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Europe is scratching its head over possibility that the U.S. Supreme Court will strike down President Obama's signature legislative achievement. As the judiciary and the Obama administration trade legal barbs over the high court's authority, the idea that health care coverage, largely considered a universal right in Europe, could be deemed an affront to liberty is baffling. "The Supreme Court can legitimately return Obamacare?" asks a headline on the French news site 9 POK . The article slowly walks through the legal rationale behind the court's right to wipe away Congress's legislation. "Sans précédent, extraordinaires" reads the article. In the...

Inspired by Cord's thought-provoking post on the per gallon prices of various liquids, and by Sarah Palin's ill-informed Facebook rant on the "$4-Per-Gallon President," I decided to take a closer look at gasoline prices around the world. Mrs. Palin might be interested to learn, that the world already has quite a few $4-Per-Gallon Presidents. In fact, the world already has $6-Per-Gallon Parliaments, $7-Per-Gallon Prime Ministers, and $8-Per-Gallon Presidents! We've collected a broad sample of gas prices from throughout the industrialized Western world in the chart below. Important to note: this chart includes only official data from throughout the European Union...

"To survive in a hostile world, guys need to embrace girly jobs and dirty diapers," argued the Newsweek writers Andrew Romano and Tony Dokoupil in the subheadline of their September 20 article "Men's Lib." The writers set out to explain "[w]hy it’s time to reimagine masculinity at work and at home." If American men want to be competitive in a global economy, they argued, they need to suck it up and get comfortable with the idea of working traditionally "girly jobs" and/or being stay at home dads: It’s possible to imagine protectionist trade and immigration policies boosting blue-collar employment at...

Britain could be forced to have its Budget signed off by European leaders under plans to impose an 'economic government of the EU', it emerged yesterday. German Chancellor Angela Merkel is pressing for 'oversight' of national economies to be included in controversial arrangements that were agreed by EU leaders yesterday. She wants to introduce financial penalties for states with persistently high budget deficits, giving the EU a high degree of control. This could see Britain forfeiting the £2billion annual 'structural funds' paid out to some of the nation's poorer areas by Brussels.

LONDON – The only passenger rail link between Britain and the rest of Europe has been shut down indefinitely, Eurostar said Sunday, promising more travel misery for thousands of stranded passengers just before Christmas. Services have been suspended since late Friday, when a series of glitches stranded five trains inside the Channel Tunnel and trapped more than 2,000 passengers for hours in stuffy and claustrophobic conditions. More than 55,000 passengers overall have been affected.

MOGADISHU, Somalia — As a Spanish warship looked on, a $3.3 million ransom was delivered by boat Tuesday and Somali pirates freed a Spanish trawler and its 36 crew members. Spain's prime minister did little to deny paying off the hijackers — one reason the lucrative attacks are on the rise. "The government did what it had to do," Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero told a news conference in Madrid. "The important thing is that the sailors will be back with us. The first obligation of a country, of the government of a state, is to save the lives...

Pirates freed 36 crew members from a Spanish trawler Tuesday, and a self-proclaimed pirate said the hostage-takers were paid $3.3 million in ransom. Spain's prime minister did little to deny a payment was made — one reason the lucrative attacks are on the rise.

Russia is the world's second-largest exporter of oil and the world's largest combined exporter of oil and gas. Europe would be crushed in a very short time without Russia's energy supplies. In this context, sadly, Europe is militarily irrelevant and economically dependent. Thus Moscow simply ignores it. Which is to say that soft power alone, when dealing with a rather rough neighbor, may not do the trick.... The general European attitude can be summed up by the thoughts, "Oh well, this is how the Russians are, you know. When provoked, they jump. Therefore, in order to stay out of trouble,...

In 2006, I had a debate with Tariq Ramadan, the author of Western Muslims and the future of Islam. In the hypothetical event of a war between Egypt and Switzerland, for which community would he be prepared to die, I asked him. Mr Ramadan has dual citizenship. He's an Egyptian by birth and a Swiss by naturalisation. His response was one of rage on different levels. Above all I think he was outraged that one should ask such a question. He refused to answer. Mr Ramadan, like many other Muslims, may have two or more citizenships. From all that he...

