Europe

Friday May 11, 2018

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday May 11, 2018

The world is nervously watching as the gloves come off between Iran and Israel

Israel says that it’s done with strikes on Iran — for now. France fears an escalation. Iran has its finger on the trigger. But, really, it’s Russian President Vladimir Putin who sits in the hot seat.

July 15, 2015

Where once the US would have been the brake on spikes in Syrian violence, there is a real possibility President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal is greasing the wheels towards a wider regional war.

In recent months, the world’s top diplomat, UN Secretary-General António Guterres, has warned that Israeli and Iranian tit-for-tat strikes in Syria could quickly boil over to a regional conflagration.

Overnight, rockets fired by Iranian forces from inside Syria toward Israel triggered a forewarned robust response from Israel’s military — targeting Iranian military assets in Syria.

Since early February, when Israel says it shot down an Iranian drone laden with explosives that was launched from Syria, the Israeli Defense Forces have increased retaliatory strikes in Syria at Iranian targets.

Some of those strikes are reported to have killed several Iranian fighters. Yet until this point there had been no Iranian retaliation.

The sudden surge in the exchange of rockets Wednesday night — on the heels of Trump’s exit from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action — hints that Iran has suspended its strategic restraint.

If so, the likelihood that the Iranian-Israeli confrontation will escalate increases. (Source: CNN) 

 

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Thursday March 30, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday March 30, 2017

Scotland to press on with referendum

Nicola Sturgeon has pledged to press on with a fresh independence referendum after dismissing Theresa May’s promise of substantial new powers for Scotland Brexit.

June 25, 2016

The first minister said May’s decision to trigger article 50 on Wednesday, beginning the UK’s divorce from the EU, was one of the most destructive acts by a British leader in modern history, threatening hundreds of thousands of jobs across the UK.

Writing for the Guardian, Sturgeon said the decision was dispiriting, economically foolhardy and constitutionally reckless, threatening stability in Northern Ireland. It also undermined European efforts to combat climate change and collective security, she said.

“Brexit – especially the hard Brexit shaped by May’s inability to shake off the agenda of the Ukip-tinged right wing of her own party – threatens to be an act of self-harm on a scale barely understood,” she said.

She accused May of paying only superficial attention to the Scottish government’s demands for a special deal on the single market, opening up further conflicts with the UK government over the benefits Scotland could gain from Brexit.

“The result is that we must now ensure that people in Scotland are given a choice between the hard Brexit deal now being negotiated, and independence,” she said.

Just as the prime minister told MPs at Westminster she had formally triggered article 50, Sturgeon had received a letter from David Davis, the UK Brexit secretary, insisting his government was engaging seriously with Sturgeon’s proposals.

Neither government would release Davis’s letter but it is understood that he told Sturgeon he was disappointed that she had launched her claim for an independence referendum before she saw the full extent of the new powers on offer once EU laws and regulations were repatriated. (Source: The Guardian) 

 

Wednesday February 22, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday February 22, 2017

Trudeau says Canada one of NATO’s ‘strongest actors’ without committing more money

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke about Canada’s diverse contributions to the NATO partnership without committing to up its defence spending when he addressed a news conference in Berlin.

Trudeau and Angela Merkel addressed reporters Friday following their morning meeting and an impromptu dinner Thursday at the German chancellor’s invitation.

Trump has called the 28-country alliance obsolete and U.S. Defence Secretary James Mattis told his fellow defence ministers in Brussels this week that while the United States still holds NATO in high regard, it expects its allies to start spending more on defence or the Trump administration will “moderate its commitment.”

Germany has signalled it will heed the warning and make attempts to boost defence spending, which Merkel brought up when asked about it on Friday.

But in Ottawa, there’s little indication that any increase in NATO-specific defence spending is on the horizon.

‘Germany and Canada have always been among the strongest actors in NATO.’- Justin Trudeau

Canada currently spends 0.99 per cent of gross domestic product on defence. That’s below the NATO target of two per cent of GDP, which only a handful of alliance countries have met.

On Friday, Trudeau said that two per cent target is one all NATO countries agreed to, but there are many ways of looking at a country’s contributions to the alliance.

“When you look at the countries that regularly step up — delivering troops, participating in missions, being there to do the heavy lifting in the alliance — Germany and Canada have always been amongst the strongest actors in NATO,” he said.

