-gest state in the European Union. Itwill be very important period afterthe entrance into force of the Lis-bon Treaty. We are able, our smallbut important political party, an im-portant community in Romania,the Hungarians, to prove that weare established in Romania and weare in favor of democracy, in favourof those values in which we believe,like the EPP.

You were talking very hopefully

about the next five years. Nowwe’ve got the EPP that swept theboard in the elections. We’ve gotthe new Commission. We’ve gotLisbon in place. It seems like thereis nothing to stop the EuropeanUnion having some really intere-sting years ahead. What role yousee that Romania could play in thenext few years?We obtained a very important port-folio in the European Commission– portfolio of agriculture. So we willhave a very hard job to do, and ofcourse our Commissioner will befor all 27 countries in Europe, butit’s important for Romania becausewe have a huge agricultural sector.We have also problems and we needto have a very clear system of subsi-dies for agriculture. It will be veryimportant and very difficult yearsfor the EU to establish again eco-nomic growth, clear and united po-licy for Europe, united policy onclimate change, united policy onenergy and to have all the alternati-

ves regarding energy resources. Soin this moment we are on the wayto open new doors for Europeanunification.

What has the membership in theEuropean Union done for Roma-nia’s foreign relations? For our foreign relations – to be amember of the EU, to be a memberof NATO – it’s a new dimension.It’s a new dimension, more security,more confidence in our Europeanvalues and that’s also why, forpeople of the EU it was changingvalues, changing of how we have tothink in Europe after 50 years ofCommunism. So I’m confident itwill be better for Europe, better forRomania and of course better forthe EPP in the next years.

You mentioned you have a veryimportant portfolio of agriculture.What experience has Romaniagot that it can bring to this parti-cularly difficult issue, especially

with the CAP budget? We are in the stage to transform ouragriculture because it was based ontotally other rules than in the EU.So that’s why we have to have anopen discussion, we know that thereare debates in the EU how to re-analzse the subsidies, how the bud-get for 2014 will be regardingagriculture expenditure. That’s whywe are proud we have such portfo-lio. That’s why for Romania to havethis kind of power in the EU toprove we are able to show to ourpartners that it’ll be, I hope, verypragmatic, very balanced agriculturepolicy, also for those who joined theEU in 2004 and 2007 and also forthe biggest western European co-untries which have maybe anotherdimension on how we have to sub-sidise our agriculture.László Borbély is a member of the Ro-

manian Chamber of Deputies, a former

Minister of Transportation and Minis-

ter of Regional Development, Public

Works and Housing

INTERVIEW WITH LÁSZLÓ BORBÉLY

Romania’s EU role takes on some roots, and fiscal hopes

Now that the EU has a new Coun-cil President and High Represen-tative, who is Mr. Putin going tocall?It’s a good question; maybe you cangive me an answer, because it is upto you , I mean it’s up to the Euro-pean Union to say what will be theduty of new president, but I believethat Mr. Putin, as chair of our go-vernment, may and must have bet-ter relationship with Mr. Barroso,with the Commissioner, the Com-mission and the Chair of the Com-mission, and of course we will seewhat will be the role of the newPresident of this union of Euro-pean States, and then of course wewill have some changes maybe inour protocol. But the main step, ofcourse, is it is your duty to do it.

So until we do that, we take it thatMr. Barroso is still on the speeddial, shall we?Well, our next summit will be nottomorrow, so we can prepare eve-rything before that.

The Lisbon Treaty has finallybeen ratified. How does this newtreaty and its different objectiveschange relations with the EU andRussia, and does it have any newopportunities?I believe that we have some morereasons to be optimistic, because

the previous situation, when wechanged the presidency each sixmonths, was a kind of base of in-stability, in the relations, not onlywith Russia but with some othercountries like the United States,China, etc. We prefer, of course, amore stable situation, and whenyou have the post of President ofthis Union, it means that now wehave a kind of stability for two-and-a-half years. This is the goodnews for us.

There is one issue that has beencausing tension, particularly withBulgaria and its increased supportfor the Nabucco pipeline. How isthat affecting relations with Bul-garia and with the EuropeanUnion?You know, Nabucco, and someother pipelines, it’s commercialprojects. Of course there are some

relations between political projectsand commercial ones, but let’sthink separately about separatethings. If we are speaking about af-fairs between Bulgaria and Russia,they are based not only on somecommercial projects, but also onthe historic relations for centuries,and we are speaking about frien-dship between people of Bulgariaand my country, we are speakingabout cooperation between our go-vernments. I know well the Bulga-rian ambassador to Moscow, andwe are friends. And anyhow wehave to solve a lot of problems ifwe are speaking about commercialprojects. As Mr. Putin said, it is nota Russian question, but it is que-stion of European Union or Bulga-ria, to take part or not to take partin projects like Nabucco.

From remarks that you just said, itseems that Russia perhaps is justwaiting to see how these changesin the EU is going to impactYes, because now it is not our taskto make the next step. If people inthe European Union, Bulgaria,prefer to have stable energy supplyfrom Russia they have to havethese pipelines. If they prefer tohave something without a real base,without oil fields, without gas fi-elds, it’s up to you. You can thinkabout a pipeline, from, let’s say

Mercury or from the Moon. Butit’s not so realistic. We prefer tohave real deals, like this NordStream on the northern part fromEurope.

We are at the EPP summit here,with the change in the Parliament,where the center right is really incontrol now. How does Russiaview that change, are they peoplethey can, in your words, do busi-ness with?We know the statistics now. Weknow how many seats the EPPgroup has in the European Parlia-ment. But this is only a statistic.We would like to see what the newbehavior of this party is, havingsuch a kind of majority in the Eu-ropean Parliament, and after thatwe can base our affairs with theEPP party in the European Parlia-ment, based on real steps, real acti-vities, real behavior.

You’re constantly mentioning thatthe ball is in the European Union’scourt.In all these cases, in all cases we arespeaking about, the ball is not onour side.

So what would you be looking for?What would you, Russia regard asbeing hopeful and positive signsthat will lead to improved relations?

We think that the main thing inour relationship is the reality. If webase on reality, if we are speakingabout strategic partnership be-tween my country and the Euro-pean Union, we can do a lottogether. It will be a fruitful coo-peration indeed. But if we are spea-king about, a kind ofconfrontation, about treaties justfor a short-term periods, about se-arching for some results not only inthe fields of our cooperation butlet’s say, in the fields which I canname as “non, non-realistic one,” -by the way try to split the CIS co-untries - with the help of, let’s say,eastern dimension, with the help ofthis new eastern bloc if you like.We do not know the purpose ofthis eastern partnership, we like tohave much more informationabout that. So if we can, if we liketo do something together, you haveto include Russia in different proj-ects. Inform us as much as possibleabout real meaning, of this or thatproposals of the European Union.We do not want to be players wit-hout rules. We prefer to have somerules in between.

Andrey Klimov is a member of theCommittee on International Af-fairs and Head of the Sub-Com-mittee on European Co-operationin the Russian Duma

INTERVIEW WITH ANDREY KLIMOV

Russia unsure about new EU President role, keeps pressure on energy

Page 6 | New Europe NEW EUROPE

INTERVIEW

The first question we have got to ask is, afterthe attempted assassination, how are you co-ping with that? Are you still feeling underthreat and have there been any investigationsas to the culprits?

I was a kind of a target always, as a Ministerof Education. I changed the institutional lawof the universities. I was the first minister, Iprepared a law about the quality assurance inGreece education so there are groups insidethe universities and other groups, they do not

want to change anything. Leftist group, butvery conservative. It was a threat. I was wor-ried about my daughter, she was afraid, andmy mother, she is old. But anyway, I do notwant to stop being in politics. They made adeclaration saying that I had to leave politics.They do not like what I say what I do.

You are going to carry on speaking out as youhave always done?

Yes, Yes. There is no problem for me, I am al-

ways active, and I will be active.

We are here at the EPP summit, and it seemsthat this is a golden time around the cornerfor the EPP. You are doing well with theparty, you have a good Commission and Lis-bon has finally got through. Surely there isnothing stopping the EPP from carrying outits vision for the future of Europe.

Yes the EPP, first of all, is a very Europeanparty. The EPP has been around for over 50years. The EPP was created in 1953. So it is agold time for the EPP, but we have to profit,to take a new contact with the citizens. Theproblem is that Europe is working. We areready to applicate the Lisbon Treaty now. Butwhat the citizens understand, the commis-sion, even in the past, tried, and the Parlia-ment, to create a dialogue with the citizens,especially with the young generation. We ha-ven’t a success. Many people did not vote inthe last election. It means we have to makepeople understand not only what is the profit,the economic profit for some countries, likeGreece, coming from the European Union,but especially what we are waiting from thefuture. What we are ready to do for the futureof the young of the generation, which is in adifficult time, in a difficult position. I think itis not only the unemployment. The illusionsof the, sometimes the young generation, hasillusions, they think that everything could beeasy. Nothing is easy now, competition is verystrong and we have to still work to create anew Europe, competitive Europe, competitiveeconomy, competitive development, but equalchances for the youth.

One other change we are seeing now is whatwe will call the new Member States, particu-larly the ex-Soviet Bloc countries. They arenow becoming much more central to Europe,it is like that they have passed through thefirst year, and now they are into the middle.What do you think these countries all bringinto this new Europe that you talk about?

Yes, they are, they bring many things. On theother side they haven’t had democracy whenwe have a democracy. Totalitarianism hasleave something to these countries. I do notthink they still afraid of a foreign interven-tion or something. That was the reason, thepolitical reason, that the 10 countries becamemembers of the European Union so fast. ButI think they bring something, from their ex-perience, their way of life, even their fears. I

think after some years the situation will bebetter, the mind of all Europeans, East andWestern of Europe, will have the same direc-tion, same aims. I think it is positive.

But there is one thing missing from this year’ssummit, which is of course the British Con-servative party, who have decided to walkaway from this group at its moment of grea-test success. Are they missed?

In the eighties, I was a member of EuropeanParliament also, and I was one of them, weworked for the union between the EuropeanConservative Party and the EPP. It was thetime of Margaret Thatcher, but the EuropeanGroup, the Conservative group was very Eu-ropean, strongly European. Now they haveleft. I think we will have to see in the future ifwe can create again a common group. But wehave to agree in some key points, because theEPP party remains very European, in favor ofan integrated Europe. I think Cameron willbe probably be the new Prime Minister afterthe elections of the United Kingdom, andprobably the reality will change the situation,the position of the Conservative Party, insome key points, of the European, let’s say theEuropean challenges, the European future.

There is some discussion that the way thatCameron took this path, was that he was try-ing to use euroskepticism, and this sense ofdislocation that you were talking about ear-lier, as a kind of Populist approach to helpingget power, and there seems to be a growinggroup of euroskeptics, not necessarily theconservatives, that are becoming more ex-treme. Now we are in a parliament that hasgot more extreme MEPs than we have everseen before, and some of these are absolutelyalarming. How are you dealing with that?

This is not good, but I hope that realism willbe something present if, if they get the power.But anyway, British policy was always diffe-rent in some points. From the time thatChurchill made round of Europe, saying,“You have to be united.” And when someoneasks him about United Kingdom, he said,“We are an island, I talk about Europe.” Idon’t think the situation is the same, but any-way, Europe without countries like UnitedKingdom, France, Germany, is not Europe. Sowe have to find ways to get better together, ifit is possible. Marietta Giannakou is a former Minister for Na-

tional Education and Religious Affairs in Greece

INTERVIEW WITH MARIETTA GIANNAKOU

Giannakou is undeterred about the attempt on her life and will stay in politics – with advice for the EPP and the EU

Many people did not vote in the last elec-tion. It means we have to make people un-derstand not only what is the profit, the

economic profit for some countries... but espe-cially what we are waiting from the future

December 13 - 19, 2009

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INTERVIEW

New Europe | Page 7NEW EUROPEDecember 13 - 19, 2009

As Kazakhstan prepares to assume the OSCEchairmanship next year, what are the priorities youset for yourself?

We see major challenges and opportunities inthe zone of responsibility of the OSCE. Over thepast ten years, Europe and the world have beenrocked by a string of international events: the ter-rorist attacks of 9/11, the war in Afghanistan, theglobal economic crisis, the flaring up of new localconflicts, and the worsening of ethnic tensions incertain countries in Europe. At the same time,recent dynamics in relations between major inter-national players creates opportunities for betterunderstanding and a more productive dialogue.

As OSCE chairman, Kazakhstan will be unwa-veringly committed to fundamental principles andvalues of the OSCE. We will seek to strengthenthe trust and mutual understanding between thecountries to the west and to the east of Vienna andto ensure the balance of all three baskets of theOrganisation. We will build on the results ofOSCE work during the chairmanships of our pre-decessors. We want to contribute to strengtheningpeace and security, improving confidence withinthe OSCE, stretching from Vancouver toVladivostok. Our priorities will include strengthen-ing the European security architecture, developingtransit and transport potential, stabilizing OSCEregional partner, Afghanistan, and promoting tol-erance and peaceful coexistence in diverse societies,a very timely subject for Europe. We are particular-ly pleased that OSCE foreign ministers haveagreed to hold a high level conference on toleranceand non-discrimination in Astana next June.Kazakhstan will seek to use all of its mediatingpotential to support existing frameworks of nego-tiations to settle protracted conflicts inTransdniestria, Nagorno Karabakh, South Ossetiaand Abkhazia. We know the history of the conflictswell, we know the key actors well, and ourPresident, Nursultan Nazarbayev, is held in highrespect among those actors. All of these reasonsgive us hope some progress can be achieved.

Why is Afghanistan such a priority forKazakhstan, and what do you think the OSCEshould do to stabilize the situation in that country?

For several years now, Afghanistan has been amajor concern for the international community.Though the country is not part of the OSCE andlies outside its geographical zone, it is clear the sit-uation there affects security in Central Asia,Europe and beyond. Hence, a total of 43 of theOrganisation’s 56 member countries are involved inthe conflict in one way or another.

Any talk of stabilising our own region or ofEuropean security will be premature as long asAfghanistan is not stabilized. Today, the terroristthreatand drug trafficking continue to emanate outof that war stricken country.

It is clear though Afghanistan’s problems will notbe resolved by military means. Therefore, we havebeen focusing on the humanitarian aspect of theconflict and trying to help Afghanistan come backto a normal economic development. We need tocontinue to help the Afghan people to learn to live,prosper, build,and create, not to destroy and kill.

We have supplied humanitarian aid and deliv-ered wheat, as well as financial assistance for build-ing roads, a school, and a hospital. Under a recentagreement with Afghanistan, we have set aside 50million dollars over the next five years to educateone thousand young Afghans in Kazakh collegesand universities to be engineers and agronomists,doctors and nurses, teachers and police officers.Allof this could be developed as part of an interna-tional cooperation programme with other mem-bers of the OSCE.

We have welcomed a decision by U.S. PresidentBarack Obama to send more troops toAfghanistan, yet we believe much more interna-

tional efforts need to be poured into ensuring civil-ian development there. We believe the OSCE hasa larger role to play in dealing with the humanitar-ian side of international efforts.

The OSCE Ministerial Council in Athens ear-lier in December agreed to consider Kazakhstan’sidea to hold an OSCE summit next year. Why hasKazakhstan put forward this idea, and what areyou trying to achieve by promoting the summit?