CHECK, PLEASE! Steyn on the World Tuesday, 05 May 2009 HAPPY WARRIOR from National Review At the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, they’re premiering a new ballet about a young French boy who’s befriended by a giant helium-filled balloon. Any balletomanes at the US embassy might be forgiven for assuming it to be some hastily concocted metaphor to Euro-American harmony in the Age of Obama: a lithe young Continental prancing around the stage enraptured by his dazzling bag of gas. But, as it happens, The Red Balloon is an adaptation of some fey French movie from the Fifties, when...

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Thursday dismissed European calls to suspend the upgrade in Israel's relations with the European Union. "Don't set conditions for us," Netanyahu told Mirek Topolanek during the Czech premier's visit to Israel. Netanyahu said Israel's relationship to Europe should not be linked to its relationship to the Palestinians. "Peace is in Israel's interest no less than it is in Europe's interest, and there's no need to make the upgrade in relations with Israel conditional on progress on the peace process," Netanyahu said. "We are in the process of reviewing our policy; don't rush us." Topolanek is the...

EU officials raised concerns over the commitment of Israel's prime minister designate Binyamin Netanyahu to pursue genuine peace talks with Palestinians. Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt said he is worried Netanyahu's talks with hard-line parties to form a coalition could halt peace talks with Palestinians. Czech Deputy Prime Minister Alexandr Vondra says he expects a "rough start" once a new Israeli government takes office, warning a two-state peace deal between Israelis and Palestinians is narrowing now that Netanyahu is likely to form a government. The EU's 27 foreign ministers were discussing peace efforts in the Middle East at talks Monday.

A GANG of children have been caught trying to roast two puppies over an open fire. Shocked and huddled together for safety, the puppies were rescued from an act of almost unbelievable barbarity on a canal bank near Manchester in England. A gang of youths had seized the seven-week-old brother and sister puppies and were slowly roasting them over a bonfire. Yelping in panic and distress as their fur began to burn, the pair struggled desperately to escape the children's clutches. The commotion attracted a walker who ran over to the bonfire and ordered the gang to release them immediately.

DUBLIN, Ireland (AP) — Across Europe, President Barack Obama's decision to shut the Guantanamo Bay prison has raised an awkward question: Which EU states that railed against the camp will offer new lives to released prisoners? The U.S. Defense Department says about 50 of the 245 prisoners awaiting freedom cannot go home again on security or political grounds, raising the need to find an alternative place to send them. But European Union members long critical of Guantanamo shied away Friday from any firm commitments to help. Ireland has joined Portugal, France, Germany and Switzerland in saying it probably would participate...

US President Barack Obama's call to suspend trials of "war on terror" suspects at Guantanamo raised hopes worldwide that the prison could be closed soon, but not all welcomed the idea of repatriating ex-inmates. EU Justice Commissioner Jacques Barrot hailed Obama's request to prosecutors as a step toward shutting the facility, which has been plagued by accusations of torture and become a symbol of US excesses. "I am delighted that one of the first acts of President Obama has been to turn the page on this sad episode of Guantanamo prison," Barrot said in a statement. He also stressed that...