He made the case that Canada is leading the battle group in Latvia, and working to procure more aircraft and ships for its military as two examples.(Source: CBC News) 

 

Wednesday October 26, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Wednesday October 26, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday October 26, 2016

The collapse of the EU/Canada landmark deal shows how the EU sets itself up for failure

The European Union is on the brink of witnessing a landmark free-trade deal crumble before its very eyes.

But the structure of the EU effectively allows the likelihood of these kinds of deals to collapse at the very last minute, said a trade expert to Business Insider.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Thursday October 20, 2016 Trade minister Freeland meets with Wallonia leader in effort to save CETA deal Federal Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland met Wednesday with the head of Wallonia in an effort to save a trade deal with the European Union that could collapse if the small Belgium region does not support it by Friday. A spokeswoman for Freeland says she met with Wallonia President Paul Magnette, who earlier Wednesday said his region could not sign on to the deal by Friday, which has been set as a deadline to get the last of the 28 EU nations on board. Anne-Louise Chauvette says the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, also known as CETA, is a priority for the federal government and it is working hard with its European partners so that it can be approved and implemented next year. The Wallonia vote has created headaches for Belgium's national government because its constitution gives its three regional governments Ñ Wallonia being one of them Ñ a potential veto over CETA, which has been seven years in the making. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is scheduled to fly to Brussels next week to sign the agreement should it be unanimously approved by the EU. (Source: CBC) http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/ceta-wallonia-save-trade-deal-1.3812570 Canada, Belgium, Wallonia, Walloon, EU, trade, deal, CETA, Justin Trudeau, Chrystia Freeland,Êmanneken pis

October 20, 2016

CETA, a proposed free-trade arrangement between the 28-nation bloc and Canada, looks set to collapse after the Belgian region of Wallonia refused to support the deal on Monday.

The deal has taken over seven years to negotiate, with talks between the EU and Canada beginning in 2009.

Failure to push it through would be a serious blow to the Union, as it would cast serious doubt on its ability to strike any future trade deal, including with post-Brexit Britain.

Donald Tusk, the European Council president, hinted that failure to complete CETA would make striking a similar deal with Britain once it withdraws from the bloc almost impossible.

“If you are not able to convince people that trade agreements are in their interests … we will have no chance to build public support for free trade, and I am afraid that means that CETA could be our last free-trade agreement,” he said. (Source: Business Insider UK)

 

Saturday June 25, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Saturday June 25, 2016 Nexit, Frexit or Italeave? British vote fires up EU's 'Outers' Britain's vote to leave the European Union fired up populist eurosceptic parties across the continent on Friday, giving fresh voice to their calls to leave the bloc or its euro currency. Right-wing and anti-immigrant parties in the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden and France demanded referendums on membership of the union, while Italy's 5-Star movement said it would pursue its own proposal for a vote on the euro. Geert Wilders, leader of the Dutch anti-immigrant PVV party, said he would make a Dutch referendum on EU membership a central theme of his campaign to become prime minister in next year's parliamentary election. "I congratulate the British people for beating the political elite in both London and Brussels and I think we can do the same," Wilders told Reuters. "We should have a referendum about a 'Nexit' as soon as possible.Ó On Thursday, Britons voted to leave the 28-nation EU, forcing the resignation of Prime Minister David Cameron and dealing the biggest blow to the European project of greater unity since World War Two. "There is no future any more (for the EU)," Wilders said. France's far right National Front party also called for a French referendum on European Union membership, cheering a Brexit vote it hopes can boost its eurosceptic agenda. Party leader Marine Le Pen celebrated the result by displaying the British flag on her Twitter page. "Victory for freedom!" she said. "We now need to hold the same referendum in France and in (other) EU countries." Her deputy, Florian Philippot said: "Our turn now #Brexit #Frexit.Ó The populist anti-immigration Danish People's Party (DF), an ally of Denmark's right-leaning government, also called for a referendum on membership of the European Union. "I believe that the Danes obviously should have a referendum on whether we want to follow Britain or keep things t

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday June 25, 2016

Nexit, Frexit or Italeave? British vote fires up EU’s ‘Outers’

