Weekend Roundup: Is the West Abandoning Globalization?

As China establishes a new infrastructure investment bank for Asia and builds out the new Silk Road trading route westward to Turkey, the U.S. Congress is balking at trade agreements and retreating from the very global institutions that have been the pillars of the American-led order. The European project is unraveling as Greece is poised on the brink of default and an exit from the euro. No doubt President Obama's proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership needs some fixing once on the "fast-track," notably concerning the weight it gives to corporate prerogatives. But something more is going on. In Europe, too, there is mounting opposition to the proposed trans-Atlantic trade pact with the U.S., as well as the rise of anti-foreigner and anti-EU parties. Is the West abandoning globalization and the post-war integration of Europe, a mutiny against what has provided its bounty? Writing from Paris, Jacques Attali worries that the West has contracted the fatal disease of "dying civilizations" -- procrastination and indecision. Former U.S. Secretary of Labor Robert Reich explains why more Americans are turning against free trade. Political analyst Howard Fineman argues that the anti-globalization sentiment we've seen in Europe has arrived on American shores. Xenophobia has even spread to South Africa, Desmond Tutu writes. Writing from Istanbul, Kemal Dervis proposes how individuals can thrive under globalization if there is a new social contract. As Greece teeters on the edge, IMF economist Olivier Blanchard calls on both creditors and the Greek government to compromise. James Galbraith responds that Greece has already sacrificed beyond its capacity to bear, and now it is the IMF's turn. Jeffrey Sachs agrees that, at this point, Greeks are only "trying to stay alive." Writing from Athens, Nicos Devletoglou says other Europeans should stop victimizing and threatening Greeks while Alexandros Klossas looks at how Greek businesses are unable to obtain financing. We also take a look at the crisis in Greece this week from the ground up through the eyes of a taxi driver and a photo essay on graffiti in Athens. UN Food and Agricultural Organization head Jose Graziano da Silva hails Pope Francis' call to action on hunger and climate change. In our "Following Francis" series this week, Sébastien Maillard reports from Rome on the pope's widely anticipated encyclical on climate change and global poverty. Eco-Catholic Mary Colwell says the pope has brought a scientific abstraction down to earth and given it a spiritual and moral dimension. WorldPost Middle East Correspondent Sophia Jones talks to refugees at the Turkish-Syrian border about life under ISIS rule for the past year and reports on how fuel shortages in northern Syria could cause even more people to flee. Writing from Vienna, former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt hopes that a new government in Turkey, which will likely include Kurds, can help bring peace to the region. Writing from Hong Kong, where local legislators rejected Beijing's plan for election of the chief executive in 2017, George Chen asks "has the 'one country, two systems' experiment failed?" WorldPost China Correspondent Matt Sheehan provides the backstory to the Hong Kong vote and reports that Cirque de Soleil is banking on China's middle class to build its fortunes in Asia. Tom Nagorski reports from Beijing on a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who told an Asia Society delegation that China's claims to contested coral reefs in the South China Sea are "lawful, legitimate and reasonable" and that the U.S. should stop its "megaphone diplomacy." In an excerpt from his new book, "The China Model," Tsinghua University philosopher Daniel Bell asks whether China's meritocratic selection process produces more competent leaders than America. GreatFire.org's Charlie Smith says China's shutdown of Wikipedia is "the latest nail in the Internet freedom coffin and it certainly will not be the last" under President Xi Jinping. Writing from Moscow, Ivan Sukhov scores Vladimir Putin's "misguided attempt" to bolster Russia's prestige by adding 40 new intercontinental missiles. In a compelling personal tale, Luzer Twersky recounts how he defected from Hasidic Judaism and went from living on the streets to being a Hollywood actor. Imagining the future, astronomer Chris Impey believes that the effects of living in space could "create a new human species." In an investigative report in conjunction with the Mexican magazine Proceso, Anabel Hernández and Steve Fisher find a witness who casts serious doubt on the Mexican government's narrative about what happened to the 43 missing students in Guerrero and who is responsible. In this week's "Forgotten Fact," we remember how, for those 43 families, the missing Mexican students case is not closed. Fusion this week reports -- in a photo essay -- on the protests of Nicaraguan campesinos against the proposed China-financed canal in that Central American nation. Jura Margulis examines the mind mechanisms that enable a pianist to play the 30,000 notes of Rachmaninoff's Third Piano Concerto from memory. Hip-hop artist Akon explains his philanthropic project to light up Africa. In our Singularity University series, we learn how clumsy robots are still nonetheless captivating. Our photo essays this week include a look at Indonesia's Mount Sinabung volcano, abandoned Soviet space shuttles in a hangar in Kazakhstan and the "forgotten faces of modern China." WHO WE ARE EDITORS: Nathan Gardels, Senior Advisor to the Berggruen Institute on Governance and the long-time editor of NPQ and the Global Viewpoint Network of the Los Angeles Times Syndicate/Tribune Media, is the Editor-in-Chief of The WorldPost. Farah Mohamed is the Managing Editor of The WorldPost. Kathleen Miles is the Senior Editor of the WorldPost. Alex Gardels and Peter Mellgard are the Associate Editors of The WorldPost. Katie Nelson is the National Editor at the Huffington Post, overseeing The WorldPost and HuffPost's editorial coverage. Eline Gordts is HuffPost's Senior World Editor. Charlotte Alfred and Nick Robins-Early are Associate World Editors. CORRESPONDENTS: Sophia Jones in Istanbul; Matt Sheehan in Beijing. EDITORIAL BOARD: Nicolas Berggruen, Nathan Gardels, Arianna Huffington, Eric Schmidt (Google Inc.), Pierre Omidyar (First Look Media) Juan Luis Cebrian (El Pais/PRISA), Walter Isaacson (Aspen Institute/TIME-CNN), John Elkann (Corriere della Sera, La Stampa), Wadah Khanfar (Al Jazeera), Dileep Padgaonkar (Times of India) and Yoichi Funabashi (Asahi Shimbun). CONTRIBUTING EDITORS: Moises Naim (former editor of Foreign Policy), Nayan Chanda (Yale/Global; Far Eastern Economic Review) and Katherine Keating (One-On-One). Sergio Munoz Bata and Parag Khanna are Contributing Editors-At-Large. The Asia Society and its ChinaFile, edited by Orville Schell, is our primary partner on Asia coverage. Eric X. Li and the Chunqiu Institute/Fudan University in Shanghai and Guancha.cn also provide first person voices from China. We also draw on the content of China Digital Times. Seung-yoon Lee is The WorldPost link in South Korea. Jared Cohen of Google Ideas provides regular commentary from young thinkers, leaders and activists around the globe. Bruce Mau provides regular columns from MassiveChangeNetwork.com on the "whole mind" way of thinking. Patrick Soon-Shiong is Contributing Editor for Health and Medicine. ADVISORY COUNCIL: Members of the Berggruen Institute's 21st Century Council and Council for the Future of Europe serve as the Advisory Council -- as well as regular contributors -- to the site. These include, Jacques Attali, Shaukat Aziz, Gordon Brown, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Juan Luis Cebrian, Jack Dorsey, Mohamed El-Erian, Francis Fukuyama, Felipe Gonzalez, John Gray, Reid Hoffman, Fred Hu, Mo Ibrahim, Alexei Kudrin, Pascal Lamy, Kishore Mahbubani, Alain Minc, Dambisa Moyo, Laura Tyson, Elon Musk, Pierre Omidyar, Raghuram Rajan, Nouriel Roubini, Nicolas Sarkozy, Eric Schmidt, Gerhard Schroeder, Peter Schwartz, Amartya Sen, Jeff Skoll, Michael Spence, Joe Stiglitz, Larry Summers, Wu Jianmin, George Yeo, Fareed Zakaria, Ernesto Zedillo, Ahmed Zewail, and Zheng Bijian. From the Europe group, these include: Marek Belka, Tony Blair, Jacques Delors, Niall Ferguson, Anthony Giddens, Otmar Issing, Mario Monti, Robert Mundell, Peter Sutherland and Guy Verhofstadt. MISSION STATEMENT The WorldPost is a global media bridge that seeks to connect the world and connect the dots. Gathering together top editors and first person contributors from all corners of the planet, we aspire to be the one publication where the whole world meets. We not only deliver breaking news from the best sources with original reportage on the ground and user-generated content; we bring the best minds and most authoritative as well as fresh and new voices together to make sense of events from a global perspective looking around, not a national perspective looking out. -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.huffingtonpost.com