Holding the summit during the year of the 35thanniversary of the Helsinki Final Act and of the65th anniversary of the end of World War II wouldgive our organization a powerful boost. We strong-ly believe that today, 10 years after the Istanbulsummit of the OSCE, a moment has come whenleaders of our countries should come together toaddress modern challenges and set the mostimportant priorities in ensuring security and co-operation in the OSCE realm. That is what thepeople in all countries in the organisation expectfrom us. We are deeply grateful to all OSCE par-ticipating states for their support in principle ofPresident Nazarbayev’s initiative to hold a summitin 2010, reflected in documents adopted in Athens.

Our goal is not to stage a summit for the sake ofhaving a summit. Instead, we seek to breathe a“fresh air” into the process which began 35 yearsago. Now, together with our partners we intend towork on transforming this vision into reality.Kazakhstan strongly believes that only by workingtogether and in concert with each other will we beable to achieve high and noble goals of the OSCE,providing security and prosperity for our nations.

Kazakhstan will turn 18 on December 16.What has your country achieved during theseyears, and where is Kazakhstan heading?

Our short 18 years as an independent state arebut an instant in terms of history, but equal to awhole epoch given the scope and volume of funda-mental economic, social and political reforms.Eighteen years ago, we were one of the poorestcountries in the former USSR, and inherited a par-ticularly unfavourable legacy. Our economy wasbuilt around a military-industrial complex, 93% ofwhich was directly managed from and forMoscow. This was compounded by two majorenvironmental catastrophes. One and a half millionpeople had been affected by the fallout from the

500 nuclear tests carried out during the Soviet eraat the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site, and theecosystem of an area the size of present-day Ger -many had been damaged. The second catastrophe,also due to Soviet mismanagement, was all but dis-appearance of the Aral Sea during the lifetime ofone generation. The wind is blowing salt fromwhat was once the seabed of the Aral Sea across thewhole region, and even as far as Europe. In addi-tion, we were and are one of the most ethnicallydiverse countries of the former Soviet Union, withabout 140 different ethnic groups and 46 differentreligions. Our ethnic patchwork includes Kazakhs,Russians, Koreans, Germans from the Volgaregion, and many others. That was our startingpoint for building Kazakhstan. We believe ourbiggest achievement during the years of indepen-dence is that we have managed to avoid any ethnicconflicts, instead turning our ethnic diversity intostrength whilst implementing economic reforms tomove to a market economy. In 18 years, Kaz akh -stan has changed beyond recognition, from one ofthe worst off fragments of the former Soviet Unioninto an economically strong and dynamicallydeveloping emerging democracy, as well as a wor-thy partner within the international community.

How would you describe Kazakhstan’s relationswith Europe, and, in general, Kazakhstan’s posi-tion in the modern world?

We have been moving closer towards Europesince independence, and this has been a very con-scious choice. It is no coincidence that at ourPresident’s initiative we have been implementing aspecial reform programme, ‘Path to Europe’, for ayear now. This programme is designed to bringKazakhstan closer to European standards in econ-omy, legislation, education and social life.

We believe our interests in closer ties are mutu-al. Europe is keen to strengthen its cooperationwith Kazakhstan and Central Asia in general onissues such as energy security, stability, democraticdevelopment, including under the 2007 EuropeanUnion strategy towards Central Asia. We too areinterested in seeing more European investmentand technologies coming into Kazakhstan.Already, taken as a whole, the European Union hasbeen Kazakhstan’s largest trading partner for thepast five years. Our bilateral trade last year amount-ed to more than 26 billion euros, and we would liketo see this figure grow further. Right now, we areengaged in negotiations with the European Unionover a new agreement on partnership and cooper-ation, which, once approved, will allow moving ourrelations to a qualitatively new level. By the way,Kazakhstan, with more than five percent of its ter-ritory located in Europe, which is roughly the sizeof Greece, and given that our culture is rooted inboth the Oriental and the Occidental cultures, isseen by many as Europe in Asia and as Asia inEurope. Since our independence, we have pursueda balanced, pragmatic multi-vector foreign policyseeking equal and commonly beneficial co-opera-tion with all partners. Our President’s decision torenounce the world’s fourth largest nuclear arsenaland shut down the Semipalatinsk nuclear test sitesoon after independence presented Kazakhstan tothe world as a peaceful nation. This voluntary stepwas met with appreciation by international institu-tions and leading states of the world. Today,Kazakhstan has strategic partnerships with coun-tries of the European Union, the United States,Russia, China, and maintains close relations withour neighbours in Central Asia. We believe theunanimous decision by OSCE 56 member statesto elect Kaz akhstan as chairman of the organisa-tion for 2010 marks Kazakhstan’s recognition as anindependent state and is an opportunity for us tocontribute to security and cooperation in Europe.From that, everybody will benefit.

INTERVIEW WITH KANAT SAUDABAYEV, KAZAKHSTAN’S SECRETARY OF STATE AND MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

OSCE chair gets new priority

From an outgoing chairman to an incoming chair-man. In a symbolic handshake, Greek PrimeMinister - Minister of Foreign Affairs GeorgePapandreou hands over the OSCE chairmanship toKazakhstan's Secretary of State - Minister ofForeign Affairs in Athens on December 2, 2009

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Page 8 | New Europe NEW EUROPE

ANALYSISDecember 13 - 19, 2009

EUROCENTRIQUE

A tale of one cityBy Alia Papageorgiou

It’s not every day you get to be a part ofan event the whole world is watching,almost every diplomatic corp. is a partof, every NGO you can think of (andanother 1000 you hadn’t) is presentand claiming vocal opposition to any-thing but success (although what suc-cess might be changes every day), andthen of course there are the politicians,yet to arrive, ready to step in from

week 2 at a Ministerial level followed by the heads of state tocap it all off with some signatures.The Climate Change Conference organized by the UnitedNations and the United Nations Framework Convention forClimate Change, UNFCCC is a forum for deliberation. Aplace where every country is given the opportunity to speakup about its ideas, plans, policies and future goals as regardsClimate Change.Or is it?In the set up of an exhibition centre, not more than a 10minute metro or 15 minute bus ride from Kvpenhavn(Copenhagen) Airport you can see the diplomatic tactics ourworld loves to play in order to warm up to discussions, on anytopic. Delegates it seems are used to this procedure, they comeset up, start following the rules and get to work.In the last 19 months I have become acclimatized to theBrussels rain, and intermittent sunshine just as I have becomemore adept at the 27 party conversations that take place inBelgium’s capital 2 – 3 times a year, (just like the EuropeanCouncil Summit held 10-11 December for example) in thislast week watching 192 parties try and get their voices or-ganized and heard was an extension of this, with slight dif-ferences. It takes longer, to state the obvious.Yvo De Boer, the Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC saidon the fourth day that proceedings in the plenary and work-ing groups were like moving into a new house, first you needto change the décor to your taste, unpack your bags and getcomfortable with your surroundings , then you can be readyto act. “But I do see that now we are ready to forge forwardwith some real work, people are here wanting to get the workdone,” and with some Ministers of Environment or ClimateChange (or both) arriving early to get in on the action (theywere scheduled for 13 December but some have started ar-riving as early as 10 December) action is becoming a keyword. According to De Boer some issues are becoming clearlydefined, in particular the area of technologies and how toapply green technologies within a more rigorous framework.The EU via its delegation has brought price cuts for devel-oping countries into this mix stressing that any of the tech-nologies to be used would be at strictly at cost price fordeveloping nations.As we go to print a slight stalling effect has become appar-ent as one nation has requested amendments that find manyothers opposed. Discussions within two groups, APM andACM were halted for two days as John Ash, a UN expertwas called in to comment on how the plenary should proceedas the proposed amendments were deemed as “changing theKyoto Protocol” by China and India a move they and manyothers were against. The journalistic pool onsite at the BellaCentre, (confusing numbers on this some say 3000, then 1800and the COP 15 site showed 1500 on 10 December) hasmuch to cover, many questions to ask that either deliberatelyor coincidentally sway opinions to and fro and most of all isgearing up for the even bigger show next week. Watch out, here come the politicians…Follow Alia Papageorgiou on twitter @eurocentrique or emailher alia@neurope.eu

A small Commonwealth island ofthe south west coast of Australia hascreated quite a stir at the United Na-tions talks on Climate Change heldunder the auspices of the United Na-tions Framework Convention on Cli-mate Change also known as theCOP15 bringing main talks to astandstill for the two last days of theConference in week 1.

Ian William Fry the special Coun-selor of the Prime Minister’s office ofTuvalu has thrown a spanner in theworks as he has managed to halt pro-ceedings of the COP15 by suggestingthat amendments be made to theKyoto Protocol. Fry a delegate I metin Brussels as part of a roundtable dis-cussion on Development, speaking onbehalf of Grenada, mentioned at thetime that he was an Australian as wellas a Tuvalu citizen and was runningthe Counselling position out of hishome in Australia.

Tuvalu formerly known as the El-lice Islands, is a Polynesian island na-tion located in the Pacific Ocean,midway between Hawaii and Aus-tralia. Its population of 11,992 makesit the third-least-populated sovereignstate in the world, with only VaticanCity and Nauru having fewer inhabi-tants. In terms of physical land size,at just 26 square kilometers (10 sq mi)Tuvalu is the fourth smallest countryin the world, larger only than the Vat-ican City at 0.44 km2 (0.17 sq mi),Monaco at 1.95 km2 (0.75 sq mi) andNauru at 21 km2 (8.1 sq mi).

And yet this tiny strip of a nationhas been a proponent for change and iscausing dichotomies at the COP15.

Within minutes of stating his inten-tions, most African, Asian, Arab andIndian nations opposed such moves asunbeneficial to the positioning of allthose who had come from far away todiscuss what was on the table, and cre-ating a protocol anew that most wouldnot be able to partake. Connie Hede-gaard the COP15’s President andMinister appointed solely to the Con-ference by the Danish Government(and also future Climate Commis-sioner of the EU) refrained from ex-plaining to Tuvalu that a review wasbeing made since so many countrieswere opposed to the notion, as follow-ing her decision to revert to expertsTuvalu continued on insisting that thismotion affecting the Protocol bepassed. This all occurred following a“text” that appeared called “The Dan-ish Text” to much publicized andhyped up controversy from the UKpress and one particular Guardianjournalist at the COP aiming at mak-ing a mole hill out of nothing (let

alone an ant hill). On the same day aWashington based think tank was re-leasing a paper called “The Copen-hagen Agreement” which outlinedwhat would be a best case scenariofrom a resources point of view of theplanet. Various texts, drafts, papers en-sued, BASIC texts, other texts allcame to the fore from many countryparticipants, none cause as much of astir as the initial “texts” whose readerswere accusing the Danish governmentof supporting the big guns and noteven allowing the least developed na-tions come to the table, they had al-ready designed an agreementaccounting for developed nations hav-ing a much weightier voice than thoseof the developing.

The G77 + China held a press con-ference protesting, loudly, strongly,noting “inequities” and a loss of equal-ities and that they would consider notpartaking in a process that was not justand did not allow all to be at the table.

Calling for President Obama toconsider his daughters’ cousins inKenya and how he would like to ex-plain to them the hunger they livethough and will see thanks to climatechange if not a worse future.

The Danish Ministry on the sameday confirmed to New Europe thatsuch a text did not exist, and that atthis stage in the proceedings the arti-cle from the UK only showed howtense everyone was.

I was ready to believe them untilTodd Stern, the US Delegations spe-cial envoy on Climate Change turnedup in Copenhagen. From the word go,he bashed China on emissions, and fu-ture emissions, denying any guilt thatwas being laid on him by the NGOson Americas role on polluting theglobe and stressing the distance theUS would show form anything resem-bling the Kyoto agreement.

And then he said this, after several

references to the “Developed NationsGroup” – “I do think that there is withrespect to the kind of politically-bind-ing agreement that the Danish PrimeMinister Rasmussen has been talkingabout – there is an advantage that anagreement can take effect right away,.., and I think that is a plus, it’s not –you wouldn’t throw the treaty aside inorder to do that, if the treaty was avail-able – the treaty’s not available rightnow.

In terms of going forward we cer-tainly would intend to – the last thingwe would want is for the political -po-litically-binding agreement that we’retalking about to substitute for the ef-fort to get a legal agreement, so wecertainly are supportive of the notionthat efforts to negotiate a full legalagreement should go on, full speedahead. I can’t tell you exactly what thedeadline ought to be, but it ought tobe soon.”

Where to next?Calls of walk outs and tensions seem

to have eased as Copenhagen headsfor the biggest party weekend sched-uled – as NGOs and officials have or-ganized for the last six months.

A country wide demonstration wasset to hit record numbers as mediafrom around the world canvassed shopowners and asking “Are you realygoing to leave the shop open duringprotests? Aren’t you scared?” (TwoFrench journalists I ran into. Joiningwill be many other peoples and na-tions form around the world in soli-darity.

The next week will be the final de-cider.

As for Tuvalu, if they are speakingfor Australia, this just sheds a wholenew light on the Aussie’s supposedwillingness to aid and negotiate theirway to a solid deal in Copenhagen.Something tells me though that Tu-valu could be going it alone…

COP15

Where in the world is Tuvalu?By Alia Papageorgiou in Copenhagen

NGOs picked up the Tuvalu cause fromt he first day, why? I still haven't fully understood

ANALYSISNew Europe |Page 9NEW EUROPE

December 13 - 19, 2009

By Sherri Goodman and David M. Catarious, Jr., Ph.D.

For many years, climate change was an issue that only captured theattention of the environmental community. Observed and predictedclimatic changes were seen wholly in their own environmental con-text, such as increasing air temperatures, rising seas, and melting gla-ciers. Recently, however, attention has turned to the impact climatechange will have on environmental systems critical to human pop-ulations and how these impacts could force populations to react. Theauthors of this paper were involved in one such effort at the CNA,a U.S.-based nonprofit, public interest, and national security thinktank comprising the Center of Naval Analyses and the Institute forPublic Research. In 2006 and 2007, CNA assembled a team of an-alysts and joined them with a Military Advisory Board (MAB) of11 retired three- and four-star admirals and generals to consider thepotential security implications of climate change on the UnitedStates. The result of that effort was the report, “National Securityand the Threat of Climate Change.”

This report concluded that “projected climate change poses a se-rious threat to America’s national security.” The report also articulatedthe concept that climate change will act as a “threat multiplier for in-stability in some of the most volatile regions of the world,” and that“projected climate change will add to tensions even in stable regionsof the world.” Climate change also poses several health risks. Whilemilder winters will result in fewer cold-related deaths, more frequentand intense heat waves will threaten increasing numbers of peoplearound the world. In many tropical and sub-tropical areas, popula-tions are expected to suffer from an increase in pathogenic mi-croorganisms (such as malaria and dengue fever) as the changingclimate allows the disease carriers (including mosquitoes and ticks)to survive longer and expand their range.

Water-borne diseases will also be more common as sea levels riseand extreme storms swamp coasts and flood rivers.

Land loss and flooding risks displacing populations on a worry-ing scale. Through this century and beyond, sea levels will rise. Evenif greenhouse gas emissions were stabilized immediately, the heatalready present in the world’s waters will cause the oceans to continueto expand. The melting of land-based glaciers will also contribute tothis inexorable rise. Coastlines are some of the most heavily popu-lated areas in the world and feature critical commercial and govern-ment infrastructure. Over the last few years, several peer-reviewedscientific studies have suggested that in this century alone, sea levelscould rise by a meter or more—a catastrophic increase that woulddestroy the homes, businesses, and livelihoods of hundreds of mil-lions of people.

