Published Tuesday, May 20, 2008 at 18:22
by
franz.danner 
in EU in the world (846 views and 1 comments)
I am from the
Jusos, the
German young social democrats.
In the 2009 European elections, I definitely want to vote for
disarmament, for fewer weapons and for peace!
That’s why I am appealing to the PES to introduce disarmament as
a clear focus in the PES
manifesto 2009. Social democrats and socialists stand for peace
in Europe and the world and we should clearly express it!
Therefore I demand:
Today we have to realize that the world is entering a new contest of rearmament. And Europe is about to become champion. More than 825 billion US-dollar were spent in 2006 for military expenditures. This is nearly 70 percent of the worldwide expenditures! It’s a shame! While many people live in poverty and despair. Our money should reinforce...
read morePublished Wednesday, April 9, 2008 at 14:36
by
Editor
in EU in the world (1018 views and 2 comments)
Here is an opinion
from Jusos –
the German social democratic youth organization:
Slowly but steadily the European Union has been finding its role
in the world by shaping a common EU foreign policy. More and more
tools have been developed and policies defined.
However, Brussels is running the risk of loosing sight of one of
its main origin: control of arms! The central objective of the
European Cool and Steel Community at the very beginning was to
make war unlikely by controlling and restricting the resources
needed for weapons. Arms control and disarmament were two
dominant goals on the European level to further foster peace and
stability.
Today, disarmament and arms control do not seem to play a major
role on the European level any more. The European Security
Strategy from 2003 does not even mention "disarmament" once. The
European discussion on US plans of establishing missile defence
systems on EU soil had only been half-hearted by most actors. And
instead of being committed to stop weapons flow into conflict
regions, the EU opened up an Armament Agency in order to
coordinate and improve its own weapons production being already
one of the biggest exporters in the world.
We hope that the
Published Tuesday, April 1, 2008 at 10:52
by
Editor
in EU in the world (1019 views and 2 comments)
Social democratic
European foundations are working hard to contribute to a PES
manifesto based on progressive values. The first meeting of the
European Network of Social-Democratic Foundations (ENSoF) took
place on 29 March 2008 in the beautiful city of Sofia, under the
coordinating wing of the Institute for
Social Integration of Bulgaria, to debate issues related to the
manifesto theme ‘EU in the world’.Published Saturday, February 16, 2008 at 21:00
by
Eric
in EU in the world (1151 views and 4 comments)
Hello for the last time in a while!
This is my last blog post as your guest blogger, and as promised
I will write about ”EU in the world”.
The big debate in Swedish politics this week was the yearly
foreign policy debate in the 'Riksdag' (our parliament). Across
the Atlantic, ”the Potomac Primaries” in dear
old Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia pretty much locked up
the presidential nomination on the Republican side for
John McCain. Between those two events, a
striking similarity must be underlined.
It is often said that foreign policy never determines the outcome
of elections, a ”truth” that had to be modified in the US after a
the 11th of September 2001. In Europe, foreign
policy is still rarely the dominating factor in our elections,
but it sure can help to reinforce the general message of a
campaign. An example is the general election in Sweden in 1985,
when Olof Palme was our Prime Minister. A vote
for Olof Palme, and thus the Social Democratic Party, was a vote
on equality and solidarity in Sweden (in that campaign, more
jobs, higher pensions, and increased funding for football clubs
etc who organized activities for kids). But it was also a vote
for something bigger; more equality in the world and an end to
apartheid in South Africa. A vote on more
equality, both in Sweden and abroad.
Published Friday, October 12, 2007 at 10:22
by
Editor
in EU in the world (1392 views and 3 comments)
The
United States plan to build an anti missile shield in Europe has
been at the centre of a heated debate ever since the defense
strategy was first proposed. The White House has invited Poland
and the Czech Republic to deploy a shield that will counter long
range missile threats from states with weapons of mass
destruction.
The defense system has sparked intense debate among the European Union, the United States and Russia. According to opponents, it creates division, destabilizes regional and international balances of power and weakens international efforts to disarm. An even bigger concern is that the missile shield could trigger a new arms race in Europe or create tensions with other nuclear powers.
The missile shield raises many issues in relation to European security. It will protect several EU states, but definitely not all. Right now the US is seeking to negotiate with Poland and the Czech Republic on a matter that concers the security of many other European countries. Who should have the ultimate say on this issue; the countries hosting the missile shield or all countries concerned by it? Should the defense programme be discussed within the EU - or in an even more international forum, NATO, since Russia is also concerned...
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