Cramer: Greek default? We're ready for it

With the situation in Greece growing more tense, CNBC's Jim Cramer said Friday the outcome may not be as bad as originally feared. "A lot of people ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.cnbc.com

Germany's Leadership Role in Advancing Economic Freedom: Opportunity for All, Favoritism for None

Co-authored by Natasha Srdoc, co-founder, Adriatic Institute for Public Policy and International Leaders Summit, Becky Norton-Dunlop, vice president of The Heritage Foundation and former director of the White House Cabinet Office during President Ronald Reagan and Dr. Stefan Gehrold, head of European Office Brussels, Konrad Adenauer Foundation Leaders at the Brussels dinner event hosted by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, December 2014 The topics of strengthening the transatlantic partnership and advancing economic freedom were brought to the forefront, when we gathered in Brussels at a dinner event of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in December 2014. At this meeting, leading politicians from Brussels as well as elected members of Germany's national parliament reviewed the trends highlighted by 'The Index of Economic Freedom' which was co-published by The Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal. The discussed analysis included both selected EU member states such as Estonia or Germany and non-EU member states such as Switzerland, Ukraine and the United States. Recognizable trends appeared when comparing Western democracies to former communist countries. On the one hand Eastern European countries generally achieved higher scores in fiscal freedom due to the implementation of low flat tax pro-growth policies. Western European countries except Italy but including Estonia, on the other hand, scored much higher in the rule of law category, which encompasses protection of property rights and freedom from corruption. Results of the Analysis The annual 'Index of Economic Freedom' report rates countries around the world by assessing ten categories of economic freedom. The Index has proven to be a useful tool for investors, the respective nations' economic reformers, policymakers, academics, journalists, teachers, scholars and voters. The authors of the 'Index of Economic Freedom' clarified that "The highest forms of economic freedom should provide an absolute right of property ownership, full freedom of movement for labor, capital and goods, and an absolute absence of coercion or constraint of economic activity beyond that which is necessary for the protection and maintenance of liberty itself." When analyzing economic freedom, the authors observe the critical relationship between individuals and the government. "In general, state action or government control that interferes with individual autonomy limits economic freedom." The 'Index of Economic Freedom' demonstrates that a higher level of economic freedom leads to higher GDP per capita, higher living standard, reduces poverty, leads to more education opportunities, better health care, improves environmental performance, and promotes effective and democratic governance. Decades of experience and research in economic development and transition economies provide a clear template of principles needed to achieve higher levels of economic growth. The 'Index of Economic Freedom' classifies these principles in four broad categories over which governments typically exercise some policy control: (a) rule of law, (b) government size, (c) regulatory efficiency and (d) open markets. These categories incorporate 10 specific components of economic freedom. Each economy rated in the 'Index of Economic Freedom' receives an overall economic freedom score based on the weighted average of 10 economic freedoms, each graded on a scale from 0 to 100, with 100 being the best. The ten economic freedoms, which are equally weighted, are: Property rights, freedom from corruption, fiscal freedom, government spending, business freedom, labor freedom, monetary freedom, trade freedom, investment freedom and financial freedom. The world's top-5 performing economies in the 2015 'Index of Economic Freedom' are: Hong Kong, Singapore, New Zealand, Australia and Switzerland. Three European countries were rated among the top ten: Switzerland (5th), Estonia (8th) and Ireland (9th). With a score of 80.5 points, Switzerland is the only European country whose economy is rated as "free". Becky Norton-Dunlop, vice president of The Heritage Foundation and former director of the White House Cabinet Office during President Ronald Reagan 2015 Index of Economic Freedom Findings for Germany The country achieved an overall score of 73.8 in the 2015 'Index of Economic Freedom', making it a "mostly free" economy. By improving its overall score by 0.4 points year-on-year, Germany moved from 8th to 7th place in Europe's region and from 18th to 16th place in the world ranking. Germany's improved scores of labor freedom (+4.8), government spending (+1.9), monetary freedom (+0.7), and trade freedom (+0.2) outweighed worsened scores of freedom from corruption (-2.1), business freedom (-1.7), and fiscal freedom (-0.4). Out of ten categories of economic freedom Germany is rated as economically "free" in five areas: property rights, business freedom, monetary freedom, trade freedom and investment freedom. Germany achieved its lowest scores in the category of government spending, which is rated as "repressed", and in labor freedom, which is rated as "mostly unfree" and is on the verge of the "repressed" category. Although rated as "moderately free", Germany's fiscal freedom places the country in the 168th place out of 178 countries ranked globally. This shows that Germany is lagging significantly behind in pursuing a pro-growth tax policy. In order to increase economic freedom for its citizens, Germany needs to reduce government spending, introduce more flexibility in the labor market, significantly lower its top marginal personal income tax rate and decrease the overall tax burden for its citizens. Germany's government budget surplus which - according to Destatis - totaled €18 billion ($20.4 billion) in 2014, provides space for Germany to reduce top corporate and personal income tax rates and thus, generate higher economic growth. As incomes rise, this would lead to nominally higher tax revenues, yet lower tax burden. Dr. Stefan Gehrold, head of European Office Brussels, Konrad Adenauer Foundation Encouraging Economic Freedom in South East Europe Since Germany is Europe's largest economy, the most significant net contributor to the EU budget, and an export-driven economy, it is in its best interest to encourage economic freedom in other EU member states as well as in those aspiring to join the European Union. This conclusion becomes even more significant as European countries with the lowest levels of economic freedom, such as Greece, received significant German taxpayer aid (€93 billion euro in guarantees). The recent member state Croatia is also heavily dependent on EU taxpayer's aid. Therefore, advancing economic freedom in candidate countries would benefit EU member state taxpayers as well as citizens of accession nations. In better understanding the corruption in the region, a study by Washington, DC-based Global Financial Integrity reveals that over $111.6 billion in illicit financial outflows via crime, corruption and tax evasion left the Balkans during 2001-2010 and was sent to financial institutions in Austria, Liechtenstein and beyond. The amount of illicit financial outflows equals in the case of Montenegro for example 138% of its GDP while the new EU member state Croatia features illicit financial outflow of 25% of its GDP. Europe's south is known for high government expenditures, opaque public finances and found "repressed" in the Index's categories of freedom from corruption and property rights. These countries can learn from Estonia's transformation led by Mart Laar and Slovakia's reforms pursued by Dzurinda's government. Estonia and Slovakia significantly increased economic freedom for their citizens. Member states with a well-functioning judiciary and administration should continue their assistance and support principled reformers in their quest to establish the rule of law. Rather than continuing to transfer taxpayer money to weak rule of law states, donor countries should help advance economic freedom across the region. Natasha Srdoc, co-founder, Adriatic Institute for Public Policy and International Leaders Summit Conclusion All 10 categories of economic freedom are within the domain of government policy. The combination of legislative framework and government policies can be pursued to increase economic freedom of each country's citizens. According to the methodology of the 'Index of Economic Freedom' a country can be categorized as completely "free", if the following conditions are fulfilled: Establish an independent judiciary and the rule of law in order to protect property rights. Shine a bright light on corrupt practices and then eliminate them. Reduce taxes. Cut government spending. Simplify the process to register, operate and close a business. Offer a labor market based on a flexible regulatory framework. Maintain price stability through low inflation and allow market pricing to prevail. Eliminate tariffs and non-tariff barriers. Enable domestic and foreign actors to invest in all sectors without barriers. Enable greater competition of the financial sector and encourage capital market development by minimizing governmental interferences. One of the most important prerequisites for achieving higher level of each of the ten economic freedoms is the rule of law. The law has to apply in the same way to all citizens at all times. No individual, no organization and no company should be favored. Furthermore, corruption has to be punished. The Index illustrates that it is essential to create opportunities for all and favoritism for none. If one succeeds in increasing economic freedom, it will also alleviate significant brain drain. Therefore, advancing economic freedom is a worthy goal for political leaders. -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.huffingtonpost.com