A global problem with localized effectsIn regard to specific security concerns, the impacts of climate

change will manifest themselves in different ways in different re-gions of the world. One of the most worrisome is the melting ofHimalayan glaciers, which are the birthplace of the great rivervalleys of the Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra. These glaciers arethe primary source of fresh water for hundreds of millions ofpeople in key regions of Asia, including Pakistan, India, andBangladesh. The most immediate threat here is the potentialfor severe, recurrent flooding, putting the lives of tens of thou-sands of people in the region at risk every year. Likely outcomesof these recurrent events are an increase in humanitarian crises re-quiring an international military response and increased regionaltensions. Africa too will experience severe impacts from climatechange. Desertification is already destroying land that supportscrops and livestock (and many even point to such climaticchanges as one of the root causes of the genocide in Darfur). Ris-ing seas threaten to destabilize Nigeria, which, in addition tobeing an increasingly important producer of oil, features a low-lying river delta with an estimated 30 million residents.

As a result of these impacts, particularly within Africa, itis likely that the international community’s call for help withhuman assistance missions and disaster response effortscould increase dramatically.

The CNA MAB’s final finding was that “climate change, na-tional security, and energy dependence are a related set of global chal-lenges.” To focus more tightly on this interconnection, the Boardreconvened in 2008 and 2009 to issue a second report, “PoweringAmerica’s Defense: Energy and the Risks to National Security.” Thisreport examined how the world’s distribution of fossil fuels (pri-marily oil) has a distorting effect on international relations, oftenleaving the United States and its allies vulnerable to supply shocksand economic volatility. The report also examined how the nation’sfragile electric grid —which is now mainly constructed upon cen-tralized, fossil fuel-based generation—leaves the country vulnerableto both accidents and malicious attacks. The main conclusion wasthat America’s energy posture constitutes a serious and urgent riskto national security—militarily, diplomatically, and economically.

Important precedentsIt is important to remember that the types of challenges presented

in international climate negotiations have some historical precedents,albeit on a smaller and less complicated scale than at Copenhagen.The business, military, and environmental communities have a greatdeal of experience in reducing emissions of substances that causeenvironmental damage. Examples include the reduction of ozone-depleting gases through the Montreal Protocol and the reductionof acid rain-inducing agents in the United States through a cap-and-trade mechanism in the Clear Air Act. However, reducinggreenhouse gases presents a more challenging problem due to thewide variety of sources of the emissions, the difficulty in ensuringenforcement, and the large investment in fossil fuel-intensive en-ergy sources. Also, even if agreements were limited to a smaller groupof nations, the mechanisms to reduce emissions are complex andwould likely still require careful and deliberate negotiations. Inter-national climate change negotiations should also focus significantattention on not just mitigating the emission of greenhouse gases, buton adapting to the impacts that are likely to occur no matter whatpreventive actions are taken. Many of the nations and regions mostat-risk of severe security impacts have done little to no contingencyplanning or disaster preparedness work. The U.S. Department ofDefense is in the process of incorporating the impacts of climatechange into its strategic planning processes.

Bring in NATOIn the international security arena, to best plan for the inevitable

security impacts of climate change, NATO should also incorporateclimate change into its strategic planning process. Specifically,NATO should integrate climate security into its new Strategic Con-cept, the document that lays out the alliance’s objectives and providesguidance on how best to achieve them in political and military terms.In April 2009, NATO’s leadership called for the development of anew Strategic Concept (to update the previous version developed in1999). A final draft is due in late 2010. As this document is only up-dated approximately once a decade, including climate security intothe 2010 version is critical to focusing the proper planning and re-sources from the international security community.

While it is clear that there are a number of difficulties involved inaddressing the threats posed by climate change and energy security,the potential consequences of inaction are too severe to ignore. Thesenations would also strengthen their hand in the foreign policy arenaby decreasing their dependence on hostile and unstable energy sup-pliers. Militaries that adopt aggressive energy-efficient technologieswould also better protect their men and women and improve theiragility by lessening the burden of battlefield operations on long, vul-nerable fuel lines. Through their two reports, the CNA MABhas urged the United States and its allies to work cooperativelyto tackle these issues. There is much to be lost through delay, andmuch to be gained through action.This is an abridged version of a series of papers published tocomplement the German Marshall Fund's Halifax Forumon Defence and is re-published with their permission

International Security and Climate Change

By Francisco Jaime Quesado

EU COMMISSION

An Agenda of Changefor the New Comission

The New Barroso Comission will face big challenges. Ina more and more complex global world, the New Treatyof Lisbon is a unique opportunity for Europe being ableto develop its own reinvention. The Reinvention of Eu-rope is the reinvention of its people and institutions. Anactive commitment, in which the focus in the participa-tion and development of new competences, on a collabo-rative basis, must be the key of the difference. TheComission, in articulation with the other European In-stitutions, must understand that in the nearby futurenothing will be the same.The New Comissiom must lead an operative Agenda ofChange. An Agenda that is easily understood by theCommunity of the European People and Citizens as theeffective way to solve the strategic and operational prob-lems of the present and to open a new frontier in the fu-ture. The Comission must develop active policies tointegrate in a positive way its citizens. Social cohesion isdone with the constructive participation of the citizensand it is more and more necessary an effective attitude ofmobilization for this effort. Education must be the righttool for this strategic ambition for Europe and theComission must present a New Strategic Agenda.The Comission will present in 2010 the New Plan for In-novation. Innovation and Technology are the “enablers”for competitiveness in Europe. Universities and Compa-nies must perform a new strategic partnership centeredin the objectives of the added value, creativity and knowl-edge. This is the basis for a future effective implementa-tion of the Lisbon Agenda. Europe has still a strongopportunity to implement an agenda of innovation – theopportunity is more and more know and it can´t be lost.The weak results of the Lisbon Agenda must be a lessonfor this New Innovation Agenda.The Comission must also develop new policies for theEuropean Regions. The excellence of Europe is more andmore the excellence of its Regions. The development ofstrategic projects like the Poles of Competitiveness, Clus-ters of Innovations and Knowledge Cities and Regions isthe effective confirmation that the basis for a new agendain Europe depends on the capacity of its regions. A NewEurope is more and more the confidence of the develop-ment of New Regions and the effective participation ofthe local actors will be essential Finally, the Comission must reinforce the cultural identityof Europe. Europe has a unique identity based on itsstrong culture. The European Culture is a unique asset.Europe must be able to involve other global partners inthe construction of integrated projects focused on the de-velopment of culture as a driver for development. Wewant a Europe of the citizens. Where people know whothey are and have a strong commitment with the values offreedom, social justice and development. The Agenda ofChange of the New Comission must be the point of de-parture for a New Europe.Francisco Jaime Quesado is the General Manager of the Innovation

and Knowledge Society in Portugal, a public agency with the mission of

coordinating the policies for Information Society and mobilizing it

through dissemination, qualification and research activities. It operates

within the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education

New Europe content partner

Page 10 | New Europe FOCUS

EU CAREERSDecember 13 - 19, 2009

A job with the European Union in one of itsmany facets is coveted, indeed. But much liketrying to get into Harvard, it’s pretty diffi-cult, unless you are politically connected. TheEU institutions employ more than 40,000civil servants on salaries far above those thatthey would receive in their home countries inpublic service. The level is similar to that ofcivil servants in many member states’ em-bassies in Brussels and in other internationalorganizations. From July 2009/ EU salariesvaried from €2,651 for the lowest paid to€18,352 for the highest paid civil servant permonth. There are 16 salary classes with up tofive categories for seniority and besides asalary, civil servants receive a family al-lowance, education allowances for kids andyoung students until 26 years, and a pension.That’s why they’re lined up for exams to geta spot and for sponsors to help. There are a number of institutions in the EUyou can work for, if you’re lucky enough to beaccepted. There are secretaries, project andpolicy officers, lawyers, research assistants,jobs in fields such as human rights, housing,politics, philanthropy, aviation, banking, eco-nomics, defense, food safety, chemicals, med-icine, interpreters, climate change, the spaceprogram, security, immigration, public health,transportation, science, energy, environmentand anti-corruption. There are jobs for in-terns and entry-level positions, but the closeryou get to the top of the EU’s hierarchy themore you’ll benefit from knowing someoneas well as having top professional and educa-tional skills, as Brussels is the capital of Eu-rope, although there are plenty of EU-relatedjobs in other countries as well, includingStrasbourg, France, Amsterdam, Geneva, theHague, Paris, London and in your homecountry. The EU has its major institutions, such asthe European Commission and EuropeanParliament, where many young, bright peopleget their start in a European career, at the po-litical level or linking with critical NGO’sand other agencies. There’s also the Euro-pean Council, Eurostat, which keeps theEU’s numbers and statistics, Court of Justice,Court of Auditors, European Economic andSocial Committee (EESC,) European Cen-tral Bank (ECB,) European InvestmentBank (EIB,) the Ombudsman, who overseescomplaints, and Europol, the EU’s top lawenforcement organization that handles crim-inal intelligence. Its mission is to assist thelaw enforcement authorities of MemberStates in their fight against serious forms oforganized crime, and where monthly salariesrange from 2,556 euros to as high as 14,405-17,697 for the top grades and ranks, butmany good jobs and salaries in mid-level po-sitions as well. It has units in the EU’s 27Member States, so not all the jobs are inBrussels. And while there is a need for mid-level and top managers and administrators,there’s just as much for clerks and adminis-trative assistants and receptionists and other

jobs ranging from entry-to-mid level, manyof which are good opportunities for a lifelongcareer path. The European Personnel Selection Office(EPSO) is the place to start, at http://eu-ropa.eu/epso/index_en.htm on line. It out-lines the whole procedure from beginning toend with detailed job descriptions and appli-cation procedures, available jobs and require-ments as well as information on successfulapplications. Here you can create an onlineaccount with access to all you need to knowabout how and where to apply and whatqualifications are needed, along with pay ta-bles, and even stories from successful appli-cants about how they landed the job theywant

European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO)

What we are looking for Staff in the EU Institutions enjoy a trulymulticultural work environment. They are allprofessionals in their own field and excellentteam players. With their enthusiasm andknowledge they contribute to the prosperitynot only of Europe, but also to the world atlarge. That’s why we are looking for peoplewho have something more than just knowl-edge and professional skills: the drive to de-liver results and the ability to work effectivelyas part of a multi-cultural team.

Are you eligible?Every candidate must:lBe a citizen of a Member State of the Euro-pean UnionlBe entitled to full rights as such a citizenlHave fulfilled any obligations imposed bythe laws on military servicelHave a thorough knowledge of one of theofficial languages of the European Union anda satisfactory knowledge of a second lan-guage

lIn addition, candidates must meet the spe-cific requirements relating to qualificationsand professional experience (where applica-ble), as set out in the Notice of Competition.lMinimum educational requirements vary ac-cording to the position. In general, a universitydegree is required for all Administrator levelpositions. Relevant work experience may be re-quired in some cases. Linguists (interpreters,translators, lawyer-linguists) are required todemonstrate additional knowledge of lan-guages, beyond the minimum requirements

Meaningful worklChallenging, interesting and diverse objec-tiveslDynamic career (opportunities to change di-rection/field throughout your career)lInternational and multicultural work envi-ronment

Access to excellent traininglOutstanding work-life balance (e.g. flex-itime, teleworking)lA competitive and progressive benefits pack-age (medical cover, allowances, free of chargeEuropean schools for children, pensionscheme)

MissionEPSO’s core mission is to provide a profes-sional staff selection service on behalf of theEuropean Union Institutions. The principalremit of the European Personnel SelectionOffice (EPSO) is to deliver a staff selectionservice to the highest professional standardson behalf of the EU Institutions. EPSO andits staff are committed to meeting both theneeds of the Institutions and the expectationsof candidates by attracting and selecting tal-ented people from across the EU by means ofeffective and fair selection procedures. EPSOaims to provide the Institutions in a timelymanner with highly qualified staff accordingto their requests so as to enable them to meet

the challenges they face. EPSO also deliversa range of HR-related services to furthersupport the Institutions in their work.Our vision statement is to be recognizxed in-ternationally as a cenetr of excellence in per-sonnel selection; trusted and valued by theInstitutions we serve; and a place of choicefor staff who want to develop and furthertheir career in the Human Resources fieldand work in a stimulating, challenging andenjoyable environment.

EPSO Values We trust each other to act with honesty andto treat all stakeholders fairly and equitably,using open and transparent procedures.EPSO strives to constantly improve and ob-tain positive results. We are innovative anddynamic, and committed to achieving ourfull potential. EPSO conducts selection pro-cedures in a fair and efficient manner, usingbest practices and ensuring quality and cus-tomer satisfaction through its dedicated andhighly qualified staff. EPSO consistentlyprovides the client with excellent standardsof service in a timely manner. EPSO mirrorsdiversity in its own team and takes the bestfrom people with different backgrounds toachieve our common goal. EPSO acknowl-edges and welcomes the diversity of peopleand treats all equally, applying the rules andprocedures in a tolerant environment.

EPSO Development Programme (EDP)The EPSO Development Programme(EDP) is designed to ensure that EU Insti-tutions are able to attract and recruit high-caliber individuals from across the EU,enabling them to equip themselves for themajor challenges they face in the years ahead.The EDP represents a major modernizationof selection practice, while remaining true tothe underlying principles of fair and opencompetition that have served the EU well forthe past 50 years. The EPSO DevelopmentProgramme is implemented progressivelyover the period 2008 to 2010.

Personnel selection in figuresOver 300lThe number of open competitions organizedby the European Personnel Selection Office- Over 300,000lThe number of candidates who have appliedto one or more competitions - Over 116,000lThe number of candidates that have takencomputer-based admission tests - Over11,000lThe number of candidates successfully pass-ing a competition: - Over 8,400lThe number of successful candidates re-cruited in one of the EU Institutions: -Around 250lThe number of test centers we use or haveused, around Europe -Around 140

EMPLOYMENT

So you want to work for the European Union?There’s a lot you’ll need to know to succeed

The European Union is a good place to work and needs people from all different walks of life, but you have tobe good and well-qualified because the standard is high, so be prepared if you want an EU job |WWW.EUROPA.EU)

EU CAREERS

New Europe | Page 11FOCUSDecember 13 - 19, 2009

What is the EPSO Account andhow can I create one?

The EPSO Account is the elec-tronic record of your personal de-tails and communication addressesco- created by candidates when ap-plying to competitions and selec-tions. It is also used forcorrespondence from EPSO tocandidates. You should always usethe same EPSO account, for eachof the competitions or selectionsyou apply for. If you are intendingto complete an on-line applicationform, you will first be prompted tocreate an EPSO Account if you donot already have one. Alternatively,you may create an EPSO Accountbefore actually applying for a com-petition or selection. A direct linkis available from the right-handcolumn on all pages of this web-site.

In order to create your Account,simply click on the button “Createyour EPSO Account “and fill in allthe required information. Compre-hensive on-line help is provided toexplain how to complete the form.Once you have begun to apply fora competition or selection, youshould ideally access your EPSOAccount (by clicking the icon inthe right-hand column of all webpages) at least twice a week. EPSOsends many important messages tocandidates via their EPSO Ac-count.

