Davos, the EU Summit and the Euro Crisis

EU leaders will be holding a summit on Monday, with the Euro crisis, particularly the situation in Greece, dominating the talks:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16766225


Last week politicians, economists and celebrities had their annual gathering in Davos, Switzerland.  The Euro Crisis was high on the agenda as reported by Bloomberg Business Week:  Davos and EU Summit


A German official floated the idea of Greece giving up control over it's budget: 

Germany suggests that Greece should give up control over budget to EU

But Greece appears to be on the verge of clinching a deal with its creditors:  http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/28/greece-idUSL5E8CS06020120128

In another interesting development, Angela Merkel has said she will "actively support" French President Nicolas Sarkozy's bid for re-election:  http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/01/29/france-germany-election-merkel-idINDEE80S04J20120129

Latest on the debt crisis

Tuesday's meeting of EU finance ministers appears to have made little progress on the Euro crisis.  Greek debt talks are still deadlocked. There is a fundamental disagreement that has developed over whether to focus on economic growth or budget cuts.  Italy's Prime Minister has pushed for the Euro zone to put more emphasis on growth: "Prime Minister Mario Monti presented his latest plan to boost Italy’s economic growth in Brussels yesterday as his government began talks with unions on a separate effort to overhaul labor-market rules."  (Bloomberg)

From US News: IMF says Europe a drag on Global Growth

Video from WSJ:  EU Scrambles to Salvage Crisis Talks

MSNBC:  IMF and Germany at odds over how to rescue Europe

This American Life ran an hour-long story on the Europe Crisis by the Planet Money team

Meanwhile, the EU is threatening to freeze funds for Hungary which has recently made changes to the constitution and press freedom that threaten democracy.

On the foreign policy front, the EU put an embargo on oil from Iran.

Downgrades lead to push for faster reform

EU leaders are calling for faster action on fiscal reform policy after several EU countries are downgraded by S&P.  It remains to be seen if German Chancellor Merkel and other leaders can convince Euro zone countries to sign onto strict fiscal austerity measures and oversight at the EU level.
http://news.yahoo.com/merkel-vows-faster-eurozone-reform-p-downgrades-152932631.html

For a brief summary of developments in key countries, the New York Times has a tracking page for the debt crisis:
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/business/global/european-debt-crisis-tracker.html?ref=global

Some background on the Euro Crisis

Below is a list of articles which will give a basic background on the Euro crisis:

The New York Times page on the European Sovereign Debt Crisis:
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/e/european_sovereign_debt_crisis/index.html?inline=nyt-classifier  be sure to click on "more" at the bottom to get the full background.

From the Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-european-debt-crisis-in-one-post/2011/08/05/gIQAg69QwI_blog.html

http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/264686/20111209/europe-reinvents-itself-primer-new-eurozone.htm

a rather basic primer from Matt Miller of the Washington Post:  http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/europe-made-easy/2011/11/30/gIQA7bHeCO_story.html

From the New York Times, "The Euro Zone Crisis and the U.S.":  http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/11/14/the-euro-zone-crisis-and-the-u-s-a-primer/

EU responds to anti-democratic measures by Hungarian Government

From the New York Times:

European Union Gives Hungary an Ultimatum

Akos Stiller for The New York Times

A tram passing the Parliament in Budapest. The Hungarian government said Wednesday that it was ‘‘ready for negotiations’’ with the European Commission over E.U. complaints.  More

Violence in the Banlieus (Suburbs) of France

When the movie La Haine came out in 1995, it created a storm of controversy in France.  Some found it to be a realistic depiction of life in the suburbs, others felt it encouraged young people to riot and act out against the police. However, over the years the story has repeated itself.  The most recent incident mirrors the story in La Haine -- someone from the community dies or is injured in police custody and riots ensue:  http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jan/11/protests-violence-french-estates?CMP=twt_fd

Unrest in the suburbs is an ongoing problem that French authorities have tried to address through economic programs and some attention to the educational system.  Some of the underlying issues around police harassment and discrimination are similar to those faced in Britain around the Stephen Lawrence case.  Two men were recently convicted for the crime that occurred 18 years ago and the McPherson report which followed Lawrence's murder and the bungled police investigation exposed institutionalized racism.