As the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper reports, Merkel and Sarkozy were able to bring together a satisfying consenses for a new stability pact in the Euro-zone. According to the article, debates lasted an exhaustive ten hours until agreement was reached among 23 member states. Great Britain, which Pres. Sarkozy criticized for setting its demands too high during negotiations, has refused to sign the new pact.
http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/eu-gipfel-merkel-setzt-sich-weitgehend-durch-11556055.html
Friday, December 9, 2011
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
CFR.org - Germany Is the Real Winner in a Transfer Union
Sebastian Mallaby from CFR writes on why Germany needs to take a stance on preserving the Euro-zone.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Blog Additions
After adjusting my blog layout, I realized it wasn't possible to add in a side bar for links and other news sources. With this new design, I'm now able to do this. You'll find on the right side of your screen a new set of links to popular news broadcasters in Germany and in the US that report on events and politics in English. For German, I've also listed a few of my favorite sources for domestic politics and local news.
-SB
-SB
Thursday, November 17, 2011
A way out of the crisis - Heinrich Böll lecture
Yesterday evening, I attended a lecture on the Euro-crisis hosted by the Heinrich Böll Stiftung, a foundation under the Green party in Germany. Paneling the discussion were speakers from policy committees within the foundation, as well as one guest speaker, a state secretary from the federal government.
More than just discuss the current debt crisis and dwell on reasons for it, the moderator and panelists disputed with one another on a deeper level the possible routes the EU could choose to reform its governance to address the dilemma. According to the moderator, the crisis in the Eurozone "has completely gone astray of the standard doctrine found in Europe's regulated, inter-governmental processes...This evening," he spoke, "we will not dwell on the subject of fiscal policy, but rather governance in the EU."
The evening's discussion round was highlighted by the guest speaker, Jörg Asmussen, the State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Finance. "We have no crisis in the Eurozone (Schengen area), but rather simply a crisis of the state and its indebtedness." Sec. Asmussen went on to highlight five points of reform, which would solve the EU's governance approach:
Additional information on the speakers and content from this discussion:
http://www.boell.de/presse/presse-presseeinladung-wege-aus-der-eurokrise-13296.html
-SB
More than just discuss the current debt crisis and dwell on reasons for it, the moderator and panelists disputed with one another on a deeper level the possible routes the EU could choose to reform its governance to address the dilemma. According to the moderator, the crisis in the Eurozone "has completely gone astray of the standard doctrine found in Europe's regulated, inter-governmental processes...This evening," he spoke, "we will not dwell on the subject of fiscal policy, but rather governance in the EU."
The evening's discussion round was highlighted by the guest speaker, Jörg Asmussen, the State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Finance. "We have no crisis in the Eurozone (Schengen area), but rather simply a crisis of the state and its indebtedness." Sec. Asmussen went on to highlight five points of reform, which would solve the EU's governance approach:
- Solution to the plight of Greece
- Believeable solutions for other crisis-prone states, in which the fault of indebtedness should lie on the states themselves
- Expansion of the EFSF
- Recapitalization of banks
- Well-defined goals for EU's further expansion, whether that be gaining more members or deciding on a unified fiscal policy
Additional information on the speakers and content from this discussion:
http://www.boell.de/presse/presse-presseeinladung-wege-aus-der-eurokrise-13296.html
-SB
Monday, November 14, 2011
Willkommen! Welcome!
Servus! Or rather, welcome to my new blog.
After leaving Austria last summer to begin my studies in Berlin, I've had to get used to new changes. Besides the large umstellung or adjustment to life in the metropolis, there has also been the increasing reports about what has become the infamous "Eurozone crisis" (Deutsch / English).
What more perfect a time to be in Berlin, studying European economic policy? This blog will be my attempt to keep track of my day-to-day experiences at trying to understand the crisis from the center. I will include daily insight into how local news broadcasters, journalists and the daily press in Germany handle this issue. What are the sentiments of Germans and of other EU member states? How are politicians like Chancellor Merkel and President Sarkozy addressing the situation and preventing the bad news from turning worse?
Keep track of my blog via RSS and Twitter.
Wiederlesen! Read me later!
-SB
After leaving Austria last summer to begin my studies in Berlin, I've had to get used to new changes. Besides the large umstellung or adjustment to life in the metropolis, there has also been the increasing reports about what has become the infamous "Eurozone crisis" (Deutsch / English).
What more perfect a time to be in Berlin, studying European economic policy? This blog will be my attempt to keep track of my day-to-day experiences at trying to understand the crisis from the center. I will include daily insight into how local news broadcasters, journalists and the daily press in Germany handle this issue. What are the sentiments of Germans and of other EU member states? How are politicians like Chancellor Merkel and President Sarkozy addressing the situation and preventing the bad news from turning worse?
Keep track of my blog via RSS and Twitter.
Wiederlesen! Read me later!
-SB
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