Weekend Roundup: Is the West Abandoning Globalization?

As China establishes a new infrastructure investment bank for Asia and builds out the new Silk Road trading route westward to Turkey, the U.S. Congress is balking at trade agreements and retreating from the very global institutions that have been the pillars of the American-led order. The European project is unraveling as Greece is poised on the brink of default and an exit from the euro. No doubt President Obama's proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership needs some fixing once on the "fast-track," notably concerning the weight it gives to corporate prerogatives. But something more is going on. In Europe, too, there is mounting opposition to the proposed trans-Atlantic trade pact with the U.S., as well as the rise of anti-foreigner and anti-EU parties. Is the West abandoning globalization and the post-war integration of Europe, a mutiny against what has provided its bounty? Writing from Paris, Jacques Attali worries that the West has contracted the fatal disease of "dying civilizations" -- procrastination and indecision. Former U.S. Secretary of Labor Robert Reich explains why more Americans are turning against free trade. Political analyst Howard Fineman argues that the anti-globalization sentiment we've seen in Europe has arrived on American shores. Xenophobia has even spread to South Africa, Desmond Tutu writes. Writing from Istanbul, Kemal Dervis proposes how individuals can thrive under globalization if there is a new social contract. As Greece teeters on the edge, IMF economist Olivier Blanchard calls on both creditors and the Greek government to compromise. James Galbraith responds that Greece has already sacrificed beyond its capacity to bear, and now it is the IMF's turn. Jeffrey Sachs agrees that, at this point, Greeks are only "trying to stay alive." Writing from Athens, Nicos Devletoglou says other Europeans should stop victimizing and threatening Greeks while Alexandros Klossas looks at how Greek businesses are unable to obtain financing. We also take a look at the crisis in Greece this week from the ground up through the eyes of a taxi driver and a photo essay on graffiti in Athens. UN Food and Agricultural Organization head Jose Graziano da Silva hails Pope Francis' call to action on hunger and climate change. In our "Following Francis" series this week, Sébastien Maillard reports from Rome on the pope's widely anticipated encyclical on climate change and global poverty. Eco-Catholic Mary Colwell says the pope has brought a scientific abstraction down to earth and given it a spiritual and moral dimension. WorldPost Middle East Correspondent Sophia Jones talks to refugees at the Turkish-Syrian border about life under ISIS rule for the past year and reports on how fuel shortages in northern Syria could cause even more people to flee. Writing from Vienna, former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt hopes that a new government in Turkey, which will likely include Kurds, can help bring peace to the region. Writing from Hong Kong, where local legislators rejected Beijing's plan for election of the chief executive in 2017, George Chen asks "has the 'one country, two systems' experiment failed?" WorldPost China Correspondent Matt Sheehan provides the backstory to the Hong Kong vote and reports that Cirque de Soleil is banking on China's middle class to build its fortunes in Asia. Tom Nagorski reports from Beijing on a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who told an Asia Society delegation that China's claims to contested coral reefs in the South China Sea are "lawful, legitimate and reasonable" and that the U.S. should stop its "megaphone diplomacy." In an excerpt from his new book, "The China Model," Tsinghua University philosopher Daniel Bell asks whether China's meritocratic selection process produces more competent leaders than America. GreatFire.org's Charlie Smith says China's shutdown of Wikipedia is "the latest nail in the Internet freedom coffin and it certainly will not be the last" under President Xi Jinping. Writing from Moscow, Ivan Sukhov scores Vladimir Putin's "misguided attempt" to bolster Russia's prestige by adding 40 new intercontinental missiles. In a compelling personal tale, Luzer Twersky recounts how he defected from Hasidic Judaism and went from living on the streets to being a Hollywood actor. Imagining the future, astronomer Chris Impey believes that the effects of living in space could "create a new human species." In an investigative report in conjunction with the Mexican magazine Proceso, Anabel Hernández and Steve Fisher find a witness who casts serious doubt on the Mexican government's narrative about what happened to the 43 missing students in Guerrero and who is responsible. In this week's "Forgotten Fact," we remember how, for those 43 families, the missing Mexican students case is not closed. Fusion this week reports -- in a photo essay -- on the protests of Nicaraguan campesinos against the proposed China-financed canal in that Central American nation. Jura Margulis examines the mind mechanisms that enable a pianist to play the 30,000 notes of Rachmaninoff's Third Piano Concerto from memory. Hip-hop artist Akon explains his philanthropic project to light up Africa. In our Singularity University series, we learn how clumsy robots are still nonetheless captivating. Our photo essays this week include a look at Indonesia's Mount Sinabung volcano, abandoned Soviet space shuttles in a hangar in Kazakhstan and the "forgotten faces of modern China." WHO WE ARE EDITORS: Nathan Gardels, Senior Advisor to the Berggruen Institute on Governance and the long-time editor of NPQ and the Global Viewpoint Network of the Los Angeles Times Syndicate/Tribune Media, is the Editor-in-Chief of The WorldPost. Farah Mohamed is the Managing Editor of The WorldPost. Kathleen Miles is the Senior Editor of the WorldPost. Alex Gardels and Peter Mellgard are the Associate Editors of The WorldPost. Katie Nelson is the National Editor at the Huffington Post, overseeing The WorldPost and HuffPost's editorial coverage. Eline Gordts is HuffPost's Senior World Editor. Charlotte Alfred and Nick Robins-Early are Associate World Editors. CORRESPONDENTS: Sophia Jones in Istanbul; Matt Sheehan in Beijing. EDITORIAL BOARD: Nicolas Berggruen, Nathan Gardels, Arianna Huffington, Eric Schmidt (Google Inc.), Pierre Omidyar (First Look Media) Juan Luis Cebrian (El Pais/PRISA), Walter Isaacson (Aspen Institute/TIME-CNN), John Elkann (Corriere della Sera, La Stampa), Wadah Khanfar (Al Jazeera), Dileep Padgaonkar (Times of India) and Yoichi Funabashi (Asahi Shimbun). CONTRIBUTING EDITORS: Moises Naim (former editor of Foreign Policy), Nayan Chanda (Yale/Global; Far Eastern Economic Review) and Katherine Keating (One-On-One). Sergio Munoz Bata and Parag Khanna are Contributing Editors-At-Large. The Asia Society and its ChinaFile, edited by Orville Schell, is our primary partner on Asia coverage. Eric X. Li and the Chunqiu Institute/Fudan University in Shanghai and Guancha.cn also provide first person voices from China. We also draw on the content of China Digital Times. Seung-yoon Lee is The WorldPost link in South Korea. Jared Cohen of Google Ideas provides regular commentary from young thinkers, leaders and activists around the globe. Bruce Mau provides regular columns from MassiveChangeNetwork.com on the "whole mind" way of thinking. Patrick Soon-Shiong is Contributing Editor for Health and Medicine. ADVISORY COUNCIL: Members of the Berggruen Institute's 21st Century Council and Council for the Future of Europe serve as the Advisory Council -- as well as regular contributors -- to the site. These include, Jacques Attali, Shaukat Aziz, Gordon Brown, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Juan Luis Cebrian, Jack Dorsey, Mohamed El-Erian, Francis Fukuyama, Felipe Gonzalez, John Gray, Reid Hoffman, Fred Hu, Mo Ibrahim, Alexei Kudrin, Pascal Lamy, Kishore Mahbubani, Alain Minc, Dambisa Moyo, Laura Tyson, Elon Musk, Pierre Omidyar, Raghuram Rajan, Nouriel Roubini, Nicolas Sarkozy, Eric Schmidt, Gerhard Schroeder, Peter Schwartz, Amartya Sen, Jeff Skoll, Michael Spence, Joe Stiglitz, Larry Summers, Wu Jianmin, George Yeo, Fareed Zakaria, Ernesto Zedillo, Ahmed Zewail, and Zheng Bijian. From the Europe group, these include: Marek Belka, Tony Blair, Jacques Delors, Niall Ferguson, Anthony Giddens, Otmar Issing, Mario Monti, Robert Mundell, Peter Sutherland and Guy Verhofstadt. MISSION STATEMENT The WorldPost is a global media bridge that seeks to connect the world and connect the dots. Gathering together top editors and first person contributors from all corners of the planet, we aspire to be the one publication where the whole world meets. We not only deliver breaking news from the best sources with original reportage on the ground and user-generated content; we bring the best minds and most authoritative as well as fresh and new voices together to make sense of events from a global perspective looking around, not a national perspective looking out. -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.huffingtonpost.com

