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The European Union's Lisbon Treaty has come into force with the aim of streamlining EU decision-making. The first EU president also took office along with the bloc's new foreign policy chief. The European Union welcomed the Lisbon Treaty with a ceremony in Lisbon, Portugal where the text was first signed. Getting all 27 EU states to ratify it however, was a long and arduous process that was only completed last month. The new treaty lays out a series of fundamental changes within the European Union, including creating the bloc's first permanent president. That job has gone to former Belgian prime...

Nov. 27, 2005 0:31 | Updated Nov. 27, 2005 3:58 Israel warns EU report may damage relations By TOVAH LAZAROFF Shalom: "Jerusalem will always be Israel's united capital." Photo: AP An unofficial European Union draft report which fails to recognize Israel's right to a "united capital" could harm the newly warming relations with Europe, Israeli officials warned on Saturday. "It would damage the new friendship we have with the EU," said a senior government official. Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev deplored the unbalanced draft policy statement on east Jerusalem, calling it a "throwback to the past," and explained that if...