How the world sees Greece
Thomson ReutersMigrants disembark from a Turkish coastguard boat after a failed attempt at crossing to the Greek island of Lesbos, in the Turkish coastal town of Dikili By Karolina Tagaris ATHENS (Reuters) - Migrants held on the Greek islands Lesbos and ...
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Freeform is revisiting GREEK. The network has put in development GREEK: The Reunion movie, which will bring back the characters from the original ...
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Pope Francis will make a short trip to the Greek island of Lesbos on April 16 to meet with refugees accommodated there, the Holy See said in a statement Thursday. The Vatican said the pope accepted the invitation from the leader of the Christian Orthodox Church, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, and the Greek president, Prokopis Pavlopoulos.
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The Holy Synod of Greece, chaired by the Αrchbishop of Athens and Greece, Ieronymos, met for the third time in April, on Thursday. At the closure of the meeting, the Synod acquiesced to concede 20 hectares in the public cemetery of Schisto, for the burial of muslims. In addition, the Synod suggests to priests, monks
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Greek authorities say that thousands of migrants and refugees who are camped at Piraeus port have two weeks notice to move to hot-spots and accommodation centers voluntarily; if not, they will be expelled by force. The warning was issued on Thursday April 8, as more than 4,000 refugees and migrants stranded at Piraeus port refuse
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[arianna bedroom]Brian Ach/Getty Images Arianna Huffington is a media magnate and self-described "sleep evangelist." In fact, she's so enthusiastic about the power of a good night's sleep that she wants to give one lucky individual the chance to experience Huffington's own "Sleep Paradise" in Manhattan for one night only. Huffington — who recently released "The Sleep Revolution", a new book on the importance of proper rest — has listed her bedroom on Airbnb. Not just anyone can spend a night between the editor-in-chief's sheets, though: she's hosting a contest through the home-sharing site to ascertain who deserves it most. To enter the contest, interested individuals will need to sign up for Airbnb and submit a 50-550 character statement answering the question: "What would you do with your day if you got more sleep at night?" Huffington and a panel of judges will select a winner based on the answer that shows a "passion for a life that is enhanced through deeper, more restful sleep." Perks of the cost-free stay in the Huffington home during one night in June include a pre-slumber Greek dinner with special guests, a "sleep consultation" with Huffington herself, a hot bath in her sunken tub, and of course your (solo) stay in the bedroom. In the morning, you'll be served a "special breakfast designed to jumpstart your day," and you have the option to appear on the HuffPost Rise morning show to talk about your experience. Bonus: you'll get hair and makeup done. So where does Huffington rest her head? Check out the book-filled, warm-toned apartment, below. "SLEEP YOUR WAY TO THE TOP," READS THE PILLOW ADORNING HUFFINGTON'S BED. THE TONGUE-IN-CHEEK PHRASE HAS RESONANCE: HUFFINGTON, WHO HAS MADE SLEEP AND WELLNESS A PRIORITY IN RECENT YEARS, IS THE FOUNDER AND EDITOR-IN-CHIEF OF THE HUFFINGTON POST. Airbnb A QUILTED HEADBOARD AND DECADENT PILLOWS MAKE HER BED APPEAR SOFT AND LUXURIOUS. HUFFINGTON IS ALSO BIG ON "NAP ROOMS" AT WORK: EMPLOYEES AT THE HUFFINGTON POST'S OFFICE ARE ENCOURAGED TO MAKE USE OF THE QUIET SPACE. Airbnb THERE'S ART ON THE WALLS AND GOLDEN LIGHT FLOWING FROM LAMPS; IT CERTAINLY DOESN'T HAVE THE STERILE AMBIENCE OF A HOTEL ROOM. Airbnb SEE THE REST OF THE STORY AT BUSINESS INSIDER
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ORONO, Maine -- Members of the University of Maine men's basketball team will take on the "Greek Stars" on Saturday, April 9 from 5-7 p.m. in a charity basketball game held at Memorial Gymnasium. The Greek All-Star Team, voted by the UMaine community, will ...
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Kappa Tau wow: Freeform is rushing a Greek revival! The network formerly known as ABC Family has greenlit Greek: The Reunion, which the cabler describes as “a holiday movie” which finds the crew returning to Cypress-Rhodes University for their five ...
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Thespis Greek Theater, an amateur non-profit theatrical group consisting of Greeks living and working in Dubai, won the first prize of the people’s choice at the finals of the Short+Sweet Festival 2016 in Dubai on Friday March 3. Thespis Greek Theater ...