Britain’s vote to leave the European Union fired up populist eurosceptic parties across the continent on Friday, giving fresh voice to their calls to leave the bloc or its euro currency.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Wednesday June 22, 2016 ÔBrexitÕ Vote Will Change Europe, No Matter the Outcome If the U.K. decides in ThursdayÕs referendum to leave the European Union, it would shake the continent to its political foundations. Even if it stays, the bloc may never be the same. A decision to leave, which would be a first by a member nation, would deepen the crisis facing a continent already struggling with economic weakness, debt problems, large-scale migration and growing geopolitical instability to its south and east. At a minimum, politicians and officials say, a British exit would transform the blocÕs balance of power. Negotiations over a new relationship would consume the EUÕs energy at a time when European institutions are struggling to respond to the other problems. A U.K. exit also could disrupt financial markets and fire up anti-EU forces in other countries. Whether or not the U.K. leaves, change is coming. In February, U.K. Prime Minister David CameronÊstruck a deal with the rest of the EU to restrict migrant benefits and detach Britain from the blocÕs push for an Òever closer union.Ó Mr. CameronÕs effort to claw back power from Brussels, coupled with the referendum at home, is an approach that other European politicians are promising to follow, potentially fragmenting the bloc further. The referendum, at a minimum, has delivered a shock to EuropeÕs political classes, calling into question what some had once regarded as an inevitable march toward a federal EU. ÒObsessed with the idea of instant and total integration, we failed to notice that ordinary people, the citizens of Europe, do not share our Euro-enthusiasm,Ó European Council President Donald Tusk observed in a speech in late May. ÒThe specter of a breakup is haunting Europe, and a vision of a federation doesnÕt seem to me like the best answer to it.Ó (Continued: Wall Street Journal)Êhttp://www.wsj.com/articles/brexit-vote-will-change-europe-no-mat

June 22, 2016

Right-wing and anti-immigrant parties in the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden and France demanded referendums on membership of the union, while Italy’s 5-Star movement said it would pursue its own proposal for a vote on the euro.

Geert Wilders, leader of the Dutch anti-immigrant PVV party, said he would make a Dutch referendum on EU membership a central theme of his campaign to become prime minister in next year’s parliamentary election.

“I congratulate the British people for beating the political elite in both London and Brussels and I think we can do the same,” Wilders told Reuters. “We should have a referendum about a ‘Nexit’ as soon as possible.”

On Thursday, Britons voted to leave the 28-nation EU, forcing the resignation of Prime Minister David Cameron and dealing the biggest blow to the European project of greater unity since World War Two.

“There is no future any more (for the EU),” Wilders said.

France’s far right National Front party also called for a French referendum on European Union membership, cheering a Brexit vote it hopes can boost its eurosceptic agenda.

Party leader Marine Le Pen celebrated the result by displaying the British flag on her Twitter page.

Friday September 19, 2014

September 19, 2014

“Victory for freedom!” she said. “We now need to hold the same referendum in France and in (other) EU countries.” Her deputy, Florian Philippot said: “Our turn now #Brexit #Frexit.”

The populist anti-immigration Danish People’s Party (DF), an ally of Denmark’s right-leaning government, also called for a referendum on membership of the European Union.

“I believe that the Danes obviously should have a referendum on whether we want to follow Britain or keep things the way we have it now,” DF party leader Kristian Thulesen Dahl said.

In Sweden, the anti-immigration party the Sweden Democrats, which has the support of around 17 percent of voters according to a poll last month, said it would step up pressure for change.

September 4, 2015

September 4, 2015

“We demand that Sweden immediately starts to renegotiate the (EU) deals we have made and that the Swedish people will be able to speak up about a future EU-membership in a referendum,” party leader Jimme Akesson said.

Austria’s far-right Freedom Party (FPO) called for the heads of the European Commission and European Parliament to resign after the Brexit vote, and said it may also call for a referendum unless the EU is reformed.

Italy’s second most popular party, the opposition 5-Star Movement described the result as a lesson in democracy and promised to pursue its own proposal for an Italian referendum on the euro.

The right-wing Northern League, a member of Italy’s opposition center-right, was more outspoken. “Thank you Great Britain, next it is our turn,” party leader Matteo Salvini said.(Source: Reuters)

Published in the Kitchener-Waterloo Record

Published in the Kitchener-Waterloo Record