In The News

All Eyes on France as Officials Enforce New Antipiracy Law

Max Colchester October 29, 2010
The French are cracking down on illegal online sharing of protected materials. Authorities monitor downloads, and send warning letters to internet users who download a copyrighted text, song or film. Third-time offenders can lose internet privileges for one year, reports Max Colchester for the New York Times. A private firm, paid for by trade associations representing creative interests, monitors...

Europe Frets Over Foreign Investments in Defense Industry

Clara Marina O’Donnell October 15, 2010
Sovereign wealth funds are estimated to manage close to $4 trillion of assets. European governments are increasingly concerned about such powerful investors, the bulk of which are from Asia and the Middle East, showing interest in their defense industries especially at a time when Europe must curtail its own defense investments. EU member states acknowledge that their national industrial bases...

Hungary Toxic Sludge Spill an “Ecological Catastrophe” Says Government

Mark Tran October 7, 2010
An industrial dam broke loose, releasing a torrent of toxic red sludge, left over from an aluminum manufacturing plant, over the Hungarian countryside. In minutes, the sludge transformed picturesque communities into scenes from a horror movie, with deaths, injuries, mass evacuations and threats to the Danube and Raba rivers, already heavily polluted in that nation. “Local environmentalists said...

New EU Rules Target Countries with Export Surpluses

Christian Reiermann September 29, 2010
European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs Olli Rehn has announced a proposal to monitor finances of member nations, particularly any trade imbalances, issue warnings and eventually impose fines on those with “chronic” export or import surpluses. The reason behind the strict reviews, notes journalist Christian Reiermann, is that trade imbalances threaten stability of the euro. “If...

Chinese Investors Flock to London to Buy Real Estate

Julia Werdigier, Bettina Wassener September 29, 2010
An influx of wealthy Chinese are snapping up high-end London properties. Representing 5 percent of buyers and growing, they are favored by brokers for paying in cash in an effort to evade Chinese capital regulations. To cash in on the influx, brokers hire Mandarin and Cantonese speakers and even open offices in China; some buildings omit the number four, considered unlucky by Chinese. The...

Challenges for a Squabbling Europe – Part II

François Godement September 24, 2010
European Union ideals, along with the euro as common currency, could be a formidable force in the world. But in recent years, members have failed to unite to tackle challenges that have emerged. This YaleGlobal series examines how the lack of direction inhibits their influence. A rising Asia could spur Europe to action, and in the second of two articles, François Godement, senior fellow with the...

Challenges for a Squabbling Europe – Part I

Katinka Barysch September 22, 2010
Even after the devastation of the Second World War, bitterly fought by Europeans, the continent united in rebuilding its economy. Led by Germany and France, Europe steadily embarked on a series of agreements that gradually pooled energy and economic resources, embraced trade, reduced border controls and developed a common currency. Now, as internal challenges combine with external competition,...