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More than 200 migrants have been sent back to Turkey this week, while at the same time more refugees have claimed asylum in order to stay in Greece. Athens still need massive staff reinforcements. On Monday (April 4), Frontex, the EU border agency, started to implement the EU-Turkey agreement: Almost 202 migrants who had entered Greece […]
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The world’s leading travel magazine Conde Nast Traveller presented a list of the most beautiful places in Europe. According to Conde Nast Traveller, Europe may be one of the smaller continents, but what it lacks in size, it makes up for in scenery ...
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Among the tens of thousands of refugees stranded in Greece are many Afghan nationals -- including some who tell VOA they were forced to flee threats from the Taliban because they had worked with US and coalition forces. The United States has a special visa ...
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… of air traffic controllers in Greece will join the 24-hour strike … flights to or from any Greek airport from midnight Thursday to … , demanded by creditors to the Greek government. Sc/rc/acm
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… Lagarde (@Lagarde) April 5, 2016 Greek drama Isabelle Kumar: “In terms … more, if we look at Greece, Greece seems to be trouble again … IMF has said that bringing Greece to the brink might help … that a possible default in Greece could time with Brexit, the …
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… children. Greek Week is a week-long series of events where Greek organizations … in Warriner Hall. “Greek week means the Greek community coming together to … Senoritas and Tropical Smoothie. “During Greek Week we spend a lot …
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… time to travel to Crete, the southernmost Greek island and also the … the drama involving a possible Greek exit from the euro, but … have concerned people in the Greek islands over the past year … humanitarian crisis. I am visiting Crete this month for 48 hours …
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About 4,200 people are currently detained at two migrant centers on the Greek islands of Lesvos and Chios, according to Amnesty International.
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An Amnesty International research team gained access to two highly restricted detention centres on the GREEK islands of Lesvos and Chios on the 5th ...
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NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) -- The president of Cyprus says he sees no risk of Greece being forced out of the group of countries that use the euro as their currency. Nicos Anastasiades said Thursday talks between Greece and its creditors are ongoing and that it ...
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Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras got an earful by phone from US VIce-President Joe Biden - and, by extension - President Barack Obama, over Greek reforms.
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The European Union's much-criticized deal with Turkey to swap refugees and migrants is taking a dark turn with warnings of suicides if Greece pushes them out.
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Technology and manpower never guarantee a military victory by themselves. And neither can tactics and strategy — sometimes, it takes an extra measure of trickery and subterfuge to swing the tide on the battlefield. A group of Quora users sought to answer the question "What are the most mind-blowing tricks used during any war?" The answers provide a fascinating insight into some of the minds responsible for the most ingenious successes in the history of war. 1. OPERATION MINCEMEAT Lt. Longini/US Army Signal Corps During World War II, the British launched a successful disinformation plan called Operation Mincemeat. The operation was created in an effort to convince the Germans that the Allies planned on invading Sardinia and Greece — instead of Sicily, where they actually landed in July 1943. The operation was carried out successfully by obtaining the corpse of a homeless man in London, who was then given a false identity as a major in the Royal Marines. This man was then given false plans documenting an invasion of Sardinia and Greece, before being thrown to the tide off the coast of Spain. The British alerted the Spanish, who were nominally neutral during the war, to be on the lookout for a British Marine carrying documents that had to be recovered. The papers were promptly handed over to the Nazis by the Spanish and convinced Hitler to reposition troops away from Sicily. 2. HEROIN-LACED CIGARETTES http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinai_and_Palestine_Campaign#mediaviewer/File:Turkish_howitzer_10.5cm_leFH_98_09_LOC_00121.jpg The British and Ottomans were locked in extremely slow-moving trench warfare during World War I's Palestine Campaign. Eventually, the British learned that the Ottomans had run out of cigarettes. In an attempt to demoralize their enemy, the British began sending cigarettes wrapped in propaganda to the Ottomans. Instead of surrendering, the Ottomans threw away the propaganda and smoked. So, before the British scheduled one raid, they switched tactics and threw over cigarettes laced with heroin. The British met little opposition from the Ottoman forces during their assault. 3. MOVING A NAVAL FLEET OVER LAND Kusatma Zonaro/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fall_of_Constantinople#mediaviewer/File:Kusatma_Zonaro.jpg During the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453, the invading Turks faced a major challenge. The Byzantines had erected a giant chain across the Golden Horn, a stretch of water that connected Constantinople to the sea. This chain effectively blocked the Ottoman navy from making their way to the enemy capital. In order to overcome the chain, the Ottomans moved their navy overland using log rollers. This allowed the Ottomans to bypass the chain and attack the Byzantines from multiple fronts, ultimately aiding in the capture of the city that's now called Istanbul. SEE THE REST OF THE STORY AT BUSINESS INSIDER
