European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker yesterday chided the Greek government and his own German critics, and pledged to counter those he said were secretly trying to force Greece out of the eurozone.
In a speech to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, ahead of a crunch euro summit in Brussels later in the day, Juncker said he would work to avoid a “Grexit,” but added: “There are some in the European Union who openly or secretly are working to exclude Greece from the eurozone.”
He did not name Germany or German Minister of Finance Wolfgang Schaeuble, who has suggested the eurozone might be better off without Greece. However, speaking in German, he made clear a broader anger at his own critics in Germany, notably those who said he had no right to negotiate on behalf of EU states.
He opened his remarks by dismissing accusations in German media that he had “taken cover” by not speaking in public since Greek voters ignored his urgings and backed their leftist government in a referendum on Sunday, rejecting a bailout offer.
Juncker, a veteran premier of Luxembourg and chair of the Eurogroup of finance ministers, also renewed criticism of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and ministers he said had called the Commission’s officials “terrorists.” Juncker said it was not clear what message Greek voters had endorsed by rejecting a deal which had expired several days before Sunday’s plebiscite.
“It is not a ‘No’ to Europe, I am told. It is not a ‘No’ to the euro, I am told. It cannot be a ‘No’ to the proposals of the institutions, because they were not on the table,” he said, calling it a “very grave mistake” by Tsipras to break off talks.
“The ball is in the court of the Greek government,” he added.
Countering the impatience evident among some of Greece’s eurozone creditors, Juncker said that Europe could only solve its problems by negotiation.
“This solution cannot be found today. If it were, then it would be too simplistic. We must set aside our little egos — and my big ego, too — and deal with the situation as we find it,” he said.
“My determination is to prevent a Grexit. I am against a Grexit. No one should want to throw the Greeks out. When European nations stop talking to each other, then we are heading for the end of the European Union,” he added.
China on Monday announced its first ever sanctions against an individual Japanese lawmaker, targeting China-born Hei Seki for “spreading fallacies” on issues such as Taiwan, Hong Kong and disputed islands, prompting a protest from Tokyo. Beijing has an ongoing spat with Tokyo over islands in the East China Sea claimed by both countries, and considers foreign criticism on sensitive political topics to be acts of interference. Seki, a naturalised Japanese citizen, “spread false information, colluded with Japanese anti-China forces, and wantonly attacked and smeared China”, foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian told reporters on Monday. “For his own selfish interests, (Seki)
VENEZUELAN ACTION: Marco Rubio said that previous US interdiction efforts have not stemmed the flow of illicit drugs into the US and that ‘blowing them up’ would US President Donald Trump on Wednesday justified a lethal military strike that his administration said was carried out a day earlier against a Venezuelan gang as a necessary effort by the US to send a message to Latin American cartels. Asked why the military did not instead interdict the vessel and capture those on board, Trump said that the operation would cause drug smugglers to think twice about trying to move drugs into the US. “There was massive amounts of drugs coming into our country to kill a lot of people and everybody fully understands that,” Trump said while hosting Polish President
Japan yesterday heralded the coming-of-age of Japanese Prince Hisahito with an elaborate ceremony at the Imperial Palace, where a succession crisis is brewing. The nephew of Japanese Emperor Naruhito, Hisahito received a black silk-and-lacquer crown at the ceremony, which marks the beginning of his royal adult life. “Thank you very much for bestowing the crown today at the coming-of-age ceremony,” Hisahito said. “I will fulfill my duties, being aware of my responsibilities as an adult member of the imperial family.” Although the emperor has a daughter — Princess Aiko — the 23-year-old has been sidelined by the royal family’s male-only
A French couple kept Louise, a playful black panther, in an apartment in northern France, triggering panic when she was spotted roaming nearby rooftops. The pair were were handed suspended jail sentences on Thursday for illegally keeping a wild animal, despite protesting that they saw Louise as their baby. The ruling follows a September 2019 incident when the months-old feline was seen roaming a rooftop in Armentieres after slipping out of the couple’s window. Authorities captured the panther by sedating her with anesthetic darts after she entered a home. No injuries were reported during the animal’s time on the loose. The court in the
RSS