MEP Corina Cretu’s passionate but largely misguided arguments on Blogactiv in favour of the missile shield go to prove my point, namely the fact that it had been designed to contain Russia, not Iran.
What is really puzzling about the whole argument is that before being an MEP, Ms Cretu was former president Ion Iliescu’s spokesperson. Or, [...]

The plans for creating an Asian economic community grouping China, ASEAN and Japan have received an important boost recently. During his informal meeting in New York with Chinese president Hu Jintao, the new Japanese premier Mr. Hatoyama has proposed the creation of an East-Asian community which would emulate the model of the European Union. Closer ties between Japan and China should eventually create [...]

The number of corpses of European soldiers sent back home from Afghanistan continues to rise without an end to the conflict in sight. Only this Monday, the Italians have buried six soldiers killed in action there, amid calls for concluding a peace soon - which reminds us of the Vietnam debacle.
Same day but on the other [...]

Although on paper Japan has been a democracy for over six decades, true political change in leadership has sidestepped it until this fall. On the 30th of August the LDP, Japan’s traditional ruling party -  which in practice ruled the country as a one-party state - lost the parliamentary elections in favour of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) led by Yukio Hatoyama.
The new prime minister [...]

The Obama Administration’s decision to scrap the infamous missile shield in Europe has to be considered one of its most important foreign policy decisions to date. Almost immediately, premier Putin of Russia has called it “just and courageous” and has promised to abandon plans to place Iskander missiles in Kaliningrad. Chancellor Merkel and president Sarkozy have [...]