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[michael and alex]Couple's Coordinates In the spring of 2014, Michael Gallagher, and Alexandra Carson, were poolside in Santa Monica, California, talking logistics for a month-long vacation through Europe. "We thought we'd do all of Italy, all of Greece, and all of Croatia," Gallagher recalls — but then they started crunching the numbers. "We realized it could easily be a $10,000 or $20,000 trip," he tells Business Insider. That's when the idea of living_, _rather than vacationing, abroad surfaced. "Alex said, 'Why don't we move to Florence?' We were literally laying outside by the pool having this conversation and all of sudden it went from this pipe dream to, 'Let's do it.' We were entirely set on it, immediately." A year and $8,000 worth of savings later, the couple, who has been together for nearly three years and are now in their mid-20s, boarded a one-way flight to Italy. "We quit our jobs, sold virtually everything we owned (which wasn't much), and set out to live our lives for no one other than ourselves," they write on their travel blog, "Couple's Coordinates." What started as a plan to move to Florence for the year evolved into a seven-month adventure that took them to 13 countries. "We got a little spontaneous," Gallagher says. Business Insider spoke to the couple, who moved back to Santa Monica in late December 2015, about life on the road, how they managed to stretch $8,000 for seven months of world travel, and how you can make your dream trip a reality, too. Instagram Embed: http://instagram.com/p/-bf5O4R7C9/embed/ Width: 658px _Gallagher and Carson in Singapore._ After that day at the pool, Gallagher and Carson started making "soft plans," talking and dreaming about the places they would visit. Come fall, they started socking away as much money as possible. Gallagher was working in sales for an IT consulting firm and Carson was teaching yoga, modeling, and acting. They cooked 90% of their meals at home, cut back on weekend trips to save on gas and other travel expenses, and eliminated their biggest vice: Starbucks. They started to put each and every purchase into perspective, Gallagher explains: "Say we wanted to go somewhere an hour away, which is about $20 in gas money. That $20 is a night in a hostel, or the best pizza in the world sitting over the Arno River in Florence, or a full day's worth of food in Bali." About six months of conscious spending and diligent saving — plus selling Gallagher's car and TV — amounted to an $8,000 travel fund. "We really didn't have that much money to travel with," Gallagher's recalls. Instagram Embed: http://instagram.com/p/BCYbFihSrOm/embed/ Width: 658px _Gallagher and Carson in Ubud, Bali._ Their soft plans materialized into more concrete plans in April 2015. "Two months before we were about to leave, we said, 'OK, let's make this real. Let's buy our one-way tickets and that will make it real,'" Gallagher tells Business Insider. To save money, they also booked all of their flights and accommodations through October. "During high season, buying flights and hotels last minute can double or triple your costs," they write on their blog. "To avoid this, we decided which countries outside of Italy that we wanted to visit and purchased flights and booked accommodation ahead of time." These preparations cost about $4,000 overall, which they purchased gradually, as bi-weekly paychecks came in, rather than drawing from their $8,000 travel fund. They also took advantage of travel rewards cards. "Before we left, we each opened a British Airways credit card from Chase," they write. "After spending just a few thousand dollars over a period of three months, you get 50,000 bonus miles. For us, this was enough for flights from Milan to Qatar and on to Bali, and additionally, from Tokyo back home to LAX." Instagram Embed: http://instagram.com/p/6P3-wQSrGH/embed/ Width: 658px _Gallagher and Carson in Santorini, Greece._ Gallagher gave his two weeks notice and worked up until the Friday before flying out of Los Angeles. Carson's schedule was a bit more flexible, but she also worked right up until the weekend before leaving in order to build up their travel fund as much as possible. They packed up their apartment, stored their possessions with family who lived in the area, and took off for Florence the day their apartment lease ended. SEE THE REST OF THE STORY AT BUSINESS INSIDER
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[veep]HBO Deborah Copaken is VP of collaborative journalism at Edelman. She has written for Darren Star’s show YOUNGER and is the author of the ABCs of Adulthood, which is out April 19th from Chronicle Books. _In this post, she shares advice for turning any project into a successful collaboration._ COMMUNICATE One of the worst pitfalls in a collaboration is a misunderstanding between participants, so always and immediately, whenever confused, ask for a clarification of something that seems off or hurtful. I prefer face to face communication over emails or texts, as so much context and subtlety gets lost, I believe, in electronic communication. But others might feel more comfortable communicating through email. Know your partner and their preferences. Do your best to honor them. EMPATHIZE Every time you open your mouth, try to put yourself in your partner’s shoes. How would it feel to hear the words you’re saying? Is your collaborator going through personal stuff that might be making them seem less amenable today? Don’t be afraid to toggle back and forth between work mode and human mode. It’s better for the process and better for the people. DO YOUR HOMEWORK Depending upon the