Germany's Leadership Role in Advancing Economic Freedom: Opportunity for All, Favoritism for None

Co-authored by Natasha Srdoc, co-founder, Adriatic Institute for Public Policy and International Leaders Summit, Becky Norton-Dunlop, vice president of The Heritage Foundation and former director of the White House Cabinet Office during President Ronald Reagan and Dr. Stefan Gehrold, head of European Office Brussels, Konrad Adenauer Foundation Leaders at the Brussels dinner event hosted by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, December 2014 The topics of strengthening the transatlantic partnership and advancing economic freedom were brought to the forefront, when we gathered in Brussels at a dinner event of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in December 2014. At this meeting, leading politicians from Brussels as well as elected members of Germany's national parliament reviewed the trends highlighted by 'The Index of Economic Freedom' which was co-published by The Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal. The discussed analysis included both selected EU member states such as Estonia or Germany and non-EU member states such as Switzerland, Ukraine and the United States. Recognizable trends appeared when comparing Western democracies to former communist countries. On the one hand Eastern European countries generally achieved higher scores in fiscal freedom due to the implementation of low flat tax pro-growth policies. Western European countries except Italy but including Estonia, on the other hand, scored much higher in the rule of law category, which encompasses protection of property rights and freedom from corruption. Results of the Analysis The annual 'Index of Economic Freedom' report rates countries around the world by assessing ten categories of economic freedom. The Index has proven to be a useful tool for investors, the respective nations' economic reformers, policymakers, academics, journalists, teachers, scholars and voters. The authors of the 'Index of Economic Freedom' clarified that "The highest forms of economic freedom should provide an absolute right of property ownership, full freedom of movement for labor, capital and goods, and an absolute absence of coercion or constraint of economic activity beyond that which is necessary for the protection and maintenance of liberty itself." When analyzing economic freedom, the authors observe the critical relationship between individuals and the government. "In general, state action or government control that interferes with individual autonomy limits economic freedom." The 'Index of Economic Freedom' demonstrates that a higher level of economic freedom leads to higher GDP per capita, higher living standard, reduces poverty, leads to more education opportunities, better health care, improves environmental performance, and promotes effective and democratic governance. Decades of experience and research in economic development and transition economies provide a clear template of principles needed to achieve higher levels of economic growth. The 'Index of Economic Freedom' classifies these principles in four broad categories over which governments typically exercise some policy control: (a) rule of law, (b) government size, (c) regulatory efficiency and (d) open markets. These categories incorporate 10 specific components of economic freedom. Each economy rated in the 'Index of Economic Freedom' receives an overall economic freedom score based on the weighted average of 10 economic freedoms, each graded on a scale from 0 to 100, with 100 being the best. The ten economic freedoms, which are equally weighted, are: Property rights, freedom from corruption, fiscal freedom, government spending, business freedom, labor freedom, monetary freedom, trade freedom, investment freedom and financial freedom. The world's top-5 performing economies in the 2015 'Index of Economic Freedom' are: Hong Kong, Singapore, New Zealand, Australia and Switzerland. Three European countries were rated among the top ten: Switzerland (5th), Estonia (8th) and Ireland (9th). With a score of 80.5 points, Switzerland is the only European country whose economy is rated as "free". Becky Norton-Dunlop, vice president of The Heritage Foundation and former director of the White House Cabinet Office during President Ronald Reagan 2015 Index of Economic Freedom Findings for Germany The country achieved an overall score of 73.8 in the 2015 'Index of Economic Freedom', making it a "mostly free" economy. By improving its overall score by 0.4 points year-on-year, Germany moved from 8th to 7th place in Europe's region and from 18th to 16th place in the world ranking. Germany's improved scores of labor freedom (+4.8), government spending (+1.9), monetary freedom (+0.7), and trade freedom (+0.2) outweighed worsened scores of freedom from corruption (-2.1), business freedom (-1.7), and fiscal freedom (-0.4). Out of ten categories of economic freedom Germany is rated as economically "free" in five areas: property rights, business freedom, monetary freedom, trade freedom and investment freedom. Germany achieved its lowest scores in the category of government spending, which is rated as "repressed", and in labor freedom, which is rated as "mostly unfree" and is on the verge of the "repressed" category. Although rated as "moderately free", Germany's fiscal freedom places the country in the 168th place out of 178 countries ranked globally. This shows that Germany is lagging significantly behind in pursuing a pro-growth tax policy. In order to increase economic freedom for its citizens, Germany needs to reduce government spending, introduce more flexibility in the labor market, significantly lower its top marginal personal income tax rate and decrease the overall tax burden for its citizens. Germany's government budget surplus which - according to Destatis - totaled €18 billion ($20.4 billion) in 2014, provides space for Germany to reduce top corporate and personal income tax rates and thus, generate higher economic growth. As incomes rise, this would lead to nominally higher tax revenues, yet lower tax burden. Dr. Stefan Gehrold, head of European Office Brussels, Konrad Adenauer Foundation Encouraging Economic Freedom in South East Europe Since Germany is Europe's largest economy, the most significant net contributor to the EU budget, and an export-driven economy, it is in its best interest to encourage economic freedom in other EU member states as well as in those aspiring to join the European Union. This conclusion becomes even more significant as European countries with the lowest levels of economic freedom, such as Greece, received significant German taxpayer aid (€93 billion euro in guarantees). The recent member state Croatia is also heavily dependent on EU taxpayer's aid. Therefore, advancing economic freedom in candidate countries would benefit EU member state taxpayers as well as citizens of accession nations. In better understanding the corruption in the region, a study by Washington, DC-based Global Financial Integrity reveals that over $111.6 billion in illicit financial outflows via crime, corruption and tax evasion left the Balkans during 2001-2010 and