May I send my on-line registra-tion form also by post?

You must always submit an on-line application electronically.However people having a disabil-ity that makes it difficult for themto apply on-line, may submit apaper version of the applicationform. This can be obtained on re-quest: via webform: http://ww -w.eur opa. eu/epso/infos/infohome_en.htm by po st , to EPSO Candi-date Contact Service, C-80, 00/48,B-1049, Brussels, Belgium or bytelephone request to +32(0)2.299.31.31. In addition to ap-plying on-line, some competitions(in particular those for interpretersand lawyer linguists) may also re-quire you to submit a full applica-tion by post in parallel. If this is thecase, it will be clearly indicated inthe notice of competition and onthe application pages of the EPSOwebsite. Unless explicitly requestedin the notice of competition andon the EPSO website, you do notneed to send in any papers by postat this stage. Here is a sampling ofsome of the most frequently-askedquestions that could help you savetime and have more understandingof the process.

I have filled in my form andclicked on “Submit” but due to aconnection problem at the mo-ment of submission, I have not ob-tained my candidate number.What should I do?

In these circumstances youshould first consult your EPSOAccount. If your completed appli-cation form was successfully sub-mitted to the competition orselection, it will now carry yourcandidate number at the top. Fromyour EPSO account open the latestversion of the application form,and click on the “overview” tab. Ifthe system has produced your can-didate number, this will be dis-played at the top of the form. Ifnot, then you should re-enter thefinal changes that you made priorto last saving the form and thensubmit the form by entering yourpassword.

Can I reschedule/ cancel myCBT (computer-based testing)?

A rescheduling can only be doneif seats are still available. No moredays and “slots” will be added tothose originally allocated for theCBT Test concerned. Reschedul-ing is possible during the bookingand testing period, but has to be

done at the latest 48 hours beforethe original test appointment; andthe new testing appointment hasto be at least 48 hours away fromthe time of rescheduling. In othercases, rescheduling will only be al-lowed in exceptional circumstancesand is subject to approval by EPSOand the availability of testing timeslots. In case of a need to resched-ule, please follow the instructionsin your booking confirmation,which uploads in your EPSO Ac-count within 48 hours of yourbooking. If you know that you arenot interested anymore in partici-pating in a competition or selec-tion, or that other circumstancesprevent you from doing so, pleasecancel your test appointment viathe link in your booking confirma-tion letter and free it up for some-one else. Please note, thatcan c elling your test appointmentwill bring to an end your participa-tion in the competition / selectionconcerned, and that this action isirreversible.

When is the deadline for on-lineregistrations?

The deadline is indicated in theNotice of Competition and on theEPSO website. It is your own re-

sponsibility to complete your on-line application before the submis-sion deadline stated in the Noticeof Competition. You are stronglyadvised not to wait until the lastfew days before the deadline, sinceheavy Internet traffic or a faultwith your Internet connectioncould lead to your completion ofthe online application form being“terminated” before you have savedit, thereby obliging you to repeatthe whole process. Obviously, youwill no longer be able to submityour application once the deadlinehas passed.

Within a selection procedureorganized by the Office, how is mypersonal data dealt with?

Within the framework of selec-tion procedures all personal dataprovided by candidates is dealtwith in compliance with regulation(EC) N° 45/2001 of the EuropeanParliament and of the Council of18 December 2000.

Requests for data by EPSO arecovered by formal notificationswhich lay out the concrete reasonswhy such data is necessary andwhich received prior approval fromthe European Data Protection Su-pervisor before publishing. Eachtreatment of personal data of per-sons using our Service is supportedby a Service Specific Privacy State-ment (visible on the website)which explains exactly what per-sonal data is needed, why and forhow long it is kept by EPSO.Please consult these privacy state-ments. Processing of personal datais necessary for the performance ofa task carried out in the public in-terest on the basis of the Treatiesestablishing the European Com-munities, and in EPSO’s case, theselection of personnel. This pro-cessing starts on the date when acandidate creates his/her EPSOAccount with a view to applyingfor a selection procedure or mererequest for information is madeand the length of time it is keptdepends on the type of selectioninvolved. Candidates in selectionprocedures may, by consulting theirEPSO Account, check their per-sonal details and modify them on-line at any moment, with theexception of name, date of birthand citizenship for which a formalrequest must be justified and sentto EPSO. Regarding the flaggingsystem used in the database of suc-cessful candidates, the latter areautomatically and individually in-formed of any change made (at therequest of the Institutions) in theirflagging status. Persons having ac-cess to data are those persons

within the Office on a need-to-know basis; where necessary theSelection Board concerned; wherethere are computer based tests in-volved the contractor responsible;and for laureates the recruitingservices of the Institutions. Candi-dates have the right to have re-course at any time to the EuropeanData Protection Supervisor shouldthey feel it necessary.

I am registered for a competi-tion and have an EPSO Account.If I want to register for anothercompetition do I have to create anew EPSO Account?

No, you should use the sameEPSO Account. All existingEPSO Profiles will be converted toEPSO Accounts.

I missed the deadline for a com-petition. Can I still register?

No. Applications submitted afterthe deadline given in the notice ofcompetition cannot be accepted.Moreover, after the deadline theonline application form will ceaseto be accessible.

How will I be informed aboutthe subsequent steps of the selec-tion procedure?

All candidates will be informedvia their EPSO Account whethertheir registration is valid. At a laterstage, accepted candidates will alsofind in their EPSO Account allrelevant information about thetiming of the tests and procedures.Other information of a more gen-eral nature will be found on theEPSO website on the OngoingCompetition pages (regularly up-dated).

Do the copies of supportingdocuments have to be certified?

You should only send uncertifiedphotocopies of the supporting doc-uments. At a much later stage andhaving completed the entire selec-tion process, successful candidateswill be requested to present theoriginals of supporting documentsfor certification. This occurs dur-ing the process of recruitment byan Institution for a specific job andis carried out by the human re-sources department of the recruit-ing Institution. If the Notice ofCompetition requests that yousubmit translations of supportingdocuments, you may do the trans-lation yourself. The translations donot need to be certified. None ofthe documents submitted in sup-port of your application will be re-turned and you may not refer toany documents enclosed with pre-vious applications.

PROCEDURES

A guide to getting that coveted EU job – but it’s not going to be easy

EU CAREERS

Page 12 | New Europe FOCUSDecember 13 - 19, 2009

One of the most sought-after EU jobs is one ofthe least visible. They are there but almost invis-ible, next to or behind a European Union official,sitting in glass booths at news conferences andother EU events, recognizable often by theirquiet demeanor and ubiquitous head-sets as theylisten to the 23 official languages of the 27 Mem-ber States. They are interpreters and the mostcommon language they use is English, alongwith French, followed by German and Italian.Most speak a number of languages and it’s notuncommon for them to know as many as four toseven. But what they all have in common is notjust the ability to speak a language in a nativetongue, but do simultaneous interpretation of an-other language, often while a speaker is jabberingaway without any regard for how fast they areyammering. That’s why interpreters for the EUearn 5,000 euros a month and can make doublethat by the end of their career. But they have tobe fast on their feet and know technical words aswell as the more common parlance of speaking.And it’s competitive – only one in three superiorapplicants is accepted. Spanish is a good tool tohave and, increasingly, so is Chinese, if you wantto land work. But you need more than fluency tobe a good interpreter.

If this is the job you’re seeking, here’s whatEPSO recommends in its guidelines

Interpreters’ Competitions – oral examinationsThese few tips are intended to help you pre-

pare for the oral examination and, hopefully,make the process a little less daunting by givingyou an idea of what to expect.

l READ THE COMPETITION NOTICECAREFULLY so that you know exactly whatyou will be required to do at the oral exam

l PREPARE THOROUGHLY – including(especially?) for the interview. Don’t think youcan bluff your way through any of it

l TREAT THE ORAL EXAMINATIONWITH THE SERIOUSNESS IT DE-SERVES – this is a formal civil service exami-nation, with a full-time job at stake

Remember: showing that you can interpret isonly one aspect of the oral examination. You’reapplying to join a European institution – to be-come a civil servant – so it’s equally important toproject the right attitude and image from themoment you walk into the room. Since the ex-amination is a formal occasion, dress accordingly.Things are more relaxed than they used to be soyou don’t necessarily have to wear a suit and tie ora plain dress. But you shouldn’t look as thoughyou are going for a night on the town with yourfriends. Civil services the world over tend to berather traditional organizations so if you’re notwilling to observe the basic conventions on dress,maybe a civil service post isn’t really for you.

Before the tests: When you go into the room,don’t be put off by the line-up of eight or 10 peo-ple facing you. Why so many? They represent thestaff and the administration of each of the threeinstitutions. The speakers will also be in theroom. The board members’ role is to make sureyour work is assessed fully and fairly. They arelooking to PASS you, and will do their utmostto make the entire process as painless as possible.But don’t mistake their friendliness for infor-mality. You may even know some of the board

members personally, have been taught by themor worked with them in a booth just a couple ofdays before. During the examination, behave as ifyou don’t know them and they don’t know you.It’s easier for all concerned.

The board will not hold it against you if youare nervous. But they will not be impressed ifyou’re so relaxed that you give them the feelingyou’ve come along because you have nothing bet-ter to do that day. You may well be asked to in-troduce yourself before the test starts. Thinkabout what you’re going to say beforehand. Youmay even be asked why you’ve applied for thecompetition. Have your answer ready (you willalmost certainly be asked this question or some-thing similar in the interview at the end).

The interpreting testsSpeakers are not board members and do not

participate in the assessment process. Their jobis to give you a fair speech, with no deliberatetraps or peculiar phrases. You will be given anyunusual terms or names in advance. Speakershave all been trained in preparing and givingspeeches for tests of this kind and will not choosea subject which is too obscure. They will NOTread the text, but will speak from notes (“oraliz-ing.”) If they go too fast, they will be sloweddown. If a speech is particularly challenging, theboard will take this into account. These consid-erations apply to consecutive and simultaneoustests alike.

For consecutive tests, at least one of the boardmembers will be taking notes to help judge thedifficulty of the speech. Remember that you canask the speaker questions after a consecutivespeech. Make sure you use this opportunity if youneed to, especially to check figures. But don’t askso many questions that the speaker virtually hasto repeat the entire speech! Don’t allow too muchtime to elapse between the end of the speech andyour interpretation. In a real-life situation itwould make your listeners lose confidence in you.

Even if a board member knows you well, theycannot use that prior knowledge in the assess-ment (e.g. by saying “He usually works muchbetter than that. That wasn’t a representative per-

formance. Let’s give him another chance.”) It’sthe performance on the day which counts.

The interviewFirst and most important: remember that the

interview is eliminatory too. Even if you got verygood marks for all of the interpreting tests, if youdon’t get the pass mark in this section, you haveFAILED the exam. In fact, the interview ac-counts for a significant proportion of the overallmarks for the oral exam.

The interview is designed to do two things:l Find out if you have the knowledge to do the

jobl Find out if you have the right attitude and ap-

proach to be a staff member of a multiculturalhierarchical organization

l In the first section of the interview, you will beasked questions on the EU, its policies and insti-tutions, current affairs and general knowledge.The questions may relate to what’s going on inyour own country or one or more of the countrieswhose language you’re presenting. READ THENEWSPAPERS. Although each examiningboard decides how it is going to organize the in-terview, the variations from one to another aresmall. For instance, for the EU question, you maywell be given the option of picking a numberfrom an envelope and will be asked the corre-sponding question from a pre-established list. Ifit’s clear to the board that you’ve been unluckyand have picked a subject you know nothingabout, they will probably ask you another ques-tion on a different topic. The aim is not to findout what you don’t know, but what you DOknow! Try to demonstrate your knowledge spon-taneously. The board shouldn’t have to drag it outof you.

l In the second section, you will be asked aboutyour motivation. Why are you applying? Whatcan you offer? Do you understand what it meansto belong to a hierarchy? What does “service cul-ture” mean to you? Try to put yourself in theBoard’s shoes. What would YOU ask a prospec-tive staff member?

COMMUNICATIONS

It’s not enough to speak the (native) language to be an interpreter

You won’t be in the limelight if you’re an EU interpreter, most likely finding yourself in the back of a room ina glassed-off area where only your colleagues can hear your work as you decipher what speakers at a seminaror news conference are saying at the EU institutions

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EU CAREERS

New Europe | Page 13FOCUSDecember 13 - 19, 2009

You’ve studied and sweated and figured outwhat type of job you want in the EuropeanUnion, and think you’re ready because you’vegot your school qualifications and some experi-ence. But there’s that little matter of a test thatthe EU requires you to pass. There are a num-ber of them in different areas, and EPSO putssome sample tests online for you to see andpractice. Sharpen your pencils (and comput-ers.) Here’s one of them: (don’t worry, these givethe answers)

Situational judgment testSpecific Instructions:This test is designed to provide information onyour typical behavior within work situations.You will be presented with situations which youcould experience at work. Please consider thesituation, and then select what you feel is themost effective AND the least effective responseor action from the four statements.

SITUATION 1:-You have recently been appointed to a posi-tion in a new project team. Although you areexperienced in the technical aspects of the job,there are aspects of the work that you need tounderstand. Your job will eventually require in-ternal liaison and collaboration with other proj-ect teams. Although your manager hasproposed an induction and training period foryou, many of the issues you are responsible for

require urgent attention.What would you do?1. Immediately arrange meetings with those in-dividuals you feel you will need to work with(Most effective)2. Quickly try to establish how your objectiveswill relate to your project manager’s objectives3. In the initial stages, make sure that you aredoing your job as you understood it from thejob description (Least effective)4. Spend time building your understanding ofthe team’s objectives for the future.

SITUATION 2:-You lead a team of 12 people. In order to ad-dress the department’s new objectives you havebeen asked to work out your department’syearly plan. Your Manager has given you andother team leaders a deadline of two weeks sothat she can report to the boardWhat would you do?1. Spend an hour on it, as yearly plans are neverfollowed anyway (Least effective)2. Try to complete the plan in time to discuss itwith your Manager before she has to submit itto the board (Most effective)3. Before preparing your plan, quickly contactyour key stakeholders and ask for their views onyour department4. Because of the complexity of the task, turn itinto your top priority for the next two weeks bypersonally producing a detailed plan

SITUATION 3:-You are working on a number of projects withtight deadlines and have a lot of basic informa-tion to gather. You have asked other colleaguesfor help but are unsure of their commitment tohelp you gather the information that you needWhat would you do?1. Spend time on your work to make sure thatyou have plenty of latitude/leeway in case yourcolleagues don’tdeliver the help you need in time.

