Press
Space-age spending holds key to EU's destiny
28 October 2004
European Voice
If Europe wants to become a 21st century global power, it must reach for the stars. In other words, European governments should invest more in satellites and other space-based technologies to boost local high-tech industries, monitor the environment and help to manage military operations.
Space-based technology is becoming increasingly important in...
Space-based technology is becoming increasingly important in...
How China is wooing the world
11 September 2004
The Guardian
In my local curry house I was greeted like a long-lost friend. A huddle of young waiters gesticulated excitedly towards me. Eventually I realised they were pointing at my bag, picked up during a recent trip to China, and emblazoned with the Chinese script for Shanghai.
Why Tony needs help from a Tory
09 September 2004
New Statesman
Each man kills the thing he loves - and so it could be with Tony Blair and Europe. For ten years the Prime Minister has promised to "settle" Britain's ambivalent relationship with the EU.
Counting the cost of climate change
03 September 2004
E!Sharp
Many European businesses are questioning why the EU is prepared to increase costs unilaterally when the benefits of the Kyoto approach to combating climate change appear so limited, writes Alasdair Murray of the Centre for European Reform.
Why collaborate in Europe?
01 July 2004
RUSI
Defence analysts agree that Europe must increase its military prowess. Twenty-five EU governments collectively spend approximately £120bn on defence, which means that the EU is the world's second biggest defence spender after the US.
The US heads home: Will Europe regret it?
26 June 2004
Financial Times
The burning of Bush The US president was once known for his ability to unite factions but, with his foreign policy in tatters around him, he is dubbed the Great Polariser. What went wrong for George W. Bush and his advisers?
It's time to do your homework
17 June 2004
The Guardian
For the past seven years Britain has been led by the most pro-European prime minister since Ted Heath, yet the mood of the country has never been more Europhobic.
EU enlargement: How to reap the benefits
04 June 2004
Economic Trends
The overall economic impact of EU enlargement is likely to remain small. The newcomers are tiny compared with the existing EU countries and most economic integration has already taken place.
Big bang that began with a whimper
07 May 2004
E!Sharp
Like many historical events, it now seems as if the enlargement of the European Union on May 1 was always inevitable.
Arrival delayed
22 March 2004
The Parliament Magazine
The fact that the EU is not going to meet all its targets should not lead commentators to condemn the whole Lisbon programme, writes Alasdair Murray. At the Lisbon summit in the spring of 2000, EU leaders signed up to an ambitious economic reform programme that is designed to close...
Europe's defence agency cleared for take-off
12 March 2004
E!Sharp
Even though 15 EU governments collectively spend €160 billion on defence, they are struggling to remedy the problem because they spend their money very poorly. The cost of new military technologies is soaring and European defence ministries need to extract more value out of each euro they spend.
Big three join forces on defence
05 March 2004
E!Sharp
While attention focused on the collapse of the talks on a new EU constitution at last December's summit, a crucial step was taken towards creating a common defence policy, writes Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform.
Top Brussels appointment has to be right
23 February 2004
Financial Times
The European Commission, for many years the driving force of European integration, is in a sorry state. Some of the larger countries in the European Union openly flout the Commission's authority in areas such as the stability and growth pact.
From strength to strength
23 February 2004
The Parliament Magazine
Will the strong euro strangle Europe's economic recovery asks Katinka Barysch of the Centre for European Reform. Every year since 2000, economists have predicted a recovery in the eurozone. Every year, they have been disappointed. Will 2004 be any different?
Mighty Europe
05 February 2004
The Wall Street Journal
London, Paris and Berlin are working hard to put the past behind them. After a year that began with bitter rancor over Iraq and ended with the collapse of negotiations over the European constitution, the desire of pro-Europeans to face the future is understandable.
Beneath the rows and gesture politics, Europe's...
Beneath the rows and gesture politics, Europe's...
Iran between worlds
03 February 2004
Open democracy
How do Iranians see the world – its foreign policy establishment, its dissident intellectuals, and its ordinary people? Charles Grant, just returned from a week in Tehran, presents a vivid portrait of a political system under pressure.
The rest of the world has become used to viewing Iran as a stable...
The rest of the world has become used to viewing Iran as a stable...