Tag: EU

Do or Die: There’s Only One Way for the EU to Avoid Breakup Amid COVID-19 Recession

Sputnik News – April 3, 2020

Twelve years after the 2008 global economic crisis the future of the European bloc is in question again as the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed deep internal divisions at a time when a common solution is needed, economic observers say, predicting the potential demise of the EU.

On Thursday, French President Emmanuel Macron warned EU member states that the coronavirus crisis may shatter the pillars of the bloc and bring an end to the no-border Schengen Zone unless the countries in the union demonstrate solidarity.

“What’s at stake is the survival of the European project”, Macron told his fellow EU leaders during a conference call on 26 March. “The risk we are facing is the death of Schengen”.

On 17 March, European leaders announced that they had agreed to shut the EU’s external borders down for 30 days in a bid to slow the coronavirus spread. However, 14 of the bloc’s 27 members have closed their internal borders either completely or partially thus throwing the EU no-border concept into question.

Likewise, EU member states have failed to reach a compromise on debt-sharing amid the COVID-19-driven economic slowdown. Nine EU countries, namely, Spain, Italy, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Ireland, Portugal, Greece, and Slovenia are urging the union to issue so-called “corona bonds”, i.e. a common debt instrument aimed at raising funds on the market. The so-called “Frugal Four” – Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, and Finland  are resisting the measure.

Observers are sounding the alarm over the unfolding split within the Eurozone, suggesting that though the 2008 financial crisis fell short of axing the bloc’s common currency the coronavirus crisis might end with the breakup of the EU.

https://sputniknews.com

‘Assisted suicide an NHS moneysaver’, ‘disturbing’ report says

Christian Insitute – March 18, 2020

Academics in Scotland have been criticised for suggesting that legalising assisted suicide would financially benefit the NHS.

Ethicist Dr David Shaw and healthcare economist Professor Alec Morton say it would be “irresponsible not to consider” the economic costs of denying assisted suicide.

Dr Gordon Macdonald, Chief Executive of Care Not Killing, called the report “highly disturbing”.

Dr Macdonald said: “Very quickly the argument moves from that of personal autonomy to doctors and nurses making value judgments about the quality of other people’s lives while seeking to save money and tackle so-called ‘bed blocking’ in health services.”

He cited the situation in the US states of Oregon and Washington, where “a majority of those ending their lives cite fear of being a burden on their families and finances.

“We have also seen cancer patients denied life-saving and life-extending treatments due to their cost but offered the drugs to end their lives”.

The study claimed legalization would be positive, as helping some patients to kill themselves would free up resources for other patients.

The researchers also said the controversial practice should be legalized because where patients die naturally, their organs deteriorate and are less likely to be viable for transplant.

In the Netherlands and Belgium it is already possible for organs to be donated following an assisted suicide.

https://www.christian.org.uk

Europe Under Siege

Bruce Bawer – March 10, 2020

In 1683 a massive army of the Ottoman Empire laid siege to the Christian city of Vienna. After two months, an allied force that consisted of men from all over the Holy Roman Empire and from other central European states, including Hungary, and that was led by John III Sobieski, the King of Poland and Lithuania, turned the Ottoman soldiers back, preventing the potential Islamization of the continent.

In recent days, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, president of the Ottoman Empire’s successor state, Turkey, has unleashed thousands of Muslims, mostly young males of military age, upon the European Union, today’s not-so-holy but increasingly imperial reincarnation of the Holy Roman Empire. More specifically, Erdogan, in violation of an agreement with the EU that netted him billions, has allowed – and encouraged – these people, who have been routinely described in the Western media as “refugees” and “migrants,” to storm the border separating his country from the EU’s southeasternmost satrapy, Greece. Indeed, he’s lent them active support, providing many of them with free transport to the border, which they’ve attacked with rocks, “makeshift battering rams,” and tear-gas canisters (supplied by Ergodan) while setting fires and shouting “Allahu akbar!” Photos taken at the border underscore just how perverse it is to call these thugs “refugees” or “migrants.”

Seems like old times. What’s different this time around is that whereas seventeenth-century Europeans understood that they were confronting, in the Islamic invaders of their day, an existential threat to their way of life, many of their descendants don’t seem to have a clue about what they’re dealing with. On Tuesday of last week, and again on Saturday, thousands of Germans, rallying in Berlin and other cities, demanded that the “migrants” on the Greek borders be allowed to pour into the continent and to find their way to Germany, if they wish, so that they can help form “a solidarity society” in which there will be “no more suffering.”

https://www.frontpagemag.com

‘Can No Longer Afford NATO?’ Twitter Aboil as Johnson Vows Historic Overhaul of Post-Brexit Defence

Sputnik News – February 26, 2020

Boris Johnson has ordered a major overhaul of Britain’s defence sector as part of a government review to determine the county’s post-Brexit course and ensure the nation is prepared for any potential threats, the BBC reported.