collaboration and the desires of the collaborators, a percentage of the work will get done together and a percentage of it will be done at home alone. Both are equally important. If one person slacks off on their homework assignment, the project will suffer. CHOOSE THE RIGHT SETTING Location, location, location, they say in real estate, and the same can be said for an artistic endeavor. Where you work — the noise level, the quality of the light, the comfort level of the surroundings — can have a profound affect on both the tenor of the work and on the final product itself. Not that good work can’t come out of bad places or vice versa, but if you’re going to be working someplace every day with the same person or people, it might as well be pleasant. [ABC of Adulthood]HBO MAKE MISTAKES You will make mistakes. You will make lots of mistakes. In fact, it’s often only when you stumble over the mistaken paths of your project that you will figure out how best to proceed. PRAISE OTHERS IF YOU LIKE WHAT THEY'RE DOING Do you like something your partner did, said, made, or wrote? Tell them! Effusively! “I love what you did here” or “Wow, that’s so cool” is such a wonderful thing to hear and yet so infrequently proffered. Everyone wants to feel appreciated, heard, and seen. Everyone wants to know that their efforts have not gone unnoticed. REVISE No one gets it perfectly right the first time. In fact, perfectionism is probably the biggest barrier to getting the first flaw-riddled draft out into the world. In solo writing, revision is writing. The initial efforts are just the laying down tracks. So, too, with collaborative projects. Toss those mounds of spaghetti on the wall. See what sticks. The real work actually begins when you start moving the remaining noodles around. REMEMBER THE XENOLITH A xenolith — “foreign rock” in Greek — is a rock fragment foreign to the igneous rock in which it is embedded. In other words, it becomes subsumed by the other rock during the latter’s hardening from a magma state. A good collaboration, in its magma state, will swallow up beautiful fragments from each of its participants and embed them within the whole. DON'T TOLERATE YELLING Yelling, acting out, tantrums, or verbal abuse of any sort have no place within the boundaries of a collaboration. If yelling occurs, call it out immediately. Remind your partners of the rules of engagement: zero tolerance for combative, aggressive, monkey-poo-throwing behavior. KEEP READING ON MEDIUM > _Follow Deborah Copaken on Twitter. Visit her website here._
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The Greeks have always been trailblazers. While the ancient Greeks were busy inventing such trifles as indoor plumbing, medicine, democracy, and the foundations of Western thought, they were also spreading a vibrant wine culture throughout the European ...
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Spain has taken in just 18 refugees in the last six months against a pledge of some 15,000 from Greece and Italy under the EU redistribution plan. The 18 arrived at the end of 2015 but this year there have been no groups under the plan, according to El Pais newspaper.
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The duo have conquered some of the biggest clubs in GREECE, including Blend Club, Cabaret, Fuzz and PlusX in Athens and also Cavo Paradiso in ...
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Disturbing images from Port of Piraeus, Greece where multiple news outlets are reporting that a male refugee from Turkey grabbed a woman’s newborn baby and threatened to throw it a police: WATCH: Refugee Threatens to Throw Baby During Clash With Greek ...
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… agreement continued Wednesday on the Greek island of Lesbos, where a … migrants began being shipped from Greece to Turkey. #Pakistani refugees in … fact that they cannot leave [Greece]." Pakistani man threatens suicide …
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Toss together cucumbers, tomatoes, purple onions, and olives In a small bowl, whisk together all of oil, vinegar, oregano and garlic salt Pour liquid over tomato mixture Sprinkle with cheese Toss and serve immediately
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[German Chancellor Angela Merkel attends a meeting prior to a joint Franco-German cabinet meeting in Metz]Support for one of Germany's ruling parties has sunk to a near 20-year low and Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives have lost ground too, a poll showed on Thursday, suggesting a deal to limit migrant numbers has yet to reassure voters. Merkel is banking on the success of the deal between the European Union and Turkey which gives Ankara political and financial benefits in return for taking back refugees and migrants who had crossed to Greece. Both Chancellor Merkel's conservative bloc (CDU/CSU) and her Social Democrat (SPD) junior coalition partners suffered heavy losses in three state elections last month while voters flocked to the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
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Airlines have cancelled scores of flights to mainland Greece and the islands due to a 24-hour strike. Ryanair has cancelled all of its 90 Greek flights today due to the walk-out, which includes air traffic controllers, and condemned their action.
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Greece is back in the headlines and the reasons are ominous. Apart from the refugee crisis that has engulfed the country, per a leaked conference call transcript published by WikiLeaks, another financial crisis is looming ahead for this embattled nation.
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(VATICAN CITY) -- Pope Francis will visit the Greek island of Lesbos on April 16, according to the Vatican. The visit will aim "to show support and solidarity for refugees in the front line of Europe's migrant crisis." According to Vatican Radio, the Pope ...
