Narendra Modi to visit Brussels for EU-India summit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to visit Belgium on March 30 to attend the European Union-India Summit being held after four years.

The first visit of an Indian prime minister to Brussels in six years will reinvigorate EU-India ties and inject new momentum into the relationship, Manjeev Singh Puri, Indian ambassador to the EU, said.

"We hope to use this summit to ensure that whatever may have happened, a few little slip ups here and there, we are back on the rails for bilateral meaning and collaborations which is for global good," Puri said at an event on EU-India relations, organised by the think tank 'Friends of Europe'.

"We are the world's two largest democracies, we encompass diversity. We have 22 official languages in India. You, in the EU, have 24. We have 29 federal states, you have 28 member states. This itself should give you the idea why there is a sense of comfort which should be driven by far greater invigoration," he said.

"We hope to see a vastly invigorated modern relationship," he added.

On her part, Shada Islam, director of policy at the Friends of Europe in her introductory remarks said: "If both sides play their cards right, the summit could pave the way for a more ambitious, dynamic and adventurous EU-India relationship."

"India and  EU need a new conversation, a new focus on shared interests as well as new goals and ambitions. Above all, they need to take a fresh look at each other, replacing tired misperceptions and cliches. The summit should come up with a new EU-India action plan which is short, snappy and action-oriented," she suggested.

The event, organised with the support of Tata Consultancy Services, was attended by senior officials from the EU and international institutions, diplomats, business and NGO representatives, academics and other key stakeholders.

Addressing the issue of the ongoing negotiations on the EU-India trade and investment agreement, other speakers on the occasion discussed sectors which are ripe for increased EU-India synergies.

The last EU-India Summit was organised in 2012 in New Delhi.

Trade discord should not affect EU-China relations

EVERYONE loves a good trade war or at least a trade skirmish. As a reporter, I’ve written endlessly about quarrels between nations over imports and exports of textiles, footwear, bicycles, steel and other equally mundane products.

The battles are over tariffs (too high or too low), market access, quotas, subsidies, non-tariff barriers and other obstacles and restrictions. And they usually involve the European Union — after all I am based in Brussels and the EU is the world’s largest trader — and a motley group of nations including the United States, Japan, China, India, Pakistan and so on.

With global trade in goods running at around 18 trillion or so dollars a year, it is hardly surprising that nations sometimes rub each other the wrong way. Trade is important because it creates jobs, growth and development.

But confrontations over steel, textile and other products have a nasty way of infecting not just the conversation on trade between states but also their overall “beyond trade” relationship.

This is what may happen in the ongoing debate in the EU over granting market economy status (MES) to China.

The story goes back to 2001 when China joined the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and promised to liberalise trade and undertake a swathe of economic reforms. The deal was that China’s partners would continue to treat it as a “non-market economy” until December 2016 after which according to Beijing’s interpretation it would get full MES.

So what’s so important? If China is granted MES, the EU (and other WTO members) will find it more difficult to slap anti-dumping fines or duties on Chinese products believed to be sold in Europe at unfairly low prices.

China believes it should be granted MES automatically under WTO rules. The EU is split on the issue. And the discussion is further complicated by the global oversupply of steel and the recent increase in Chinese steel exports to Europe.

The European Commission is under pressure from many of its member states to step up action to relieve an ailing steel industry suffering from tumbling prices and cheap imports from China and Russia.

The EU is the second largest producer of steel in the world after China, producing over 177 million tonnes a year and accounting for 11 per cent of global output. But 85,000 jobs in the steel sector have been lost since 2008 representing over 20 per cent of the workforce. The EU also has some of the world’s highest energy costs and green taxes.

Disgruntled steel workers have poured on to the streets of Brussels demanding that the EU stop any moves to grant MES to China because it would worsen their fate. Alarmist studies warn that between 1.7 million and 3.5 million jobs would be lost if China gets MES. Washington is also adamant that Brussels should not meet China’s demands for MES access.

While Brussels deliberates over the matter, Beijing insists that the EU must not renege on its WTO obligation. Tempers are beginning to fray, raising concerns that the carefully-crafted overall EU-China relationship is being impacted.

That would be a pity. Total trade between China and the EU comes to almost one billion euros a day. Anti-dumping actions and the granting of MES only account for a small percentage of such trade. And in any case, granting MES to China would not prevent the EU from pursuing anti-dumping cases against China.

But trade quarrels have a way of becoming politicised and spiralling out of control. Which is exactly why both the EU and China need to think carefully about keeping their relations on track while resolving the MES issue.

It’s no secret that China has an over capacity in the steel sector of 400 million tonnes. Much of the surplus is exported to Europe, with 53 per cent increase of steel imports from China last year.

This has led EU Trade Minister Cecilia Malmstrom to warn that “whatever happens to the market economy status, China needs to behave responsibly and to make sure that its overproduction of steel isn’t dumped into the global market”.

According to some reports, the EU may give MES to China on the condition that Beijing reduces the amount of steel it exports to Europe. Other options could include the negotiation of a “package deal” under which China would agree to restrict its exports of steel and speed up negotiations on a bilateral investment treaty in exchange for an EU decision to grant MES and to undertake an exploratory study on an EU-China free trade agreement, a long-standing Chinese demand.

China has already made some conciliatory moves. In a letter sent to the EU, China’s Trade Minister Gao Hucheng has said Beijing is committed to decrease the steel output “by between 100 and 150 million tonnes”.

But the conversation continues. A decision on MES will likely be made by the EU towards the end of 2016. In addition to the European Commission, the European Parliament and national governments also need to give their approval.

It’s going to be complicated. Both sides need to tackle the issue carefully and cautiously. The focus must be on compromise and cool-headed deliberation.

It would be unfortunate if the carefully-crafted and multifaceted EU-China relationship were to suffer because of discord over trade.

Whisper It Softly: Muslims Are Part of Europe's Future

Europe can’t avoid Muslims and must wage sensible, civil debate on refugees and their integration

A specter is haunting Europe – the specter of Islam. Fear has reached new heights, pushed by rising concerns about terrorism and the flow of refugees. Nothing illustrates the fear more than the recent cover of Poland’s popular weekly magazine WSieci, warning of the "Islamic Rape of Europe," complete with a graphic depiction of a screaming blonde woman, with eyes closed, draped in the European Union flag. Three sets of brown and black hands claw at the flag and her hair.

The illustration may be among most shocking of the many images and articles analyzing Europe's ongoing refugee crisis, but the sentiments reflect generalized prejudices and stereotypes associated with Islam throughout Europe. The magazine also offers harsh words for German Chancellor Angela Merkel, accusing her of allowing Muslim refugees from Syria and Iraq to "shock and undermine" European culture and civilization. The anti-Islam lobby and critics of Merkel are having a field day as European governments stumble under the weight of managing the sudden arrival of a million or more refugees. Far right groups and many eastern European leaders rant against Islam and the “Muslim invasion,” with some politicians recommending shooting refugees entering illegally or allowing their boats to sink.

The 28-nation bloc is hopelessly divided between those like Merkel who feel that Europe has a moral duty to help those fleeing war and terror and leaders in eastern and central Europe who build fences and walls to keep the refugees out. Europe’s cities, civil societies, universities and businesses do their best to welcome the refugees, but are drowned out by the rage against the destruction of European values and clamor for tough actions that are often impractical – like sending all Muslims back “home.” Fierce, often hysterical debates leave little space for intelligent arguments and have little to do with the reality of 21st century Europe.

The crisis is stretching economic resources, radicalizing politics and straining political institutions. Fear is spreading as mainstream political parties emulate the strident anti-refugee and anti-migration rhetoric of the far right for an increasingly toxic debate. It need not be so.

The truth is simple, and Europeans have little choice: Islam has long been part of Europe and will continue to be so in the years to come. Throughout history, Europe has never been a fenced-in land. Islamic Spain was a multicultural mix of Muslims, Christians and Jews, and since the Ottoman Empire’s expansion into Europe, parts of the Balkans continue to have large populations of native, European Muslims. A new wave of Muslims from North Africa, Turkey and South Asia has arrived in Western Europe since the 1960s.The crisis is stretching economic resources, radicalizing politics and straining political institutions. Fear is spreading as mainstream political parties emulate the strident anti-refugee and anti-migration rhetoric of the far right for an increasingly toxic debate. It need not be so.

Despite shrill headlines of a clash of cultures, Europe is home to about 44 million Muslims, of which 19 million live in the 28 European Union countries. Muslims represent 8 percent of the population in France, 6 percent in Germany, 5 percent in Great Britain.

Europeans must come to terms with Islam and Muslims.

Muslims, also, whatever their origin and sectarian affiliations, must get used to regarding Europe as their home, if they are to have fulfilling and productive lives. Many do so already, and so will most of the refugees settling in to new lives.

The majority of European Muslims are law-abiding citizens who pay taxes and, according to the Open Society Institute, share the same concerns, needs and experiences as non-Muslims, including the quest for a “better quality of education, improved housing, cleaner streets and [the tackling of ] anti-social behaviour and crime.”  Moreover, the institute adds that despite the populist rhetoric, an overwhelming majority of Muslims in France and Germany describe themselves as loyal to their country and see no contradiction between French/German and Muslim values.

Germany’s Bertelsmann Foundation notes that Muslims in Germany “feel closely connected” to the country and support “fundamental values” of German society, adding “There is no evidence supporting the common contention that Muslims are living in a separate, parallel society.” Muslim populations are concentrated in cities, and Muslims in France, the United Kingdom and elsewhere in Europe post higher rates of unemployment with many struggling to find work.

Legacy: History and geography have contributed to Muslims in Europe (Data from Muslims in Europe, 2014)

Europe’s focus is on Muslims as terrorists, refugees, foreign fighters, criminals and misfits, but these represent a minuscule minority of European Muslims.

