The ramifications of the EU’s disastrous choice of Catherine Ashton for its first full-time Foreign Minister are going from bad to worse. Following a less-than-stellar performance during a question-and-answer session with the European Parliament, America’s special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, embarrassingly struggled to remember her name …
Outlining his strategy to “bring this war [Afghanistan] to a successful conclusion” in a nationally televised address last night, President Obama stated that he was confident of securing additional military and civilian contributions from America’s NATO allies in the days and weeks ahead. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will travel …
Ask any person across Europe their top priority right now and they’ll likely say “it’s the economy, stupid.” Soaring unemployment, failing banks and massive government deficits continue to dominate the news headlines in several EU countries as ordinary people worry about their jobs and futures. As people tighten their pocketbooks, …
EU elites have been lining up in euphoric droves to celebrate the passage of the Lisbon Treaty. Having fudged, connived, bullied and browbeaten the final hold-outs, the creation of an EU super-state will now take its greatest leap forward. Contrast the throngs of headlines over Lisbon’s passage with the EU’s …
Czech President Vaclav Klaus has signed the European Union’s Lisbon Treaty proclaiming, “the Czech Republic will cease to be a sovereign state.” He’s right. The Lisbon Treaty contains the building blocks of a United States of Europe and will shift power from the member states of the EU to Brussels …
As Vice President Joe Biden completes his arm-twisting tour of Central and Eastern Europe, the Czechs have announced that they are ready to participate in America’s new missile defense plan, but only in the context of NATO. In the clearest sign yet of dissatisfaction with their second-class treatment by the …
Sending the Vice President to Poland and the Czech Republic this week could easily be another misstep by the Administration when it comes to handling relations with Central and Eastern Europe. Despite his seniority, the famously gaffe-prone Joe Biden may not be the wisest choice to handle Washington’s “damage control” …
In January, amidst a particularly cold winter, Russia’s quasi-governmental gas giant Gazprom turned off the gas taps to Ukraine after the two sides failed to reach agreement in a pay dispute. Downstream users including Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, and the Czech Republic were also put in the deep freeze. Gazprom has …
It has not been a good week for the Czech Republic. On Thursday, President Obama formally ditched the agreement to deploy elements of America’s missile defense shield there. Twisting the knife further on Thursday, French President Nicolas Sarkozy threatened Prague with “consequences” of delaying ratification of Lisbon Treaty, making the …
