New Pan-European Political Party runs into trouble
The European Union Parliament may review its decision to grant funding to the anti-Lisbon Treaty party Libertas. The move comes after Estonian MP Igor Gräzin, sent an affidavit to the EU Parliament on Feb. 3 disavowing his support
In the email Gräzin says, “I have never signed any papers asking for a recognition of Libertas as a political party in the EU and all corresponding claims are utterly untrue.”
Libertas started as a campaign pressure group opposed to the Lisbon Treaty in the Irish referendum on the subject. Last year, founder Declan Ganley announced that it would transform itself into a pan-European political party to contest the EU Parliamentary elections.
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Latest economic forecast by European Commission is grim
The European Commission (EC), the executive arm of the European Union (EU), predicts that unemployment within the EU will rise to 9.5 percent by 2010. For the eurozone, countries using the euro as a currency, it predicts unemployment will reach 10.25 percent by the same date.
EU already in recession
Two consecutive quarters showing a drop in gross domestic product (GDP) is the usual definition of recession. The Interim Forecast published on Jan-19 states that the EU economy is already in recession. It predicts the EU GDP will shrink 1.8 percent in 2009. Then recover somewhat to grow by 0.5 percent in 2010.
The EU’s economic powerhouse, Germany is likely to see GDP fall by 2.3 percent this year, France will see a 1.8 percent contraction, Italy and Spain 2 percent. Ireland will be worst hit with a likely 5 percent fall in GDP.
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Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Mehdi Safari told the European Parliament that Iran was looking for closer energy ties with the EU.
In Brussels on Jan-20 to meet EU lawmakers and officials, AP reports Safari as saying, “We are ready to contribute, we are ready for a dialogue.”
Safari was promoting Iran as both a transit country and a possible supplier of gas to the EU. Iran has the world’s second largest gas reserves. These are currently undeveloped and are likely to remain so as long as Iran faces sanctions imposed in response to its enrichment of nuclear material.
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“This very peculiar episode” is over
Gas is again flowing from Russia to the EU via the Ukraine. On Jan-20, EU monitors reported that gas was flowing normally from Russia, that pressure building up in the system and gas flowing to Slovakia. It will take up to 36 hours for normal supply to be resumed.
Gazprom, the Russian state owned monopoly, opened up the valves at 10:24 Moscow time (07:24 GMT). This followed the signing of a 10-year contract in Moscow by Vladimir Putin, the Russian prime minister, and Yulia Tymoshenko, his Ukrainian counterpart. The Ukraine will pay the market rate for gas from 2010. There will be a 20 percent discount for the rest of 2009 if the Ukraine continues to charge low transit fees for gas transhipped to the EU.
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