Skip to main content

European press review

We begin our European press roundup this week with an English take on developments in Iran, where yet another nuclear scientist was killed.

Wikimedia Commons
Advertising

For the Daily Telegraph, the assassination of the senior official at the Islamic Republic's uranium enrichment facility is a clear sign that an undeclared war is being waged to stop Tehran developing atomic weapons.

Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan was the fifth scientist to be killed since 2007. Chances are, the events are linked, the centre-right daily says. And the sophistication of the attacks points to Western or Israeli intelligence forces.

If it is, the questions must be asked about who is responsible and whether the methods are justified. Yet no such qualms have been felt by Iran, as it meddles in its neighbour's affairs, sponsors terrorism and backs the insurgency in Iraq. Whatever the rationale, this covert campaign appears to be the best way of curbing Tehran's nuclear ambitions, given that the country shows no sign of complying with UN resolutions to stop uranium enrichment.

In Europe the debt crisis has forced a tightening of purse strings across the board. But in Greece, where the economy has been devastated and people are suffering, some spending is still going on.

Germany’s Die Zeit says that Greece still has plenty of money to spend on weapons.

And guess who’s in line for many of the contracts?

Germany, probably the biggest critic of Greece’s profligacy in recent years.

The centre-right daily says Athens is ready to buy new Eurofighter planes, French warships, tanks and even a couple of submarines. Yet with Greece on the edge of bankruptcy, there is little criticism from its European partners, mainly due to their economic interests, critics say.

Greece is concerned about the military activities of its neighbour, and historic rival, Turkey. The two report air-space violations almost every day, and this only fuels the concerns of Greeks about their security. Social spending is being cut due to the crisis but defence spending is set to rise by more than 18 per cent, the paper says.

Speaking of budgets, the crisis has had a big impact on the household budgets of people in Spain.

Yes, wages in Spain have always been comparatively low and now they’re dropping even further.

According to El Pais, all this is drastically changing the way people spend their money. Around two in every three workers earn about 1,000 euros a month and that’s before tax. That sort of austerity has led to low-cost shopping, the centre-left daily says. This means that people are hunting very carefully for bargains. Instead of looking for superior quality, good enough will now have to do. Inevitably it will lead to more expensive shops going out of business. The search for discounts has seen a sharp rise in the use of coupons offering even cheaper prices.

The question is: what will happen when the crisis is over? Has the quest for the lowest price become a new way of life, the paper wonders.

Hungary has had its share of social problems recently.

The strife over its new constitution has finally forced the European Commission’s hand, and it has threatened to take action.

Prime Minister Vitkor Orban has been the main target of discontent and Magyar Hirlap reports on an interview he gave to Hungary’s news agency. The paper is right-wing and pro-government, and it notes that Orban sees no need to change any of the laws that have been adopted. Orban wants a fair hearing from the EU, and he plays down the outcry in the international press as merely "personal opinions". When the left is not in power, everyone always claims that democracy has come to an end, he says.

The paper claims that his detractors want an end to democracy in which the majority rules. We must struggle for independence and our homeland, it says.

And we end this week with a story about plagiarism at the Vatican.

Yes, Luxembourg’s Le Quotidien reports that the Vatican’s press service apparently used big chunks of the online encyclopedia Wikipedia to write a series of high-profile biographies.

The biographies were obituaries for 22 cardinals, prepared in advance just in case one of them should die. The centre-left paper says that the stock phrases alerted specialist journalists, more used to the very precise language that has been preferred by the Vatican in the past.

The paper says the issue highlights how powerful the internet has become as a source of documents. Even an institution as serious as the Vatican has fallen into the trap, like a schoolboy cheating during a test. What purpose do press services and journalists serve? Today the Vatican, tomorrow the world’s media, the daily warns.

Daily newsletterReceive essential international news every morning

Keep up to date with international news by downloading the RFI app

Share :
Page not found

The content you requested does not exist or is not available anymore.