Eastern Europe

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Generous Pensions Toppling Hungarian Economy

Public spending dilemma threatens to engulf Eastern Europe

(Newser) - Pensions are at the heart of the Hungarian financial crisis threatening to drag down the Eastern European economy, the Wall Street Journal reports. Three out of every 10 Hungarians currently collects a generous government pension, but the cost—around 10% of GDP and rising—has made the country's deficit unmanageable,...

Leaders Warn of Economic 'Iron Curtain'

Eastern Europe melts down, but Western leaders refuse bailout

(Newser) - EU leaders meeting in Brussels yesterday rejected a Hungarian-led effort to bail out the faltering economies of Eastern Europe, leading to apocalyptic warnings of an economic "Iron Curtain," with millions of unemployed workers heading west. Countries from the Baltic states to Poland and Romania have seen their once-booming...

Hungary Gets $6.7B Loan to Avert Meltdown

Budapest secures huge loan to prevent default à la Iceland

(Newser) - The Hungarian government secured a $6.7-billion loan yesterday from the European Central Bank in an attempt to stave off an Icelandic-style national meltdown. The EU newcomer's troubles derive from loans denominated in euros or Swiss francs, rather than the softer Hungarian forint. Frozen credit markets have left Hungary's government...

EU Won't Put Ukraine on Membership Fast Track

Amid worries over Russian ambition, Sarkozy acknowledges 'European destiny'

(Newser) - Ukraine’s president left a summit with European Union leaders today without a firm promise of EU membership, the Guardian reports. While French President Nicolas Sarkozy offered Victor Yushchenko an “association agreement” and affirmed Europe’s commitment to Ukraine’s territorial rights, dissent from Germany, Italy and the Netherlands...

Georgian Conflict Highlights Eastern Anxieties

Ex-Soviet states unite in opposition to Russia

(Newser) - As Russian forces continue to roll through Georgia, both Eastern and Western nations are reconsidering their relations in the face of an emboldened and insolent Moscow. The Christian Science Monitor examines this new geopolitical reality from the perspective of ex-Soviet states determined to prevent a renaissance of Russia's hegemony over...

Snail Prices Shell-Shock French

Booming Eastern Europe having to pay harvesters better

(Newser) - The French may soon be shelling out big bucks for the 14,000 tons of snails it consumes annually. Most actually originate in Eastern Europe, where growing economic development means rural families aren’t as willing to take up the demanding task of snail-gathering without better wages. And that, reports...

As Celtic Tiger Slows, Ireland Again Empties

With Eastern Europe booming, newcomers pack bags en masse

(Newser) - The massive Irish economic engine of the '90s brought decades of emigration to a screeching halt and hordes of EU immigrants flooding through open borders to lay claim to plentiful jobs. But as the Celtic Tiger begins to look like a kitty, the Wall Street Journal reports, many of those...

Book Reawakens Doubts About Polish Hero Walesa

Did the country's democratic pioneer collaborate with Poland's secret police?

(Newser) - A new book is stirring up an old debate in Poland: Did democratic hero Lech Walesa, leader of the Solidarity union and former president, collaborate with the secret police? Walesa has successfully defended himself against the claim for 15 years, in and out of court. But historians working with police...

Bush Backs Ukraine's NATO Bid
 Bush Backs Ukraine's NATO Bid 
Apr 1, 2008 8:20 AM CDT

Bush Backs Ukraine's NATO Bid

President's support sure to irk Russia

(Newser) - President Bush today declared his unequivocal support for the entry of Ukraine and Georgia into NATO, a position sure to anger Russia, Reuters notes. “Your nation has made a bold decision, and the United States strongly supports your request,” Bush said, flanked by Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko. But...

Deutsche Telekom to Buy Greek Stake
Deutsche Telekom to Buy Greek Stake
Mar 17, 2008 1:03 PM CDT

Deutsche Telekom to Buy Greek Stake

Deal for 20% of Greek phone co. conditional on management control

(Newser) - Deutsche Telekom plans to buy a 20% stake in Hellenic Telecommunications Organization (OTE) of Greece, for $3.92 billion. The deal is conditional on the German carrier getting management control, and the company will open talks immediately with the Greek government, the only larger shareholder. The OTE stake will let...