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A migrant has threatened to throw a young baby at Greek officers during a clash over plans to move the migrants to a holding centre. Greek commentators have denounced the event as ‘barbaric’. According to various reports the man grabbed the child from ...
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In an effort to highlight the dramatic situation of refugees left in limbo on the GREEK island of Lesbos, Pope Francis and other Christian leaders will meet ...
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel says Europe is on the "right track" to deal with the refugee crisis. Merkel speaking at joint news conference with French President Francois Hollande, says "I think that last year the difficulties were due to the fact that ...
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Surge of migrant applications overwhelms struggling service
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VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis will make a lightning trip to the Greek island of Lesbos on April 16, the Vatican said on Thursday, a visit aimed at supporting refugees and drawing attention to the front line of Europe's migrant crisis. Hundreds of thousands of refugees, many fleeing war in Syria, have poured onto the Aegean island over the past year, triggering Europe's biggest humanitarian crisis in generations. Under a contested plan, the European Union started returning newcomers to Turkey this month. The pope has repeatedly spoken out in support of refugees and has urged Roman Catholic churches around Europe to take in migrant families. His first trip after he became pontiff in 2013 was to the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, which, like Lesbos, has received many thousands of migrants. "It's very clear that the pope recognizes that there is a significant emergency going on," said Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi. "Just as he went to Lampedusa, which was then the front line of the Mediterranean route, now that there is this difficult, dramatic situation on the Aegean front, he naturally wants to be present to show a sense of solidarity and responsibility." The Vatican said details of the day trip were still being worked out but that the pope would meet refugees along with Bartholomew, the Istanbul-based spiritual head of the world's Orthodox Christians, and Ieronymos II, head of the Greek Orthodox Church. Alarmed at the recent influx or refugees, the European Union and Turkey agreed to seal off the sea route last month after Balkan states shut their borders to migrants trying to reach wealthy western Europe, stranding thousands in Greece. Under the agreement, Turkey has said it will take back migrants and refugees who cross the Aegean. In return, the EU will take in thousands of Syrian refugees directly from Turkey and reward it with money, visa-free travel for Turks and progress in its EU membership negotiations. Lombardi said the pope's trip to Lesbos was "a joint initiative" that will "show that various Christian churches are united when faced with great emergencies". Theological differences and historical circumstances triggered a schism in Christianity in 1054, splitting it into a Western branch, which is mostly Catholic and Protestant, and the Eastern branch, which is mostly Orthodox. (Additonal reporting by Michele Kambas in Athens; Editing by Crispian Balmer/Mark Heinrich) -- 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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The future of Europe is being decided this week in the Netherlands. Perhaps you thought that the European Union’s fate would be voted up or down in June, when the United Kingdom holds its referendum on continued membership. The “leave now” constituency in the UK currently holds a four-point lead, though much depends on whether younger British voters who are more EU-friendly will actually make it to the polls. The stakes are indeed high in the UK, and Brexit quite naturally commands much of the world’s attention. But this week, the Dutch held a referendum on a trade agreement with Ukraine that has already been approved by the Dutch parliament and by all the other members of the EU. Indeed, the agreement has already been partially in effect for much of 2015. The organizers of the referendum, only the second one in modern Dutch history, don’t actually care much about Ukraine. They simply wanted a way to rally Dutch public opinion against the EU. The association agreement, because of its European connection, served as a nice fat target. According to the initial results, the anti-agreement forces won a clear victory, by nearly two to one. And it looks as though just enough voters turned out to achieve the 30 percent required to validate the results. The result of the Dutch referendum is not the only storm cloud on the horizon. NATO recently announced that it’s sending 4,200 additional troops and 200 tanks to Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, and the three Baltic states in order to counter an “aggressive Russia,”according to Philip Breedlove, the top U.S. commander in Europe. NATO is also assembling a 40,000 strong rapid-response force to deploy if one of its most easternmost members gets attacked. It’s not exactly a high-noon moment in Europe. The European Union is distracted by the continuing impact of the refugee crisis. Russia has been focusing on events in Syria. Ukraine itself is struggling to establish a measure of political stability and deal with endemic corruption. A tenuous ceasefire holds in the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine. But