The process of adaptation, accommodation, integration, of Europe and Islam is well underway. Children of migrants engage in politics, including Sajid Javid, Britain’s business secretary, and Sadiq Khan, candidate for mayor of London. At least 11 members of the European Parliament have a Muslim family background.

Across Europe, migrant entrepreneurs are revitalizing impoverished urban neighborhoods, creating jobs and prompting innovation. Migrants “contribute to the economic growth of their local area, often rejuvenate neglected crafts and trades and increasingly participate in the provision of value-added services” and “and form an important bridge to global markets,” notes a report by the European Economic and Social Committee.

The economy demands such integration. As European economies stagnate, an aging society needs migrants, skilled and unskilled, to pay taxes and do work that citizens may not want to do. Diversity brought about by migration can be a competitive advantage and a source of dynamism for economies.Such arguments deserve a hearing. Europe must conduct a sensible conversation on refugees, migrants and Islam which includes arguments with a civil tone, backed by facts. People must move from talking about “us” and “them” to a more inclusive language of living in a shared space, with shared concerns, interests and values.

The conversation must underline that living together means abiding by certain ground rules. Integration is a two-way street, requiring adjustment efforts by migrants and host societies.  Newcomers must live according to existing rules and values so that they can become active citizens. The European Commission’s “Integration Handbook” points to the need to learn the host society’s language, history and institutions as “indispensable” to integration. Germany, Norway and other countries are giving refugees lessons on how to treat women and gay people as well as be accepted as full-fledged members of society

The discussion must be inclusive. Such civil conversation requires tackling concerns over economic effects of migration on families, jobs and communities while confronting both pressures and benefits that refugees and migration bring. Extremists cannot be allowed to hijack a debate that concerns all Europeans.

The stakes are high: Europe’s global reputation and hopes of playing a stronger international role depends on its internal conduct and policies. The tone and content of the debate have repercussions on Europe’s internal cohesion and economic dynamism, but also impact EU foreign policy and international standing.

The environment is more favorable to a changed approach than many assume. Tragedies in Paris and elsewhere as well as the focus on foreign fighters who have joined the Islamic State in Syria highlight the disaffection felt by many young Europeans of Muslim descent.

Europe’s single-minded security-focused approach to deal with Muslims is being replaced by a more balanced view that includes an integration agenda and migrant outreach programs.

Governments and businesses are gradually adjusting recruitment policies to increase employment of migrants. For their part, migrant groups are becoming more active as citizens.

But people with migrant backgrounds remain under-represented in national governments and EU institutions, and some form of affirmative action with support for minorities in higher education, recruitment and job promotion may be needed.

The crisis offers opportunity for profound transformation and renewal. It’s true that Europe will never be the same again – and it could be better.

By Nawab KhanBRUSSELS, March 6 (KUNA) -- Leaders of the 28-member European Union are to make another attempt on Monday to tackle Europe's worst refugee problem since World War II (WW2) amid warnings that the continuing impasse could lead to a collapse of the EU itself.EU leaders will hold the summit with Turkey the front-line state which is host to some 2.5 million refugees. They want Ankara to stop the flow of refugees to Europe. In November 2015, the EU and Turkey signed a three billion euro Joint Action Plan to better manage the situation, but the ambitious plan has yet to bear fruit.About one million refugees from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan left their countries to escape war and persecution and seek shelter in European countries in 2015.Analysts opine that EU member states have miserably failed to agree on a relocation scheme of a mere 160,000 refugees, and politicians and analysts are warning that Europe's disunity in responding to the refugee crisis has created an existential threat to the European integration project. "In the next 10 days we need tangible and clear results on the ground otherwise there is the risk the whole system will completely break down," warned last week the EU's Commissioner for Migration and Home Affairs Dimitris Avramopoulos.March 2016 may well make it into the history books as a make or break month for the EU," commented Rosa Balfour, an analyst at the Brussels office of the German Marshall Fund think tank. She said that the EU-Turkey Summit of March 7 and the EU leaders' summit March 17-18 "will have to produce short and long term measures addressing the current mayhem caused by the European governments' disorderly responses to the surge of refugees fleeing from conflict in the Middle East and elsewhere." Balfour opined that "it is hard to see how solutions will take shape, but it is safe to assume that continuing this paralysis will lead to further disintegration, starting with Britain leaving the EU." Moreover, the failure to deal with the refugee crisis has increased political tensions between the EU member states themselves. Greece has recently recalled its ambassador from Austria after Vienna accused Athens of not doing enough to protect its borders from the influx of refugees.French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve complained, last month, that Paris had not been informed of Belgium's decision to reinstate border controls at its borders with France. Moreover, analysts are alarmed that the refugee crisis has increased the outburst of racist and Islamophobic attacks against the refugees not only by far-right extremist groups but also by European leaders and politicians.Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban was among the first European leaders to advocate exclusion of Muslim migrants from entering Hungary and he even erected fences to stop the refugee flow to Hungary from Turkey through the Western Balkans and Greece.Vincent Cochetel, Director of the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, Bureau for Europe and UNHCR's Regional Refugee Coordinator for the refugee crisis in Europe, told reporters in Brussels last Friday that "we had a number of statements from some Central European leaders that in my view are clearly Islamophobia." He noted that those statements compared the "arrival of Syrians to the Turkish Ottoman invasion." Shada Islam, director of policy in the Brussels-based think tank Friends of Europe, commented that Europe's global reputation and hopes of playing a stronger international role depend on its internal conduct and policies."The tone and content of the refugee and migration debate have repercussions on Europe's internal cohesion, economic dynamism and societal harmony, but also impact strongly on EU foreign policy and international standing," she wrote in an opinion piece."When Muslims are targets of racist attacks and discrimination, the EU's role and influence in helping to stabilise a very volatile Arab and Muslim world is diminished," she opined.However, the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, is hopeful that Monday's meeting would result in some sort of European consensus to deal with the refugee situation. "For the first time since the beginning of the migration crisis, I can see a European consensus emerging," he wrote in his invitation letter to EU leaders for the summit. "It is a consensus around a comprehensive strategy that, if loyally implemented, can help stem the flows and tackle the crisis," he said.

Time to move ‘beyond trade’ in EU-India relations

INDIAN Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Brussels for the EU-India summit on March 30 is good news.

The EU and India have much to discuss. There are hopes that Modi will use the long-delayed meeting — India and the EU have not met for summit level talks for four years — to open a new, more dynamic and more adventurous chapter in EU-India relations.

As John Lennon sang to Yoko Ono so many moons ago, almost 12 years after the EU and India vowed to become strategic partners — but then allowed their relationship to stumble and falter — it’s just like starting over.

Or at least it could be. If they are to reboot ties, India and the EU need a new conversation, a new focus on shared interests as well as new goals and ambitions.

Above all, they need to take a fresh look at each other, replacing tired misperceptions and clichés with a different, more up-to-date outlook.

India, with a growth rate of 7.5 per cent according to the World Bank, now has a more dynamic economy than China. The EU for all its current malaise has an interest in exporting and investment more in India and has the technology India needs for its modernisation drive.

As an increasingly influential regional and global power, India needs to have a more serious conversation with the EU on refugees, peace and security in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Terrorism and threat from the militant Islamic State group are also issues of common concern.

Opening a new chapter means moving to a “beyond trade” agenda. Realistically, however, the summit’s focus will inevitably be on the Bilateral Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA) or free trade agreement that Brussels and Delhi have been negotiating since 2007 with little success.

Negotiations on the deal stalled over a plethora of issues in 2013. If some of the key blockages can be removed in time by trade officials, the March 30 summit could mark the re-launch of the BTIA negotiations.

Such a scenario is certainly desirable. Trade and business are the glue that bind Europe to India and to other Asian states. Increased trade and investment flows will generate growth and jobs in both Europe and India. And resolving the trade stalemate will inject fresh momentum into the overall EU-India relationship.

But Brussels and Delhi need to be more ambitious. As illustrated by Modi’s high-profile visits to Britain, France and Germany, India has so far favoured its bilateral ties with national European governments over contacts with the EU. Meanwhile, Europe has spent more time and energy on building a strategy for China than on constructing a stronger relationship with India.

India’s new economic programme opens up fresh avenues for increased EU-India synergies which go beyond the two sides’ traditional interaction. This could include cooperation in areas where both sides have a strong economic interest such as infrastructure investments, sustainable urbanisation, renewable energy, innovation and synergies between “Digital India” and the EU’s agenda for a Digital Single Market.

The focus should now be on hammering out a more practical, pragmatic and operational agenda which seeks to find as much common ground as possible between Modi’s aspirational programmes and the EU’s initiatives to boost growth and jobs.

The EU is well-placed to share its experience in building a single market, economic reform and modernisation, cutting back over-regulation and improving the business environment.

A new EU-India action plan should be short, snappy and action-oriented, rather than the long “wish list” which the EU traditionally draws up with and for its partners.

Still, trade matters and it is important that the BTIA negotiations are re-opened and a deal is finally done.

The talks are like an obstacle race, however, with new problems emerging at every twist and turn. The latest bone of contention is over EU demands that India substantially bring down the “high” duties on automobiles as a pre-condition for resumption of the FTA negotiations. India’s import duty on cars range from 60-120pc as against the EU’s 10pc.

But the industry body for automobiles — Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) — has asked the commerce ministry not to “buckle under pressure” from the EU, adding that this could ultimately hurt the government’s ‘Make In India’ initiative.

India is unhappy about restrictions on temporary movement of skilled professionals to the EU, especially the recent move by the United Kingdom to hike visa fees for skilled professionals as well as increase minimum salary threshold for intra-company transfers. India is also seeking data security status which it says is crucial for India’s IT sector to do more business with EU firms.

The EU, meanwhile, also wants lower Indian duties on wines and spirits and dairy products and a strong intellectual property regime. The value of EU-India trade grew from 28.6 billion euros in 2003 to 72.5bn euros in 2014 while EU investment stock in India was 34.7bn euros in 2013 and trade in commercial services quadrupled in the past decade, increasing from 5.2bn euros in 2002 to 23.7bn euros in 2013.

