newsitems

*Strasbourg/EU Parliament/Angelo Marcopolo/- Real and conscious Europeans' current Priority is to saveguard EU's Unity, in front of risks to break down in a Multi-Speed loose constellation, and not to Turkey's controversial and notoriously unpopular EU entry demands, particularly given also the Difficulties they provoke to the Future of EU Cohesion Funds, replied in substance to "EuroFora"s questions the experienced former EU Commissioner and New EU Parliament's President of the Committee for Regional Development, Danuta Hübner from Poland :

 - Raising a "second Question" during President Hübner's Press Conference in EU Parliament in Strasbourg, (See other NewsReport, herewith, on our previous, main Question to Mrs Hübner on this same occasion), "EuroFora" reminded to the experienced MEP, former EU Commissioner, the fact that, in her preliminary remarks, she had just "evoked, and also expressed, mezo vocce, a voluntary optimism, but also a certain Concern about the Future of (EU) Cohesion funds"

 - "Sorry to come back to a big Question which has  been raised in the Past, even more than 10 Years ago, (in fact since 1997+, i.e. almost 15 Years earlier), but, given the Fact that Enlargement issues are usually not taken into account when it comes about planning Multi-Annual financing (perspectives)", while some unclear yet and pending issues oblige People to inevitably raise unavoidable questions, particularly during the Global Crisis" :

=> - "Do you think that Europe could seriously consider now, and has it today the means, to both guarantee Cohesion, not only Social, but also Economic, i.e. Convegence in Productivity, Competitiveness, etc, which is the main issue obviously now, and, at the same time , to seriously consider how and when it might eventually, be able, from the Economic point of view, and on Other issues also (as Human Rights/Democracy/Rule of Law, Culture/History/Geography, etc) , proceed to Big and difficult Enlargements ?"

- "I don't mean small (and easy) Enlargements, such as f.ex. to Iceland, (or even Peaceful European Country Ukraine's just 45 Million inhabitants, Culturally, Historically, Geographically already integrated in Europe, even from a point of view of High-Tech, Religious and  Educational level, etc), but really Big and hard thinks, like Turkey,  (more than 72 Millions populations, mainly Asiatic Location, serious Violations of Human Rights/Democracy/State of Law, Militarist interventions/threats, totally Differend in Language, Culture, Religion, History, with a much lower level in Education, Development, etc. and notorious "Gaps" which would exhaust EU Cohesion/Regional Funds, etc). People have raised Questions about that, even a long time before the (Global) Crisis. How do you feel about that now ?", "EuroFora" asked Hübner.
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Danuta Hubner :
 
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    + "It's a Difficult Question",  to reflect "Now, on this link, in the Future, between (EU's) Enlargement (and Cohesion/Regional Funds) : acknowledged from the outset the experienced former Minister, former EU Commissioner (2004-2009)and EU Parliament's new President of the Regional Development Committee up to 2014, Professor Danuta Hübner, on "EuroFora"s question which obviously pointed mainly at Turkey (Comp. supra)...      

                                                           
    - However, as usual, until recently, for Polish MEP, (and given their normal support particularly for EU Enlargement to neighouring and Historically linked, Peaceful European Country of Ukraine, that "EuroFora" also supports), she reminded, of course, that, in principle,- "as you know, Enlargement is, I think, a most Important EU Policy, because that's how the EU is really Expanding its Area of Peace, Welfare, on Changing Europe towards making it Stronger Globally. So that, I think, that EU has not said its last word with regard to its Size", Hübner said, reserving a certain marge of manoeuver (f.ex. for Ukraine : Comp. Supra).

    => - "But, of course, the situation Today is slightly Difficult to think about Accelerated process, of Big Enlargement in the very Near Future", Chairwoman Hübner went on to acknowledge now.

    >>> Because "we are, rather, trying to keep the Unity of Europe, and to avoid the Double Speed, or a Triple Speed of Europes, or whatever it could be", the experienced former EU Commissioner warned, in front of notorious pressure for EU's dislocation.
 
    - In consequence, "I would rather say, that éToday the Focus is more on Changing the Neighborhood policy, to really make it Stronger, and address both the needs of Neighbours and of the EU", she observed.

    - "But, on Enlargement, I'd say that we (EU) continue the processes which had been launched, (because) there are commitments, you know, (as she said, even if they are normally from Both sides, and not only from the EU part, so that the EU could -and even should- normally liberate itself from any eventual obligation of the Past if its interocutor does not respect his own commitmenrts, as. f.ex. Turkey notoriously does, according even to EU Council's official denunciations from 2006 up to 12/2011 included).