<p>Last week, Rahul Gandhi put his skills of persuasive politics on show by accompanying fellow mediap ro cl a i m e d prime minister-in-waiting, British foreign secretary David Miliband, on a poverty tour of Amethi. The outcome was not very fulfilling for India. Stimulated, presumably, by his night out in the ‘real India’, Miliband arrived at the scene of the 26/11 outrage in Mumbai and gratuitously proclaimed that the “resolution of the dispute over Kashmir would help deny extremists in the region one of their main call to arms...” The best antidote to terror, he added, was “cooperation” and “instinctive multilateralism”. Miliband may be complimented for his bluntness and liberal compassion but in terms of tact and sensitivity this was akin to a visiting Indian dignitary telling Londoners after the July 7, 2005 bombings that a more inclusive development of the ghettos would have helped dissipate the anger of alienated Muslim youth. Shorn of measured prose, Miliband’s message to India from the scene of the carnage was stark: You had it coming, mate! There are two ways of viewing Miliband’s unexpected assault on the geniality that has marked Indo-British relations since the 1990s. The first would be to link Miliband’s bleeding heart to the mundane compulsions of the Labour Party’s vote-bank politics. But courting the Mirpuri vote was a minor consideration. The greater likelihood is that decent Leftliberals are unable to distinguish between empathy and condescension. The likes of Miliband are instinctively more at ease inspecting the ‘good works’ in Amethi (he would, of course, loath the ambience of Tory-voting rural England) than soaking in the headiness of a Vibrant Gujarat meet. The hut in Amethi may have reinforced a stereotype of Third World poverty and invited patronising concern; the we-cando-it exuberance in Ahmedabad last week, however, invoked the fearful imagery of brash Texans and sinister Russian entrepreneurs. There is an unstated but real conflict between the bleeding India of NGOs and the shining India of the productive sector. Miliband’s thesis was an expression of that irreconcilable clash. If Miliband’s bid to bless Lashkar-e-Taiba with a nobility of purpose was purely the reflection of an individual’s derangement, it could have been viewed with a generosity due to an earnest young man out to make a mark. In the nuanced world of diplomacy it could even be offset by Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s hard-headed observation that a majority of terrorist plots in the UK had a definite Pakistan connection. Unfortunately, a show of indulgence is unwarranted. Miliband wasn’t, after all, concerning himself with terrorism in South Asia alone. The central premise of his lecture was that the “war on terror” as defined by President George W Bush after 9/11 was “misleading and mistaken” because it conferred an artificial unity of purpose on Islamist terrorism and because it also “implied that the correct response was primarily military.” Although, he did not say so explicitly, Miliband inferred that the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq were misadventures. Although, it is now obligatory to abuse the outgoing US president, it is instructive to look back on 9/11 and ask whether or not the Bush response was flawed. On September 20, 2001, Bush promised Congress that “We will direct every resource at our command... to the disruption and to the defeat of the global terror networks.” Bush walked the talk but with mixed results. His greatest achievement was in making Americans safe at home; his greatest failure was to get bogged down in a needless war in Iraq that diverted resources from the terror epicentre in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Bush was audacious and took chances. But to Miliband, he should have responded “by championing the rule of law, not subordinating it” and built on the “solidarity between peoples and nations... based not on who we are against, but on the idea of who we are and the values we share.” Implicit is the advice to India to engage with terror rather than confront it. Yet, Miliband would have strengthened his case by specifying the values that bind the three democracies with those who idolise Osama bin Laden. Is it democracy? Religious freedom? Gender equity? Human rights? If this is a foretaste of the Obama order, India will have reason to mourn the passing of the Bush era.</p>

President Obama will close Guantanamo. It's just a matter of time. We should forcibly repatriate the prisoners and avoid the inevitable legal farce that will ensue. That won't happen because Europeans are shameless hypocrites.European Hypocrisy Earth Times reported a few months back how we had just returned six more well-fed, tanned and rested Guantanamo prisoners back to the 8th century house of horror societies they came from. One paragraph from the article stood out:“About 270 detainees are still being held at Guantanamo. The Defense Department said it was still looking for countries that would take in about 65 prisoners deemed...

Europe has fallen in love with America again because of Barack Obama. European leaders who celebrated his election victory are now signalling that they want an end to the estrangement between the two parts of the Western alliance during the Bush years.

Hamburg, Germany ---------------------- Milan,Italy ---------------------- Geneva, Switzerland ---------------------- Washington DC, USA ---------------------- Obama,Japan ---------------------- Rome,Italy ---------------------- Paris, France ---------------------- Jakarta, Indonesia ---------------------- Honk Kong, China ----------------------

CNN) -- Europe's expectations of a Barack Obama presidency are vibrant, vast and probably incapable of fulfillment by any president, let alone one who will come to office in the middle of a worldwide economic crisis and with huge, unfinished business in Iraq and Afghanistan. There is no doubting the buzz and the optimism that the election victory of an African-American candidate has brought. Most in Europe are instinctively America's friends and, after the unilateralism of the Bush years, they want to have something to love about America again. Obama's arrival, they hope and believe, will give them that opportunity....

US allies will press Congress to urgently pass a huge bailout package for the financial system as failure to do so would hurt the US and world economies, Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said. Rudd said he had spoken to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown overnight and they had agreed to urge US lawmakers to reverse their decision to reject the US$700 billion (HK$5.46 trillion) package, saying that had been "a bad development''. "The attitude that we will adopt, and I believe other friends and allies of the United States will adopt, is to urge the United States Congress to...

It doesn't matter who wins! Seriously, guys, America is about to become, once again, the coolest place on Earth. An era is ending. If you still think the US is home to all that is fatty and unwholesome and militaristic and cloth-eared and generally low-grade, and not much else, it may be time to give the Yanks another chance. Nothing Sarah Palin and her followers can do will prevent America's steady movement away from social conservatism Politically, socially, culturally, America is - as we watch transfixed and, in spite of ourselves, impressed - being born again. Suddenly we are reminded...