was sent to financial institutions in Austria, Liechtenstein and beyond. The amount of illicit financial outflows equals in the case of Montenegro for example 138% of its GDP while the new EU member state Croatia features illicit financial outflow of 25% of its GDP. Europe's south is known for high government expenditures, opaque public finances and found "repressed" in the Index's categories of freedom from corruption and property rights. These countries can learn from Estonia's transformation led by Mart Laar and Slovakia's reforms pursued by Dzurinda's government. Estonia and Slovakia significantly increased economic freedom for their citizens. Member states with a well-functioning judiciary and administration should continue their assistance and support principled reformers in their quest to establish the rule of law. Rather than continuing to transfer taxpayer money to weak rule of law states, donor countries should help advance economic freedom across the region. Natasha Srdoc, co-founder, Adriatic Institute for Public Policy and International Leaders Summit Conclusion All 10 categories of economic freedom are within the domain of government policy. The combination of legislative framework and government policies can be pursued to increase economic freedom of each country's citizens. According to the methodology of the 'Index of Economic Freedom' a country can be categorized as completely "free", if the following conditions are fulfilled: Establish an independent judiciary and the rule of law in order to protect property rights. Shine a bright light on corrupt practices and then eliminate them. Reduce taxes. Cut government spending. Simplify the process to register, operate and close a business. Offer a labor market based on a flexible regulatory framework. Maintain price stability through low inflation and allow market pricing to prevail. Eliminate tariffs and non-tariff barriers. Enable domestic and foreign actors to invest in all sectors without barriers. Enable greater competition of the financial sector and encourage capital market development by minimizing governmental interferences. One of the most important prerequisites for achieving higher level of each of the ten economic freedoms is the rule of law. The law has to apply in the same way to all citizens at all times. No individual, no organization and no company should be favored. Furthermore, corruption has to be punished. The Index illustrates that it is essential to create opportunities for all and favoritism for none. If one succeeds in increasing economic freedom, it will also alleviate significant brain drain. Therefore, advancing economic freedom is a worthy goal for political leaders. -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

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Watch Out For A Greek Debt Default

Greece is in a serious debt crisis. Will it be able to escape? Will those holding Greek debt receive their principal payments? Learn more in this article.

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This Young Woman's Story Could Change Your View Of Greece

Today is my fourth day in Greece. Since I came here last Saturday, I have heard a lot about the dramatic situation young Greeks find themselves in. On Monday, a professor from Thessaloniki explained to me that educated young people flock to other countries, such as Germany. They don’t see a future in their own country anymore. Researchers call the mass migration of talent from a country “brain drain.“ And rightly so: Greece has lost some of its best brains in the last few years. Between 2009 and 2014 alone, 20,000 well-educated specialists left the country. Before the crisis, between 2000 and 2006, only 2500 left. There is another side to the story, but it remains untold: stories of young Greeks who deliberately oppose this trend and don’t leave Greece, stories of young people who claim: We are staying -- now more than ever. One example of this counter-trend is Eirini Fanarioti. Now 30 years old, she came to Athens 11 years ago. Her family comes from a village about three hours north of Athens. Her father grows organic oranges, and a majority of the harvest ends up in German supermarkets. Eirini always knew that she wanted to work at the theater. Maybe as an actress or a director. When she entered law school in Athens, she quickly realized that she preferred reading stage concepts to reading criminal codes. Eirini applied to the Drama School of the Athens Conservatory and was accepted. Suddenly her dream of a career on stage was within reach. But after her education, she experienced the same as hundreds of thousands of other young Greeks: She couldn’t find stable employment, and had to get by with odd jobs. She worked on a couple of productions, but was never really happy with that. “Truth be told, I didn’t feel comfortable with my own life anymore,” Eirini told me, when we meet in a Falafel shop in Athens’ Pangrati district. “During job interviews, they always told me that there was no money for costumes or professional actors and that they couldn’t pay me a fee. I’d had enough of that,” she recalled. In her late twenties, Eirini found herself without prospects. Without money. She shared the fate of many others in her generation: young, in the wrong place at the wrong time. She decided to finally live her dream. Together with two friends, she founded her own stage company called “Terre de Semis“ (“Soil for Seeds”). She wrote her own play, “Megaloi Dromoi.” “None of us had money. I was able to borrow some from my father to pay for costumes and set décor. But that was it. Nevertheless, we all worked very hard on the project. For two and a half months, we were practicing every day for five hours,” Eirini said. “We have been performing for two months now and we’ve made the money that we invested in the project back a long time ago,” Eirini told me proudly. The money the project earned is actually even enough for new performances in Thessaloniki, Patras and Lefkada. And next year, Eirini wants to produce a new play. “Today, I am so much stronger than before,” the young artist said. “Now I know that I can do anything. I also know that I can lose everything again, but at least I am feeling happy and fulfilled.” This story was originally published on HuffPost Germany and translated from German to English. More on the Greek debt talks: - The Economic Crisis In Greece –- As Told By An Athens Taxi Driver - Here's What Happens If Greece Defaults On Its Debts - 19 Pieces Of Athens Graffiti That Perfectly Sum Up The Attitude Of Young Greeks - How The Financial Crisis Is Choking Greek Businesses - Why Greece Is Not Leaving The Eurozone - On The Blog: Greeks Are Just Trying To Stay Alive -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

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Greece: What tourists need to know

What you need to know if you're going on holiday to Greece

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Tusk tells Greece it is heading for default if it does not reach deal on Monday

Greece was told on Friday that if it does not agree a deal with lenders on Monday it will face default and a potential exit from the eurozone.