While such horse-trading is important and Modi and his EU counterparts must give the trade negotiations a much-needed push, the success of the summit will also hinge on a political agreement between Delhi and Brussels to start over.

View from abroad: In this dark world, who can still make us dream?

Back in 1963, Martin Luther King had a dream. His vision of empowered African Americans resonated across the world where millions believed in his message of equality and brotherhood, and his calls for an end to racism.

The struggle for the emancipation of black Americans was not easy. Many people died. King himself was assassinated. But eight years ago, Americans elected their first African American president.

Barack Obama spoke of hope and change. He also had a vision of an America at peace with itself and with the rest of the world.

How times and presidential election campaigns change. As Obama’s second term as president draws to an end, talk of dreams and hope have been replaced by poisonous messages of hate and fear.

These days, America’s would-be presidents don’t dream. They have nightmares. They spout ugly words and dark, morbid visions of an America overrun by immigrants, terrorists, Muslims and Mexicans.

Billionaire Donald Trump is of course “hate-monger in-chief”, his anger and loathing for those outside his circle appears to know no bounds. But he is not alone. Others in the US are propagating an equally toxic message.

And here in Europe the political landscape is just as grim. The one woman, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who did harbour a dream of a Europe willing to receive and accept people fleeing war and persecution, is in a minority of one in a European Union which counts 28 states.

Instead of being acclaimed as a courageous leader who lives by the values that so many in Europe profess to believe in — but clearly don’t want to practice — Merkel is derided as naive and irresponsible.

The German leader’s male colleagues have a different agenda. They are clamping down hard on refugees, building fences, reinforcing border controls. And they are joining Trump in disseminating a message of fear, intolerance and hate.

Even as hapless EU officials have warned governments not to take “unilateral actions”, last week Austria and the Balkan states made clear that they will go their own way.

Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic have been among the staunchest opponents of EU plans to transfer asylum-seekers arriving in southern Europe to other EU states.

Austria last week announced a daily cap on the numbers of people allowed to apply for asylum or travel through to apply elsewhere, prompting some Balkan countries to introduce restrictions. As a result, migrants have been stranded in Greece, the main entry point into Europe.

There is angry talk by Greece and Italy of stopping funding for the countries who refuse to play the “solidarity” game by taking in refugees, but nobody is really listening.

Meanwhile, in France, a court has given the green light to plans to evacuate hundreds of migrants from the notorious “Jungle” camp in Calais. Worried that the migrants will cross the border, Belgium has decided to impose frontier checks, thereby giving another blow to the EU’s so-called Schengen agreement on the free movement of people.

Europe’s reaction to the refugee crisis is chaotic, inhumane and shocking. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi has warned, for instance, that border restrictions along the Balkan route go against international and European rules.

Europe’s tough-talking leaders have escaped media scrutiny for the moment. Most journalists have neither the time nor the inclination to investigate the reality of Europe’s migrant crisis.

But history will certainly pass harsh judgement on the policies and actions of the European, especially Eastern European, leaders.

And what about Britain? As continental Europe frets over refugees, British politicians are in the grip of a strange self-inflicted wound known as the “Brexit” debate over membership of the EU.

Having secured a “deal” earlier this week with his EU colleagues on renegotiating the terms of Britain’s EU membership, British Prime Minister David Cameron’s hopes of winning the June 23 referendum for his “stay in Europe” campaign were shattered when the quirky but very popular Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, threw his ample weight behind the “exiters”.

With any expectations of a sane conversation in Britain now also buried, people can put aside any hopes of a change in Europe’s politics of fear.

So is there anyone else out there who can make us dream again? Russia’s Vladimir Putin has his cabal of admirers but does not inspire hope among anyone else.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan may have caught the world’s imagination a decade ago but is now discredited as just another authoritarian leader who has lost touch with reality.

China’s President Xi Jinping is too busy grappling with his country’s “new normal” economic slowdown to pay attention to global challenges.

For all the talk of India’s rise, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is no global leader. Neither is Indonesia’s President Jokowi or Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Iran and Saudi leaders are busy adding to the world’s problems by fighting each other through proxies in Syria, Iraq and Yemen.

Which brings us nicely to Canada. Justin Trudeau certainly stands tall as a man of principle, compassion and humanity. While his counterparts in other countries deafen us with their rabid rants, and European and US politicians paint the world in black, the young Canadian leader is proof of the power of dreams.

View from abroad: The Balkans’ macabre race to be tough on refugees

Western Balkan nations are back in the news. This time, unlike in the 1990s, the headlines are not about war, conflict and massacres in the region but about the thousands of refugees from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan trekking up north from Turkey, through the Balkans, to reach Germany and other western European countries.

It used to be the dangerous sea routes that were in the news as refugees fled civil wars, deprivation and more to seek shelter on Europe’s southern shores. The focus has now shifted to the Balkan land route and the efforts of the region’s governments to stem or even stop this flow.

It’s difficult to keep a “harshness towards refugees ranking” of the different states in the region. And frankly, it is also difficult to keep track of just which country is sealing the routes, building fences, imposing quotas and the like. Directly or indirectly, they all seem to be doing something nasty.

It’s a macabre race to be the toughest kid on the block. But perhaps the toughest are the so-called “Visegrad Four”, composed of the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia, which have made no secret of their loathing for the refugees and are clamouring with increasing insistence for border closures between Greece and the Balkan states, especially Macedonia.

While they may be grumbling about the crisis, at a conference organised in Brussels last week, many of the regions’ top policymakers were also underlining that the inflow of refugees through the region illustrated the importance of the Balkans to the rest of Europe.

The sentiment was shared by Johannes Hahn, the EU Commissioner for the neighbourhood and enlargement policy. Western Balkan countries can turn the migrant crisis to their advantage given their importance as transit zones, the EU’s enlargement chief said.

“I believe this crisis has opened the window in the way that much more people, politicians, are looking to the western Balkans,” he said, adding: “There is a better understanding among European leaders that the western Balkans are already surrounded by EU member states, and it is quite clear at a certain moment that they should also join the family.”

Joining the “family” is not going to be that easy, however. For all their insistence that they are part of Europe, the truth is that beyond geography, the conduct, values and policies followed by many countries in the region put them firmly outside the European mainstream.

The Balkan states may have found friends among the EU’s “new” member states — Poland, Hungary, Slovakia — whose own belief systems are increasingly un-European, but many in western Europe are appalled by their behaviour. Still, the Balkans’ reputation got a fillip last week when Bosnia Herzegovina formally applied for EU membership, joining Serbia, Macedonia, Albania and Montenegro which are also in the queue to join the EU.

There was much cheer and self-congratulation of course with officials pointing out that even as the EU lurches from crisis to crisis, it’s “power of attraction” for outsiders remains untarnished.

But much as they would wish otherwise, the western Balkan states are years away from being ready to join the EU.

And having learned from the premature entry of Bulgaria and Romania, the EU is in no rush to open its arms to the region.

In fact, one of the first things that EU Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker did on taking over in 2014 was to decree a five-year standstill on any further EU enlargement.

And even as they accepted Bosnia’s application, EU officials were warning that the country — and the region — needed to carry out a series of reforms.

Let’s not forget that the war in Bosnia in the 1990s, part of the break-up of Yugoslavia, killed some 100,000 people. The country remains split along ethnic lines and is still economically impoverished.

The Dutch foreign minister, Bert Koenders, speaking on behalf of the EU’s Dutch Presidency, has warned that Bosnia’s application would only be considered after “meaningful progress in the implementation of the reform agenda is achieved”, meaning Sarajevo would not be given candidate status for now.

It’s not just Bosnia that has problems, however. As John O’Brennan of Maynooth University wrote recently, “Twenty years ago, the Dayton Agreement was meant to definitively settle the ‘Balkan Question’, but today the region remains politically explosive, an economic basket case and a substantial security risk for the EU.”

Critics warn that corruption is rife across the region, there are major deficits as regards the rule of law, economic growth is low and foreign investors are hesitant about moving in.

The message from the EU is that the western Balkans “must integrate to integrate”, meaning they must first build their own cross-border links before joining the EU. But regional integration is weak and unconvincing, with the region’s politicians admitting that there is much work ahead if countries are to move from being “enemies to neighbours”.

In a glaring example of a dismal lack of regional cooperation, many Balkan countries are putting up their own national candidates for the job of the next United Nations Secretary General.

When asked why they could not throw their weight behind one candidate, the response from one Balkans official was honest: “That’s a step too far for now. We are not there yet.”

Europe - China forum 2015: Video

Trade and business have long been the backbone of EU-China relations.  But as both Europe and China expand their regional and global presence, there are an increasing number of areas where EU-China cooperation and consultation have become a compelling necessity.  Building on successful efforts to work together in anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden, Beijing and Brussels are interested in further developing their security and defence cooperation.

China’s economic transformation continues to intrigue and mesmerise – and create immense business opportunities – for a closely-watching world.  The coming decade promises to be even more transformative as China shifts the focus to sustainable, green, high-quality growth, the development of the service sector and speeds up efforts to build a digital economy. China's start-up scene is abuzz with new products, new ideas and new investments. With access to some 640 million Chinese netizens, including 530 million mobile internet users, China now boasts a new class of internet companies which are creating their own business models, becoming increasingly innovative and extending their outreach in rural as well as in urban areas.

[embed]https://vimeo.com/112476744[/embed]

In part 1, Friends of Europe Secretary General, Giles Merritt, moderates the discussion. The panel includes Shada Islam, Director of Policy at Friends of Europe; Chi Fulin, President of the China Institute for Reform and Development (CIRD); Linda Corugedo Steneberg, Principal Adviser at the European Commission Directorate General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology (DG CONNECT); Luigi Gambardella, President of China-EU; Jeongmin Seong, Senior Fellow at the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) and co-author of the MGI report: “China’s digital transformation: The Internet’s impact on productivity and growth”;and Guo Wei, Chairman and Executive Director of  Digital China

The disussion focusing on what are the key challenges facing “Digital China”? How do China’s ambitions fit in with Europe’s own efforts to create a more competitive “Digital Europe”? What is the significance of China’s “Internet Plus” plan and 5G cooperation between the EU and China? Does China’s service-led economic transformation create new opportunities for EU-China innovation cooperation? What new investment opportunities will be opening up in China’s services sector in areas such as transport, communications, finance and health care?

