Posted on 06/24/2007 4:47:14 AM PDT by Lukasz
(BERLIN) - The German press on Sunday slammed Poland and Britain for putting obstacles on the road to the deal reached on guidelines for a new European Union treaty at the bloc's summit this week.
Bild, the country's top selling newspaper, reserved its harshest criticism for neighbouring Poland, calling the Kaczynski twins who hold the posts of Polish president and prime minister "poison dwarves".
"It would have been better if this summit had failed," the newspaper said in an editorial, adding that the bitter dispute over Poland's voting rights has shown that there is little hope for unity in the EU.
"That would have prevented the creation of a Europe of two speeds and two classes. The sickening double game played by the Polish brothers Kaczynski should make it clear to any fan of Europe that this is now inevitable."
Relations between Poland and Germany have never been warm since World War II and took another beating when Warsaw threatened to veto a deal on a new treaty over the voting rights issue.
Before the summit began, the deeply conservative Polish President Lech Kaczynski and his twin Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski evoked Poland's destruction at the hands of Nazi Germany as a reason why its population, and therefore its voting power, was so low.
In the end, Poland won a considerable concession on the voting issue in Brussels, persuading the bloc's other 26 members to delay the full introduction of the new system until 2017.
"Warsaw is on board. But the treaty should not yet be considered saved," Der Tagesspiegel newspaper said.
It warned that the upcoming intergovernmental conference to finalize drafting the treaty and the ratification process present "the next obstacles."
The Berliner Morgenpost agreed, saying that "disaster has been averted, for now."
"It is annoying to see to what extent the nationalistic, egotistical blocking tactics of Poland and Britain paid off," it added.
The newspaper said it feared that a dangerous precedent has been set whereby nations who threaten to block progress within the European Union will be given concessions in return for their cooperation.
"After a success like the one claimed by Poland, there is a danger that this tactic will become common currency."
Welt am Sonntag described the haggling that preceded the deal as "torture" and said despite its eventual success the summit will be remembered mostly for Britain and Poland's "egotistical" behaviour.
It predicted that relations between Berlin and Warsaw were heading for an "icy spell".
"Poland has failed to understand that the point of the European Union is to bury the hatred we inherited," the newspaper commented.
The conservative candidate of Aznar’s party lost because the vast majority of the Spaniards was simply against any involvement of their country in Iraq.
The reaction on the bombing was only a confirmation of the already existing denial. It never pays out for politicians in countries with democratic elections to ignore the will of their voters. BTW - this is the reason why Merkel i.e. is extremely reluctant concerning Iraq. If she would do something substancial for America there, her gouvernment would be blown into pieces since the German public does not want the German gouvernment to be involved into this issue.
Same thing in Spain. The bombing was simply the trigger that released a wave of a broad disaffection with Aznar because of Iraq. ETA or al Quaida? That was irrelevant.
As the French found out, Germans like to march in the shade.
.
Just for the start.
The main point is the historic background of MR Schumann or better the historic background of the region he was born. I grew up in the same region and it is more or less clear or at least understandable that the EU was “founded” by someone from this region.
back to the EU. The goal of the EU was integration to create a better future in terms of peace stability and economic benefits for the people. The goal was a united Europe. The tool were a economic integration at the beginning to create trust and understanding.
The European Coal and Steel Community is the best example for that. The tool was economic but the goal was a political goal.
The Euro is a another example. A lot of germans were very skeptical to give up their symbol of power and success the german mark but now everybody likes the Euro because they see the advantages of a common currency beside the economic advantages for the european companies.
Why not have two houses, a bi-cameral legislature, as in the US, where smaller states have equal voting power, representation, in the senate, but larger states have more representatives in the house? Both houses of congress have to agree to pass legislation. I know this has been suggested on FR before, and doubtless Europe has already considered and rejected the concept, but it would solve a great many problems. And considering Europe’s troubled history, you’d think it would be an obvious choice. Does the fact that it would be modeled on the US bother Europe’s elite? Oh, surely not.
We Poles are too weak to have a real power in Europe and we are aware of it, however at the summit we fough to be strong enough to be able to block the power of our enemies together with our traditional friends. And we succeeded.==
“A real power in Europe”? Do you think that Germany and France want the “real power”? They do not have it now? They both the economical superpowers. Is it enough for them?
After all I do not catch a sense why Poland entered in EU if she thinks that it rulled by an enemy?
How long you EUphiles will justify EVRYTHING what is going on in the EU by this one argument?
The thing is, what guys like vox_PL don't understand: That's how the EU works: Business as usual. As Jerzy Kranz put it: Nice, the square root and the double majority all work. Within the EU it's not the number of votes that really matters but the ability to form alliances. And that's what the brothers Kaczynski need to learn". So in fact, it is much ado about nothing: In the end a compromise is reached which satisfies noone, but that's bearable for everyone. What the EU really is about is:
Both things are important, that is why German government so desperately defended double majority.
stepmother of Europe
‘’Because being alone outside is worse than being alone inside.. ‘’
Wow. Wouldn’t have thought you could ever admit this, after displaying so many Polish victim-hood freak shows!There is a lot of pride to be swallowed nowadays by vox_PL!
Beggars can`t choose, it is as simple as that!
Bears repeating.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.