In the spotlight: the standoff between Poland and the European Union
Audio 05:02
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, October 19, 2021 at the European Parliament in Strasbourg.
© AP / Ronald Wittek
By: Sébastien Duhamel Follow
5 mins
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An exchange for the less muscular, this Tuesday, October 19 at the European Parliament, between the President of the European Commission Ursula Von der Leyen, and the Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.
A quarrel that the
Financial Times
now observes with a distant eye, but no less attentive, the British daily devotes its front page to it.
Basically, "
Brussels undertakes to punish Poland for having called into question the unity of European law
", writes the
Financial Times
, when Warsaw denounces for its part a double standard, two measures and "
blackmail
" from Brussels .
A tone that appeals to the European press
However, the form, the tone of this exchange also challenged the European press. In Italy,
La Repubblica
speaks of a "
confrontation
", of a "
verbal confrontation on the verge of insult
", between "
the threat of the President of the European Commission Ursula Von Der Leyen to activate all possible sanctions, starting with the blocking of funds
”, and the response of the Polish Prime Minister having“
reminded his German interlocutor that Poland has already fought against the Third Reich
”. Atmosphere…
A showdown that particularly interests the German press. The
Frankurter Allgemeine
, The
Süddeutsche Zeitung
, all come back and worry.
Die Welt
sees it well too: “
This dispute threatens the very foundations of the EU and could appeal to one person in particular
. Indeed, the arguments used by the Polish prime minister are the same as those used by Boris Johnson for Brexit, the newspaper notes. However, what Warsaw is doing here is "
even more dangerous than Brexit
", underlines a MEP.
Anyway, takes over
La Repubblica
in Italy.
"
Taking into account a similar clash which has already taken place the day before during the Council of Ministers of European Affairs, a second episode of this telenovela will probably take place tomorrow
", Thursday, the opening day of a European summit of heads of State and government.
It will be a question of understanding, at this stage,
“
If and when the rope breaks
,” says
La Repubblica
.
In any case, "
it is certain
", believes
El Mundo
in Spain, "
the key week for the future of Poland-EU relations and for the stability of the Union in the short term has not started well".
Libya, 10 years after Muammar Gaddafi
In the international press, it is also time to take stock. Ten years after the death of Muammar Gaddafi,
L'Orient-Le Jour
today
looks
back on “
the four decades that have shaped Libya
” today. On the Gaddafi heritage, "
political, social, but also economic
" and which "
continues to weigh in silence
", observes the Lebanese newspaper.
L'Orient-Le Jour
explains why the Libyans have such a hard time "
building institutions
". An opponent in exile remembers, for example, the commemorations of the revolution, every April 7. "
The pupils of her Libyan school in London, where she was a refugee with her family, were then encouraged to ransack the offices of the administration, in protest against the established order and in accordance with the anti-statism of the one who presented as the “guide” of a perpetual revolution
”.
All the ingredients of an autocracy and a mined society were there,
L'Orient-Le Jour shells
: Libyans and an opposition relegated "
to the rank of extras in a staging that escapes them
" ; the instrumentalization of clan rivalries and violence by Muammar Gaddafi; an "
atrophied, badly paid and demotivated
"
army
; centralization also "taken
to the extreme, so as to eliminate the traditional levels of power
". It's simple, the "
basic principle was reign through chaos
", summarizes an analyst, and this Gaddafi management obviously "
had consequences on the conditions for the emergence of a political alternative after the revolution.
".
The country is still paying the price today ...
The Basque Country, 10 years after ETA
In Spain, 10 years ago, ETA, the Basque independence group announced the end of its activities after years of terror. And today, a decade later, the Basque Country oscillates "
between normality and risk of forgetting
", headlines
El Pais
. Yes, we read “
in the streets and in politics, the Basque Country experiences a much higher normality than those of Northern Ireland and Colombia, which, almost at the same time, have tackled similar processes
.
The attacks and threats have disappeared
, continues
El Pais
,
the recognition of the victims is there, the political climate has relaxed and identity debates have been eclipsed by citizens
'
problems
”. Yes, but there you go, "
this oasis has a dark side
”, underlines the newspaper. "
The temptation to forget the tragedy lived without drawing the lesson that terrorism had no justification
", first. And then there is always a certain divide with Madrid. There is the absence of a "
shared memory
" which still prevents "
a fully normalized coexistence
", deplores the article.
La Razon,
for his part, observes the double play of Arnaldo Otegi, the former independence leader who is now coordinator of the EH Bildu coalition.
"
Just seven hours after a tearful speech, in which he begged the victims for forgiveness and showed his 'pain' for what should never have happened,
" speaking to his people in Eibar, he said his group was ready to get out the 200 political prisoners still in prison.
A question of the releases which puts the Sanchez government in "
a complicated situation
", notes
La Razon
.
The wounds of the past are decidedly difficult to heal ...
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