In the 19th century Americans took very seriously Washington’s warning against “entangling alliances” which might interfere with the country’s unfolding “Manifest Destiny” of dynamic growth and expansion. A corollary to this belief was that the “Great American Democracy” was a unique-perhaps even divinely inspired-form of political organization vastly superior to the Old World’s tired regimes of aristocratic privilege and downtrodden masses. In the 20th century America entered upon the world stage powerfully and decisively coming to the aid of embattled European democracies and leading them to victory in two World Wars and the Cold War. Launching these extraordinary interventions were...

Recent fighting between Russian and Georgian forces (ostensibly over Georgia’s breakaway provinces of South Ossetia and Abkhazia) has spawned fears of a widening war in the Caucasus, Moscow’s resurging military aggressiveness, and the perceived inability of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to deal with either. So far, the sum total of the West’s response to the Russian invasion has been negligible. And experts contend the invasion may be the kick-start needed to re-galvanize the nearly 60-year-old mutual-defense alliance formed during the early years of the Cold War as a means of collective defense against the Soviet Union. Unfortunately, a...

European Union foreign ministers say they will not support a military strike on Iran but want more talks to try to resolve worries Tehran might be developing nuclear weapons. British Foreign Secretary David Miliband says it is now up to Iran to respond to global powers and EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana after talks in Geneva on Saturday.

Some European officials, speaking under conditions of anonymity, are expressing concerns that Senator Obama may become the next U.S. president. “It’s not that we don’t like Obama on a personal level,” said one source. “He is a lot like us, but that is a cause for worry. We have always counted on America. America saved us from Hitler. America deterred the Red Army from marching into Western Europe. America was there to ward off the bullies who picked on us.” “Maybe having a gauche ‘cowboy America’ to rely on is a crutch we don’t really want to part with,” said...

Blackouts that plunged 500,000 homes into darkness last month were compounded by European environmental restrictions over the use of coal and oil-fired power stations, The Times has learnt. The unexpected shutdown of two power stations on Tuesday, May 29, led to the worst disruption to the UK’s power network in more than 20 years, prompting new concerns over the stability of Britain’s ageing power grid. However, industry sources say that a key factor was the European Union’s Large Combustion Plant Directive (LCPD), which sets strict limits on the number of hours that some of Britain’s largest and most heavily polluting...

Senator Barack Obama emerged as Europe's favourite candidate for America’s presidency today when a poll conducted for Telegraph.co.uk gave him 52 per cent support across five of the world’s richest nations, including Britain. John McCain, the presumed Republican nominee, received only 15 per cent of the vote in unprecedented survey covering Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Russia. Poll analysis: Barack Obama wins over anti-Bush Britain Poll analysis: Russians consider the US a force for evil Country-by-country poll results (Excel file) The poll also found a striking level of anti-American feeling in every country. A clear majority of Russians - 56...

Dutch political cartoonist Gregorius Nekschot was arrested on suspicion of violating the country’s so-called “hate speech” laws. It took a police team of 10 to accomplish the apprehension of Nekschot at his home, where he declined to resist arrest, much to the dismay of several of the officers. Police also seized his computer, sketches, CDs, DVDs, pencils, paper and telephone. The presence of several “unclean” comestibles—a can of Spam and a bag of fried pork rinds in his larder was also noted. Nekschot’s cartoons have mainly mocked leftists and Muslim extremists, though the spokeswoman for his publisher said “any strong...

Just before Prime Minister Gordon Brown's trip to Washington, he leaked a gratuitous media insult to George W. Bush, with whom he meets today. Said the UK Telegraph, in a big headline, "Gordon Brown calls for revival of US greatness." "Gordon Brown is to urge the next American president to re-engage with the world and show the kind of leadership America demonstrated in the immediate aftermath of the Second World War. ... His message will be conveyed to all three candidates for the White House in back-to-back meetings during his trip to the United States this week." Translation: "Up yours,...

LUXEMBOURG, (AP) -- The European Court of Justice ruled Tuesday that only the tasty, crumbly cheese that has been made for some 800 years near the Italian city of Parma can legally be called Parmesan. In a case dating back to 2003, the court criticized Germany for allowing sales of imitation "Parmesan" in violation of European Union food origin rules that reserve the name Parmesan for Italian cheese only. The case was brought by the European Commission. There was no punishment for Germany, but German producers will now have to change the name of their cheese. The ruling echoed an...

