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A careful selection and summary of editorials, commentaries, and analyses from the world’s leading newspapers and magazines to help you stay on top of the latest debates and developments in the transatlantic agenda. See list of monitoring sources.
Readers can also see how the perspectives and priorities diverge in different regions.

Is Israel Losing Its Own Game In Gaza?

Three weeks after Hamas fired rockets on Israel, the latter’s retaliation plan seems to be producing a boomerang effect. ++ The Israeli people are wary of a ground invasion which threatens the lives of Israeli citizens; international public opinion condemns Israel’s attack as ‘disproportional’ and ‘non-discriminatory,’ and the usual US support might not be as solid. ++ As the tide turns, Israel should reconsider its strategy and examine the benefits to be secured from renewing the ceasefire and opening supply routes to Gaza.

Economic Package: Testing the New Administration

The stimulus package needed to combat the economic downturn is a source of concern as its experimental character deprives it of any guarantee of success. ++ Due to the acuteness of the crisis, measures taken ought to be immediate rather than exhaustive and have a provisional character. ++ The next weeks will be a test for the new Congress and administration that bear the difficult task of preparing the package. ++ However, just as with medicine, one has to remember that "the application of economic stimulus is as much art as science."

Gazprom's Game is Modelled on English Capitalism

We "wanted Russia to be a market economy, but Russia never asked how." ++ Gazprom is like the East India Company, from which market economies grew. ++ Other sources are unreliable; China, Japan and India look to Russia for gas. ++ While the EU builds pipelines to pass unreliable ex-communist states, Russia builds east - and southwards. ++ Gazprom's hard game is market economy and it refuses to subsidize the government in Kiev. ++ The EU wants to change a 300-year old poker game into a "granny's game" of whist.

Greater Role for the State in the 21st Century

The financial crisis has proven that there is still a major role for the state to play in our global era. ++ New challenges, such as intense capital transactions, have increased pressure on the state and require it to complement its traditional (albeit still capital) functions of protecting its citizens through the monopoly of force, promoting democratization and so forth. ++ In order to succeed in the fulfillment of this task, the state ought to be backed by both supranational and regional institutions, whose roles are likely to increase.

Obama Suggests Tax Cuts To Stimulate Economy

President Obama has introduced a new stimulus plan to revive the US economy. ++ While the plan aims to reduce tax payments by $300 and provide relief to both families and business, US officials warn against the unnecessary spending that usually accompanies tax cuts. ++ While the complete plan has yet to be worked out, the Obama administration has characterized it as ‘ideologically neutral.’ ++ Some Republican members seem to doubt the effectiveness of the new stimulus package but appreciate the President’s attempt to openly discuss the plan.

UN Must Condemn Palestinian Abuse of Civilians

Palestine’s exploitation of its refugees and use of children as human shields are among the most shameful practices in the Israel-Palestine conflict. ++ The international community has for years sustained these abuses: the UNRWA perpetuates the misery of Palestinian refugees, doing nothing to dismantle camps or help them rebuild their lives, acting as “facilitator for the terrorists' goal of grinding an entire civilian population under their thumb.” ++ The West has a duty to condemn these tactics and recognize Palestinians’ human rights.

Financial Crisis Sways German Electoral Campaign

Germany is getting ready for a year rich in elections at every level, concluding with the September legislative duel between Chancellor Merkel and FM Steinmeier. ++ A recent survey places Merkel in the lead; however, the financial crisis and its social repercussions make every prediction highly precarious. ++ The two candidates have therefore opted for officially starting the electoral campaign in the summer, an attempt to prove to the electorate that party competition does not prevail over governmental duty.

End of Dollar Era, Back to the Gold?

Originating in the US, the economic recession has gradually affected all economies. ++ International responses vary from smooth European behavior, where the Bundesbank still plays a key role in shaping the ECB policies, to an aggressive macroeconomic stimulus program in the US, making several ponder its potential inflationary repercussions. ++  There is, however, no current currency alternative to the dollar to avoid the risk of inflation. ++ Could the reemergence of the gold standard be an option?

Obama Should End US Involvement In Afghanistan

Analysts and scholars warn that the problems that the US faces in Afghanistan - continued insurgencies, opium production, a US army demoralized and drained of resources given the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan - will compromise the success of any new deployments in the region. ++ In the midst of the financial crisis and with firm evidence that the US commitment in Afghanistan contributes to the destabilization of nuclear Pakistan, President Obama should reconsider his ambitions to commit more troops in Afghanistan.

Will China Miss George W. Bush?

While the world welcomes the end of the Bush presidency and places its hopes on the man who promised change, China stands aloof from the celebrations. ++ President Bush turned a blind eye to China’s human rights abuses and failed to provide criticism of Chinese military expansion, leaving it undisturbed to pursue its goal of becoming a world power. ++ Currently, global recession and a new democratic leadership combine to create uncertainty as to the future of the bilateral relation which was strengthened under the Bush administration.