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Every month brings 1 bln of new tax debts

It appears that an increasing number of people and businesses are not paying their taxes in Greece, as expired debts to the tax authorities created this year reached

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Greece is now officially a part of Russia big new gas plan

Russia signed a preliminary $2.27 billion (2 billion euro) agreement on building a natural-gas pipeline through Greece, according to Bloomberg. The section of the Turkish Stream in Greece will have annual capacity of 47 billion cubic meters. Construction will start in 2016 and is expected to be completed set for 2019, according to Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak. Russia's development bank will own 50% of the link and will do all of the financing, and Greece will own the rest. Russia's Gazprom will not hold a stake in the section crossing Greece, according to Novak. “The pipeline is not against anyone in Europe or the world,” Greek Energy Minister Panagiotis Lafazanis in St. Petersburg. “It is here to serve people, peace and stability. Energy can bring people together and not feed Cold War situations.” The Turkish Steam, a Gazprom project, was announced in January after the company abandoned the $45 billion South Stream project in December. The project is expected to begin somewhere between June-July 2015. The key geopolitical takeaway regarding both projects is that they’re supposed to bypass crumbling Ukraine — which would allow Russia to both maintain its gas leverage over the EU and hurt Kiev. “To help Gazprom reach Central European markets, Russia has advocated the construction of a pipeline that would run from Greece to Macedonia, Serbia and Hungary,” analysts from Texas-based consulting firm Stratfor wrote in a report, according to Bloomberg. “These four countries are at the center of a Russian diplomatic offensive." Although some analysts have expressed doubts over the projects, "the Russians seem determined to let their transit contract with Ukraine expire by 2019 in favor of the alternative route under the Black Sea. Gazprom has already laid 472 kilometers (293 miles) of the so-called Southern Corridor, the onshore part of the pipeline in Russia, in anticipation of the deal," according to Bloomberg. Greece has been cozying up to Russia the last few months. Some analysts noted that a potential gas deal was a major factor behind the schmoozing. "[A] new long-term gas deal to provide energy security for the fragile Greek economy and give the left-wing Syriza party an early win (at least in the eyes of the Greek electorate," Business Insider's Tomas Hirst wrote back in January after Greece took a stance against sanctions on Russia.Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: This is the Excel trick that will change everything about how you work with data

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STOCKS FALL: Here's what you need to know (SPY, DJI, IXIC, USO, WTI, OIL, VDE, FOGO, FIT, TLT, RHT)

Stocks lost ground through the trading day after a record-setting session for the Nasdaq on Thursday, but managed to close in positive territory for the week. First, the scoreboard: Dow: 18,022.62, -93.22, (-0.51%) S&P 500: 2,111.44, -9.80, (-0.46%) Nasdaq: 5,118.42, -14.53, (-0.28%) And now, the top stories on Friday: The US oil rig count fell for a 28th straight week. The latest data from driller Baker Hughes showed that the number of oil rigs in operation fell by four to 631, the lowest level since August 6, 2010. The combined count of oil and gas rigs fell by two to 857, the lowest since January 17, 2003. US oil supply is still robust, although the Energy Information Administration forecasts that production will fall from this month through early 2016. Crude oil prices had slumped ahead of the rig count data and remained weak through the trading day. West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell more than 2% to as low as $59.25 per barrel. Brent crude slumped to as low as $62.35, roughly one year since the international benchmark topped near $107 per barrel.  Shares of Brazilian steakhouse chain Fogo de Chão surged 30% on the first day of trading. The company had priced its IPO at $20, and shares climbed as high as $26.55. That price values the company at about $719 million. The restaurant features an all-you-can-eat selection of slow-cooked meats. It earned $262 million in revenues last year, according to a regulatory filing. Fitbit shares rallied as much as 14% one day after a stellar IPO. On Thursday, the stock opened 52% higher than the IPO price of $20 a share. It climbed to as high as $33.95 today, and is now up about  60% from the IPO price. Shale oil drillers are spending a record amount of their revenues on bond interest payments, according to Bloomberg. The US shale boom was funded mostly with debt, not cash or equity. As interest payments to creditors loom and revenues shrink, a growing number of companies face the possibility of defaults, or even bankruptcy.  This week saw the most outflows on record from government bonds, according to Bank of America Merril Lynch. In a note Friday, strategists wrote that $2.7 billion was pulled out from the securities. They noted that concerns about Greece, higher interest rates, and the spike in German bund yields, have driven the flight from fixed income. Meanwhile, $1.8 billion flowed into European equities – the most in four weeks.  Red Hat surged to a 15-year high. The open-source software provider reported first-quarter earnings after the close on Thursday, beating on the top and bottom lines. It posted earnings per share of $0.44 (versus $0.41 expected) and sales of $481 million (versus $473 million expected.) The stock rallied to as high as $81.49; it hasn't traded near $80 since the peak of the internet bubble in 2000. DON'T MISS: 'Capital controls imminent' as money floods out of Greece's banks and default looms »Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Two models in Russia just posed with a 1,400-pound bear

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Melbourne man lives Greece’s debacle

A FORMER Melbourne chef who six years ago opened a cafe across the road from Greece’s Parliament says he survives due to his Australian attitude.

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Russia Says No Loan Offered in Putin-Tsipras Talks, Pipeline Deal Inked

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg the night of June 19 but the question of Russian financial aid for Greece was not discussed, Putin's spokesman said. The post Russia Says No Loan Offered in Putin-Tsipras Talks, Pipeline Deal Inked appeared first on The National Herald.

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EU Says Greece “Critical” Now

The EU President says Greece is "getting critical" as a June 30 approaches for a debt repayment the government said it can't afford. The post EU Says Greece “Critical” Now appeared first on The National Herald.

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Greek debt crisis is the Iraq War of finance

In a sense, the Greek crisis is the financial equivalent of the Iraq War, totemic for the Left, and for Souverainistes on the Right, and replete with its own ...

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Russian President Putin: ‘The Problem of the Crisis Is not Greek, it Is European’

As Greece is struggling to reach an agreement with creditors in order to secure financial aid and avoid defaulting on its debt at the end of June, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras travelled to St. Petersburg, Russia, to attend the International Economic Forum and meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday evening. After attending Tsipras’ impassioned speech against austerity, the Russian President, responding to a question about the current financial crisis that tantalizes Greece and may even lead it out of the Eurozone, said: “As rightly Mr. Tsipras says, the problem of the crisis is not Greek, it is European,” adding that “it is not a Greek problem, but a creditors’ problem.” Tsipras referred to the importance of building ties between Greece and Russia. “One of the steps we should take is to work hard from now until November to draw up a memorandum of cooperation,’ he stated. “We live in challenging times… I think that the cooperation between the two countries can help to effectively confront these challenges, serve the common goal of prosperity and economic development, as well as secure a stable and attractive environment in our region,” he added. Putin reassured that Greece is an important partner of Russia in Europe. “We adopted a common action program in April and it is important to apply it in practice,” he noted, welcoming at the same time the Greek side’s initiative to prepare a joint document on strengthening economic cooperation between the two countries. Meanwhile, Kremlin press spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied that Putin and Tsipras discussed financial aid for Athens during their meeting on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

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Here's what would probably happen if Greece defaults on the IMF

Greece has said it will default on a 1.6 billion euro debt repayment to the International Monetary Fund on June 30 unless it receives new funds from its ...

