Press
The EU's balancing act on open borders
04 May 2011
International Herald Tribune
"In Europe, we are surrounded by poorer but increasingly internationally mobile peoples who want in to societies boasting the highest quality of life in the world," said Hugo Brady, senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform. "It is hard to see how we can deter that desire indefinitely. ... The politics of Schengen are such that no one wants to give up control of their own frontiers but everyone wants some control over other countries' borders," said Mr Brady, the research fellow.
France challenges Italy with border checks
01 May 2011
Financial Times
"The rules of the Schengen club are premised on all countries behaving in a way that takes into account the effect of their actions on their neighbours,” says Hugo Brady, senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform think-tank. "When that stops happening – as we saw in this latest episode – the response from other member states will be to push for tighter borders." Despite the distrust between EU governments, however, Mr Brady argued that the closer monitoring did not mean the end to passport-free travel for most Europeans.
The eurozone has little to smile about
01 May 2011
The Wall Street Journal
Germany's finance minister, Wolfgang Schäuble, was the earliest to recognise Greece's insolvency. More recently, Clemens Fuest, president of the German finance ministry's advisory committee, declared that restructuring, the polite word for default, is inevitable. To which the widely respected director of London-based Centre for European Reform, Charles Grant, adds, "Most intelligent people know there has to be a significant restructuring to ease the burden on Greece, and we're not talking about a painless extension of maturities, but wiping away a large portion of the debt."
NATO airstrikes raise questions over motives
01 May 2011
Reuters
One answer could be that Western powers are simply hoping to terrify Gaddafi into giving up. "It appears pretty clear the alliance is using real political and physical pressure on Gaddafi," said Tomas Valasek of the Centre for European Reform think-tank. "It is clear they want him to feel unsafe and that his own future is at stake," he said.
Sarkozy-Berlusconi: A border control farce
29 April 2011
The Guardian
When Nicolas Sarkozy and Silvio Berlusconi announced plans to weaken passport-free travel in Europe this week, many onlookers concluded that the EU's most tangible achievement, the Schengen zone, was going the way of the single currency.
This is unlikely. Like the euro, the Schengen area, where passport checks were abolished in...
This is unlikely. Like the euro, the Schengen area, where passport checks were abolished in...
Far-right parties gain ground in European politics
27 April 2011
National Public Radio
The fact that they can express extreme views with "a veneer of acceptability" actually makes today's far-right leaders more dangerous than yesterday's skinheads, says Simon Tilford, chief economist for the Centre for European Reform, a London-based think tank that favours European integration. Today, there's a greater sense of unease about Europe's place in a globalised economy, Tilford says.
We have reached a share it or lose it moment
26 April 2011
Defence Management Journal
Despite all the cuts to defence budgets, Europe's militaries are not doing enough pooling and sharing of equipment and personnel; that is the opinion of Thomas Valasek, author of "Surviving Austerity - The Case for a New Approach to EU Military Collaboration".
NATO initiatives not seen as decisive in Libya war
26 April 2011
Reuters
Tomas Valasek of the Centre for European Reform think-tank said that despite NATO denials, it did seem the coalition was seeking ways to end the stalemate by targeting Gaddafi. "NATO's official mandate doesn't involve removing Gaddafi from power, so the commanders would deny it and say they are going after communications posts and such, but to me it does smell like they are going after Gaddafi personally. "That would mean a gap between what NATO collectively says it wants to do and what the French, the British and Americans say.
Sarkozy, Berlusconi meet amid tension on immigration, M & A
26 April 2011
Bloomberg
"It will be a difficult meeting", said Hugo Brady, a senior research fellow with the Centre for European Reform in Brussels. "Immigration, like economic policy, is such a sensitive issue that it can hardly be controlled at an EU level."
Is Germany flipping the bird at Europe?
22 April 2011
The Guardian
It would have caused a chuckle among British tabloid readers. In Germany (and Greece) it caused a storm. On February 22 2010, the German news magazine Focus published a cover that depicted the Aphrodite of Milos with an outstretched arm making a very rude gesture at its readers.
Eurozone may need to rethink anti-crisis strategy
21 April 2011
Reuters
"The easiest way out would be to do the restructuring soon," said Charles Grant, head of the Centre for European Reform in London. "Hit the private creditors and recapitalise the banks. It may still happen."
Interview: Military force is not enough to end Libyan conflict
21 April 2011
The Voice of Russia
Do you believe that the current Libyan crisis can be resolved by diplomatic efforts, not through the use of force?
War in Libya could drag on, military analysts say
20 April 2011
New York Times
Tomas Valasek, a defence expert at the London-based Centre for European Reform, compared NATO to an American political party, "a coalition of countries with broadly the same interests, but with different views." It was inevitable after the cold war, he said, that NATO countries would focus on different threats: terrorism and Afghanistan for some, like the United States, Britain, Canada and the Netherlands; Russia, for the Central Europeans. "As for the rest,I don't even know why they stay in NATO." NATO will never be what it was, Mr Valasek said.
Tunisia immigrants row threatens to destroy dream of borderless Europe
20 April 2011
The Times
"There is a rise of parties of the hard Right in Europe which have set their faces against the free movement of people and the Schengen area," said Hugo Brady of the Centre for European Reform. "There is a conflict coming between the democratic desire to put a 'closed' sign on the door when times are tough and a system which does not follow the demands of the democratic cycle."
Springtime for the anti-euro brigades
19 April 2011
Presseurop
"Euro-scepticism is a political force that is waiting for its breakthrough in Ireland," warns Hugo Brady of the Centre for European Reform.
Europe splits over Libya - as with Iraq
18 April 2011
Times Live
"Ashton was not able to make a stand for the no-fly zone at last week's EU summit because the European countries are divided," ever since the mistakes in the drawn-out conflict in Iraq, said analyst Hugo Brady of the Centre for European Reform. "The EU isn't coherent," on foreign policy, he added in an interview. "It's an ongoing problem."
NATO may need escalation to break Libya stalemate
18 April 2011
Reuters
Tomas Valasek, a defence analyst at the Centre for European Reform, said an escalation of the military effort could be necessary - at least in the short term - to end attacks on civilians and apply pressure for a political solution.
Libya crisis reveals splits on EU goals
18 April 2011
New York Times
"Libya confirmed France's worst beliefs," said Clara Marina O'Donnell, a defence expert at the Centre for European Reform, a research organisation in London. "It could not rely on its EU partners." … "The Anglo-French accord confirmed the frustration in London and Paris over EU defence efforts," Ms. O'Donnell said. She added that European defence could become even weaker as long as these two countries continue to co-operate so closely.
Greece's economy teeters on the brink of default
17 April 2011
The Globe and Mail
"Most intelligent people know there has to be a significant restructuring to ease the burden on Greece, and we're not talking about a painless extension of maturities, but wiping away a large portion of the debt," said Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform in London. "My worry is that the longer they leave it, the stronger the euro-scepticism becomes. When they finally do decide to restructure the debt it will be too late."
Hooray! The Yanks are going home
14 April 2011
Financial Times
The figures are set out by Tomas Valasek in an illuminating report [Surviving austerity: The case for a new approach to EU military collaboration] for the Centre for European Reform. Most European nations are already spending far below the NATO target of 2 per cent of national income. Denmark alone plans to increase its budget in coming years. One or two others are planning to freeze spending. All the rest are cutting. Mr Valasek rightly calls for the pooling of costs and capabilities. But the problem goes beyond national pride.