events this week may nevertheless determine the future of Ukraine, the trajectory of the EU, and whether armed conflict will return to Eastern Europe. Much depends on the Dutch. THE REFERENDUM The Ukrainian economy has taken a beating in the last couple years. In 2014, according to the World Bank, the economy shrank by nearly 7 percent. Last year, it contracted by an astonishing 12 percent. In this context, projected growth of 1 percent in 2016 is cause for celebration. But at that rate, Ukraine won’t even get back to pre-Euromaidan levels for some time. One major reason for the economic tailspin is the loss of the Russian market. Gone the cheap Russian energy flowing to Ukraine; gone the aviation exports going the other way to Russia. According to Ukrainian government statistics, Ukrainian exports to Russia dropped by a third in 2014. In the first half of 2015, trade fell by another 59.4 percent. The same sources indicate that Ukraine has now become, basically, an exporter of raw materials: corn, iron, sunflower oil. That’s not exactly a recipe for rapid economic growth. The association agreement with the EU — the same association agreement proposed in 2014 that sparked the Euromaidan protests — might ordinarily be a lifesaver for Ukraine. As Russia steps away, the EU steps in. And boy, what a economic plum the EU is! Through this agreement, Ukraine gains preferential access to a market of 500 million customers. But it’s not clear whether Ukraine is selling anything that these customers want to buy — or are even allowed to buy. As Nicolai Petro writes in _The Guardian_: > _EU rules restrict Ukraine’s exports to Europe, which fell 23 > percent in 2015 despite the preferential tariff regime that was in > place for most of last year. For example, only 72 Ukrainian > companies are allowed to export food of animal origin to the EU: 39 > of the licenses are for honey. While that may sound like a lot of > honey, Ukraine exported its yearly quota for honey in the first six > weeks of 2016. A similar story holds for other commodities._ Also, the association agreement goes both ways. As the EU removes tariff walls against Ukrainian products, so Ukraine takes away barriers to EU products. During the 1990s, Eastern European countries discovered to their dismay what happens when West European products suddenly become available much more cheaply: a hollowing out of domestic industries and agriculture. You’d think, perhaps, that the Dutch pored over all of these statistics to determine whether or not to support the association agreement. But the Dutch referendum, as I said, was not about Ukraine. The opponents of the association agreement — an odd combination of Euroskeptics, right-wing populists like Geert Wilders, the left-wing Socialist Party, and even an animal-rights group — made any number of absurd objections to the agreement: that it will cause Ukrainian workers to flood the EU (they won’t), that fascists are in control of Ukraine (they aren’t), or that the agreement is the first step for Ukraine to join the EU (in another 50 years, if the Ukrainians are lucky and the EU still exists). The supporters of the agreement are not much better. They tried to turn the vote into a referendum on Vladimir Putin. As _Politico_ reports: > _Supporters of the Ukraine agreement see the Russian leader as a > bully who has to be taught a lesson. In their view, rejecting the > accord would betray Ukrainians, boost the Kremlin, and reward > Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. A digitally manipulated > poster created by Yes backers and displayed in the Amsterdam subway > shows a passionate kiss between populist Dutch politician Geert > Wilders, who opposes the treaty, and the Russian president._ Sure, Putin is a bully, but the referendum was not about Russia. It was not about pulling Ukraine apart. It was about following through on a commitment that the EU made in the aftermath of the changes that took place in Ukraine in 2014. On the basis of the trade figures mentioned above, a good argument could be made both for and against the agreement. But the Dutch did not debate the finer points of trade. Larger issues were at stake. A “yes” vote represented a measure of hope — in the continued viability of the European Union and its potential to help countries on its borders. “No,” meanwhile, suggested that the EU is a spent force and the “European idea” no longer has any capacity to inspire the better angels of our nature. Dutch rejection of the agreement could significantly buoy the hopes of Euroskeptics in the UK and elsewhere in the EU. And it would be yet another misfortune for Ukraine to suffer in a year of hard knocks. THE TROUBLE WITH UKRAINE Ukrainians are not just suffering economically. The political situation in the country is tenuous, to say the least. The government of Petro Poroshenko has been trying to pull together a new ruling coalition that could support its choice for a new prime minister, Volodymyr Groysman. Groysman, in turn, has signaled that he would appoint Slovak politician Ivan Miklos as the country’s finance minister. Miklos presided over Slovakia’s economic about-turn in the 2000s. But earlier this month, former prime minister and the head of the Fatherland Party Yulia Tymoshenko pulled out of negotiations over the creation of a new ruling coalition. Tymoshenko is, quite sensibly, outraged at how the economic reforms so far have plunged Ukrainians into misery. But she’s also taking a chance that she and her party would benefit the most from early elections. Poroshenko — whose disapproval rate hovered around 70 percent back in January — has been reeling from a succession of corruption allegations. The latest ties him to the Panama-Gate revelations — the huge investigative journalism undertaking that has implicated politicians across the globe in off-shore schemes to enrich themselves and their cronies. Poroshenko, required to sell his cake and candy company Roshen, allegedly transferred the concern overseas in order to reap tax-free profits from the sale. The head of the country is supposed to be encouraging the citizens to pay the taxes that the state needs so desperately. He should not be misleading by example. Poroshenko, up until the Panama-Gate scandal broke, was actually one of the more popular government figures. Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and the parliament as a whole have approval ratings in the very low teens. A pervasive stink of corruption hangs over the country. Even after the Ukrainian government finally dismissed the notoriously unscrupulous prosecutor general, Viktor Shokin, _The New York Times_ lambasted the leadership’s cronyism: > _Poroshenko seems to have accepted continuing corruption as the > price to pay for a modicum of maneuvering room. But the president, > the prime minister, and the Parliament must be made to understand > that the International Monetary Fund and donor nations, including > the United States, cannot continue to shovel money into a corrupt > swamp unless the government starts shaping the democratic rule that > Ukrainians demanded in their protests._ Given that the economy has bottomed out, the political system is fragile, and corruption is widespread, the situation in the Donbass would seem to be the least of Kiev’s worries at the moment. After all, the situation in eastern Ukraine is relatively quiet, emphasis on “relatively.” Ceasefire violations continue sporadically, according to the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and there have been casualties. Elections have not yet taken place in the Donbass region, though Poroshenko insists that more of an armed OSCE presence is necessary before any such election can proceed. But at least all is mostly quiet on the eastern front. The last thing Ukraine needs right now is a resumption of hostilities in the Donbass. Given the punishing impact that low energy prices are having on its economy, Russia can also ill afford a hot war on its periphery and even more stringent sanctions. By sending more troops to its eastern borders, NATO is reassuring its newest members. By providing Ukraine with over $300 million in non-lethal security assistance, the United States is reassuring the Poroshenko government. But the West should be putting much more attention and resources into ensuring that the Minsk process succeeds. Signals that are reassuring to one side are very often threatening to the other. The best way for Ukraine to guarantee its territorial integrity — and not lose any more acreage to an opportunistic Russia — is to be successful, politically and economically. Ukraine desperately needs a cohort of clean politicians at the helm. It needs an economic package of support that doesn’t require the most vulnerable portions of the population to shoulder most of the burden of economic reform. Economic and political success will more effectively secure the support of the residents of Donbass than force of arms. Meanwhile, the EU has to get its own act together. It has to reimagine itself as something more than just austerity economics sung to the tune of _Ode to Joy_. Brussels faces the same challenge as Kiev: how to command the loyalties of a diverse population. The Dutch, the British, the Greeks — they can’t be forced to stay inside the Union. The rewards of membership must be made visible and fast. The EU can still help Ukraine move forward. But it can do so only if it somehow masters its own centrifugal forces. _This is an updated version of a Foreign Policy In Focus article._ -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. 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Prince's tattoo, which sits on his upper right shoulder blade, pays tribute to Anubis, the GREEK god of funerals and death. In addition to her tattoo for her ...
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Migrants pray in front of GREEK Parliament building during a protest demanding the opening of the borders between Greece and the Republic of ...
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Mr. Todorov, Ataka proposed to build structures at the state border with GREECE in order to deter irregular migrants. What has happened to your ...
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The defence ministers of Bulgaria and GREECE have discussed the need to hold talks at the level of contact groups from the two countries' armed forces ...
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Arsenal’s youth setup is starting to look a whole lot stronger. Having been linked this week for a move for 15 year old Dutch prodigy Myron Boadu, the club did today confirm that a player had been signed on professional terms – 18 year old Greek ...
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The Netherlands has won a reduced rate for bicycles and Greece is looking for tax breaks on agricultural machinery The European commission will hand back powers to EU member states on VAT, in a long awaited shake-up of the rules that enabled chancellor George Osborne to declare the abolition of the tampon tax last month. After years of wrangling over VAT rates on everything from bicycles to tampons, the commission proposed on Thursday a far-reaching overhaul of VAT rules that could lead to the minimum EU rate of 15% being scrapped. Continue reading...