Eastern Europe: Charm for Less
Eastern Europe: Charm for Less
TRAVEL
Mar 2, 2008 2:00 PM CST

Eastern Europe: Charm for Less

Prague, Poland among adventurous destinations for thrifty travelers

(Newser) - The ever-pricier euro is sending determined travelers east, past the Eiffel Tower, to overlooked treasures like Prague's Old Town Square. Check out cheaper, Eastern European must-sees as recommended by Forbes:
  1. Peterhof State Museum-Reserve, St. Petersburg, Russia: These palaces and 18th-century gardens rival those of Versailles.
  2. Plitvice Lakes National Park, Plitvice
...

Poland, US Move Closer on Missile Shield

Countries agree, in principle, on military cooperation plan

(Newser) - Poland agreed, in principle, yesterday to host controversial US missile interceptors on its soil, the AP reports, after Condoleezza Rice sat down with Poland's foreign minister and agreed to help upgrade its military in return. The foreign minister told reporters in Washington that there was still a lot of negotiating...

Bomb Derails Russian Train
Bomb Derails Russian Train
Aug 14, 2007 7:54 AM CDT

Bomb Derails Russian Train

Authorities claim link to Chechen insurgency

(Newser) - Russia suspects terrorism in a bomb that derailed a train on the busy Moscow-to-St. Petersburg line yesterday, reports Reuters. Thirty-eight people were hospitalized and more  treated at the scene, about 170 km from St. Petersburg. The bomb was planted on a bridge; the locomotive and most carriages derailed after crossing.

Putin Wants in on Missile Shield
Putin Wants in on Missile Shield
Jul 3, 2007 5:07 AM CDT

Putin Wants in on Missile Shield

Russian premier pushes plan for joint anti-missile defense system in lieu of bases in Poland, Czech Reppublic

(Newser) - Vladimir Putin yesterday pushed his proposal for cooperating with the US on a joint missile defense system, part of which would be built on Russian soil, the Washington Post reports. The offer, first broached in Germany last month,  was welcomed by President Bush as he and the Russian premier ...

Missile Defense Founders on Bush Missteps

Poles and Czechs underappreciated, Congress stiffens

(Newser) - President Bush is looking for support for his missile shield in all the wrong places, the LA Times reports. While he dallies with president Putin, an increasingly underwhelmed Congress is readying to pull the plug. Meanwhile, Poland and the Czech Republic—the designated missile-defense bases—are increasingly skeptical of American...

Bush Tries to Calm Russian Fury Over Missile Shield

'The Cold War is over,' says the president

(Newser) - Russia has nothing to fear from a US missile shield in Eastern Europe, President Bush insisted in a speech in the Czech Republic today aimed at smoothing Vladimir Putin's ruffled feathers en route to the G8 summit. The Russian president threatened over the weekend to aim nuclear warheads at Europe...

Putin Rattles Nuclear Sabre
Putin Rattles Nuclear Sabre
Jun 4, 2007 5:32 AM CDT

Putin Rattles Nuclear Sabre

Threatens to aim nukes at European cities

(Newser) - Russia is threatening to aim nuclear missiles at major European cities for the first time since the Cold War, the Daily Telegraph reports. Vladimir Putin's provocation, on the eve of the G-8 summit, was the latest in an increasingly strident string of anti-western pronouncements in response to US plans to...

Putin Lashes Out at Foreign Meddlers

Repeats opposition to missile shield, pledge to step down next year

(Newser) - Vladimir Putin threatened to stonewall a key defense treaty if the U.S. doesn't back down on anti-missile bases in Eastern Europe, and lashed out against "foreign meddlers" in Russian politics. In his annual speech to parliament, Putin also repeated his pledge to stand down when his term ends...

Don't Mind Us, We're British!
Don't Mind Us, We're British!
Apr 10, 2007 2:03 PM CDT

Don't Mind Us, We're British!

Rowdy brides and grooms Invade Eastern Europe for their "stag and hen dos"

(Newser) - Forget lap dancing at the local strip joint: British bridegrooms, brides and their wedding parties are descending on Eastern European capitals for cheap, drunken bachelor and bachelorette binges that last a week or more, the Journal reports. They're lured by low-cost air fares and rock-bottom prices on booze, but it's...

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