     => "However, I don't see a very Big Enlargement (as for Turkey : Comp. Supra) Looming in the very close Horizon. I do Not believe in it, now", experienced EU Parliament's Chairwoman Danuta Hübner (who reportedly joined recently; since 2010, even, a "Federalist" EU grouping of MEPs etc.) definitively concluded, at the End of her reply to "EuroFora"s above mentioned question.

                                                                                                                                  
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*Strasbourg/Angelo Marcopolo/- Drivers of the 1st World tour in a standard Electric Car, acknowledged, smiling, to "EuroFora" that they regretted to be obliged to travel without their two girlfriends, present together with their Families, Friends, Sponsors and Journalists at their official departure from Strasbourg, earlier today, also because one of the 4 seats had to be sacrificed for the material transported by the crew, since  Internet, World-wide links, together with High-Tech real-time Data transfert by Orange Telecom and efficient, both on-line and on the spot Global Assistance by AXA insurance Co, will be a must for the adventurous attempt to cross even Kazakhstan's desert, USA's Rocky Mountains, China's Silk Road, and a part of Russian Siberia, from South-East Asian jungles to  EU's busiest Capitals and countryside, etc., suceeding to find more than 324 electric refueling points (i.e. local "Pluggers" at key locations) throughout the World, in a varierty of geographic, linguistic, social and cultural differences, whenever needed.

The practical aim is to convince the largest number possible of laymen that E-cars are already able to serve at least for short Urban and peri-urban transports, f.ex. in order to drive between home and office, accompagny children to school, buy food at the grosser store, or simply get a newspaper and cigarets before meeting friends at a local coffee shop, just round the corner... The first E-cars have just been produced and started to be distributed in main EU Countries, already more than a Year ago, while the French State, as well as Strasbourg's Region Alsace currently spend some 100 Millions € each to give accumulated Grants of 2.000 or 3.000 € (i.e. totalling 4.000 to 6.000 € per car) to the first buyers of such Electric cars.

At the same time, at €uroZone's core, between Strasbourg and Stuttgart, France and Germany are developing pioneer projects, as "Chrome", throughout Alsace Region and adjacent Baden-Wurtemberg Länder, destinated to boost Infrastructures and Networks , such as Electricity-counters, etc. to test several Hundreds of pioneer E-Cars in real-time use by local citizens, as part of a larger, Ambitious Plan to turn all that area into a European and International Show-case for all various kinds of "Eco-Mobility", (including High-Speed Train, River Ships, E-Bikes, new generation Helicopters, etc), thanks to High-Tech Innovations, as decided since 2010 by President Sarkozy and Chancellor Merkel, (a strong supporter of the idea : See "EuroFora"s NewsReport from the "2020 Franco-German Agenda", decided at Elysee Palace from February 2010).

Oil/Gas still remaining EU's most expensive Imports from abroad, in addition to the Climate Change alleged effects of CO2 on Global Warming theories, after the recent controversies on Nuclear energy's safety, as well as to Wind turbines' Landscape effects, rare space use and/or Birds/Fish's security, Electric Power Companies, as EDF, an E-World Odyssey sponsor, were looking more and more towards new scientific/technologic breakthroughs in GeoThermy (f.ex. by reaching much deeper underGround areas, always, however, with a risk to accidentaly provoke Earthquakes by water penetration inside faults, as in the case of Colorado 1975, Istanbul 1999, or Mulhouse 2007, etc), or in Solar Energy, (either by reaching Gigantic Dimensions, f.ex. with the famous "Destertec" and "TransGreen" projects to produce Power in Sahara desert and transport it to Europe via a Mediterranean Network of Sea-Cables, or by creating a new technology, perhaps inspired by Plant's PhotoSynhesis, etc), as EDF Experts discussed with "EuroFora" on this occasion.

Unless it's other ideas, as that of Professor Amouroux, experienced former University President and recent Rapporteur for Solar Technologies to the French Innovation Agency, which might win the current EU quest for "2050" Energy Strategy, that EU Commissioner Oettinger prepares to discuss with EU Parliament soon, as he recently said to "EuroFora" : A scientific-technologic breakthrough approach, which claims that climate-dangerous CO2 could be used in order to produce some new kinds of Energy, including Electric power, (f.ex. in form of Hydrogen batteries, etc), but also for Methane, etc. Because, according to Professor Amouroux's calculations, as he said to "EuroFora", it would be "Mathematically impossible" to replace soon all "old" Cars by new, Electric Cars, in the foreseable future.

(../..)

        

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(NDLR : "DraftNews", as already sent to "EuroFora"s Subsrcribers/Donors. A more accurate, full Final Version is due asap).

