Europe talks as Germany moves to stem flow of refugees

Posted on by

European ministers are meeting in Brussels on Monday in the latest attempt to craft a cohesive continent-wide solution to the ongoing refugee crisis.

The gathering comes as Germany moved to re-introduce border controls – a temporary suspension of the Schengen agreement – in an effort to restrict the wave of asylum-seekers, after more than 13,000 people arrived in Munich over the weekend.

British Prime Minister David Cameron is in Lebanon on Monday visiting a refugee camp, where he again stressed that the current crisis is best tackled via a “middle east solution.” The Financial Times reports:

The prime minister met refugees in a camp in the Bekaa Valley — less than a mile from the border with Syria — including one family who will be resettled by Britain following his pledge earlier this month that the UK will take 20,000 refugees over the next five years from the war-torn nation.

Downing Street also announced that MP Richard Harrington was being appointed as a Home Office minister with responsibility for Syrian refugees.

As a backdrop to the EU talks, in a story that has tragically become all too common recently, a boat capsized off the coast of Greece on Sunday, killing some 30 people including several babies and children.

***

WORLD

Australia has a new Prime Minister, its fourth in three years, after Tony Abbott was ousted as Liberal party leader following a challenge by Malcolm Turnbull.

Security forces in Egypt “mistakenly” killed 12 Mexican tourists when the vehicles they were traveling in came under fire in the western desert near the border with Libya.

A state of emergency is in effect in northern California as wildfires remain largely out of control, with more than a dozen blazes consuming homes as residents evacuate an area ravaged by recent years of drought.

http://twitter.com/WTOP/status/643358539914723328

In Britain, new Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn announced the members of his shadow cabinet but remained quiet amid criticisms of a lack of women in so-called “top” posts, even though for the first time there are more women than men in the shadow cabinet as a whole.

(Interestingly, in the full Sky News broadcast clip, the number of the car Corbyn gets into is not pixelated, the way say, footballers’ license plates are generally pixelated on transfer deadline day.)

Gary Younge at The Guardian writes how Corbyn’s victory has “energized the alienated and alienates the establishment.”

Whatever one thinks of the wisdom of that choice, the transformational nature of it is beyond question. It has revived debates about nationalisation, nuclear deterrence and wealth redistribution and returned the basis of internal Labour party divisions to politics rather than personality. It has energised the alienated and alienated the establishment. The rebels are now the leaders; those who once urged loyalty are now in rebellion. Four months after losing an election, a significant section of Labour’s base is excited about politics for the first time in almost a generation while another is in despair.

Communist newspaper The Morning Star marked Corbyn’s ascent with its first-ever weekend edition.

http://twitter.com/TheNewsGlobe/status/642943305962156032

Meanwhile, as the TUC congress continues, parliament is set to vote on Monday evening on far-reaching legislation governing union power and the ability to instigate strike action, largely in the public sector. TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady called the bill the most “severe attack on workers rights for 30 years.”

The right-wing press has a slightly different take:

mailcorbyn(Daily Mail/Tomorrow’s Papers Today)

In Northern Ireland, talks are expected to begin on a resolution to the current impasse that has hamstrung the Storming Assembly and threatened the future of devolved power in the province.

***

BUSINESS

Stocks rose in London on Monday morning despite Chinese stocks sliding again after disappointing data. But investors remain cautious ahead of this week’s Fed meeting. Meanwhile, the Bank of Japan’s own policy meeting is taking place Monday and Tuesday.

***

SPORT

FIFA still-for-now President Sepp Blatter is under renewed pressure as authorities are investigating the award of television rights for the 2010 and 2014 tournaments and the connection with former FIFA executive Jack Warner.

In Sunday’s US Open tennis, Novak Djokovic beat fan favorite Roger Federer in an epic mens’ final to claim his 10th grand slam title.

http://twitter.com/SerbianWorld/status/643336349534265344

His brilliant performance came in an arena that was definitely a battleground…

Finally, Yorkshire and England cricket great Brian Close – dubbed the “bravest man to play the game” following his physical battles with West Indies bowlers in the 1970s – died aged 84.

 

 

 

Leave a comment