2. Outline the help that you need from othersand explain to them why this is important andthe dates by whichyou need their individual contributions. (Mosteffective)3. Reduce the risk by getting the informationthat you need yourself rather than relying uponother people.4. Carry on with the tasks that you need tocomplete and if others do not contribute theirparts report them tomanagement. (Least effective)

SITUATION 4:You have just spent a long time writing a reportthat is due for delivery to a senior manager. Amore experienced and well respected memberof the team tells you that she thinks it would beimproved with amendments to several sectionsof the reportWhat would you do?1. Make some of the changes she suggested butretain the elements of the report that you thinkwork best2. Trust in your colleague’s greater experienceand make all of the changes she suggests3. Thank your colleague for her suggestions buttrust your own judgment and don’t make anychanges to the report. (Least effective)4. Discuss with your colleague the changes shehas suggested and clarify the reasons for thechanges proposed (Most effective)

EXAMINATIONS

Please pay attention and take notes, because you will be tested

ANDREAS THOUPI Nationality: CyprusPosition: Assistant-Secretary in theUnit for the Fight Against Organ-ized Crime Institution: European Commission Years in the Institutions: Three Comment: Working mostly inde-

pendently in the secretariat of my unit and doing a vari-ety of tasks my work is never boring. I provide secretarialand administrative assistance to all the desk officers in myunit looking after and monitoring the smooth running ofthe unit including human resources issues. In only two-and-a-half years since joining the Commission I hadenough self-confidence not only to be functional in allsecretariat issues but also to become a trainer for new-comers

ANITA IVANNationality: HungarianPosition: Assistant for top manage-mentInstitution: European CommissionYears: OneComment: I was looking for a work-

place where I could use my degree in International Rela-tions. I majored in EU studies and economics, so this DGseemed to be the perfect choice for my first EU job. It isalso a great thing to practice mobility, meaning I canchange jobs every two years and in this way reduce therisk of burn-out. I already know which DG is next!While I was working full-time, I earned my degree in In-ternational Relations at Zsigmond Kiraly College. Some-times it was extremely difficult and I still remember thecountless sleepless nights before my examinations.

LUCIE ZACKOVANationality: Czech RepublicPosition: Policy Officer in DG RE-GIONInstitution: European Commission Years in the Institutions: FiveComment: I was recruited first on atemporary basis before the entrance

of the Czech Republic into the EU as part of the overalleffort to help prepare the EU institutions on the big-bangenlargement in 2004. Working in a multi-national environment can be verychallenging and inspiring in the same time. You can seethings from a different perspective and you realize thatthere may be multiple solutions to one problem

JEKATERINA KELKNationality: EstoniaPosition: Secretary to the head ofthe unit Institution: Committee of the Re-gions Years in the Institutions: One Comment: I take care of secretarial

services and personnel management for my head of unit.My main tasks are to take down, type up and draft notes,correspondence and other texts, manage translation re-quests and the unit’s intranet site, and manage our staff.As our unit is responsible for drawing contracts, I’m alsoinvolved in assessing tenders.I’m able to put my languages and my past experience togood use. My colleagues are a pleasure to work with, andthe working environment is really good.(This is representative of the diversity and number of people,especially younger, working for EU institutions)

MAREK BERANNationality: Czech RepublicPosition: Negotiator for FisheriesPartnership Agreements with thirdcountriesInstitution: European CommissionYears: TwoComment: Coming from a land-

locked country, it was a real challenge for me to startworking in the fisheries area, one which I accepted. Myjob is demanding on one hand, but challenging and in-teresting on the other with a team spirit and great col-leagues. Moreover, the international affairs are bydefinition an exciting area and as one of the Commis-sion’s basic roles is to represent the EC on the interna-tional scene; this is what we do in the fisheries area.

BOYANA STAMENOVANationality: Bulgarian Position: Translator of audit re-ports and documents Institution: European Court of

Auditors Years: Two Comment: In my job I enjoy the

respect for national and linguistic diversity; the multilin-gual environment of broad-minded people; my contribu-tion to better access to information for Bulgarians; thefeeling of being an integral part of a larger community –Europe. My responsibilities are to translate reports for of-ficial publication and all correspondence with the Bul-garian National Audit Office; to provide linguisticassistance during audit missions to Bulgaria; to partici-pate in inter-institutional meetings on the Style Guidefor the Bulgarian language.

How some successful candidates view their jobs in the EU

US/CANADA

Page 14 | New Europe EU WORLDDecember 13 - 19, 2009

AN AMERICAN IN EUROPE

Hard times for EU officials,they want a 3.7% pay raise

By Andy Dabilis

Even better than being an Amer-ican major league baseball playerearning millions of dollars a yearto play 162 games, fly first-classor charter, stay in Five-Star ho-tels, have someone carry yourbags, and get paid $85 per day (57euros) for food, is being a Mem-ber of the European Parliament,or just about any job with the Eu-

ropean Union. MEPs earn 7,665 euros monthly ($11,370) or 38 timesthe minimum wage in Bulgaria, the lowest in the EU.You’d think that would be enough to live on, but theyalso get 4,202 euros ($6,230) to cover office expenses– which they can pocket – fly business class even if theflight is a couple of hours, and 298 euros ($442) perday for “subsistence” when they sign in to work, evenif they turn around and walk out the door and donothing. It’s not a no-show job, it ’s a do-nothinghighly paid job and you can’t beat it, and that EUlargesse extends to most of its workforce of 38,000people who have to make do with a 165 billion euros($245 billion) budget.Even in a worldwide recession that has put millions ofAmericans and Europeans out of work and on thestreets, losing their homes too, the EU has so muchmoney it literally gives it away, including to Africandictators who thus have a higher MBI (Mercedes-Benz Index) than even European Commissioners, whonever pass up a free meal despite their 15,605 euros($23,135) salary and expense accounts. The lowliestEU official starts off with a salary of 2,448 euros($3,628) monthly, but they’ll scream they live in Brus-sels where the cost of living is high. Yes, it is, especiallyif you live high. But here’s what happens when you live in a bubble:you don’t see the misery around you, most of whichyou inflict, so at a time when workers in the Balticsare taking 30 percent pay cuts, when Greeks may haveto lose their two month annual bonuses needed forsurvival, which amounts to a 17 percent pay cut, EUofficials want to give themselves a 3.7 percent RAISE.They don’t even have to ask the boss, because that’sthem, and there’s no public debate. They just set therates they want to pay themselves with your taxes, andthey’re not skimpy.There’s so much attention on the pigs-feeding-at-the-trough greedy bankers in the US and Europe that noone sees the EU gravy train rolling over them. The EU pay raise would take effect Jan. 1 and beretroactive for six months, a nice little bonus and a wayof giving themselves a raise before they give them-selves a raise. It requires the approval of all 27 Mem-ber States and while a few are squawking about it, theEU has designed a Fail-Safe method which guaran-tees their workers will get the raise because they couldotherwise sue for it, which would go down well incountries where a real worker’s monthly salary is lessthan what MEPs get paid to eat daily when they’re al-legedly at work. What EU officials do best is feed on the powerless,even when their cup’s already overfilled, and they don’teven see the irony in asking – or suing – for a raise atthe same time they made 2010 The European Year ofCombating Poverty and Social Exclusion, for whichthey set aside $10.5 million. But don’t remind them,because even in Brussels, you can’t eat on 298 euros aday, and they’ll want that for lunch money. Yours.

Andy@NEeurope.eu

The United States is still getting critical bank data from Europeancitizens under a deal negotiated with EU governments the day be-fore the new Lisbon Treaty went into effect on Dec. 1, a move thatangry leaders and Members of the European Parliament said wasdesigned to keep them from having a say in the decision.

The Lisbon Treaty provided sweeping new powers to EU offi-cials, including requiring the Parliament to be consulted on mat-ters such as the transfer of European bank data, but the deal withthe US was reached at the last minute, effectively shutting EU law-makers out of the process. Under the agreement, the US Depart-ment of Treasury will continue getting information on bankaccounts of European citizens from the so-called SWIFT bankdata center near Brussels, but only for nine months, until the or-ganization moves to Switzerland – which itself this year reached adeal to hand over secret bank accounts to the US, which insists itis scouring them only for information in the hunt for terrorists.

European Parliament President Jerzy Buzek had sought to blockthe deal, arguing that lawmakers needed to be consulted on such asensitive issue. After the nine months expires, the US said it willseek a longer-term deal under which it could keep getting access tothe bank accounts of EU citizens. There is vociferous opposition insome countries, such as Greece, which does not allow US citizensliving there to bank with American institutions in the country be-cause it does not want to turn over information to the US.

The Parliament has been fiercely critical of how US Treasury of-ficials accessed the European operations centers of SWIFT with-out EU governments’ knowledge or permission. The assembly hadasked EU nations to delay approving the deal until after Dec. 1,granting lawmakers more power to examine negotiations with theUnited States. The initial agreement was reached in secret in the af-termath of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the US. It violatedwhat had been strict privacy rules in the EU and set off a firestormof opposition from some MEPs, who now have been shut out ofthe debate. The new deal was signed under the aegis of the rotat-ing presidency of the EU, now held by Sweden until Jan. 1, andslipped under the radar screen of public attention.

Before it did though, some MEPs lashed out at what they saidwas the certainty it would be signed. German Green MEP Jan-Philipp Albrecht, a member of the European Parliament’s CivilLiberties Committee, said at the time that, “The EU Council isset to sign away EU citizens’ legal and data protection rights in anegotiated agreement that will allow US security authorities to ac-cess information on bank transfers from the EU. Scandalously, theplanned agreement openly provides for further transfer of infor-mation to third parties and states, when it should be expressly pro-hibiting the forwarding of such sensitive data. The text also fails togrant a clear right of scrutiny to an independent data protectionbody.” He said the deal also violated as promise the Swedish EUPresidency gave to the Parliament not to keep providing the in-formation to the US. “We need internationally binding data pro-tection rules,” he said. He also called the deal “a disgrace” thatgovernments rushed through the agreement just before the parlia-ment gained new rights. He criticized the deal’s data protectionsafeguards as insufficient.

NO FISHING ALLOWED American authorities have promised that the information it col-

lects from the databases is properly protected and used only in anti-terror probes. They said ̀ `data mining’’ - or open-ended searching- is strictly forbidden. They said the information has helped pro-vide new leads, corroborate identities and uncover relationships be-tween suspects in an al-Qaeda-directed plot to blow uptrans-Atlantic airplane flights in 2006. They also said it helped toidentify financial transactions made by an al-Qaeda terrorist sus-pect involved in planning a possible aircraft attack earlier this year.The program has generated nearly 1,450 tip-offs to European gov-ernments and 800 to other states - 100 of them from January toSeptember this year, officials said. EU Justice and Home AffairsCommissioner Jacques Barrot said the deal was essential to allow

the data-sharing to continue while the bloc tries to negotiate alonger-term agreement that would ask US authorities to sharebanking data with the EU. US Treasury Undersecretary StuartLevey said it was critical that both sides begin work soon on a moredurable agreement to seal ``strong’’ counterterrorism cooperation,building on ``robust safeguards just agreed on’’ to protect personaldata. Some European political groups have repeatedly criticizedthe agreement, arguing it is “not only a restraint on European sov-ereignty but as a massive intrusion into every single European cit-izen’s privacy.”German Liberal MEP Alexander Alvaro said thatthe European Parliament should have been involved in the nego-tiations. “We did not concertedly fight for so many years for a newera of cooperation in European domestic policies just to be hood-winked in the final stages,” he said, calling the deal an “act of igno-rance,” arguing that “it was incomprehensible” for EU ministers toapprove it knowing the level of reservation among MEPs.

SWIFT ACTION US Under-Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence

Stuart Levey said that “the United States welcomes the EuropeanCouncil’s approval of an Interim Agreement between the Euro-pean Union and the United States to support the continuation ofthe Terrorist Finance Tracking Program while a long-term agree-ment is negotiated next year. We thank the Swedish Presidency ofthe European Union and the European Commission for theirleadership and dedication in concluding this Interim Agreement.”

He noted that “during the past eight years, the TFTP has pro-vided invaluable leads in many major terrorism investigations, con-tributing greatly to our ability to thwart deadly terrorist attacksaround the world. With scrupulously designed and multilayeredcontrols and safeguards that are subject to numerous, complemen-tary forms of independent oversight, the TFTP also embodies thehighest standards of data privacy protection”.

On the company’s website,SWIFT described the agreement assignificant for the financial industry. “We understand the agree-ment would apply to all providers of international financial pay-ment messaging services and would govern the terms upon whichfinancial payment messaging data will be made available by EUbased authorities to US authorities for anti-terrorism purposes,”the press release said.“SWIFT is not involved in the EU-US dis-cussions but is closely monitoring the next steps in the EU deci-sion process. Implementation of this agreement must ensure theprotections which exist today for citizens’ data are maintained.

REGULATIONS

EU lawmakers ignored as bank data is handed to US

The Chief Financial Officer of SWIFT, Francis Vanbever, is seen duringa hearing in front of the SWIFT-CIA data transfer committee at theEuropean Parliament in Brussels, 4 October 2006, after the group wascharged with breaching European privacy rules when it aided the USanti-terrorism program by providing confidential information aboutmoney transfers |(ANA/EPA/OLIVIER HOSLET)

MIDEAST

New Europe |Page 15EU WORLDDecember 13 - 19, 2009

In another bid for peace and to break astalemate over continued Israeli settle-ments, European Union foreign ministershave pushed Israel to accept Jerusalem asa shared capital of a future Palestinianstate, urging the two sides in the Mideastconflict to return to negotiations as soonas possible. The EU has grown increas-ingly concerned over the deadlock inMiddle East peace talks. The bloc is keento put pressure on both sides to resumenegotiations, but is wary of committingitself to a specific solution before talks re-sume. “The EU will not recognize anychanges to the pre-1967 borders, includ-ing those with regard to Jerusalem, otherthan those agreed by the parties,” a jointstatement of EU ministers read. At thesame time, it stressed that “a way must befound through negotiations to resolve thestatus of Jerusalem as the future capital oftwo states. The statement backed awayfrom earlier draft proposals which calledfor East Jerusalem to be recognized as thecapital of a future Palestinian state, aftersome member states warned it could limitpeace negotiators’ room for maneuver. “Ifyou want to negotiate, you can’t decide thestatus question in advance,” German For-eign Minister Guido Westerwellepointed out.

The United States has not taken a po-sition on the future of Jerusalem, leavingthe Israelis and Palestinians to determineits status through final settlement negoti-ations. “We are aware of the EU state-ment, but our position on Jerusalem isclear,” State Department spokesman PJCrowley told reporters in Washington. Asa final status issue, this is best addressedinside a formal negotiation among theparties directly.” The EU has long main-tained that Jerusalem should be the cap-ital of both the Israeli and the Palestinianstate, regularly criticizing Israel for build-ing settlements in East Jerusalem. TheEU “recalls that it has never recognizedthe annexation of East Jerusalem” and“calls on the Israeli government to ceaseall discriminatory treatment of Palestini-ans in East Jerusalem,” the statement said.

Controversy erupted in late Novemberwhen Sweden, current holder of the EU’spresidency, drafted a declaration callingfor the recognition of East Jerusalem ascapital of a Palestinian state. Leaks of thedraft provoked outrage in Israel, where itwas seen as an attempt to partition thecity. While EU ministers backed awayfrom that stance in their final declaration,Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt saidthat the Israeli reaction had revealed howimportant a player the EU is in the Mid-dle East. “The somewhat unplanned dia-logue and discussion in recent days havedemonstrated very, very clearly that thevoice of Europe does count,” he said.

Within an hour of the publication of

the EU’s statement, Israeli officials issueda statement criticizing it, while Palestin-ian officials welcomed it. The statement“ignores the primary obstacle to achiev-ing a resolution between Israel and thePalestinians: the Palestinian refusal to re-turn to the negotiating table,” said IsraeliForeign Ministry spokesman Yigal Pal-mor. The EU “has chosen to adopt a textwhich, even if it contains nothing new,does not contribute to the renewal of ne-gotiations,” he said in a statement.