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In part 2, the panel discuss strengthening connections: “One Belt, One Road”, trade and investments. President Xi Jinping’s plans for the Silk Road Economic Belt and a 21st Century Maritime Silk Road (termed together “One Belt, One Road”) aimed at building two economic corridors with important development implications for many nations. China has set aside 40 billion dollars for the Silk Road Fund and another 100 billion dollars are being invested in the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).

How will Europe benefit from the construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt? What is the potential for synergies between the Chinese and European infrastructure and connectivity policies? Which sectors are likely to benefit most from such cooperation? What will be the role of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank in financing the “One Belt, One Road” initiative? Can the EU and China work together to build and improve the decision-making and governance mechanisms of the AIIB? How are negotiations proceeding on an EU-China Bilateral Investment Treaty? How will the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) impact on China? Could the successful negotiation of the investment accord pave the way for talks on an EU-China free trade agreement?

Introductory remarks are made by Lv Fengding, Vice President of the China Public Diplomacy Association (CPDA) and Former Chinese Ambassador to Sweden. Speakers in part to include Jo Leinen, Chair of the European Parliament Delegation for Relations with the People’s Republic of China; Mario Esteban, Senior Analyst at the Real Instituto Elcano; Yonghui Li, President of the International Relations Institute, Beijing Foreign Studies University; Haiyan Zhang, Director of NEOMA Confucius Institute for Business at the NEOMA Business School and Professor of Asia/China Business Strategy and Management at Antwerp Management School; André Loesekrug-Pietri, Founder & Managing Partner, A CAPITAL, Finance committee board member, Friends of Europe and Liqin He / General Manager of Bank of China (Luxembourg), S.A. Brussels Branch.

View from abroad: Europe’s best kept secret (Originally published 13/02/2016 at Dawn.com)

Call it Europe’s best kept secret. As the arrival of hundreds of thousands of refugees hits the headlines and Europeans tie themselves in knots over how to deal with the desperate, mainly Muslim, newcomers, it’s worth noting: Islam has always been part of Europe — and it will be part of Europe’s future.Europe and Europeans have no choice. It will be long, difficult and sometimes painful but sooner or later, like it or not, they are going to have to come to terms with Islam and Muslims.It’s also true that if they are to live fulfilling and productive lives, Muslims, whatever their origin and their sectarian affiliations, will have to get used to calling Europe their “real” home. Many do so already and so will most of the refugees currently settling in to their new lives.There is no other option. Christians, Muslims and Jews have lived side by side, in peace and in Europe in the past. Despite the shrill headlines of a clash of cultures and values, they also do so today and will in the future.Europe’s current focus may be on Muslims as terrorists, refugees, foreign fighters, criminals and misfits — and extremists on all sides may cry blue murder at the existence of a vibrant multi-cultural Europe — but the process of adaptation, accommodation, integration, of Europe and Islam is well underway.For one, the economy demands it. As European economies stagnate, Europe’s ageing society needs refugees and migrants — skilled and unskilled — to pay taxes and do the jobs that no one else wants to do.But it’s about more. There is an interesting story to be told about migrants’ economic contribution to their host nations especially the fact that many migrant entrepreneurs are actively fostering the revitalisation of impoverished urban neighbourhoods, creating jobs and prompting innovation in products and services.A recent European Commission study stresses that diversity brought about by migration can be a competitive advantage and a source of dynamism for the European economies, whose workforce is expected to decline by approximately 50 million between 2008 and 2060.But these facts get lost in the toxic conversation being led by the far-right groups. The inconvenient truth is that Europe needs a new narrative on immigration and it needs it urgently.The stakes are high: Europe’s global reputation and hopes of playing a stronger international role depends on its internal conduct and policies. The tone and content of the immigration debate has repercussions on Europe’s internal cohesion, economic dynamism and societal harmony but also impacts strongly on EU foreign policy and international reputation.The harsh reaction of some European governments to those fleeing war in the Middle East colours global views of Europe, eroding the EU’s efforts to promote human rights worldwide.When Muslims are targets of racist attacks and discrimination, the EU’s role and influence in helping to stabilise a very volatile Arab and Muslim world is diminished. Young Africans drowning in rickety boats in the Mediterranean raise questions about the effectiveness of EU development policy.The environment is more favourable to changing the narrative than many believe. Recent tragedies in Paris and elsewhere as well as the current focus on European “foreign fighters” who have joined the militant Islamic State group in Syria has spotlighted the malaise and disaffection felt by many young Europeans of Muslim descent.Europe’s once solely security-focused approach to deal with the Muslims has been replaced with a more balanced view that includes an integration agenda and migrant outreach programmes.Government and business recruitment policies are being gradually changed to increase the employment of migrants. In fact, business leaders are demanding an increase in immigration, including that from Muslim countries, to meet Europe’s skills shortage, and the Lisbon Treaty includes a new anti-discrimination directive that strengthens existing rules on combating racism.For their part, migrant groups are becoming significantly more active in demanding equal rights as fully fledged citizens, organising themselves into pressure groups and emerging as influential politicians, entrepreneurs and cultural icons.But there are certain ground rules. Integration is a two-way street, requiring adjustment efforts by migrants and host societies. Newcomers must abide by existing rules so that they can become part of the conversation. But in exchange they should be accepted as full-fledged members of society.European politicians face the challenge of engaging in an intelligent debate on immigration and integration which is not about accusatory interventions or the adoption of populists’ rhetoric but does not shy away from discussing the real challenges of living in a multicultural and diverse society.Given the present sorry lack of representation of people of migrant background in national governments, parliaments and EU institutions, some form of support for higher education, facilitation of job promotion is needed to encourage minorities to become active social participants.Business leaders, for their part, must become less timid in pointing out that ageing and skills-deficient Europe needs foreign labour.Europe’s most serious refugee crisis since World War II seems to be ripping the continent apart, stretching economic resources, radicalising politics and straining political institutions. It need not be so.This is also a period of profound transformation, change and renewal. It may not look like it because of the ongoing chaos and turbulence. But Europe will never be the same again — it could be better. 

View from abroad: Xi’s visit to Britain: it’s also about the EU (Originally published 24/10/2015 at Dawn.com)

President Xi Jinping’s recent trip to the United States grabbed global headlines. By going to Britain, the Chinese leader has sent an equally important signal of his interests and determination in deepening and expanding China’s ties with Britain — but also with Europe.Beijing and Washington certainly need to talk to each other on a range of bilateral and international issues. And the Sino-American agreements reached on cybersecurity and climate change will help ease relations between the world’s two leading political and economic actors.But President Xi and Prime Minister Li Keqiang’s many visits to Brussels, Paris and Berlin this year — and now Xi’s high-profile trip to Britain — underline that China and Europe have also made a strategic choice to further develop and expand relations.China’s focus on Europe and on Britain is important for several reasons. Tackling challenges in a multipolar and multi-complex world requires more than cooperation between China and the US. It also demands working in tandem with the European Union and its 28 member states.Britain, given its global role and influence is, of course, especially important. President Xi’s visit, including his high-level meetings, underline to a watching world — and to the rest of Europe — that China still views Britain as a key international player.Significantly, Xi’s visit follows a trip to China by UK Chancellor George Osborne last month, during which he said Britain should be China’s “best partner in the West”.It’s not just Britain that wants closer ties with China, however. Germany remains a strong contender for the title of Beijing’s ‘best friend’ in Europe. And more generally while relations between China and individual EU states are important, ties with the EU are also improving, with the launch of the connectivity platform and the agreement to cooperate on developing 5G networks.Europe certainly has the markets China needs for its exports — and trade is still booming. European expertise and know-how is critically important to help meet China’s urbanisation, climate, innovation and other developmental challenges. Most recently, there is a focus on synergies between the ‘One Belt, One Road’ project and Europe’s own investment blueprint for transport, digital and technology networks. Britain and British companies have a key role to play in such cooperation, both on a bilateral level but also through the EU.True, the EU’s many recent crises have eroded much of its lustre. Last year has been especially difficult as EU leaders have grappled with continuing troubles in the Eurozone, struggled to tackle the influx of refugees fleeing war and conflict in Syria and Africa while also dealing with longer-term problems of low growth and high unemployment.For the next few months, the focus in London, Brussels and in other EU capitals will be on Britain and the country’s upcoming referendum on its membership of the EU.The EU is hoping that Britain will opt to stay in. And while no EU leader would say so in public, many are clearly hoping that President Xi gives a clear but subtle message to British citizens to vote in favour of EU membership. As such, it is especially significant that the Chinese president has met leaders of the opposition parties and parliamentary leaders.But that’s not the only reason that the EU kept a close watch on President Xi’s speeches and meetings in Britain. China-watchers in Brussels and elsewhere in the EU wanted to learn more about the state of the Chinese economy after the market volatility over the summer and what to expect as China’s development priorities in the upcoming 13th Five-Year Plan.Meanwhile, Xi’s speech in London provided further insight into China’s hopes for the internationalisation of the renminbi and also information on China’s priorities as it prepares to take over as chair of the G20.Certainly as in other EU capitals, the focus was on business, with Britain looking for Chinese investments in key projects such as a high speed rail line in the north of the country and a deal on Chinese investments in the Hinkley Point C nuclear plant. The UK is now China’s largest investment destination country in Europe.More investment opportunities for Chinese companies opened up in the railway, energy, aviation and telecommunications industries. Significantly, leading the way for other European countries, Britain joined the Chinese-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), despite opposition from Washington, earlier this year. Within the EU, Britain’s opinion is important as the EU and China negotiate their Bilateral Investment Treaty and will be even more important if and when the two sides start discussions on a Free Trade Agreement.There used to be a time not so long ago when China’s friendships with individual EU member states were viewed with suspicion by Brussels. This was especially the case as regards China’s ‘special relationship’ with Germany and the burgeoning ties between Beijing and the Central and Eastern European states. Fortunately, such unease is now mostly over, with many policymakers agreeing that stronger bilateral ties between China and the individual EU member states — including Britain — help to consolidate and deepen the wider EU-China relationship.