Lately we've been getting a lot of these "right to vote" emails. Well now it seems that even Europeans want the "right to vote" ... in American elections. http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/2825 An editorial in the Brussels Journal explains that American presidential elections are not "home affairs." Because the US elections impact the entire world, the editors of the Brussels Journal feel that they should have their say. Yup, you got it ... the Euro-weenies now seem to feel that they have some sort of a right to participate in U.S. presidential elections. The editorial says, "Hence, the world should be given the...

Bucharest and Brussels, 16 Nov. (AKI) - Romania, one two countries accused by Europe's top human rights watchdog of hosting secret CIA jails used to interrogate Islamist terrorism suspects, says it has written to the European Union executive denying the charges. The letter to the European Commission is a response to a request from EU justice and security commissioner Franco Frattini asking Romania and Poland - the other country implicated by the Council of Europe - for an explanation. A Romanian spokeswoman in Brussels, Doris Mircea, said that a committee of inquiry set up by the government concluded that the...

As part of her job at an influential national security think tank, Julianne Smith brings politicians and senior policy-makers from all over Europe to Washington for candid closed-door meetings with the policy advisers to the candidates vying to replace President George W. Bush. The Europeans usually arrive eager to discuss the coming era that some are dubbing "AB" — "After Bush." That is the highly anticipated period beginning on Jan. 20, 2009, in which a newly sworn-in American president, chastened by the troubles in Iraq and by the scorn of allies who say the Bush White House flouted international law,...

Carbon health warnings for all new cars Ben Webster, Transport Correspondent All advertising for new cars will have to carry cigarette-style “health warnings” about their environmental impact, under a European plan to force manufacturers to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Companies that produce the most polluting cars will also have to pay penalties of up to £5,000 per vehicle, with the proceeds used to reduce the cost of the most efficient cars.Advertisements in newspapers and magazines, will have to devote at least 20 per cent of the space to details about fuel economy and CO2 emissions. At the moment manufacturers have...

Gordon Brown has banned ministers from using the word “Muslim” in ­connection with the ­terrorism crisis. The Prime Minister has also instructed his team – including new Home Secretary Jacqui Smith – that the phrase “war on ­terror” is to be dropped. The shake-up is part of a fresh attempt to improve community relations and avoid offending Muslims, adopting a more “consensual” tone than existed under Tony Blair. However, the change provoked claims last night that ministers are indulging in yet more political correctness. The sudden shift in tone emerged in comments by Mr Brown and Ms Smith in the...

BRITAIN'S controversial military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan have left Europe at risk of attack from Islamic terrorists, the continent's leading police chief has warned. Max-Peter Ratzel, director of Europol, the European Union's police agency, claims the continuing involvement in the war zones has boosted the threat of reprisals from al-Qaeda and represents the biggest single threat to the security of the EU. The startling conclusion from one of Europe's most respected police chiefs represents a massive embarrassment for Tony Blair, who has repeatedly insisted that Britain's foreign policy has not contributed to the threat of Islamic terror attacks in...

Many Europeans believe the Jews dictate US policy in the Mideast, wield disproportionate global economic influence and talk too much about the Holocaust, according to a report released Monday by the Anti-Defamation League. The report's findings found that significant numbers of people in five European countries continue to hold anti-Jewish stereotypes, said Abraham Foxman, national director of the US group. "A large number of Europeans continue to be infected with anti-Jewish attitudes, holding on to classical anti-Jewish canards and conspiracy theories," Foxman said at a news conference where he presented the report. The survey of 2,714 people in France, Germany,...

Remember the 2000 election, when a major concern (among talking heads) regarding George W. Bush was his lack of gravitas? At least Dubya was in his second term as governor of the second largest state of the country. Fast forward to 2007, and of the Democrat candidates, who has the gravitas to be President? Hillary? Please, don't make me laugh. She's been a Senator a total of six years, and she's cut-and-run from her most important vote. Edwards? The Breck Girl? BWAHAHAHAHA! Obama? Two years in the Senate? He's THE reason gravitas is not being discussed. All the man has...