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*Pfettisheim-Truchtersheim-Strasbourg/Angelo Marcopolo/- France and EU's Agriculture has an important potential both in EU Society and Economy, and particularly in EU's relations with the rest of the World, so that Franco-German cooperation on strategy is crucial, practically agreed with "EuroFora" the experienced Minister of Agriculture and formerly of EU affairs, Bruno le Maire, in the course of multiple visits to meet and debate with productors and their representatives on the spot, around Strasbourg, including the surprising discovery of a model Family - business, both Human, Ecologic and Economically Efficient, created by the President of EU Parliament's biggest Political Group, that of ChristianDemocrats/EPP, Joseph Daul, while MEPs' debates and votes on the 2014-2020 Pluri-Annual Financial Perspectives are still pending.
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    - An EU  "Common Agricultural Policy has no meaning unless EU has a clear Vision of its Interests inside the Globalisation and in its Trade Relations vis a vis its major Partners ... French and German Governments, as well as Agricultural organisations of both countries will pursue their dialogue during all European and International Negotiations", stressed a joint Declaration by the Ministers of Agriculture on the on-going CAP Reform, which clearly underlines that "a sustainable, productive and competitive Agriculture is of essential importance for Growth and Jobs in Europe", according to the official documents of the latest Franco-German inter-Governemental Summit, together with President Sarkozy and Chancellor Merkel, earlier this week at Elysee Palace in Paris, which dealt with a large scope of issues, from Scientific Research and Technology (where Agronomy and Plants had an important part) up to Space HighTech and EU Finances, etc.

    - "In Europe nothing  serious can be built without a Franco-German cooperation", stressed later, at another, political meeting in Strasbourg, the German-speaking French Minister, who, however, hadn't hesitated, earlier, speaking "as a well-known Friend of Germany", to reply to Peasants' concerns about largely Differend minimum Labour Costs in either side of the Rhine River, to also warn everyone involved, that "we can't build EU's Common Market on Social Dumping", as he said.

    At the same time, the Franco-German Agriculture Ministers agreed, earlier this week, also on the principle that "Market Instruments (such as Intervention, private Stocks, etc) are part of a Safety net due to protect Agriculture from Major Crisis' effects in Europe. Some can be even better organized and/or simplified", but "it is of Essential importance for such Financial means to be effectively activated on time in case of Crisis", according to the Franco-German Summit.  - "In the Past, some former EU Commissioners didn't even want to touch upon Markets, while, now, we know that, on the contrary, everything must me ready in order to be able to act efficiently, and on time, to Regulate Markets whenever really needed", stressed the French Minister,  in reply to Peasants' observations, revealing an Historic shift at EU's core.

    In this regard, Bruno Le Maire observed that, despite the present times of Global Crisis, Agriculture already started to prove its Economic value in the World, being one of the rare sectors where Expo/Impo surplus was positive +11% on 2011, having even multiplied by X 300% the value of its Exports from France, often with Quality products of World-wide reputation,  while also contributing into taking care of the Landscape, protecting Health, Family and Social Cohesion, so that he "felt Proud" to be an Agriculture Minister. And recent Prices' developments, throughout the World, clearly indicate a huge potential, he added, citting, f.ex. the multiplication of  the Market value of 1 kg. of meat from 1$, five years earlier, without any significant change for more than 15 Years, with that of today, which grew up to + 3,20 €, as President Daul had  already noted earlier (See previous "EuroFora"s NewsReport).

    EU's role in relation with big Partners such as Russia and/or China, (where f.ex. New Zealand peasants establish themselves in order to better export Agricultural Products and Know-how, as Bruno Le Maire noted, while the Chinese Population augments even with huge leaps forwards, as that of a recent census' discovery of 200 Millions more People, cited by President Daul), are due to become crucial key-issues in the foreseaable future, the Minister observed while discussing seriously and factually, on several concrete and well documented issues with representatives of various sectors, from Farmers to Milk and Dairie or Meat producers, Crops, Fruits and Vegetables, etc, particularly in a "dense" debate at nearby Truchtersheim :

    I.e. in the middle of Kochersberg area, the Historic food-producer area for the PanEuropean Strasbourg City, as local Communication agent Lindy Vandon, reminded to "EuroFora", while beautiful, solid structures of Historic Agricultural Architecture, popped up almost everywhere, offering fresh Eggs, meat and bread, salads end fruits, crops and maiz, even Wood, etc., in the middle of superbe Landscapes with an eye-catching Sunset throughout long Hills, at exactly the same village that President Sarkozy had visited earlier for a landmark overview on all aspects of the "Rural World", (see relevant "EuroFora"s NewsReport from the spot).