VIEW FROM ABROAD: Turkey and EU (Originally published 10/10/2015 at Dawn.com)

Crises can result in strange bedfellows. Having criticised Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for his “authoritarian” ways, European Union leaders are now turning to the Turkish leader to help ease the unprecedented influx of refugees on to EU territory.As EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker told the European Parliament in Strasbourg: “In the refugee crisis, Turkey and the EU walk together and work together.”Not surprisingly Erdogan is making the most of it. The Turkish president has not endeared himself to democrats and human rights activists at home or abroad with his clampdown on the media, arrest of opponents, the crackdown on civil society protests, lavish spending on his official residence and other actions, including targeting of Syrian Kurdish strongholds.Relations between the EU and Turkey have been on the backburner for several years as the 28-nation bloc has fretted and sweated at the rollback of reforms in a country which is a candidate to join the EU.EU membership negotiations have been put on hold. Turkey has sulked, saying its interests lie to its east, not the west.The EU has raged against Ankara’s disregard for European values. Relations are still strained. But both Turkey and the EU are more vulnerable than in the past.Ankara’s dreams and ambitions of becoming an indispensable regional player have been destroyed by Syrian President Bashar Al Assad’s refusal to listen to Turkey. As a result, Erdogan’s influence in the region is not as potent as it was a few years ago.Europe’s many vulnerabilities are common knowledge. Even as Germany under Chancellor Angela Merkel has opened the borders to refugees from Syria, the sudden and massive arrival of hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers has eroded public and political support for the move.And so to the negotiating table where Erdogan and the EU engage in horse-trading over the fate of refugees from Syria and other countries in conflict even as they try to put their own relations back on track.According to media reports, the Europeans are offering eventually to take half a million Syrians from new refugee and asylum-processing camps they would co-fund in Turkey in return for Ankara tightening its borders to stop people being smuggled in hazardous vessels to Greece, and agreeing to take back migrants who make it “illegally” to Europe via Turkey.As part of any possible pact, Erdogan is asking for a relaxation in visa requirements for Turks travelling to Europe. He also wants the EU to list Turkey as “a safe third country”, effectively whitewashing Ankara’s increasingly repressive policies and deteriorating human rights and media freedoms record.“Europe has to manage its borders better. We expect Turkey to do the same,” said Donald Tusk, the president of the European council, following talks with Erdogan. “The situation where hundreds of thousands are fleeing to the European Union from Turkey must be stopped.”Erdogan responded that Ankara was hosting almost 10 times as many Syrian refugees as the EU. While open to talks with Brussels, he said the key to stopping the flow of refugees was to establish a no-fly zone over the Turkish-Syria border and a buffer zone in northern Syria.This is viewed as a non-starter in Europe and in Washington, but Tusk said: “The European Union is ready to take up all issues with Turkey so we can also discuss a possible buffer zone in Syria.”Turkey is home to two million Syrian refugees and is the source of most of the influx into Europe of recent months. A pact with Turkey is now seen as the key to the effort to turn chaos into control.The aim is to have the Turks and the Greeks mount joint border controls at sea, organised by Frontex, the EU’s borders agency and that intercepted boat people be turned back to Turkey.Meanwhile, in an unusual joint appeal, Merkel and French President Francois Hollande have urged European politicians to pull together amid multiple crises in a bid to heal EU divisions caused by the influx of refugees, debt crises and encroaching nationalist sentiment.In separate addresses to the European Parliament in Strasbourg last week, both leaders underlined the risks now besetting the EU’s 28 nations.“The debate is not about less Europe or more Europe,” Mr Hollande told politicians, evoking the question of national sovereignty besetting member nations. “It is about the affirmation of Europe or the end of Europe. Yes, the end of Europe.”Chancellor Merkel, who has come forward as the champion of refugees flowing into Europe, said overcoming the refugee crisis together is a key challenge for the European Union.“It is precisely now,” she said, “that we need more Europe ... If we overcome that, we will be stronger after the crisis than before.”It was the first such joint appearance in Strasbourg since 1989, when West German chancellor Helmut Kohl and French president Francois Mitterrand spoke days after the fall of the Berlin Wall.“In the refugee crisis we must not succumb to the temptation of falling back into acting in nationalistic terms,” said Ms Merkel, standing next to French President Hollande, adding: “National solo efforts are no solution to the refugee crisis.”Significantly even as the two EU leaders were speaking in Strasbourg, the EU’s foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, announced that a combined EU naval mission known as EU Navfor Med will now be able “to board, search and seize vessels in international waters, [after which] suspected smugglers and traffickers will be transferred to the Italian judicial authorities”.Yes, Europe is confused, overwhelmed and uncertain about what to do next. President Erdogan, in contrast, knows exactly what he wants: respect and recognition from a Europe that has too often disregarded Turkey as an important ally. And, ultimately, Turkish membership of the 28-nation European Union.

View from abroad: Europe will never be the same again (Originally published 04/10/2015 at Dawn.com)

Don’t believe the upbeat headlines. The summit of European Union leaders held in Brussels a couple of weeks ago has not ended the acrimonious quarrelling among the bloc’s 28 leaders over Europe’s refugee crisis. The divisions are deep. Yes, some cracks have been papered over. Make no mistake, however, Europe has changed and may never be the same again.The summer and autumn of 2015 will be remembered as an important defining moment for a continent which has itself suffered the horrors of war, and persecution but which now, despite the economic slowdown, is still a largely comfortable and prosperous place. And with comfort have come complacency, self-righteousness and, yes, a certain degree of selfishness. Mixed with this is fear of foreigners, especially those who also happen to be Muslim.So why is this such an important watershed moment? Quite simply, because this is when Europe has to decide whether it turns inwards, enjoying its many assets and charms while shunning the rest of the world or whether it truly embraces the 21st century. The sudden arrival of hundreds of thousands of refugees has shaken Europe to the core, revealing and highlighting still-deep-seated differences among nations and people and throwing cold water on the EU’s endless talk of shared “common values” among the 28 countries.For years, Europeans have known that they have an ageing population and need foreign labour — both skilled and unskilled. And for just as many years, Europe has tried to ignore this reality. There are no legal channels for those seeking to migrate to Europe. Piecemeal efforts like ‘blue card’ schemes end up in tatters.That’s not unique. Like many other countries and regions, Europe and Europeans are undecided about who they are and what they want to be. They vacillate between good and bad, open and closed. And the refugee crisis has made these uncertainties and internal rifts visible to the world. Suddenly, there is no more time for discussion, no time to fudge and vacillate.The “Islamic invasion”, the “Muslim hordes”, the “swarms of migrants” from poor nations are not just a nightmare, they are a reality. There is no place to hide. The wars in the Middle East and Afghanistan have ensured that Europe is now face to face with what it fears most: the arrival of thousands of “Muslims” who want refuge, shelter, asylum in Europe.Not surprisingly, the EU has been taken by surprise. Divisions within the EU are not new. It’s not easy for 28 sovereign nations to work together, pool resources and sometimes even pool their sovereignty in the name of European integration. But so far the infighting has been relatively civilised and calm. It’s been about the sharing of money, trade policy and whether to bomb or not to bomb foreign nations.In the case of the Eurozone crisis, especially as regards Greece, it did become ugly at moments. The Germans were demonised for forcing austerity on the poor suffering Greeks. The Greeks in turn were accused of being lazy and corrupt. Now it’s about much, much more. It’s about history, humanity, about Europe’s place in the world and about those cherished European “values”, namely tolerance, respect for others, compassion, etc.As they grapple with the reality of hundreds of thousands of refugees on their territory, those values have been neatly discarded by most of the EU’s new members from eastern and central Europe. And even the “old” EU nations are beginning to waver. The decision by EU leaders to give one billion euros in aid to Syria’s neighbouring countries which are sheltering the majority of the refugees may have temporarily stopped some of the embarrassingly public wrangling. Agreement to shore up the bloc’s external borders has also led to a collective sigh of relief among those who fear being engulfed by the world’s “poor and huddled masses”.Now is also the time for anguished soul-searching, mea culpas and backtracking. The EU’s Polish president of the council, Donald Tusk, has warned that it is time to “correct our policy of open doors and windows” towards the refugees. Significantly, Tusk did not mention the policy of barbed wire fences, prisons and “jungles” implemented by most of his counterparts in eastern Europe. Tusk’s criticism of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s decision to let in Syrian refugees did not go unnoticed. But Tusk is not alone.The Slovak, Czech and Hungarian leaders are also up in arms against the EU decision to reallocate 120,000 refugees across most of the 28 member states. The EU’s most robust anti-immigration hardliner, Viktor Orbán, the prime minister of Hungary, warned Merkel, against any “moral imperialism”.Significantly, however, economists at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have said that the short-term strain on Europe posed by the refugees is outweighed by the long-term opportunity the newcomers present for a continent struggling with sluggish growth and home to an ageing population.Many European businesses have already said they are ready to offer jobs to the refugees who they believe can help bolster the bloc’s economies. In Germany, employers’ organisations have issued an appeal to accelerate training for refugees, including German language training so that they can be employed as soon as possible.So yes, Europe today is confused, undecided and uncertain. Europeans know they need foreign labour and many recognise that the Syrian and other refugees, given their youth, talents and professional skills are a godsend for an ageing continent. But many are also likely to say: what a pity that so many are Muslims.