UNISEX wash basin areas could be built in schools to help tackle bullying. The move is part of recommendations covering schools in England being rebuilt or refurbished as part of the Government's £45bn Building Schools for the Future (BSF) scheme. BSF aims to rebuild or renew every one of England's 3,500 state secondary schools during the 15-year lifetime of the initiative. The new guidelines were issued by the Government agency responsible for delivering the programme, Partnerships for Schools. Toilets in Schools was published earlier this month and details new toilet block designs to be incorporated into all BSF schools. It...

LUXEMBOURG – The European Union agreed on Monday to inform groups and people why they are put on its list of terrorist organisations, a move aimed at avoiding decisions being overturned in court. Europe's second-highest court last year annulled an EU decision to freeze the funds of the People's Mujahideen, the armed wing of France-based National Council of Resistance of Iran, for failing to give it a fair hearing or adequate reasons. The European Union has kept the group on its blacklist, having sent it a letter explaining its reasons. EU foreign ministers meeting in Luxembourg on Monday agreed that...

In response to terrorist attacks in New York, Madrid and London, the European Union has adopted an extensive and constantly evolving action plan. However, deep-seated problems persist. The provision of security for citizens is a core competence of E.U. member states. However, the union itself has become increasingly active in combating terrorism. In the immediate aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001, the E.U. agreed an Action Plan to Combat Terrorism. It included numerous proposals: -- International cooperation. The U.S. requested a range of measures and reforms to be implemented at both E.U. and national levels. Cooperation strengthened. The E.U. is also...

LONDON - The deadly university rampage in Virginia that killed 33 people sent shock waves around the world Tuesday with newspapers and talk shows delving into the American psyche and raising questions about lax gun controls in the United States. Most expressed shock at the shooting but few said they were surprised — criticizing the availability of guns in the United States, lax gun controls and the number of Americans who cling to the constitutional right that allows them to bear arms... < /snip > “I think if this does prompt a serious and reflective debate on gun issues and...

Live online at Sky News right now: http://news.sky.com/skynews/livenewsevents

Without America's might the options are few By Thomas Harding, Defence Correspondent Last Updated: 1:53am BST 31/03/2007 The Government has few options if it wants to pressure Iran into releasing the captured Britons. Military action is unfeasible without American support and so is a military blockade of the Gulf. Unless the United Nations shows more rigour, sanctions are unlikely to hurt Iran in the short term. There is a feeling that the 15 could be in for a long stay in Iran and face the nightmare prospect for Britain of a show trial. Washington has remained largely subdued on the...

See for example this thread first. Also, no limerick tomorrow, I'm going on a campout with no internet access :-( So you think all of Europe is fine? The Swiss invaded Lichtenstein! But no-one was harmed-- the Swiss weren't armed. [*] (They mistakenly walked past the line.)

ROME - A judge Wednesday ordered a U.S. soldier to stand trial in absentia for the fatal shooting of an Italian intelligence agent at a checkpoint in Baghdad, the prosecutor said. Spc. Mario Lozano is indicted for murder and attempted murder in the death of Nicola Calipari, who was shot on March 4, 2005, on his way to the Baghdad airport shortly after securing the release of an Italian journalist who had been kidnapped in the Iraqi capital, prosecutor Pietro Saviotti said. Another agent, who was driving the car, and the journalist, Giuliana Sgrena, were wounded. "This looks to me...

<p>An EU internal paper has admitted that Iran will one day have enough enriched uranium to make a nuclear bomb.</p> <p>The paper also says UN pressure has not helped to slow down Iran's nuclear programme, and that economic sanctions alone will not resolve the problem.</p>

PARIS (AP) - The United States could face possible European carbon taxes on its exports if it does not sign global climate accords, French President Jacques Chirac was quoted as saying in an interview published Thursday. "A carbon tax is inevitable," Chirac reportedly said in the interview with the International Herald Tribune, The New York Times and French weekly Nouvel Observateur. Chirac urged the United States to sign the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, which calls for steep cuts in carbon dioxide emissions believed to worsen global warming, the publications said. France has pushed in the past for a carbon tax on...

Chilly northern Europe could reap big benefits from global warming, while the Mediterranean faces crippling shortages of both water and tourists by the middle of the century, according to the first comprehensive study of its effects on the continent. Fewer in the north would die of cold, crops there would boom and the North Sea coast could become the new Riviera, an analysis to be approved by the European Commission next week shows. But the annual migration of rich northern Europeans to the south could stop – with dramatic consequences for the economies of Spain, Greece and Italy. A sixth...