Ahmed Qureia, a member of the Pales-tine Liberation Organization’s executivecommittee, said, “We welcome the Euro-pean foreign ministers’ decision and weconsider it as a step forward.” He said thatno Palestinian could accept any solutionwhich did not have East Jerusalem as thecapital of an independent Palestinianstate. The teeter tot balancing act showedhow difficult a problem the Mideast is, asEU foreign ministers tried to find somemiddle ground that would please bothsides, but couldn’t. Before the suggestionof a shared capital was accepted, Swedenand the EU had to back off fast from theidea of East Jerusalem being the capitalof Palestine one day.

“Assessing the reaction of the Israeligovernment, I think would be sensiblenot to do that at this stage, (but) consoli-date efforts towards bringing the twosides to negotiating ... as soon as possi-ble,” Lithuanian Foreign Minister Vy-gaudas Usackas said. The EU wants tobring its influence to bear on the Israelisand Palestinians to help bring an end tothe 60-year-old conflict, but has grownincreasingly frustrated in recent monthswith the deadlock in peace talks. “Wewant two states, and the capital of thosetwo states is Jerusalem,” Finnish ForeignMinister Alexander Stubb stressed. AfterIsrael blasted the initial proposal EUministers became upset too, seeing the Is-

raeli response as heavy-handed. “I reallyfind it hard to understand why Israel doesnot accept that Palestine consists of theWest Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem ...This two-state solution is really the coreof (Israel’s) security,” Luxembourg For-eign Minister Jean Asselborn said.

Reacting to the initial report that did-n’t see a shared capital, Palmor warnedthat “the Swedish initiative will not helppromote the peace process.” He warnedthat, ““This kind of initiative will onlycontribute to marginalizing the Europeanrole in the peace process … the EUshould convince the Palestinians to returnto the negotiating table as soon as possi-ble.” Israel nonetheless welcomed thebloc’s decision to back away from an “ex-tremist draft proposal” submitted by Swe-den, which had called for East Jerusalemto be recognized as the capital of a futurePalestinian state. “The voice of the re-sponsible and weighed member states inthe EU has prevailed,” said the statement,referring to the decision not to adopt thedraft. The Foreign Ministry also wel-comed a reference about the continuationof efforts to improve Israel-EU ties, an-other expressing the bloc’s “commitmentto Israel’s security,” and yet another rec-ognizing the “severity” of Hamas rearma-ment in Gaza. “We expect the EU to actto encourage direct negotiations betweenthe sides, while taking into account Is-rael’s security needs and out of an under-standing that its Jewish character must bepreserved in any future agreement,” saidPalmor. Israel captured East Jerusalemfrom Jordan in the 1967 Middle East warand incorporated it into the city’s munic-ipal boundaries shortly afterwards. In1980, Israel formally annexedEast Jerusalem, a move not recognizedinternationally. Palestinians claim EastJerusalem as the capital of a hoped-for in-dependent state.

DIPLOMACY

Jerusalem should be a shared capital, the EU tells Israel

A tourist couple sitting on the Mount of Olives in East Jerusalem kiss as they take in the view ofthe Old City of Jerusalem with its distinctive golden Dome of the Rock on the Harim el-Sharif,or the Temple Mount, on 8 December |ANA/EPA/JIM HOLLANDER

POLITICS

EU council’s decision on theMiddle East and Jerusalem

By Alice GrahamEuropean Union Foreign Ministers agreed on 8 Decem-ber that Jerusalem is to be the capital of both Israel anda future Palestinian state, as part of a negotiated settle-ment. The 27 Foreign Affairs Ministers, concerned aboutthe lack of progress in the Middle East peace process,met in Brussels in order to call for the urgent resump-tion of negotiations. The ministers repeated the need fora comprehensive peace to be reached through a two-statesolution with the State of Israel and an independent,democratic, contiguous and viable State of Palestine, liv-ing side-by-side in peace and security. The discussion fo-cused on the status of Jerusalem which is one of the mostsensitive and complex issues in the Israeli-Palestinianconflict.Sweden, which currently holds the rotating Presidencyof the EU, had presented a draft proposal for a commonEU position on Jerusalem. The Swedish draft had calledfor “an independent, democratic, contiguous and viablestate of Palestine, comprising of the West Bank and Gazaand with East Jerusalem as its capital.” The foreign min-isters dropped this earlier reference which explicitlystated that East Jerusalem should be the capital of aPalestinian state after opposition from several MemberStates. The original draft had sparked criticism by someEU leaders, which claimed that such a move would fur-ther harm the chances of renewing the Middle Eastpeace process.Instead of calling for resumption of negotiations that

would lead - as the Swedish draft phrased it - to a Pales-tinian state “comprising of the West Bank and Gaza withEast Jerusalem as its capital,” the EU called for “negoti-ations to resolve the status of Jerusalem as the future cap-ital of two states.” Among the leading countries whoworked against the Swedish proposal were Italy, theCzech Republic, Romania, Hungary, Poland and - to acertain degree - France and Germany. “We support any-thing which encourages the two parties to sit down atthe negotiating table again,” Italian Foreign MinisterFranco Frattini said in Brussels on 7 December ahead ofa two-day EU meeting on foreign relations. Indeed acommon concern was that the adoption of a unilateralposition by the EU would jeopardize negotiations andcompromise the EU’s credibility in the peace process. On the need of genuine negotiations, Member of Par-liament Fiamma Nirenstein, Vice-President of theCommittee on Foreign Affairs of the Italian Chamberof Deputies, said in an interview with New Europe lastweek: “A unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state,as the original draft called for, ignores the primary ob-stacle to achieving a resolution between Israel and thePalestinians - the Palestinian refusal to return to thenegotiating table.” She added that, “There is no futurefor the Palestinian state without a definitive agreementon borders, security, economy and ending incitementto violence.” In efforts to get the proposal passed, Sweden was sup-ported by the United Kingdom, Ireland, Luxembourgand Portugal. The final text also dropped a reference tothe Palestinian Authority as “Palestine,” and gave morecredit than the original text to Israeli Prime Minister Ne-tanyahu for his declaration of a 10-month freeze on set-tlements building in the West Bank. The ministers concluded by recalling that “a compre-hensive settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict requires aregional approach and will continue its work on this inline with the June 2009 Council Conclusions using allits instruments to this effect.” The EU also encouragedArab countries to be forthcoming, both politically andfinancially, in assisting the Palestinian Authority.

RUSSIA

Page 16 | New Europe EU · WORLDDecember 13 - 19, 2009

The European Union needs all threeplanned pipeline projects to bring Russian,Caspian and Middle East gas supplies toEurope, Alexander Stubb, Finland’s foreignminister, told New Europe.

“We need Nord Stream, we needNabucco and we need South Stream. NordStream will provide 10 percent of the gasconsumption of the European Union,”Stubb said, asked if Nord Stream would in-crease the EU’s energy reliance on Russia.

“In Finland it ’s been an environmentalquestion. So basically the way in which itworks is that the government – us – we givethe right to use the economic territory orwaters of Finland and we have given thattwo weeks ago. Then, it is the environmentauthorities that take the final decision onwhether the environmental criteria havebeen met or not. For us it’s neither a polit-ical issue nor an economic issue and we’renot going to benefit or lose out from theNord Stream gas pipeline in any way,”Stubb on the sidelines of the Organizationfor Security and Cooperation in Europe(OSCE) 17th annual meeting in Athens on1-2 December.

Russia includes South Stream, along withits Nord Stream counterpart, as part of aplan to ease the transit burden on Ukraine,which hosts the bulk of Russian gas boundfor Europe currently. A row betweenUkraine and Russia over gas prices andtransit fees led to a disruption of Russian

natural gas supplies to Europe via the for-mer Soviet Republic for almost two weeksin freezing temperatures in January 2009.The dispute ended after Ukraine agreed topay double for first-quarter imports com-pared with the average 2008 price. Russiasigned a 10-year supply and transit contractwith Ukraine, which carries 80% of its gasexports to Europe, in January. UkrainianPresident Viktor Yushchenko, who haspublicly feuded with Ukrainian Prime Min-ister Yulia Tymoshenko, criticized the Jan-uary contract, saying it may lead tointerruptions in gas flows to Europe.

However, a repeat of the Russo-Ukraineenergy crisis is unlikely in 2010 - unless re-lations between Moscow and Kiev deterio-rate, Chris Weafer, chief strategist atRussia’s Uralsib Bank, told New Europe bytelephone from Moscow on 9 December.“No, it seems that a combination of Brus-sels leaning on the President (Yushchenko)and Moscow doing a deal with the PrimeMinister (Tymoshenko) has avoided therisk. I think we’re not going to have it. It’snot an issue,” Weafer said. He was referringto a deal between Russian Prime MinisterVladimir Putin and Tymoshenko to waivepenalties after Ukraine failed to take con-tracted volumes of gas, reducing thechances of disruption in European supplies.In late November, Putin and Tymoshenkoassured worried European energy con-sumers that 2010 would see no repeat of the

2009 stand-off, and that the Russia-Ukrainian gas crises were now history. “Wehave a practical, pragmatic relationship,”Putin said at a joint press conference withTymoshenko, in the Black Sea resort city ofYalta. “We can guarantee Europe’s energysupplies.” For her part, Tymoshenko said:“We appreciate the step which the Russiangovernment, Mr. Putin and Gazprom madedeciding not to impose penalties today for2009.”

Putin appeared to change his tune fromthat of 11 months ago when he had accusedTymoshenko of “siphoning away Russiangas meant for Europe ... in outrageoustheft.”

“The Russians are very smart and discreetthis time around,” a Ukrainian political ob-server told New Europe. “He is supportingher in a big way.” In 2004, the Kremlin’s over-zealous support of Yanukovych’s candidacyback-fired, leading to the “Orange Revolu-tion” and the election of Russia’s nemesis –Yushchenko – to the presidential post.

Unlike Ukraine, Gazprom’s key counter-parties in Europe may have to pay a penaltyunder the “take or pay” provision for notconsuming the amount of gas specified inthe contract. As such, this applies to Ger-many, Italy, Turkey and some other coun-tries. “Ukraine was allowed out of it for twoclear reasons. One is they simply can’t af-ford to pay the penalties and if Russia triedto force them, then we already would have

had another dispute with Ukraine and an-other cut-off and a repeat of what we hadearlier this year,” Weafer said. “The secondreason that happened is to support the elec-tion prospects of Prime Minister Ty-moshenko. It makes her look as an effectiveleader that she negotiated this deal withRussia which got Ukraine off the hook. Itshows her to be a little more effective. Andobviously it is in Russia’s interest that (pres-idential candidate) Tymoshenko or (formerprime minister and presidential candidateViktor) Yanukovych is the next presidentrather than Yushchenko.”

Moscow would prefer Tymoshenko overYanukovych since the latter’s electorate isbased in industrial regions in the easternand southern Ukraine. These regions areheavily dependent on Russian gas at cheapprices that the Kremlin is no longer willingto supply. “Our chemical factories now paythe highest price for Russian gas in Europe;(Russia) is forcing us out of the market. Wewill be unable to compete,” Interfax quotedYanukovych as saying on 23 November.“We cannot compete, and we are losingjobs.” Yanukovych added that if he iselected, he will move to renegotiate thecontract.

Weafer said if there are any future dis-putes between Russia and Ukraine, thenMoscow may threaten Kiev to go back totake-or-pay and the penalties. “How long itwill last?” Weafer asked. “Well, we will see.”

ENERGY|GAS CONFLICT

Europe needs all the pipelines it can get, says Finland’s FM

Alexander Stubb, Finland’s foreign minister, talks to reporters on the sidelines of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) 17th annual meeting in Athens on 1 December. Stubb said that the EuropeanUnion needs all three pipelines - Nord Stream, Nabucco and South Stream – to supply gas to the energy-hungry bloc| NEW EUROPE|KOSTIS GEROPOULOS

By Kostis Geropoulos

The energy ministers of nine EuropeanUnion nations on 7 December signeda deal to develop a massive offshorewind power grid in the North Sea andIrish Sea. In the margins of the EnergyCouncil meeting in Brussels, ministersfrom the United Kingdom, Germany,France, Belgium, the Netherlands,Luxembourg, Denmark, Sweden andIreland signed the agreement.

North Sea Offshore grid is an agree-ment to interconnect offshore windfarms’ electrical productions. The ideaof a grid spanning European watersshould make supplies of electricitymore secure for the participating coun-tries by making it easier to optimizeoffshore wind electricity production. Itwill also help the EU as a whole tomeet its renewable energy target for2020. Europeans are looking to con-nect their growing supply of offshorewind power with a grid spanning theBaltic Sea, North Sea and Mediter-ranean Sea. There are already some 30offshore wind farms in Europe, off thecoasts of Denmark, Germany, Britainand the Netherlands.

“Talks begin today in Copenhagenon how we can cut carbon emissionsworldwide. A large part of that will becontinuing the domestic decarboniza-tion of our energy supplies by movingto low carbon sources including wind.

We’re already the world leader in off-shore wind here in the UK and today’sannouncements bring new funding andexpert direction to grow this vital newindustry They also mean we can workwith other countries in the EU to in-crease our renewable energy supplies,”British Energy and Climate ChangeMinister Lord Hunt said.

“This very ambitious project is notjust of interest to the countries border-

ing the North seas. It is important forthe future energy mix providing theneeds of the European Union,” BelgianFederal Minister of Climate and En-ergy Paul Magnette said, whose coun-try initiated the scheme.

The plan, which will now be exam-ined by experts, foresees “the major partof offshore wind energy developmentin Europe will be focused on the NorthSeas region.”

ENERGY New Europe|Page 17NEW EUROPE

December 13 - 19, 2009

RENEWABLES

Europeans to connect their supply of offshore wind power

Belgian Federal Minister of Climate and Energy Paul Magnette (R) and Swedish Energy Minister and

European Council Chairman Maud Olofsson prior to signing the North Sea grid agreement during the

EU Energy Ministers Council in Brussels, 7 December |ANA/EPA/OLIVIER HOSLET

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has discussed theNabucco gas pipeline project with US President BarackObama as part of his visit to Washington, news agenciesreported. After the meeting, Erdogan told a press-confer-ence that as the main transit country through which thepipeline will run, his country remains committed to pro-vide any support for the project.

According to him, Azerbaijan and Turkey are in negoti-ations on the gas supply and transit issues. “Azerbaijanshould understand Turkey’s point of view in these issues.Currently, Azerbaijan’s share for Nabucco is 10%, but of

course may reach about 25%.... We explained our hesita-tions. Is Azerbaijan ready to resolve these issues? Weshould keep that in mind. There are other heavyweightpartners here like Statoil, Total, BP. They should have theirsay,” he added.

Azerbaijan is seen as a crucial potential provider for theNabucco pipeline, construction of which is scheduled tobegin in 2009, with the completion date set for 2013-2014.The pipeline will transport 31 billion cubic meters of gas tothe EU from different supplies, including possibly Azer-baijan and Iraq.