View from abroad: It’s official: the EU is in a mess (Originally published 12/09/2015 at Dawn.com)

The 28-member bloc is in disarray, beset by crises, member governments are squabbling, people are angry and disenchanted, leaders are mostly querulous and hesitant — and sometimes outrageously odious.This isn’t just the opinion of just any EU watcher or EU insider; it’s the point of view of Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European Commission, the EU’s executive body.“The European Union is not in a good state,” Juncker told the European Parliament in his first-ever “State of Europe” address this week. “There is not enough Europe in this Union. And there is not enough union in this Union.”Unusually for a politician, Juncker did not mince his words during his hour-long speech to the 700 plus EU parliamentarians. It was time, he said for honesty.And he was certainly honest, refreshingly so. In fact, frighteningly so. Like most people, I’ve become used to untruthful politicians, men and women to whom lying comes naturally, automatically.This is especially true for anyone in an official position who is asked to comment on his/her country’s political future, economic prospects or social challenges.Market turmoil, economy in danger? China’s leaders don’t seem to think so. At a conference in Dalian last week, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang was adamant that Chinese markets were stable and potential systemic financial risks have been forestalled. Recent troubles were just due to “rumour mongers” and other nasties.India, meanwhile, is talking up its shining economic future and readiness to overtake China despite evidence that the economy is in desperate need of reform and growth.Politicians in the US still brag that their country is a “superpower” despite evidence that no one believes it any more.And at a recent seminar in Brussels, a Pakistani diplomat waxed lyrical about the country’s respectful treatment of women and efforts to empower them while people looked on in disbelief.Of course everybody takes such blatant hyperbole with a huge chunk of salt. We roll our eyes, shut off the TV, shout obscenities at the liars.Which is why Juncker’s speech took many by surprise. Yes, there were some hecklers from the Far Right in the European assembly but mostly the intervention — long and rambling at times — prompted respect for its brutal assessment of 21st century Europe — and Juncker’s recipe for changing things.The Commission chief was especially honest in his references to Europe’s refugee crisis and governments’ response to it.At a time when many EU leaders continue to waiver on Europe’s responsibilities towards the hundreds of thousands of refugees seeking shelter in Europe, Juncker made clear that Europe had a moral obligation to help those fleeing war, terror and oppression.“We Europeans should remember that Europe is a continent where nearly everyone has at one time been a refugee. Our common history has been marked by millions of Europeans fleeing from religious or political persecution from war, dictatorship or oppression,” Juncker underlined.It is a theme that German Chancellor Angela Merkel has dwelt on repeatedly over the last few weeks. Germany’s welcome of refugees may be rooted in its history but it certainly puts other EU leaders — especially in Britain and in Central and Eastern European countries — to shame.And it looks likely that while many countries have more or less grudgingly accepted more newcomers on their territories, Juncker and Merkel’s calls for compulsory quotas for the resettlement of refugees in the 28 countries will continue to run into opposition from Britain, Hungary, the Czech Republic and others.Meanwhile, following a moment of unusual silence, Europe’s Far Right groups have once again found their poisonous voice. The Netherlands’ leading Muslim-hater Geert Wilder has warned that the refugees represent an “Islamic invasion” of Europe.In France, Wilder’s counterpart Marine Le Pen has decided that “99 per cent” of the refugees coming to Europe are men who are making the journey for economic reasons. She made the statement as television images should pictures of joyful children arriving in Germany.Juncker — like Merkel — has warned against distinguishing between Jews, Christians and Muslims, saying there is “no religion, no belief, no philosophy when it comes to refugees”.There were also tough words on Greece and the need for economic reform to bring back confidence in the economy and among Greeks.And he voiced support for a “fair deal for Britain” as the country prepares to hold its referendum on EU membership before the end of 2017.Finally, Juncker urged EU states to be united in trying to shore up Ukraine while also engaging with Russia.EU governments’ response to Euro troubles in Greece and the refugee crisis has indeed spotlighted a disunited, squabbling Europe. Yes, the EU is the world’s most successful — and inspirational — example of deep regional integration, with a single currency shared by 19 countries, and 26 nations agreeing to scrap their national borders through the “Schengen” agreement.But Greece almost brought about the unraveling of the Eurozone. And the mass cross-border movement of refugees is threatening the Schengen pact. On foreign and security policy, divisions among the 28 countries are ever-visible.While the world watches closely and with concern, the EU will have to tread carefully in the coming months to preserve its many achievements and strive for more.

View from abroad: Not everyone wants Fortress Europe (Originally published 29/08/2015 at Dawn.com)

Throughout the summer, the headlines have reflected the heart-wrenching reality of Europe’s worsening refugee crisis.The messy, incompetent and often cruel response to the influx of embattled men, women and children arriving on its territory is a huge blot on Europe’s reputation. It is also a source of disappointment for many who believed in the creation of an open, more tolerant society and thought Europeans had learned the lessons of a shameful, tragic past.Alas, many have not. The hostile reaction of governments in Britain, Hungary, Slovakia and others to the refugees arriving in Europe from war-devastated countries illustrates a callousness, intolerance and indifference that many hoped would never be seen again in Europe.News from the different “fronts” in the crisis — the Mediterranean sea, the scene of many shipwrecks and deaths, the Balkans where desperate refugees are using land routes to reach Europe and Calais where thousands are stuck in a no-man’s land between France and Britain — continues to dominate the media, elbowing out news of Eurozone troubles, including early elections announced by Greece.The focus is on the harsh statements and even harsher actions by European nations. British Prime Minister David Cameron infamously referred to “swarms” of immigrants while his foreign secretary Philip Hammond warned of “marauding migrants” on Europe’s doorsteps. Meanwhile, the huge camp of refugees seeking entry into Britain set up in Calais in France is kept in check by a swelling police presence and more fences.Many governments, especially in the former Communist central and eastern European states are gearing up for military action to keep out the desperate people on their doorsteps. More and higher fences are being erected. Some countries such as Slovakia and others in Eastern Europe have said openly that they will only take in a limited number of refugees — and only those they can identify as Christian. Not surprisingly, the refugee crisis dominated a summit on the western Balkans attended by EU leaders last week.United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has urged countries “in Europe and elsewhere to prove their compassion and do much more to bring an end to the crisis”. The thousands of migrants and refugees who brave perilous journeys “should not, when they arrive, encounter new challenges”, Ban said during a visit to Paris.Yes, the crisis has brought out the worst in Europe. But — at least in some cases — it has also brought out the best.Take the governments in Italy and Greece which have been struggling to cope for months with the arrival of an ever-rising number of refugees, their appeals for a more equitable sharing-out of the “burden” rejected by other members of the European Union. Italians coastguards continue to save hundreds of endangered refugees on the high seas. While far-right groups in both countries are up in arms against the refugees, ordinary Italians and Greeks — suffering from their own Euro-imposed troubles — are providing food and shelter to the new arrivals.Even as Britain’s Cameron panders to the xenophobic sentiments of the anti-foreigner UK Independence Party, many British citizens are helping out in the Calais camp. And a letter from the Jewish Council for Racial Equality to Cameron says British Jews are appalled by Britain’s response to the situation in Calais. “Our experience as refugees is not so distant that we’ve forgotten what it’s like to be demonised for seeking safety,” the letter said, adding: “People fleeing conflict and persecution are not to blame for the crisis in Calais; neither is our welfare system, nor the French government. Above all, we in the UK are not the victims here; we are not being invaded by a ‘swarm’.”Most importantly, perhaps, Germany has emerged as the country most willing to welcome the new arrivals. As the country gears up to receive an unprecedented 800,000 refugees, many of them from Syria, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has lashed out against “vile” anti-migrant violence and warned: “There will be no tolerance of those who question the dignity of other people.”Public opinion appears to be largely behind her, with 60 per cent of Germans polled by public broadcaster ZDF saying that Europe’s biggest economy is capable of hosting the asylum-seekers.Desperately seeking a joint EU response to the crisis, Merkel and French President Francois Hollande have said the refugees need to be distributed more equally among the 28 European Union countries, a demand backed by the European Commission. But there is strong opposition to such collective action from Britain and the eastern European states.Germany has in fact taken more than 40% of the Syrian refugees who have reached Europe; Sweden has taken another 20% and Greece, Italy and Spain account for another 25%.As the weeks drag on — and far right parties become ever more vocal in their anti-foreign rhetoric — the need for a joint EU response to the crisis will become more urgent. Merkel and a few others may worry about the erosion of European values — but others are busy building the walls and fences required to secure Fortress Europe.