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The European Union’s response to the migration crisis that began in 2015 has had two distinct phases. While there was initial support for humanitarian solutions to the increasing number of people claiming asylum, hope for a primarily humanitarian approach has long since evaporated. The closure of borders to those in transit through Europe has stranded many migrants in Greece, despite continuing problems with its asylum system. EU policy is now to return asylum applicants to Turkey, even though the country has not extended the Refugee Convention to non-Europeans, and there are doubts about its safety for those who need protection. On April 6, a Communication from the European Commission set out a series of possible policies to reform the EU’s migration framework. In it, the Commission recognises that the crisis has exposed “significant structural weaknesses and shortcomings” in the EU’s asylum arrangements. The measures it outlines emphasise greater centralisation and order in the asylum system. But they fail to reflect the legitimate aspiration of those seeking protection to reach countries they believe will offer them meaningful opportunities. A better way to achieve order, while respecting applicants’ understanding of their situation, is surely to grant an EU-wide right of residence to those recognised as in need of protection. Yet that idea forms no part of the Commission’s current agenda. RESPONSIBILITY FOR ASYLUM APPLICATIONS The most significant proposals in the Communication concern the allocation of responsibility for asylum applicants. The current rules are contained in the “Dublin III” Regulation of 2013 and establish a presumption that, if a person enters the EU in an irregular manner, the state they enter has responsibility for any subsequent asylum application. The Dublin rules are notoriously unfair on border states in southern and eastern Europe. They are equally disliked by applicants, who may end up allocated to a border state they have no interest in living in. The combined refusal of border states and migrants to accept the logic of the Dublin Regulation has been central to the migration crisis over the past year. The preferred response at the EU level has been to supplement the Dublin Regulation with provision for relocation of asylum applicants among EU and associated states. The main outcome to date was two Council decisions in September 2015, which provided a temporary scheme for the relocation of up to 160,000 asylum applicants from Greece, Italy and elsewhere, over two years. RELOCATION, RELOCATION But the relocation principle has faced significant objections from some member states. Four states voted against the second Council decision in September, because of its provision for mandatory quotas. Two of those (Hungary and the Slovak Republic) have gone on to challenge its legality before the Court of Justice. Things are little better on the ground. A European Commission report in mid-March showed that only 937 persons had actually been relocated (569 from Greece, 368 from Italy). The Commission’s own assessment is that the number of formal pledges of relocation places is “clearly insufficient” to meet states’ obligations under the scheme. These low numbers probably also reflect the unattractiveness of relocation to asylum applicants, who are obliged to apply in the border state, and then face being dispersed around Europe. Despite these difficulties, the Commission has now proposed two options for a relocation scheme. One would see the complete replacement of the Dublin Regulation with central allocation of asylum applications. The other would be a “corrective” mechanism – similar to a proposal it made in September 2015 – with the Dublin rules replaced by relocation around Europe based on a quota system in crisis situations. In emphasising relocation, the Commission has expressly rejected the notion that asylum applicants should have a choice about where to apply. In its view, to allow applicants to choose would act as a “pull factor” to the EU, and would itself result in a disproportionate sharing of responsibility. Accordingly, the policy paper contains questionable proposals aimed at deterring onward movement by applicants, including the withdrawal of resources and delays in the ability to acquire long-term residence status. While member states may have reservations about a quota system, there is self-evident merit in a more equitable distribution of responsibility for asylum applications. An orderly approach is also preferable over onward movement by migrants as a way of achieving redistribution. Nevertheless, if either of the Commission’s proposals were adopted and implemented, they could well be frustrated by migrants' aspirations for protection in places that they consider suitable. A UNIFIED EU ASYLUM SYSTEM The second strand to the Commission’s asylum proposals is aimed at greater convergence and centralisation in asylum decisions. First, the Commission proposes a tightening of the rules in the Asylum Procedures Directive to reduce the discretion given to member state authorities in the design of their decision-making processes. Under these proposals, EU states would have to adopt a unified approach to which countries of origin may be presumed to be safe ones. There would be a common list of transit countries outside the EU and Schengen to which it is considered safe to return applicants. When a residence permit is being renewed, there would be a common approach to making decisions over whether a person has a continuing need for protection. In addition, the Commission plans greater involvement for the European Asylum Support Office(EASO) in the asylum process, including through formal evaluation of member state systems. The Commission’s proposals are motivated in part by concern at poor quality procedures and decisions in some states, as these tend to encourage onward movement by applicants. Beyond that, the Commission seems intent on preventing member states from having either lower or higher standards of protection than the EU norm. Its reasoning is that any divergence tends to encourage people to move on to another country: the fewer the differences, the more orderly the asylum system will be. These procedural proposals may face objections by states concerned with sovereignty over protection decisions and procedures. Member states may in particular wish to retain the freedom to be more protective than EU law requires. Here, too, the missing element in the Commission’s proposals is provision for an EU-wide status for those recognised as in need of protection. If asylum procedures and decisions are to be so tightly regulated by EU law, with EASO supervision, it is illogical that protection should be provided by and within a single member state. [The Conversation] _Bernard Ryan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond the academic appointment above._
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The International Monetary Fund has been at odds with other partners in the Greek bailout saga. Its economists have wondered whether strangling a state with the noose of austerity is a decent way of either eliminating debt, let alone stimulating growth.
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Übersee-Feldwies, Germany – Taiwan-based tire maker Kenda has expand its European sales network through link-ups with two family-owned retailers: Theocarakis SA of Greece and MPSA Groupe MASSA of France. Theocarakis serves over 600 sales outlets in ...
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London-based emissions verification company Verifavia is to expand its offering to Greece and Cyprus to assist freight forwarding and transportation firms with new European Union monitoring regulations. The new division, Verifavia Shipping (Hellas) Ltd ...
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