GAS PIPELINE

Azerbaijan’s share in Nabucco may rise to 25%

Russian gas monopoly Gazprom officials scheduled ameeting with the members of the Iran-Pakistan-India(IPI) pipeline for January, news agencies reported. Tehranhas lobbied for the IPI pipeline to deliver natural gas fromits offshore Shah Deniz field to customers in Pakistan andIndia. Tehran and Islamabad signed agreements on theproject earlier this year, and New Delhi has warmed to IPIin recent weeks.

Abubakir Shamuzov, the Gazprom representative to Iran,said the Russian gas monopoly was paying close attention

to projects like IPI, the Tehran Times reports. “As a majorgas producer and supplier, Gazprom pays special attentionto the development projects which are being implementedin the southern Asia,” he said.

Gazprom expressed interest in a possible role in IPI dur-ing meetings with the Iranian oil minister last week, thereport added. Iranian executives with the National IranianOil Company said delegates would discuss IPI again dur-ing a summit in January in Iran. Tehran said it encouragedNew Delhi to take part in the meeting.

GAS PIPELINE

Gazprom eyes Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline

ENERGY INSIDER

EU: In PutinWe(have to) Trust

By Kostis Geropoulos

Hi, the Energy Insider here, writ-ing this three-year-old columnabout the energy wilderness. OnDecember 16, 2006, in my first col-umn “Putin says ‘Jump!’ Foreignenergy companies ask: ‘How high?’”I addressed Vladimir Putin’s gripover foreign oil companies’ assetsand the EU’s dependence on Russ-ian energy supplies.

Not much has changed on the energy front. Following twogas crises with Ukraine, which interrupted Russian gasflows to Europe, Brussels is more worried than ever on itsreliance on Moscow.Putin — the current prime minister and former president ofRussia — may well be the most powerful man in the worldand maintains his dominant hold on energy. Germany,France and Italy have formed strategic energy partnershipswith Russia, which determine to a large extent their policiesdespite the United Kingdom’s often hostile approach towardsMoscow. During Putin’s trip to Paris late last month, theRussian premier secured France’s participation in the SouthStream gas pipeline. Russia’s Gazprom and Italy’s ENI signeda memorandum of understanding on 26 November to grantFrench power group EDF a stake in the project, seen as acompetitor to the EU’s Nabucco pipeline. France alreadyranks with Germany and Italy as one of Russia’s top energyinvestors, due to Gazprom’s partnership with French com-pany Total in the $15-billion Shtokman gas field. Putin hasexcellent relations with French President Nicolas Sarkozyand Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. In 2007,Sarkozy rushed to congratulate Putin on his party’s victory inthe Russian parliamentary elections, putting him at odds withEU allies who said the voting was deeply flawed. On Octo-ber 7, 2009, Berlusconi apparently snubbed the Jordan King,choosing instead to fly to Putin’s dacha in St Petersburg inorder to attend his Russian pal’s 57th birthday and discussenergy politics, even though they weren’t any young girls athand. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has also adopteda pragmatic approach in dealing with Russia, choosing topromote the Nord Stream gas pipeline between Russia andGermany.Like it or not, Russia has penetrated the European energymarket, with economic interests overshadowing politicalchoices. At the OSCE 17th annual meeting in Athens on1-2 December, 2009, some foreign ministers drew a con-nection between European security and energy security. Iasked Alexander Stubb, Finland’s foreign minister, if he wasconcerned about Europe’s increased reliance on Russia towhich he replied: “My take on European energy is that theEU should have its common energy policy both on themarket side and the security side. I think Europe shoulddiversify its energy; we should have renewables, we shouldhave old-fashioned energy - including gas and oil – andshould also have nuclear. My take on energy dependency,which is much talked about, is that we should not make itasymmetrical - 25 percent of all energy that the EuropeanUnion consumes comes from Russia, but 75 percent of theRussian energy market is in Europe. So my question is whois more dependent on whom? And if you add on top ofthat that Russia actually gets 50 percent of its state incomefrom energy exports, then I think the case is quite clear.”Stubb advocated mutual positive dependency in energymatters between Russia and the EU, saying: “We needNord Stream, we need Nabucco and we need SouthStream.” And the EU still needs Putin.

KGeropoulos@NEurope.eu

ENERGY Page 18 | New Europe NEW EUROPEDecember 13 - 19, 2009

Even though oil is trading near $74 abarrel, almost double the price a yearago, the Organization of PetroleumExporting Countries is not likely toraise its oil output targets when itmeets in Luanda, Angola on 22 De-cember given that many in OPEC seethe $70-$80 range as fair.

But there may be little that OPECcan do anyway. “Ultimately they haveno choice but to do nothing and theywill wait until possibly the secondquarter – even May or June – hopingthat inventory levels will have gonedown and there will be a pick up in de-mand, particularly in the US or Eu-rope, and that would allow moreoptions,” Chris Weafer, chief strategistat Russia’s Uralsib Bank, told New Eu-rope by telephone from Moscow on 9December. “Right now they can’t doanything. They have to leave the priceas it is and hope that this sort of bal-ance between the dollar and demandand inventories works itself out. But atthis point they are passengers in the oilprice rather than driving it,” Weaferadded.

Uralsib is predicting a Brent oil priceof $73 per barrel for 2010. Weafer saidthat it is quite possible that there willbe weakness in the first quarter. “Thesort of nervousness that we have seenover the last couple of weeks, we ex-pect to see much more in the first cou-ple of months of 2010 as realismdisplaces the hype that we had thisyear ... and that will keep markets gen-

erally a little bit weaker but also willput more volatility into markets andinto the oil price than we have had,”Weafer said.

Oil prices hit two new highs twoweeks ago. Analysts say the rises wereclosely related to the fluctuation of theUS dollar exchange rate. “The dynamicof the oil market is going to be this in-terplay between the dollar and the in-ventories and demand and certainlywould suggest demand will come laterand inventories are currently high andwe have a question mark over the dollarand US interest rates. So definitely Iwould expect some weakness in the firstquarter but a lot more volatility and thenwe hope that we will see a pick in themiddle of the year that will give us theaverage (oil price) of $73 (per barrel),”Weafer said.

“Obviously what we are hoping for,apart for the general recovery, is thatOPEC will be able to take more of adriving role over the oil price and itclearly doesn’t have that right now.The oil price is being driven withspeculative investment flows and is thecounter-balance of the dollar weak-ness,” said Weafer, who worked in AbuDhabi for eight years. He said thatthere is very little that OPEC can ac-tually do given that they have almostno room to maneuver when they meetin Luanda on 22 December.

Meanwhile, senior members ofOPEC – such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwaitand the United Arab Emirates - will

be hard-pressed to contain the pres-sure from the newer members that arelooking for a bigger share of the quotaand want to pump more oil to helptheir economies. “That’s going to bemore of the dominant issue in thisOPEC meeting. It’s kind of almostlike a battle between the Gulf produc-ers and they African producers,”Weafer said. “The new members wantthe assurance that their quotas will beraised – that there will be able to pro-duce a lot more oil – in order for themto justify to spend more money todayto make that happen. This is a real bat-tle that is brewing within OPEC,”Weafer said. “But it’s not about turn-ing on the taps today or tomorrow –it’s clear only Saudis can do that - butit is about future investment,” headded.

Russian Oil Minister Sergei Shm -atko said on 8 December he was com-fortable with oil at its current price.Shmatko told reporters in Doha he washappy with oil at around $75 a barrel.“Of course they are,” Weafer said. “Tosome extent they won the lottery thisyear because (non-OPEC member)Russia was able to take full advantageof OPEC’s decision to cut over fourmillion barrels of oil. Russia not onlydidn’t make any contribution to thosecuts but actually raised oil production,”Weafer said. “Russia had a windfall ofextra tax revenue because the price ofoil went up from 40 to an average ofover 60 dollars.”

OIL PRICES

Oil battle bubbling within OPEC ranks

Yuganskneftegaz derricks in the Priobskoe oilfield some 200 kilometers from Nefteyugansk, Russia. Russian Oil Minister Sergei Shmatko said on 8 De-cember he was happy with oil at around $75 a barrel|ANA/EPA/YURI KOCHETKOV

OIL REFINER

Hellenic Petroleum concludesBP Hellas transfer of sharesHellenic Petroleum, the largest oil refining company inGreece, announced on 10 December that it concluded thetransfer of shares of BP Hellas in the framework of theagreement that was announced on 26 June 2009. Theagreement called for the transfer of commercial activities ofBP in Greece, except those concerning aviation fuels, lu-bricants and in the sector of solar energy via the repurchaseof the 100% of shares of BP Hellas with a price of €359million adjusted for by any differences in lending and cashavailable of the company. The commercial activities of BPthat have been transferred include a network of gas sta-tions, storage facilities as well as the sector of commercialand industrial clients. The company that was bought outwill be renamed Hellenic Fuels SA and will keep the signsof BP and its gas stations in Greece for a period of at leastfive years with the option of extending the period. ChiefExecutive Officer of the company John Costopoulos said:“The completion of repurchase and the integration of net-work of service stations of BP Hellas in our activities con-stitute still an important step in the growth of Group GreekOils. This development will lend new dynamics in theGroup with positive results so much for the consumers aswell as the workers and the shareholders of the company.”Earlier in December, the board voted Tassos Giannitsis asChairman and confirmed Costopoulos as CEO.Costopoulos aims to double the company’s operating prof-itability by 2012 to an adjusted EBITDA of more than €1billion from about €500 million in 2008.

GAS CARTEL

Russian will lead Gas-OPECAn organization of natural gas exporting countries infor-mally known as the Gas OPEC has elected a Russian as itsfirst secretary general. Leonid V. Bokhanovsky, a vice pres-ident at Stroytransgaz, a well-connected pipeline construc-tion company, was elected at a meeting of energy ministersfrom the 11 member countries. The meeting was held inDoha, Qatar, where the group, the Gas Exporting Coun-tries Forum, has its headquarters.

GAS

Gazprom hosts China National Petroleum Corp for talksOfficials from the China National Petroleum Corp. ar-rived in Moscow to discuss securing natural gas suppliesfrom Russian energy giant Gazprom. Alexander Ana-nenkov, deputy chairman of Gazprom’s managementcommittee, met with CNPC Vice President WangDongjin to discuss the terms of an October agreementsetting the conditions for Russian gas supplies to China.Both companies in October signed a framework agree-ment on the terms and conditions for gas supplies.Gazprom and CNPC signed a strategic cooperationagreement in 2004 on a variety of joint ventures relatedto Russian gas deliveries.

EXPLORATION

Total gets 25% interest in Guyane Maritime PermitFrance’s Total announces the acquisition of a 25% interestin the Guyane Maritime Permit from Hardman PetroleumFrance SAS, an affiliate of Tullow Oil. The permit, locatedabout 150 kilometers off the coast of French Guiana, cov-ers an area of approximately 32,000 square kilometers inwater depths ranging from 2,000 to 3,000 meters.

By Kostis Geropoulos

ARTS & CULTURE

New Europe | Page 19

NEW EUROPEDecember 13 - 19, 2009

Italy - Bolzano - kunStart - Messe Bozen �,5 to 7 March 2010A dynamic fair that wants to be an art lab. Forall the suggestions that culture and the art mar-ket can give, without forgetting the variousconnections with design, communication andindustrial production. The coming edition willcontemporarily take place with Arredo 2010,Fair of Internal Design that will include38.000 more visitors to all the art lovers thatare appreciating KunStart. A young, but reallyinternational fair, that is becoming more andmore lively and qualitative. A fair that aims tobring together curators at European level andthat seeks to be an effective launching ramp forgalleries, artists, collectors. For those, that in anear future, will really be the protagonists ofthe art sector.

KunStart International Art Fair The Fair for Emerging Art is back in Bolzano

UNITED STATES –NEW YORK - ParkAvenue Armory - Janu-ary 22 - 31, 2010The Winter AntiquesShow announces thatHistoric New England,the oldest, largest, andmost comprehensive re-gional heritage organi-zation in the nation, willdisplay fine, decorativeand applied arts from its36 historically and archi-tecturally significantproperties in the fea-tured loan exhibition atthis year’s Show fromJanuary 22 -31, 2010 atthe Park Avenue Ar-

mory in New York City.Colonial to Modern: A

Century of Collecting at Historic New England, which celebrates Historic New England’s centennial, showcases someof the finest items from its collection of more than 110,000 objects. The exhibition is sponsored by Chubb Personal In-surance, which has sponsored the loan exhibition for 14 consecutive years. Arie L. Kopelman, Winter Antiques ShowCommittee Chairman, notes, ―We are honored to showcase these outstanding pieces from Historic New England asthis year’s loan exhibition.

United Kingdom- London, Pippy Houldsworth,until 9 January 2010Pippy Houldsworth is delighted to present a rare andsmall edition of prints made by Daniel Richter in2007. On display in London for the first time from 20November 2009 to 9 January 2010, these four large-scale woodcuts with etching offer a glimpse into theversatility and diversity of this important Germanartist. This group of works offers a distillation ofRichter’s frantic, lurid and complex paintings, withtheir monochrome backgrounds, block-colour sim-plicity and bold lines. They present scenes drawn froma strange iconography of Medieval torture, where un-fortunate individuals are stretched over spiked wheels.

Daniel Richter - The Woodcuts

Italy - Pistoia -until - January18th, 2010In MontecatiniTerme, in thesplendid setting ofthe Tamerici spa,from , an antholog-ical exhibition willbe held dedicated tothe Tuscan painterswho, in a period ofover 30 years (1865– 1900) gave life toan important andoriginal process ofaesthetic and philo-sophic moderniza-tion. 100 works, 20of which previouslyunseen, by 27 artistswill be on display(from GiovanniFattori to TelemacoSignorini, fromFiladelfo Simi toCristiano Banti),from both publicand private collec-tions. More info(www.macchiaioli-montecatini.com)

The New after the Macchia

Austria – Vienna,Leopold Museum,until 11 January 2010The Leopold Museumis presenting a repre-sentative overview ofthe work of the redis-covered Norwegianpainter Aksel Walde-mar Johannessen. Theartist’s key works arebeing shown for thefirst time in Vienna inan exhibition featuring

approximately 40 paintings. Rudolf Leopold has person-ally selected the artworks to be shown in the exhibition.Born in 1880, Johannessen studied sculpture at the StateArt School in Oslo. Together with his wife he founded aworkshop for traditional clothing and folk art. He main-tained close contact with the Norwegian literary coupleArne and Hulda Garbor, the founders of the NorwegianTheatre, for which he designed sets and costumes. Johan-nessen began painting in 1912, although his work as apainter remained for the most part unnoticed by thosearound him. Until his early death he produced numerouspaintings, but refrained from letting them pass out of hisownership.

AkselWaldemarJohannessen

Daniel Richter Untitled I 2007 wood-

cut with etching, edn of 16 150.5 x

120.5 cm

All items illustrated, together with other works of art will be exhibited at The Winter Antiques Show, Park

Avenue Armory New York City

Anastasia Bouyiatiotis - abc@neurope.eu

BRUSSELS AGENDA

Page 20 | New Europe | NEW EUROPEDecember 13 - 19, 2009

Brussels Agend

Welcome to NE’s Brussels Agenda. All youneed to know for a complete professionaland personal life in Brussels.

TAKE A LOOK

Nasreddin Hodja, RueGallait, Schaarbeek

This statue is in honour of thelegendary satirist, punster and jokerNasreddin Hodja His stories arelegendary. Here's one about thisstatue:One day Nasreddin Hodja got on hisdonkey the wrong way, facingtowards the back.- "Hodja," the people said, "You aresitting on your donkey backwards!"- "No," he replied. "It's not that I amsitting on the donkey backwards, thedonkey is facing the wrong way."