View from abroad: Germany under more fire as Europe takes a summer break (Originally published 25/07/2015 at Dawn.com)

Fortunately, after a gruelling six months, Europe will soon be on vacation. The half-year of anguished and angry debate over the Greek financial crisis has left the 28-nation European Union bruised and battered. A deal of sorts has now been done to avert a Greek exit from the Eurozone. But, Europe’s morale is low, emotions are running high and nobody likes anyone any more.It’s time for a break. In time-honoured fashion, EU leaders are indeed heading off for a holiday to refresh, revive and re-energise. As of July 1, tiny Luxembourg is in the EU chair. But because August is Europe’s “dead” season, the EU will only come to life in September, giving Luxembourg a relatively short time at the helm.But, it doesn’t matter. In fact, nothing and no EU country really matters — except Germany.If there’s one thing that has become clear over the last half-year, it’s that Germany rules Europe — even, according to some, Germany is Europe or at least wants to shape Europe in its image.And not everyone likes it. Germany’s tough line on austerity and refusal to countenance debt relief for Greece may have won the admiration of some countries like the Netherlands, Finland and Slovakia but others are critical of Berlin’s unashamed bullying of Athens.Importantly, a majority of European and American economists — including experts at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) — have made clear that Germany is on the wrong track, that a country which is already on its knees cannot be expected to immediately stand up tall and become even taller. In other words, Greece cannot be expected to pay its creditors and also notch up high economic growth rates.What a mess. Much-respected author Philippe Legrain has voiced his anger at the “brutal, vindictive and short-sighted exercise of German power against Greece”.“Let’s be clear,” warns Legrain: “What Berlin and Frankfurt [the seat of the European Central Bank] have done to Greece, they can — and they will — do to others.”Others are equally tough. Renowned economist and Noble prize-winner Paul Krugman has been equally vocal in his criticism of the austerity that has been imposed on Greece by Germany and others.There’s no doubt: Germany is the monetary union’s dominant economy, and its chancellor is the region’s dominant leader, with virtual veto power over Eurozone-wide decisions. That puts the spotlight squarely on Angela Merkel.Much of the critics’ ire is in fact directed at Merkel, who is viewed by many as a symbol of all that is harsh about Germany. But in truth, the German who everyone loves to hate is the hard-nosed finance minister, Wolfgang Schauble, who once said that Greece “cannot be a bottomless pit”.German public opinion appears to be staunchly behind Merkel and Schauble with many Germans arguing that Greece is unworthy of their aid. “NEIN”, blasted a headline in the tabloid Bild earlier this year. “No more billions for greedy Greeks!” it insisted.What rankles for many is that Merkel and Schauble have played the unrelenting taskmasters, treating Greeks not as partners, but as spoiled children who could be set right only by the rod.There has even been talk of a Europe divided along religious lines, with a German Protestant belief in austerity and thrift contrasted with a Catholic/Orthodox tolerance for sinners — provided they repent.The Syriza party of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is not alone in bridling under German diktat. Gaining popularity in Spain, where unemployment is 22.5 per cent, is the leftist political movement Podemos, which also seeks a fairer deal from the rest of Europe. In Italy, Beppe Grillo, leader of the anti-establishment Five Star Movement, has called for a referendum to decide if Italy should remain in the monetary union.There is no doubt that months of EU acrimony since Tsipras’s election in January as Greek premier at the head of an anti-austerity coalition has tarnished the bloc in the eyes of both its own citizens and globally.The bail-out agreed for Greece has come at a great cost to the EU’s reputation both at home and abroad. At the end Merkel tried to play the middle ground but Schauble will be seen by some critics as the true villain of this piece.Significantly, criticism — and envy — of Greece is not limited to Berlin’s conduct during the Greek crisis. Berlin is also under fire from its European partners for being too eager to cash in on last week’s nuclear deal with Iran.As this column underlined last week, Europeans are eager to get a piece of the economic action in Iran. Not surprisingly given Berlin’s commercial ambitions and outreach, the first EU policymaker to make his way to Tehran was Germany’s Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel, ahead of the EU’s Foreign Policy Chief Federica Mogherini, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius and other assorted European foreign ministers.Germany’s EU partners may slam Berlin for its economic bullying and high-handedness. But they also admire the country for its strong and effective economic diplomacy.It appears that when it comes to Germany, Europeans face an age-old dilemma: they find it difficult to live under Germany’s thumb, but they can’t really live without Berlin either.

Europeans eager to trade, do business with Iran (Originally published 18/07/2015 at Dawn.com)

Suddenly last week, after weeks of acrimony, arguments and threats, the dark clouds over the European Union appeared to clear slightly.

EU leaders fought off fears of a Greek exit from the Eurozone by hammering out a deal to bail out the devastated Greek economy. And finally following years of hard bargaining, international negotiators, including EU officials, clinched an agreement on curbing Iran’s nuclear programme.Europeans’ response to the two breakthrough accords has been quite different. The deal on Greece has left a sour taste, with Europeans divided on just how much more economic pain the Greeks can and should be forced to take. In contrast, there is no rift in Europe over the accord with Iran. European governments, business and public opinion have been largely positive about prospects of a normalisation of relations with Tehran.In fact they want more than normalisation. As was the case two years ago when Myanmar finally opened up, Europeans are anxious and eager to make their mark in Iran as quickly as possible, before the competition heats up.European foreign ministries want to re-establish diplomatic relations with Tehran, the EU plans to open its own office, and European business leaders and investors can’t wait to enter the Iranian market.On the geostrategic front, there are hopes that an end to Iranian isolation will change the political landscape in the Middle East by reducing power and influence of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States.True, there is also wariness of Tehran’s ambitions and role in Syria, Yemen and Iraq. But few in Europe give credence to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s quasi-hysterical rants against Tehran. And unlike in the United States, there are no major European political parties who oppose the re-establishment of relations with Iran.The race to be the first one to visit the country has already begun. A procession of high-ranking visitors is expected to head to Tehran, with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius already saying he will go soon.British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has said he hopes the UK and Iran can fully reopen their respective embassies by year end. Ties between the UK and Iran had plunged after the 2011 storming of the British embassy in Tehran.And European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, who presided over the nuclear negotiations, also wants to open the first EU mission in Tehran in 2016 as part of what she hopes will be a “new chapter” in relations.The focus is very much on the Iranian market and the country’s appetite for European exports, investments, technology and know-how after years of life under sanctions.Europe’s interest in Iran’s oil and gas sector is high as EU nations seek to reduce their dependence on imports of Russian gas. But Europe faces tough competition from American companies, Russia and China.Chinese analysts are already predicting a surge in trade and business flows between China and Iran and point to the contribution Beijing can make to upgrade and build Iranian infrastructure.Iran is also widely expected to become a key participant in China’s ambitious ‘One Belt, One Road’ connectivity network linking China to other parts of Asia and Europe.In contrast to China, EU policymakers, focused almost completely on the nuclear issue, have not yet given serious consideration to ways of upgrading ties with Tehran.EU foreign policy chief Mogherini talks ambitiously of bringing together all key Middle East countries, including Iran, “to see if some form of regional cooperation is possible”.While the vision of Middle East regional cooperation is noble, there is, of course, very little hope that — at least in the short to medium-term — Iran, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries will be able to sit at the same table, much less work together.The EU could, however, insist that Iran should be allowed to participate in the Geneva talks on ending the civil war in Syria. Tehran could also be helpful in EU efforts to build a strategy to counter the self-styled Islamic State.Given the EU’s demands that Iran reduce the rate of executions and eradicate torture, discussions on human rights are likely to be difficult.EU-Iran cooperation is likely to be most buoyant if the focus is on practical questions such as environmental protection, water management, infrastructure development, technology transfer, and academic and cultural exchanges.Europe’s normalisation of relations with Iran is likely to be slow and steady as European governments and Tehran get to know each other again and step by step build trust.Ironically, in fact, today there seems to be more trust between the EU and Iran than between Greeks and their fellow Europeans.

Shada Islam quoted in ‘Greek Deal Makes Europe More German. But at What Cost?’ (Bloomberg 13/07/2015)

Europe’s deal with Greece was variously denounced as blackmail, an attack on national sovereignty and an end to the European dream. The accord’s detractors could at least agree on one thing: the chief culprit was Angela Merkel.Having held sway in the unequal struggle with Alexis Tsipras over the terms of a third bailout, Merkel has ensured that the 19-nation euro area remains a club whose members abide by the rules or are shown the door. The question is what toll that stance has taken on her reputation and the extent of the damage to the international standing of Germany and Europe.Shada Islam, director of policy at the Friends of Europe advisory group in Brussels, said that months of EU acrimony since Tsipras’s election in January as Greek premier at the head of an anti-austerity coalition has tarnished the bloc in the eyes of both its own citizens and globally.“They reached a deal on Greece but at a huge cost,” Islam said by phone. “Merkel tried to play the middle ground but Schaeuble will be seen by some critics as the true villain of this piece.”Both Merkel and Schaeuble have become hate figures in Greece, where comparisons with the World War II occupation by Nazi forces have become commonplace. In Germany, members of Merkel’s coalition have competed for outrage against a backdrop of the constant drumbeat of calls by the best-selling Bild newspaper for Greece to be ejected from the euro.For the full article, visit:http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-07-13/greek-deal-makes-europe-more-german-but-at-what-cost- 

View from Abroad: Europe and the new world order (Originally published 11/07/2015 at dawn.com)

