Angela Merkel’s Pyrrhic Victory
As far as Germany is concerned, the drama of the euro crisis is over. The subject was barely discussed in the country’s recent election campaign. Chancellor Angela Merkel did what was necessary to ensure the euro’s survival, and she did so at the least possible cost to Germany – a feat that earned her the support of pro-European Germans as well as those who trust her to protect German interests. Not surprisingly, she won re-election resoundingly. READ MORE
Judy Asks: Is Support for the “Merkel Way” Fading?
The debate between advocates of austerity and supporters of stimulus still rages across Europe. Our experts assess whether backing for German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s economic policies—the “Merkel way”—is starting to wane. READ MORE
Rouble-litas-euro: Lithuania's sour experience of currency change
The Government has decided that Lithuania must have the euro by 2015, whatever the cost. Finance Minister Rimantas Šadžius, though, admits that ordinary people are a little suspicious of a currency switch – remember as they do the last monetary reforms in the country that went less than smoothly. READ MORE
IMF warns of potential financial risks of loose monetary policy
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday warned central banks to be alert to the potential financial risks of super-loose monetary policy adopted to cope with the financial crisis. READ MORE
Nazarbayev has once again called upon to reform the world monetary system
In China, held the 12th session of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA). READ MORE
US Urges Balanced Economic Approach in Europe
U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew is telling Europe it needs to adopt new policies to boost economic growth, but his advice has been met coolly in Germany. READ MORE
The Cypriot Euro Crisis is Also About Germany and Russia
There were messy and embarrassing mistakes along the way. But, in the end, German Chancellor Angela Merkel got what she wanted: an end to the endemic system of money laundering and corruption in Cyprus. READ MORE
A bailout for Cyprus, a geopolitical failure for Russia
Russia has a few interests at stake in the European Union bailout for Cyprus. The first and most obvious is that Russian citizens stand to lose billions of dollars worth of savings in Cyprus’s banking sector, which serves as a low-tax haven for Russian oligarchs. Those oligarchs, remember, wield outsize political power within Russia. The second is that Cyprus is a political client state of Moscow’s, a helpful little ally on such matters as sending arms to Syria. The third is symbolic, and doesn’t actually have that much to do with Cyprus itself, but with Russia’s standing in Europe. READ MORE
Searching for the One to Blame for Cyprus
Who has invented the tax on Cyprus bank accounts, which the Parliament of the island country doesn’t want to approve? The European Central Bank is trying to lay the blame on the President of Cyprus, and he, in his turn, blames the governments of the Eurozone countries. Meanwhile the issue, as well as the accounts in Cyprus banks have hung up for indefinite period, as they have not yet been able to “break” the MPs. Moscow also tries to take part in the resolution of this problem, which was appointed beyond its will as a “title sponsor” of Cyprus stabilization. READ MORE
Estonian president wants to see Lithuania and Latvia in euro zone as soon as possible
Estonia's President Toomas Hendrik Ilves says he would like Lithuania and Latvia to join the euro zone as soon as possible, adding the accession would enhance the Baltic influence "in the so-called European core." READ MORE