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Martin Rowson on the Greek debt crisis – cartoon

Continue reading...

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Greek woes pose worrisome 'tail risk' to US, Fed's Williams says

The possibility that Greece's mounting debt woes could disrupt world financial markets and impact the U.S. economy has been a big topic of discussion at the Federal Reserve, a top Fed official said on Friday. Though the baseline forecast is ...

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Greece crisis: Alexis Tsipras woos Vladimir Putin as Greeks rush for their savings

Greece’s Prime Minister has attacked the “delusions” of Europe and hinted his country could find a “safe port” in Russia if it crashes out of the eurozone at the end of the month.

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Deposits are safe, Greek minister says

The European Central Bank (ECB) pumped more emergency cash into Greek banks on Friday, keeping them afloat while politicians try one last time to keep the country solvent. "The ECB has responded to the country's needs. The deposits are safe. This ...

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ECB supports Greek banks after €1.2bn in deposits withdrawn

The European Central Bank has sanctioned further support for the Greek banking system amid fears for its stability, Ahead of Monday’s crucial EU leaders’ summit The ECB agreed at an emergency meeting on Friday to raise the cap on funding for the Greek ...

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Greece: Dispatches from the brink

Pensioners, nurses, activists and entrepreneurs offer an insight into the national mood

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Greek leader tells Russia he seeks 'new harbors' from European storm

With his Balkan nation on the brink of economic collapse, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras told a Russian economic forum on Friday that he was in search of "new harbors" from the storm of criticism and crippling austerity measures imposed on Greece by its creditors.

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ECB staves off collapse of Greek banking system with emergency funding

Greece and its creditors remain in defiant mood as central bank provides €1.8bn to keep banks operating over weekend before Monday’s crunch meetingsThe European Central Bank provided just enough support on Friday to stave off the collapse of the Greek banking system as political and financial pressure was piled on Athens before a crisis summit of eurozone leaders on Monday.With more than €1bn (£715m) leaving Greek banks on Friday alone, the ECB provided €1.8bn in emergency funding to keep the system operating over the weekend and said it would meet again on Monday to decide whether to provide further help. Continue reading...

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Greece seals Russia pipeline plan as Putin pledges to work with West

Saint Petersburg (AFP) - Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who is locked in bitter bailout negotiations with the EU and IMF, sealed an agreement to build a pipeline with sanctions-hit Russia Friday in a deal likely to irritate European leaders.The deal was done on the sidelines of an economic forum in St Petersburg, attended by the embattled Greek premier but shunned by many other Western leaders due to the standoff with Russia over its role in the conflict in Ukraine.Russian President Vladimir Putin, who met with Tsipras for over 90 minutes, insisted at the forum that his country was open for business with the West despite the Ukraine crisis."Our active cooperation with new centres of global growth in no case means that we intend to pay less attention to our dialogue with our traditional Western partners," Putin told the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum. He touted his government's successes, saying a deep crisis due to Western sanctions over Ukraine and lower oil prices which many had predicted "had not happened.""We have stabilised the situation," he said, appearing in a genial mood.Tsipras -- who has blasted sanctions against Russia -- said the crisis in Ukraine "opened a new wound of destabilization in the heart of Europe and from that sense it is a bad omen for international developments."- Greek pipeline deal -The Greek premier's visit to Moscow is likely to irritate Brussels, with which Athens is battling to secure a deal in order to unlock 7.2 billion euros ($8.3 billion) in aid funds and stave off default.Tsipras also used the Russia forum to launch an attack on the EU."The so-called Greek problem is not a Greek problem, it's a European problem. The problem is not called Greece, the problem is called eurozone and it concerns its structure," the Greek leader said in a keynote speech at the forum.A Kremlin spokesman said Tsipras and Putin did not discuss potential Russian financial aid to cash-strapped Greece.The two countries did however ink a preliminary plan for a new gas pipeline through Greece.Russian energy minister Alexander Novak estimated the cost of building the Greek link at around two billion euros, adding the annual capacity that could be pumped through the pipeline would be 47 billion cubic metres.The two countries will jointly own the venture, and Russia is expected to foot the bill."This is the start of a large investment project in Greece that is beneficial to the country's economy," said Novak.Last year Moscow announced the creation of the Turkish Stream project, to supply Russian gas to Turkey, after it cancelled its South Stream gas pipeline to southeastern Europe -- which was already under construction -- as relations with the EU reached a nadir over Ukraine.- 'Gap between plans and deeds' -While Putin played down Russia's current economic woes, liberal allies, including chief executive of Russia's biggest lender Sberbank German Gref, slammed the government's handling of the crisis."We have a gap between our plans and their implementation," he said in televised remarks, adding that Putin was interested in conducting reforms but "is afraid of making mistakes."Putin's veteran ally and former finance minister Alexei Kudrin on Thursday even proposed bringing forward 2018 presidential polls to help the president conduct sweeping reforms to pull Russia out of the crisis."Why do we not bring forward presidential elections and announce a new programme of reforms?" said the widely-respected economist, who is believed to still wield influence behind the scenes.Kudrin's proposal unleashed debate, with some seeing it as an attempt to test public opinion and push Putin to conduct radical reforms.The annual economic forum got off to a rocky start Thursday amid a new spike in tensions with Brussels, with Russia seeing its state assets in France and Belgium frozen in a row over compensation for shareholders of defunct oil giant Yukos.Russian officials reacted by saying Moscow was preparing a "judicial response" to the measure, with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov suggesting the freeze was timed to coincide with the forum."I am not a fan of conspiracy theories but even if it is a coincidence, of course this works against those who want to work in Russia in a normal way, without some sort of artificial barriers," Russia's top diplomat said.EU member states also agreed this week to extend sanctions against Russia over Ukraine by another six months to the end of January 2016. Moscow threatened to similarly prolong its boycott of certain Western products. Join the conversation about this story »

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Impact from crisis on Greek tourism remains low so far

An escalating debt crisis that may force Greece’s banks to shut next week has only slightly dented tourists’ appetite for island holidays in the country, with advance demand for package tours still robust, travel operators said this week.

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Church to fight gay couple rights

The Holy Synod of the Church of Greece decided Friday to launch a campaign against the extension to same-sex couples of a so-called cohabitation

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Bank of Greece governor due to face MPs on Monday

Bank of Greece Governor Yannis Stournaras is to appear before Parliament’s institutions committee on Monday following the panel’s decision to summon

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Greek banks steer spooked clients to put cash in funds

By Simon Jessop and George Georgiopoulos LONDON/ATHENS (Reuters) - As Greeks, fearful their country is heading for a default, withdraw billions of euros from banks, those lenders are fighting to limit the fallout by steering clients towards investment funds. On Friday, 1.2 billion euros (£0.86 billion) was withdrawn from the banking system, sources said, to take this week's outflows to around 4.2 billion euros. While the head of the Greek central bank has said the system is stable, the European Central Bank said it did not know if Greek banks would be able to open on Monday.