Entangled in the Greek debt crisis, few European policymakers had the time or interest this week to pay attention to the summit talks in the Russian city of Ufa between the leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS).True, Europe has its hands full with Greece and the looming possibility of a Greek exit from the Eurozone. But the world doesn’t stop for Europe. And pretending that the BRICS and their self-confident leaders don’t matter — or matter little — is not an option.Discussions about the rapidly-transforming world, the role and influence of the BRICS and Europe’s relations with the emerging powers appear to be off the European Union agenda. For now, the focus is rightly on the existential threat posed by Grexit, the acrimony the Greek crisis has triggered across the EU and the worsening relationship among Eurozone leaders.Solving the Greek problem should of course take priority. But Europeans know that more is at stake. Italy’s Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has so far been most vocal in signalling his fears that the fury unleashed by the difficulties in Greece is damaging the very existence of the EU. But this thought is also in many other minds. If Europe can’t get its house in order, it really does run the risk of becoming irrelevant on an increasingly crowded global stage.For the moment, most Europeans seem to fall into two categories: those who fear the rapidly-changing world order and the increasingly long list of nations clamouring for a stronger role on the world stage and those who hope that if they look the other way, firm up their bonds with the United States, the world won’t change too much and the BRICS will gradually fade away.There are some, wiser, people in the middle: they may not be enthusiastic about the changes being made to the global status quo; but they also know that times are changing fast and that Europe needs to adapt, adjust and accommodate.It was on the advice of such people that despite strong pressure from the US not to do so, several EU countries decided to join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) set up by China.While many Europeans voice fear that China is “buying up” European assets, cooler heads are urging the EU to join forces with China’s ambitious ‘One Belt, One Road’ transport networks to boost domestic growth and jobs.Similar arguments for and against cooperating with emerging nations are likely to come to the fore as Europeans discuss membership of the New Development Bank (NDB) being set up by the BRICS to fund projects in member countries.Headquartered in Shanghai, the bank is expected to be operational by end of 2015. Once fully operational, it will become an alternative financing source for the BRICS nations and other emerging markets.Like the head of the AIIB, the first chief of the BRICS bank, India’s K. V. Kamath has been quoted as saying that the NDB sees other multilateral lending institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB) as partners rather than rivals.And yet many continue to be suspicious. The US and Japan have not yet joined the AIIB and many EU policymakers continue to voice fears that the new banks will fall short of high Western standards of transparency and accountability.The BRICS have made clear that they don’t really care. The Old Guard is welcome to come on board, but the world is moving on and they won’t stop for the laggards.Russia, given its tense relations with the West following the crisis in Ukraine and the annexation of Crimea, has taken the toughest line in its dealing with Europe and America. As Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov underlined in Ufa, emerging nations represent a “new polycentric system of international relations” and demonstrate new global centres of power.As he shook hands with his Chinese, Indian, South African and Brazilian counterparts, a beaming Russian President Vladimir Putin made clear that he was far from the sad and isolated man that the West wants him to be.And it’s not just about the BRICS. An array of newly-empowered nations and groupings are challenging Europe and America’s dominance of the post World War II order. Mexico, Indonesia, Korea, Turkey and Australia are part of MIKTA which claims to act as a bridge between old and new powers.New Zealand says it is the champion of “small nations” without whose support nothing can be achieved on the global stage. The Group of 20 remains relevant as a forum which brings together industrialised and emerging countries.And then there is also the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) which EU and Nato policymakers also tend to shrug off as an impotent “paper tiger”.They shouldn’t. As India and Pakistan set out on the road to membership of the SCO, it is clear that while the security organisation does not see itself as a rival to Nato, it does intend to make its voice heard on global security challenges.Underlining just how significantly the world has changed, the five BRICS countries and the six SCO members which include China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan — joined by India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran and Mongolia which have observer status — held a joint summit in Ufa.The Greek crisis was on the BRICS agenda of course. While Europe may not like the new world out there, emerging nations know that in an interconnected and interdependent world, what happens in Europe affects them. And that a failed Europe is in nobody’s interest.

Greek crisis endangers Europe’s heart and soul (Originally published 04/07/2015 at dawn.com)

This column is not about the Greek Eurozone crisis. How could it be — what more would I or indeed anyone — be able to add to the reams and reams of stuff that has already been written, rewritten, said and resaid about the topic?The facts are well known: Greeks will vote on July 5 in a snap referendum that Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras says will give the country’s long-suffering people the final say on whether he should accept the tough terms of a cash-for-austerity deal from creditors at the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund.Tsipras wants Greeks to say no, apparently arguing that creditors are bluffing and will not take the catastrophic step of ejecting Greece from the club of 19 nations that use the euro currency.The creditors say they’re ready to push the nuclear button. Enough is enough. Throwing Greece out of the Eurozone won’t matter that much. It’s a small economy, the impact will be limited. Eighteen countries will still be in the Eurozone. Life will go on.Of course it will. Life always goes on. After wars, earthquakes, tsunamis and suicide bombings, life goes on. People come out of the crisis, pull up their socks, get back to work.But think about it: life is never really the same ever again.So, Grexit won’t bring Europe to its knees. The Eurozone will not unravel, neither will the European Union. The other eighteen countries of the Eurozone will soldier on even if Greece exits the currency bloc.Also worth noting: even if it does leave the Eurozone, Greece will still be a member of the 28-nation EU.But let’s make no mistake: If Greece is ejected from the Eurozone, it will — even further — destroy the heart and soul of this continent.In fact, the soul of Europe is already half-destroyed. This protracted crisis is taking its toll on Europe’s self-image, self-confidence, its links with ordinary Europeans and its role and influence on the global stage.Born in Asia, grown up in Europe, I have always admired my adopted continent for its ability to put past animosities behind, to work together for the common good, to make sure war never erupts again in our lifetime and beyond.I love the variety and the diversity of Europe, the freedom to travel, work and live in any of the 28 countries, the freedom to say and do what I like, without raised eyebrows or reproachful, critical glances.But Europe is changing. The last 70 years since the end of World War II have been peaceful — but the EU showed its feet of clay during the devastating and blood-soaked Balkan conflict.Tolerance and human rights are universal values but Europe has been their most determined defender. And yet as thousands of hapless refugees arrive on its shores, Europe is showing an indifference which beggars belief.As the Far Right narrative of hatred and racism becomes ever shriller, the voices calling for peace and calm are drowned out. No politician has the courage to say that Europe needs immigration and desperately needs foreign skills and talent.The debate over Greece has polarised Europe, splitting it in half. Those in favour of austerity argue that Greece spends too much, doesn’t save enough money and doesn’t tax its rich people as much as it should.They want Athens to cut spending, slash pensions and increase taxes.Others argue equally powerfully that a country in recession cannot be punished even further and that what Greece needs above all is a fiscal stimulus to get back growth and create some desperately-needed jobs.Greek Prime Minister Tsipras and his Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis have been engaged in a seemingly un-ending battle of wills with their Eurozone colleagues for months.I have lost count of the number of marathon discussion sessions held so far, the constant tweeting by the key players and the false dawns that a deal was just around the corner.But something strange appears to have transpired over the last few days. Initial sympathy for the Athens duo appears to be fading, with more and more insiders warning that Tsipras and Varoufakis have lost the plot.German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose nation has lent more to Greece than any other in the European Union, is often seen as the architect of Greek austerity. But some of the countries that are now coming down hardest on Greece are the smaller, poorer Eurozone nations that have accepted the bitter pills of austerity and say the Greeks should do so as well.As the debate grinds on in Brussels, Athens and other capitals, it would be heartening to know that the interest of the Greek people was top of the EU and the Eurozone agenda.It isn’t. Europe, which was once about the people, the citizens, the demos, is now transformed into an argument about money. It’s about austerity versus growth.My question is: how will Greece ever get back on track — ever start growing again — without the support, involvement and contribution of its people?

View from Abroad: All aboard the Silk Road express (Originally published 27/06/2015 at dawn.com)

Europe has been slow in its response to China’s ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative. This may be about to change. If both sides play their cards right, the EU-China Summit on June 29 could kick-start a much-needed conversation on synergies between China’s ambitious vision of an interconnected world and Europe’s mega investment plan to boost jobs and growth.The rewards of such cooperation could be enormous. Increased EU-China connectivity will increase bilateral trade between the two partners, create new business opportunities for European and Chinese enterprises, and boost employment, growth and development in Europe and China — and in countries along the routes.To start the dialogue, Europeans will have to take the long view. With the possibility of a Greek exit from the Eurozone getting ever closer, Britain’s plans for a referendum on its EU membership becoming more strident and growing discord over how to deal with the refugee crisis, European policymakers are thinking local, not global.It’s not just about domestic difficulties; Europe’s neighbourhood is also on fire.And yet, if Europe is to fulfil its ambitions of becoming a global actor while also meeting the domestic imperative of generating stronger economic growth and creating jobs, the EU policymakers must look beyond current emergencies to Europe’s medium-to-long-term needs.This is the logic behind the $315bn investment plan drawn up by European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker to modernise Europe’s infrastructure. With its focus on investments in energy, digital, transport and innovation, the blueprint has the potential to revitalise European economies over the next decade.But Europe can’t possibly do it alone. This is why it is important that EU governments, business leaders and academics start paying more attention to China’s headline-grabbing ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative — and ways in which this could fit in with the EU’s own investment masterplan.After months of staying relatively silent on the subject, the EU policymakers are beginning to talk about — and explore — the advantages of synergies between the Juncker plan and the ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative.Clearly, joining forces will unleash more resources. Implementing the EU investment plan will require the mobilisation of billions of euros of private and public funds as well as capital from the European Investment Bank (EIB). As European Commission Vice-President Jyrki Katainen said recently, the EU is hoping to attract Chinese investors to stump up some of the capital for the Juncker plan. The point has also been made by European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom as well as by the European Commission president himself.The hope is clearly that the EU connectivity projects will be able to interest both the Silk Road Fund and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). The EU is particularly interested in meeting the long-term infrastructure needs in southern, eastern and central European countries and in the Balkan states. Greece as well as some members of the so-called ‘16+1’ group of central and eastern European countries have already indicated their strong interest in such Chinese investments. If all goes according to plan, the eastern part of Europe could connect seamlessly with the western projects on the new Silk Road.As the different ‘One Belt, One Road’ projects come on stream, business opportunities will open up for construction, transport and logistical companies — including European enterprises — across the route. EU-China trade is likely to get an important boost from the expected reduction in transport time and costs while EU exporters and investors will gain access to new growth markets in inland China and Central Asia. Such a development would give an added fillip to the current EU-China negotiations on a bilateral investment treaty.As it passes through often-volatile and less-developed countries and regions, the ‘One Belt, One Road’ has the potential to unleash economic potential across the way, bringing stability as well as growth to Europe — and China’s — neighbourhood. Such a conversation could be especially useful within the 53-member Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM) where connectivity is also climbing up the agenda.It’s not just about money, technology and goodwill, however. The EU insists that investment projects selected for financing under the ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative must meet strict governance, environmental and technical standards, and result in sustainable development.Moving from dialogue to action will require time and effort — and willingness to compromise. China has taken its time in putting flesh on the bones of the project and in explaining its many facets to a closely-watching world. A more detailed dialogue is now necessary before the EU and China get down to identifying and working on the nuts and bolts of their cooperation. Given their different working methods and cultures, European and Chinese policymakers, bankers and business leaders won’t find it easy to work together.The devil will certainly be in the detail. Expectations will have to be managed on both sides. Selecting projects will be difficult and time-consuming. And there will be no quick results.But in a world desperate for money, jobs and modern infrastructure, China has once again shown its capacity to surprise and to think big. Europeans must come on board the Silk Road ‘express’, not just watch it from the sidelines.