For the first time in decades, it will also cover the UK’s overseas operations, including aid cash.

Whitehall hopes insights from internal and external experts will challenge “traditional Whitehall assumptions”, regarding the diplomatic service, use of technology, tackling organized crime, etc.

Announcing the review, Boris said last night: “We must do more to adapt. We will be judged by how we respond to the opportunities ahead”, noting the UK could not “rest on our laurels”.

“As the world changes we must move with it – harnessing new technologies and ways of thinking to ensure British foreign policy is rooted firmly in our national interests, now and in the decades ahead”, the prime minister explained.

The government says it is set to “utilise expertise from both inside and outside government for the review, ensuring the UK’s best foreign policy minds are feeding into its conclusions and offering constructive challenges to traditional Whitehall assumptions and thinking”.

The UK’s last comprehensive security and defence review was completed in late 2015, before Britain voted to leave the EU. The new one, first announced by Johnson during his election as the “biggest since the Cold War” is expected to be outlined in a formal statement later on.

https://sputniknews.com

‘Dominoes to Start Toppling’: Ex-Brexit Party MEP ‘Foretells’ Next Country to Leave EU

Sputnik News – February 16, 2020

Following the UK’s official exit from the EU on 31 January, all eyes currently are on Britain’s efforts to clinch new trade deals with other countries as well as the bloc during an 11-month transition period.

Former Brexit Party MEP Martin Daubney has claimed that proof of successful life post-Brexit may prod the EU’s “dominoes to topple”, making other bloc members officially announce their bids to withdraw from the organisation.

In an interview with the Daily Express on Sunday, Daubney referred to his brief stint in the European Parliament, during which he heard increasing anti-EU sentiments among a whole array of member states which are now “watching what happens next.”

“It’s amazing how many friends we’ve made. We’ve not been these renegades, we’ve got a lot of mates from the German, the Polish. They’ve been giving us a standing ovation when we put our flags on our desks, standing up for the national flag. Make no mistake, eurosceptics are watching what happens next”, he said.

Daubney asserted in this context that it will be Germany that may become next member to exit from the EU if Britain provides it with “evidence” of success outside the bloc.

“If we can forge it on our own, we can go ahead and strike out and become a huge international force without the EU”, he said, adding that the Germans, who “like evidence” may follow suit.

“When they see the evidence that you can stand outside the EU, I think the dominoes are going to start toppling. We’re the first to go, we’re not the last”, Daubney claimed.

https://sputniknews.com

With UK out, Macron unveils ‘nuclear weapons doctrine’ with France leading an EU army

– February 14, 2020

The Duran’s Alex Christoforou and Editor-in-Chief Alexander Mercouris discuss Emmanuel Macron’s speech where the French President unveiled his nuclear doctrine advocating for a more coordinated European Union defence strategy in which France, the EU’s only post-Brexit nuclear power, and its arsenal holding a central role.

Macron warned all those in attendance that the European Union ‘cannot remain spectators’ in the nuclear arms race.

In a much anticipated speech to military officers graduating in Paris, Macron called on EU member states to play a more direct role in halting a new nuclear arms race, saying they “cannot remain spectators” against a threat to the continent’s collective security.

“In the absence of a legal framework, they could rapidly face a new race for conventional weapons, even nuclear weapons, on their own soil,” said Macron.

Setting out his country’s nuclear strategy in a bid to show leadership a week after nuclear-armed Britain officially exited the EU, Macron highlighted how France sees its nuclear weapons as a deterrent against attacks from belligerent foes.

Macron’s speech comes at a time when long-standing accords on limiting the growth of nuclear arsenals appear increasingly at risk.

https://theduran.com

Macron on Arms Race: European States ‘Cannot Remain Spectators’ in an Increasingly Unstable World

Sputnik News – February 7, 2020

Fears of an international nuclear arms race have been allayed with the end of the Cold War, but re-emerged as the United States under Donald Trump pulled out of several arms control treaties with Russia, including one that prohibited nuclear-capable missiles.

President Emmanuel Macron stated that European countries should act proactively in the face of a nuclear arms race as he laid out France’s nuclear weapons strategy.