    - "Ecology is important, but we must also be careful not to over-multiply Bureaucratic harassment and excessive Resctrictions pushed by some Radicalized Lobbies, which risk to transform Peasants into another Species Threatened with Extinction !", warned a Young Agriculture worker, inevitably reminding to "EuroFora" the regrets expressed  some time ago,  by some British interlocutors for the sad and dangerous fact that more than  a Decade of "Technocratic", as they said, ill-management of UK's Farmers and Peasants, pushed to drop their rural jobs and move into towns, had abandoned the empty Countryside into dangerous .. "Foxes and Wolves", threatening now to aggress even Family Homes...  On the contrary, conscious and intelligent Agriculture helps take care of Landscapes and contributes to  Environment protection, so that we have to establish a "balanced" use of rural space.

    + Moreover, landmark French and EU products, as Milk and Dairy, "need sufficient Land" and space, Sector Reprentative Debes told Le Maire and explained later to "EuroFora", so that if some current territorial Restrictions persist and aggravate, the results risk to be negative,  he warned. France having EU's largest available Land compared to its Population, the threat should logically be even more important in all other EU Member States....

    Bruno Le Maire acknowledged that France's Milk and Dairy products were generally considered as being among the Best, World-wide, and added also, the Fact that there is a kind of "Huge Explosion" in Milk and Dairy products' Consumption currently imported f.ex. in China, (to the point that some New Zeland Farmers extend their production even to Chinese land, as he noted). Therefore, he pointed towards various measures for a better use of precious, productive Land, including with recent decisions taken by President Sarkozy to augment + 30% the Building ratio in Urban areas, so that a higher Density in Cities may preserve more free Land for Agricultural Production, as he said.

    However, a simple anonymous Woman, apparently a grass-roots EU Citizen generally unfamiliar to politics, who exceptionaly intervened at another meeting in Strasbourg, later on this same busy day, questioned Minister Le Maire, inter alia, also on a key point in real practice, which generaly goes unoticed :  - "Some Towns recently need to consume even more and more Land, asking to build even more and more Houses than before, not so much because this would correspond to a suddenly High Augmentation of the Population, but, on the contrary, because recent decades have often undermined and destroyed Familly Values : Thus, now, they ask for one separate Appertment for an Uni-Parental so-called "Family" (i.e. a Woman alone with one Kid, etc), and another, independent Appartment for her former Husband, often even a ... 3rd Appartment for one of their Kids who might have left his/her Parental Home earlier than it was used to be done in the Past,  followed perhaps even by a 2nd or, may be also a 3rd Kid who would prefer to "live independently", i.e. separated from his/her Family, etc. that Lady observed critically. So that, finally, by undermining traditional Family Values, things might go so nasty that we would need, perhaps, even ... 4 or 5 separate Appartments today, just in order to House one (1) Family !", she denounced...

    Bruno Le Maire, a generally considered as Brillant, Young Father of 4 Children already, didn't deny the risk, but it's, perhaps there where he was personally quite well placed in order to find what seems to be the best answer, that he curiously appeared as if he had rather missed the (main) point : Instead of focusing on Family Values, as that Questioning Lady apparently wanted (See supra), he prefered to soberly reply with other Economico/Social measures, may be interesting, but, comparatively non-essential...

    However, if he had a spare moment to look back towards what he had personally seen during all this extremely busy Day (full of more than 4 or 5 differend Meetings at various locations), he would certainly realize very easily the main point, just by remembering the only real Agricultural exploitation that he vistied earlier today :

    F.ex. that of two young Peasants : Dominique Daul and Laurent Boime, the first being President Joseph Daul's son, who took over the Family SME Agricultural Business initially created by his Father and Mother for Cows and Tobacco, when his father was elected MEP, and started to develop and transform it into an apparently succesful, growing meat business, obliged to take a Partner after 2008, when his father was elected President of EU Parliament's biggest Political Group, without any Time left to help his son, who works, since then, in the astonishing format of an SME with just two Chiefs of exploitation, (the young partners - friends Dominique and Laurent), simply helped, "occasionaly", only by the ... Mother of Dominique and the White-haired Father of Laurent, as the presentation of the Farm says...