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Athens journalists’ association to launch ‘seminar’ probe

The Athens journalists’ association ESIEA said on Friday that it planned to meticulously investigate claims by Greece’s former representative at

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Former Greek minister under scrutiny for wasted subsidies

The Supreme Court has forwarded to Parliament a case file concerning the possible criminal liability of former Deputy Development Minister Athanasios Skordas in state subsidies given to a recycling company.

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Anti-austerity and pro-euro rallies in Athens on Sunday, Monday

Another anti-austerity protest and a demonstration in support of Greece remaining in the euro are due to take place on Sunday and Monday respectively.

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The Greek Negotiations: Many Angry Words And No Way Forward

The European “war of words” has become very ugly in the last week. In a fiery speech to the Greek parliament, Greece’s prime minister, Alexis Tsipras, said that the IMF bore “criminal responsibility” for the Greek situation. Shortly afterwards, a clearly disgruntled Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European Commission, [...]

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Holidaymakers in Greece seek hotel safes to stash cash

Greek resort manager Costas Dimitrokallis’s customers have started asking in recent weeks about an amenity often ignored in an age of online and credit card payments: reliable hotel safes to stash their money.

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Tusk warns Greece “accept offer or head towards default”, Merkel oracles “Que Sera, Sera”

Nobody could expect anything else except the creditors’ warnings to reach their peak. A Eurozone Leaders Summit is scheduled for 7 pm upcoming Monday, four hours earlier the eurozone finance ministers will convene to take some decision on Greece. The debt-ridden country is supposed to submit another reforms proposal that […]

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Greek crisis: crunch time

We're at a critical point in the Greek crisis, which is really the 2010-11 Euro ... political and organised on Facebook – outside the Greek parliament.

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Greeks Despair as $1B Withdrawn From Banks in Day

Desperate Greeks expressed fears for their future Friday as more than $1.1 billion was withdrawn from banks in a single day.

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Should holidaymakers worry about the Greece crisis?

Q. My wife and I are travelling to Zante on 30 June, Greece's euro deadline day. What is the worst that could happen while we are there regarding the ...

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EU Commission President Juncker: 'I Don't Understand Tsipras'

EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker remains committed to preventing a Grexit. But he tells SPIEGEL that his patience is wearing thin: "I don't believe the Greek government's response has been sufficient."

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Greek crisis standoff: five possible outcomes

It’s close to crunch time for Greece and its creditors. At issue is how to close €2bn gap in government budget after Athens refused to make further spending cutsThe standoff between the EU commission and Greece must be resolved by the end of the month. Either Brussels releases the last €7.2bn (£5.14bn) of bailout cash due to Athens under its existing rescue deal or Greece goes bust. Here are the possible scenarios to how this may play out: Continue reading...

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Greece would still get bailout funds with 'Grexit', Gabriel says

Funds from Greece's bailout programme would continue to flow to Athens even in the event of the country leaving the eurozone, German Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel told WirtschaftsWoche magazine in an interview published on Thursday. "Many people say: Better an ...

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Foreign Media Reports on Eurogroup ‘Shipwreck’

“It is never pleasant to watch a relationship founder. Greece’s Prime Minister, Alexis Tsipras, has charged its creditors with trying to humiliate the country; he has accused the IMF of ‘criminal responsibility’ for Greece’s suffering. Prominent euro-zone politicians are saying openly that, without a deal to release rescue funds in the next few days, default and ‘Grexit’ loom,” noted The Economist in its recent article “My Big Fat Greek Divorce,” a title inspired by Nia Vardalos’ movie about Greeks abroad. In a short paragraph, the newspaper managed to fully describe the poisonous relationship that has developed between the Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and the country’s creditors. The Economist noted that at the end of Thursday’s Eurogroup (June 18), the only thing left is a face-to-face meeting between Tsipras and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. “A deal is still possible, but the sides have come to loathe each other.” Meanwhile, for the second day in a row, the Financial Times published an extensive article regarding the Greek issue, calling on the Greek Prime Minister to accept the creditor’s proposal. It may not be an ideal proposal, but it will prevent the risk of default. “Given Greek banks’ dependence on funding from the European Central Bank, default could then push Greece out of the Eurozone. After that, nobody can be sure what would happen. For Greece’s creditors, a larger default would follow: euro-denominated debts would be repaid in drachma, or not at all. The destruction of Greece’s financial system would rip the life out of its economy and do unknowable damage to its political system. Such chaos would also deal a wounding blow to the European ideal that has spread stability and prosperity across the continent over the past decades,” noted the newspaper. Reuters reported that during the Eurogroup meeting, ECB Executive Board member Benoit Coeure was asked by Eurogroup chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem, if the Greek banks will be able to open on Friday June 18. “Tomorrow, yes. Monday, I don’t know,” Coeure noted, according to officials. Yanis Varoufakis commented that Reuters, Bloomberg and other news agencies should respect the Eurogroup rules and stop the alleged leaks that only end up harming both parties. Finally, while the Eurogroup in Luxembourg was underway Die Zeit published an article according to which the creditors made a last offer to Athens. The German newspaper, noted that the creditors offered Greece a final extension, until the end of 2015, without the participation of the IMF. The proposal includes a program extension until the December 2015, with EFSF funding reaching up to 10 billion euros.

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European Council President: ‘Time for Greece to Choose’

“The situation of Greece is getting critical. The current economy consistency program to Greece runs out in eleven days. Four months of negotiations have not led to the necessary compromise,” European Council President Donald Tusk said, delivering a video message on Friday. After pointing out the current stalemate in debt talks between Athens and creditors, even after Thursday’s Eurogroup, Tusk stated: “The game of chicken needs to end, and so does the blame game, because this is not a game and there is no time for any games.” During his brief statement, Tusk revealed the actual reason that forced him to call for an emergency Euro Summit on Greece on Monday evening, which is to make sure that Europeans “understand each others’ positions and the consequences of their decisions.” The European Council President also made it clear that people should not have any illusions that the meeting will produce a magic solution. And he concluded: “We are close to the point where the Greek government will have to choose between accepting what I believe is a good offer of continued support or to head towards default.”

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Tsipras tweets on his meeting with the Russian delegation – PHOTO

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras tweets on his meeting with the Russian delegation in St. Petersburg.

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Analysts Have Seen This Greek Movie Before

The Greek debt crisis, brought on by years of profligate spending – much of it on generous public pensions -- and shrinking tax revenues in the wake ...

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Greek talks yield bad blood but no deal

Personal animus and collapse of trust played part in failure of negotiations

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UK taxpayers face sizeable Grexit bill

If Greece crashes out of the euro, it can claim emergency assistance financed by all EU countries

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There will be a solution on Greece’s debt — minister

When commenting his earlier statement that Greece would never exit the euro-zone Greece’s minister Giorgos Stathakis said he is still confident about it

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