Speaking to military officers in Paris on Friday, Macron called on EU member states to propose an a “international arms control agenda”.

He also suggested that Europeans should “not confine themselves to a role of spectators” at a time when the existing non-proliferation treaties are being called into question.

“Europeans must collectively realise that, in the absence of a legal framework, they could quickly face a new conventional or even nuclear arms race on their soil.”

Macron has dedicated much of his attention as president to modernising France’s and Europe’s military strategy. He has proposed a “true European army” to cut reliance on the United States, launched a military space force command and suggested a military intervention force outside of NATO, known as European Intervention Initiative, already joined by 14 European states.

The Macron government also plans to spend €37 billion ($41bn) to upgrade and maintain its nuclear arsenal over the next seven years — more than 12 percent of the total defense spending for that period.

https://sputniknews.com

EU Parliament Clears Brexit; UK Set to Leave Friday

Newsmax – January 29, 2020

The European Union grudgingly let go of the United Kingdom with a final vote Wednesday at the E.U.’s Parliament that ended the Brexit divorce battle and set the scene for tough trade negotiations in the year ahead.

In an emotion-charged session at the session in Brussels, lawmakers from all 28 E.U. countries expressed their love and sadness, while some, notably from Britain’s Brexit Party, their joy.

Some even cried and many held hands during a mournful rendition of the Auld Lang Syne farewell song that contrasted sharply with hard-headed exhortations that Britain won’t find it easy in the talks that will follow the country’s official departure on Friday.

“We will always love you and we will never be far,” said E.U. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

Britain will leave the E.U. after 47 years of membership. It is the first country to leave and for many in Europe its official departure at 11 p.m. London time on Friday is a moment of enormous sadness and reduces the number in the bloc to 27.

With just two days to go until Brexit day, the legislature overwhelmingly approved Britain’s departure terms from the E.U. — 621 to 49 in favor of the Brexit deal that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson negotiated with the other 27 E.U. leaders in the fall of last year. The deal’s passage follows last week’s backing by the U.K.’s Parliament.

The Parliament’s chief Brexit official, Guy Verhofstadt, said that “this vote is not an adieu,” adding that it is “only an au revoir.”

https://www.newsmax.com

UK: Boris Johnson’s deal ‘crosses the Brexit finish line’

DW – January 23, 2020

The UK moved a step closer to its January 31 exit date from the European Union on Thursday when Queen Elizabeth II gave her formal assent to Brexit legislation ratified by British lawmakers the day prior.

Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons, Nigel Evans, declared the Withdrawal Agreement Act had received the royal approval, meaning there are no more significant obstacles prior to next week’s departure.

Two top EU officials in Brussels are expected to sign the separation treaty on Friday.

“At times it felt like we would never cross the Brexit finish line, but we’ve done it,” Prime Minister Boris Johnson said after the bill passed in Parliament on Wednesday.

“Now we can put the rancor and division of the past three years behind us and focus on delivering a bright, exciting future,” he added.

Earlier that day, the lower house of Parliament, the House of Commons, overturned changes the upper house, the House of Lords, had made to the legislation, including a clause to ensure protections for child refugees after Brexit.

The Lords could have sought to reinstate the changes, but decided not to, allowing the legislation to clear its final parliamentary hurdle in the UK. There will be a consent vote in the EU parliament on January 29.

https://www.dw.com

Pope Francis Unveils Globalist New World Religion at Summit with United Nations Leader

– December 26, 2019

Pope Francis’ war on traditional Catholicism has been ramping up recently, and he castigated Catholics who believe in tradition and refuse to warp Biblical scripture to appease a godless world for creating a “minefield of misunderstanding and hatred.”

“Rigidity and imbalance fuel one another in a vicious circle,” he said. “And these days, the temptation to rigidity has become so apparent.”

“Tradition is not static, it’s dynamic,” Francis added.

Francis revealed the dogma that he intends to replace belief in Christ as savior with last week. He is advocating for Catholics to unite behind a one world government, and surrender their freedom and sovereignty to international interests.

“Your clear moral voice shines through – whether you are speaking out on the plight of the most vulnerable, including refugees and migrants … confronting poverty and inequalities … appealing for disarmament… building bridges between communities … and, of course, highlighting the climate emergency through your historic encyclical, ‘Laudato Si’, and so many other vital efforts,” U.N. Secretary General António Guterres said during his meeting with the pontiff.The “Laudato Si” was a blasphemous encyclical letter issued by Francis in 2015 calling for world government to solve the supposed global warming crisis.

https://bigleaguepolitics.com