    Despite that, the "Family business" "Daul/Boime", located at the Top of a Superbe Hill with eye-catching views towards surounding Landscapes including full Sunset and Sunrise, (all Buildings looking in the direction of the Sunrise, as Laurent told "EuroFora"), plenty of revitalizing Oxygen and fresh, Natural Wind, surrounded only by a Field of Maize, but accessible through a tiny, pittoresque village path, as well as from the main road, really looks (even from Satellite photos available at the Internet) as if it was a High-Tech, super-luxe Hotel of 5 stars..., even if, in fact, it's just a two-main buildings Farm, recently extended for a nursery, etc., inhabited only by a couple of Cats, (who protect crops from rats), including a tiny, white-and-black kitten, that Minister Bruno Le Maire suddenly grasped, while speaking with "EuroFora", and brought it smiling in front of Joseph Daul, who exceptionaly droped his otherwise serious look, just for a few seconds to play a while with the tiny kitten, while speaking with the Minister...

    But with more than 650 animals rather confortably housed inside 3 Giant Hangars,  surrounded by Fields totalling some 80 hectares (about 200 acres) growing mainly Maize and Sugar Beets, but also Lucern and etc., at the top of a superbe Hill, this Farm, traditionaly kept as a Small Family Business, is probably the Biggest existing so close to EU/CoE "Capital" city of Strasbourg, that "EuroFora" could normally travel there just with a City Bicycle !

    Comparatively, Daul's Family Home inside the Village, apparently looks rather tiny, .. as if he only slept inside, preferring to spend all day-long by Working (hard) initially to the huge Farm, and afterwards in EU Parliament...  

So that the artificially provoked, Urban problem denounced by the above mentioned critical Lady's intervention against Family values' destruction, would be rather unknown in such a village, (Comp. supra)..

    Probably advancing even further, in Family and Work cohesion, the Wife of one of the two Young Farmers has reportedly realized the good and practical idea to create a Food distribution business inside a neighboring village, where she sells Fresh and Healthy Fruits, Salades, Steaks, Milk and Cheese, etc. coming directly from her Husband's nearby Farm, as well as from the rest of her Parents' family...

    A good opportunity to inspire Minister Bruno Le Maire to propose the idea to create "Regional" commercial distribution of Agricultural products, and mainly fresh foodstuff, so that the production of a region serves, at first, to satisfy the needs of its own inhabitants and their neighbors, before being "exported" further away, through a notoriously crticized "Big Trade circuit".

    However, last but not least, in fact, Agriculture's best byproduct, might not be only Peasants' contribution into taking care of huge Landscapes, (Comp. supra), but, even more important, (adding also a comparatively better Schooling, Home, privacy, calm, Nature proximity, and other real, practical facilities), its contribution into safeguarding a real basis for Family life and values.... (Comp. supra).

A Letter signed by the 4 Biggest €uroZone Countries : Germany, France, Italy and Spain, joined by +5 more €-Members Finland, Austria, Belgium, Greece and Portugal, (i.e. totaling 9 €uro Countries), asking to "accelerate" an EU Directive project to establish a Tax on Financial Transactions, "is a Signal revealing that €uroZone's core is Ready to advance forward", and "shows that the proposal of a French Tax (due to be adopted on Wednesday),  is complementary to EU's process and may incite also other Countries to join the move", stressed French Minister of Economy, Finance and Industry, François Baroin, in a Press statement sent today to Medias including "EuroFora".

The Prime Minister of Italy, Mario Monti, and the Finance Ministers of the other 8 €urozone Countries, "concsious of the European Public Opinion's strong expectations" on the matter, signed and send, indeed, a joint Letter to the Danish rotating Presidency of EU Council, in order "give their full backing to the principle of the EU Directive's draft",  "to complete at least a 1st reading during the 1st Semester of 2012".  

+ They 9 key €urozone players firmly declared their strong conviction that a Financial Transactions' Tax is necessary (also) at an EU level, both in order to ensure a just contribution of the financial sector to the (Global) Financial Crisis' cost, but also in order to ameliorate the Regulation of Financial Markets.

Confirmed by French President Nicolas Sarkozy recently, an initial version of such a Financial Transactions' Tax, contained in the next Rectification Budget, is due to be adopted in Paris on Wednesday during the national Council of Ministers, and is expected to produce fiscal revenues of much more than 1 Billion € per year, while waiting for a more extended version to be endorsed after an EU agreement. But if anyone might, eventually, block EU's decision-making on this point, (which is normaly due to include also speculative transactions on Sovereign Bonds, etc), then, naturally, nothing hinders €uroArea Governance's "regular" New Summits (decided on Decembe 2011 and confirmed on January 2012 in EU Summits' in Brussels) to launch a properly €uroArea move in the Future.

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(NDLR : "DraftNews", as already sent earlier to "EuroFora"s Subscribers/Donors. A more accurate and/or complete, Final Version may come asap).

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