14 Dec - One Step Closer to a New Europe? TheImpact of the Lisbon Treaty on the EUInstitutions?13:00 - 14:00, The Centre, Avenue Marnix 22As the Lisbon Treaty finally enters into force,Jonathan Faull reflects upon how the Treaty is like-ly to change the functioning of the EU Institutions.How will the Barroso II Commission operateunder the new Treaty? Will the changes make for amore effective and dynamic Council under newPresident Van Rompuy? And will the newParliament be able to increase its influence withregard to Commission and Council?

16 Dec - Europe’s Muslim Communities13:15 - 14:30, Centre for European Policy Studies(CEPS), Place du Congrès 1Launch of a CEPS paperback and an OSI reporton Europe’s Muslim Communities. With TufyalChudhury, Durham Law School, Senior PolicyAdvisor, OSI Muslim in EU Cities Project;Michael Emerson, Senior Fellow and Head of theNeighbourhood Policy Unit, CEPS.

17 Dec - NATO and the Credit Crunch09:00 - 16:00, Security & Defence Agenda (SDA),Rue Belliard 137Financial constraints on both sides of the Atlanticare beginning to bite just as military chiefs aredemanding even greater resources. Will nationalbudget cuts favour future investment or currentoperations? Can conflicting pressures be reconciledwithin international armaments programmes?

17 Dec -The Priorities of the Spanish Presidency ofthe EU 17:30 to 19:00, CEPS Conference Room, 1, Placedu Congrès H.E. Carlos Bastarreche Sagües, PermanentRepresentative of Spain to the EU speaks, followedby questions from the participants

14 Dec - Jazz Cats, The Thomas Champagne TrioL’Atelier 210Chaussée Saint-Pierre 210An evening of Hard Bop, inspired by Dexter Gordonand John Coltrane, the trio play a very airy jazz, leav-ing considerable freedom of movement for musi-cians.

15 to 31 Dec - Mozart Vs MozartBOZARMore than one hour and thirty minutes ofhumourously commented great classical music, sevenmusicians on stage in costume, for a funny trip throughthe life of the most brilliant composer of all times

17 Dec - The photos of Christophe Licoppe10:00 - 18:00, BIP-Brussels Info Place, 2-4 RueRoyale, 1000 Brussels.This photographer, passionate about social subjectsand everyday life, gives us an unusual point of view

WORKsuggest your event for our agenda: agenda@neurope.eu

Vroom With A View100 years of Bugatti18 Dec to 17 Jan - Autoworld,Parc du Cinquantenaire 11Christmas is coming a few daysearly for Belgium's petrolheads asAutoworld puts on an astonishingdisplay of Bugatti cars, reknownedfor their elegance, style and speed.If that isn't enough, they will alsobe unveiling, for the first time inBelgium, the Bugatti VeyronGrand Sport. This gorgeous featof engineering does 0 - 60 in 2.5seconds and has a top speed 408km/, or one third of the speed ofsound, to put it in perspective.When this is put on display,expect to see grown men weeping.But the Grand sport is only thelatest in a long history ofoutstanding vehicles and there ismuch more to see, such as the Bugatti Royale, one of only six inexistence. There should have been many more, but the 30's depressionkilled off the market for a 6.4m long luxury limosine, whose chassisalone had a price tag of over 33,000

Most of the cars in the exhibition come from Belgian and foreignprivate collections and will not be seen together anywhere else. Severalare on loan from the Mulhouse Cité de l’Automobile’s uniquecollection, others from Bugatti SAS. On display alongside these iconiccars will be posters, paintings, catalogues, models, sculptures, bronzesand other artworks on a Bugatti theme.

BRUSSELS AGENDA

New Europe | Page 21NEW EUROPEDecember 13 - 19, 2009

da 14/12 - 25/12Going Underground

Play Belgium

19 Dec onwards - Caves de Cureghem, Entrée 3 - Rue JulesRuhl

The Caves de Cureghem/Kelders van Cureghem (CureghemCellars) are offering four months of immersion in thefascinating world of video gaming. The world over, games arehenceforth an integral part of our way of life and are notconfined to the young. Nonetheless, gamers are still lookeddown upon despite the fact that last year one Belgian family infive purchased a game console. The exhibition hosts a broadrange of over 250 playable games from the very first generationof games (such as Pong, Space Invaders, Pacman, ...) to themost recent console games: Wii, Xbox or PlayStation.Moddeled on the international Game On exhibition, theorganisers are hoping to demonstrate the history and voerietyon gaming, from old school consoles to mobile phone games.Also included is a look at how gaming has influenced films andmusic and a detailed examination of game development, usingexamples like tomb Raider and Grand Theft Auto, to show theprocess, from the first concept to the finished game. So, fromthe earliest games, to the latest Wii, from solitare to onlinemultiplatey, the whole of the gaming world is here to explore inthe atmospheric caves. you might even get to see Lara Croft.

Big Screen Belgium17 to 20 Dec - BE Film FestivalPathé Palace, Boulevard Anspachlaan, 85Although some may onlyknow of Belgium's place incinema through watching InBruges, Cineophiles knowthat the nation has longpunched above its weight inthe world of film. the BE FilmFestival is to unite the northand south of the state andpromote all their film work.there will be 22 films, shownover four days as well as a hostof other events, includingmusic and discussions onBelgian films with actors,directors and critics. In trueBelgian style, after a screening,people will be invited to join the directors in the bar for chat andfood. The prices are also set low to encourage visitors, at €11, apre-sales pass is outstanding value, but individual screenings areonly €6 and a meal afterwards will only cost €7.

with "Brussels by night from the rooftops".

17 to 20 Dec - BE Film FestivalPathé Palace, Boulevard Anspachlaan, 85The Festival of Belgian Films hosts 22 movies in 4days as well as DJ's and other events. come and seewhat this inventive country is producing for the bigscreen

18 Dec to 17 Jan - 100 years of BugattiAutoworld, Parc du Cinquantenaire 11Autoworld will be celebrating the very essence of themake: sport, design and elegance. From the Type 13through King Léopold III’s own Bugatti to thepresent-day Veyron Grand Sport

18 Dec - Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest20:00 BOZARHailed as the world's best orchestra by aninternational panel of critics, the ConcertgebouwOrchestra, a regular guest in Brussels, is much lovedby local music-lovers. While Brahms's FourthSymphony is one of the mainstays of the repertoire,we will also have an opportunity to hear a work by theCzech composer Bohuslav Martinu, who surelydeserves inclusion in more concert programmes.

19 Dec onwards - Play BelgiumCaves de Cureghem, Entrée 3 - Rue Jules RuhlDiscover the young history of gaming consoles and all

the events related to gaming in Belgium. All aspectsof gaming will be addressed: education, prevention,media, research, science, etc.

22 Dec onwards - KDO!Forest National - Avenue du Globe 36Franco Dragone, in partnership with Music HallGroup, presents his new creation, “KDO!” for the2009 Christmas season at Forest National. A showthat mixes circus entertainment with dance, magicand multimedia.

22 Dec - Les Pastoureaux22:00, BOZARThe Boys choir "Les Pastoureaux, Petits Chanteurs deWaterloo", "Les Amicroches" and "L'Orchestre deChambre de Waterloo" celebrate this joyful feast withpopular Christmas carols

20 to 30 Dec - The Sound Of MusicGalerie de la Porte de Namur, 3 Square du BastionThe Colyriques present the musical Sound of Music,tracing the story of young Maria and the von Trappfamily at the time of the Anschluss.

PLAYsuggest your event for our agenda: agenda@neurope.eu

Would you like to advertise in New Europe’s BrusselsAgenda? Ask for more info advertising@neurope.eu ordon’t hesitate to call us at +32(0)2 5390039

DINNER TIME

Il BuongustaioThis small but busy restaurant has a dedicated clientele, who comefor its outstanding fresh pasta dishes and delicious antipasti. Thesetting is pleasant and the host, Giovanni makes sure everyone islooked after. Apart from their range of dishes, each day there arethree specials and if you can't decide, order a 'Trio' a sample ofeach on one full plate. The wines are good and well priced as arethe home-made deserts, including a tiramisu that is to die for.although open during lunch hours, Giovanni also provides abuffets and meals for events and he also hosts many works dinners.Where: Galerie Trelo, Rue de la Loi 75Tel: 02 230 76 04What we ordered: The TrioCuisine: Italian home cookingComments: come here once and you'll see why it has so manyregularsPrice: Food, wine and coffee for around 15 - 20 euro per person

New Europe

IN THE BLOGSPage 22 | New Europe | NEW EUROPE

December 13 - 19, 2009

A round up of interesting blog posts ofthe last week. Because bloggers deserveand have earned their voice.

Read a blog post that you want to suggestfor our new ‘In The Blogs’ section? Send us an email: intheblogs@neurope.eu

I’ve been thinking about my plan to translate moreEuropean blogs. Today I discovered that Google Readercan automatically translate blog feeds – something that hasencouraged me even more. I have also been exploring theAlbanian blogosphere a bit, and Google Translate seemedable to translate it reasonably well. It’s a great feeling toexplore a foreign blogosphere – as if a whole new worldhas opened up.

I’ve also been thinking about my own writing. I want any-body to be able to Google Translate my blog and under-stand it, from any language – and Google Translate worksbest with simple sentences. The problem is – simple sen-tences do not always equal beautiful sentences. So I have aquestion for my non-English readers: do you find simpleEnglish helpful? Or is it just patronising and annoying?

I am willing to write in a simpler style to accomodate non-English readers – but only if it would be genuinely helpful.In my writing so far, I have not really considered non-English speakers. I have just written what I wanted to say.However, I’m starting to think my target audience mightnot be just English speakers now.

Since starting this blog, the vast majority of my readershave come from the United States and the UnitedKingdom. I have also had a modest audience from France,Belgium, Italy and Germany. The rest of the world is justdribs and drabs (note: “dribs and drabs” is the sort of non-simple English I’m thinking of cutting). However, sincethe euroblog meet-up I have been getting readers from allover Europe (especially Eastern Europe).

As I interact with more national blogospheres, I expect Iwill get more readers that don’t speak English as a first lan-guage. Should they now be my target audience? Should Iwrite in simple English for them? That would mean lessidioms, less obscure expressions, less phrasal verbs, lesscomplicated metaphors, shorter sentences, and a generalemphasis on clarity over style. Would this just be insultingthe intelligence of my readers (or insulting the intelligenceof the programmers at Google Translate)?

Perhaps, as an alternative, the anglosphere (the English-speaking world) should remain my target audience. I willwork at “translating Europe” for an English-speakingreadership. The problem with this approach is that it does-n’t interest me nearly as much. I feel much more excited bythe prospect of interacting with the various non-English-speaking blogospheres properly. There are already millionsof English-language blogs on the internet – why shouldn’tI do something a little different?

Thoughts, comments and criticism would be welcome.

Does Simple English Simply Annoy You?

Posted by European Alternatives

http://www.euroalter.com/

It is time for the EU to move awayfrom its inegalitarian policies towardsthe countries of the South.

A revived European left cannot limititself to the merely national or evenEuropean sphere, but must be open tothe world and come up with a plan forrestructuring a profoundly unjustglobal economic system.

We are constantly reminded of theinescapable supranational intercon-nection of contemporary economicalreality – as recent buzzwords such as‘delocalisation’, ‘debt crisis’ or‘theChina factor’ have served to describe.We are also aware of the increasinglycosmopolitan feel of European cities,which provides a very tangible repre-sentation of the global migrations ofthe new century.

At the same time, however, if we turnour gaze to the political landscape westill see a centuries-old pattern ofcompetition between states, and atribal conception of the nationalinterest. The panoramic view is ofgated communities, all racing to reapthe world’s harvest – little seems tohave changed since the advent of themodern Westphalian state.

This means that arguments for truly‘internationalist’ behaviour on the partof the richer countries – few on theground as they are – are usually under-stood either in terms of sheer benevo-lence, or as leading to unwarrantedintrusion into the affairs of other soci-eties that very frequently become actsof self-interest or profit-seeking (as somany IMF and World Bank interven-tions have led us to believe).

But both these approaches are basedon a crucial lack of awareness: that we

are actively responsible for the harmperpetuated in our name though themaintenance of an unjust global sys-tem that is directly sustained by thegovernments that represent us. It iscrucial to tackle this lack of aware-ness, for the two positions outlinedabove are symptomatic of a mystifica-tion that allows the false thesis thatthe problem of world poverty doesnot concern us, as citizens of the firstworld, aside from the charitable aidthat we can offer (in all our generosity).

Current discourse on migration servesas an excellent example of this denialof responsibility. Europeans often actas if ‘migrants’ were being pushedtowards our lands by baffling gravita-tional forces. The state is inclined toview itself as a neutral actor that hasnothing to do with migration: it canrespond either brutally or with sym-pathy (with charity), through more orless strict regulation on asylum-seek-ing procedures, more or less tightinternal controls, etc. But this hidesthe connection between the phenom-enon of migration and the economicand military actions of the ‘receiving’countries or their prime economicactors. Without wanting in any wayto deny the crucial importance of thefight for the incorporation of migrantpopulations into Europe (the treat-ment of whom has been a disgrace forwhich many have begun employingthe term ‘European Apartheid’), it isperhaps also worthwhile to raise thequestion of why, in the twenty-firstcentury, we are faced with such baf-fling, monstrous and unacceptablelevels of disparity across the planet.And perhaps we should be look foranswers at the terms of WTO agree-ments, at Europe’s trade policy and itseffect on third-world produce, or atthe real moral implications of ourown delocalised companies that forcethe lowest wage consistent with sur-vival on citizens of the third world.Examples abound – from the role ofEuropean fisheries policy in increas-

ing unemployment in Senegal, to theunequal partnership agreements withAfrican and Caribbean states, and theeffects of the common agriculturalpolicy on farmers from third-worldcountries.

An intervention that goes beyond themerely humanitarian – one that aimsinstead at the very core of the globalinterpenetration of economic, tech-nological and cultural processes – isevidently outside the capacity of anyindividual nation state. But all theexisting international organisations,beginning with the UN, the IMF, andthe World Bank, have thus far provedtotally ineffective in addressing theproblem of global poverty andinequality. As the world’s largesteconomy, is this not what a reinvigo-rated transnational left should ask theEuropean Union to do? Let us notforget that trade – which is one of themost powerful weapons for address-ing the current global economicimbalance, one that is a far morepowerful instrument than aid or any‘structural funds’ can ever be – is cur-rently managed by the EU on behalfof its member states. Should we notactively push for this tool to be usedin new ways, and call for a review ofexisting trade agreements, so thatthey are consistent with UN conven-tions on human, social, and environ-mental rights? Could we not regulatethe actions of European multination-als abroad, ensuring the respect oflabour rights and environmental stan-dards regardless of local situations?The list could be extended.

Common sense prescribes profoundscepticism towards the current capac-ities of the European Union to trulyenact an alternative global politics.But hasn’t this always been the condi-tion faced by emerging political alter-natives? And isn’t the role of atransnational left to make these alter-natives a reality?.

By Joe Litobarski

http://joelitobarski.com

For a Europe open to the world

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