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Independent (UK)
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Feb 29, 08 9:56 AM CST
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What do plaid skirts have in common with champagne and feta cheese? If Scottish lawmakers have their way, the kilt could be the latest European product to receive a "protected designation of origin" status. Cheap kilt knockoffs could still be sold, but only the real thing—pure wool, hand-sewn in the highlands—could be branded a Scottish kilt, explains the Independent.
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Ars Technica
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Feb 28, 08 2:33 PM CST
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The EU is out to hack down the Great Firewall of China, Ars Technica reports. A new proposal would classify the web censorship China and other oppressive regimes employ as a trade barrier, an approach its creator calls “unusual, but effective.” The measure already sailed through the European Parliament 571-38, and now awaits European Council confirmation.
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Daily Telegraph (UK)
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Feb 28, 08 4:39 AM CST
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Now that its common currency is trading above the $1.50 barrier, eurozone industry is calling for action to remain competitive in global markets. BMW, which has already laid off 5,600 employees, will have to take further action in the event of a "sustained rise" of the euro, reports the Telegraph . "We can't cope with such an exchange gap," compained the CEO of Dassault, France's top aviation company.
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AFP
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Feb 27, 08 10:08 AM CST
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Only a week after Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel called off a scheduled meeting, France and Germany's finance ministers canceled their own summit yesterday, reports AFP. While nobody wants to say that the leaders of Europe's two largest countries are getting testy with each other, disagreements over economic policy and the EU's role have led to markedly tense relations.
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Wall Street Journal
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Feb 27, 08 5:01 AM CST
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The European Commission fined Microsoft today a record $1.35 billion for failing to comply with its 2004 antitrust ruling. The EU's executive branch said that the company continued to charge "unreasonable prices" to developers building programs for Windows despite both the earlier ruling and a court verdict last September. The fine is the largest ever for a single company, dwarfing the $613 million penalty the commission imposed on Microsoft in 2004.
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Guardian (UK)
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Feb 26, 08 4:00 AM CST
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New President Dimitris Christofias' win in Cyprus makes him the first Communist ever to lead an EU state—but he has pledged to work within the free market, reports the Guardian . His party has a Marxist manifesto, but analysts say that Christofias is a pragmatist whose policies are more social democratic than old-school Communist.
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Los Angeles Times
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Feb 20, 08 1:07 PM CST
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Authorities in France and Israel are attempting to return paintings seized by Nazis during World War II to families to whom they belong, and have organized an exhibit of 50 “orphaned” works in Israel to solicit rightful claims. The tranquil themes of many of the works in the exhibit, “Looking for Owners,” contrast sharply with their ownership histories, the Los Angeles Times reports.
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Guardian (UK)
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Feb 20, 08 3:14 AM CST
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Stiff opposition is mounting against the possibility of former British prime minister Tony Blair being named the first president of Europe. A "Stop Blair" website has been launched, and a cross-party caucus in the European parliament is forming to campaign against him. A new treaty about to be ratified creates the new position, although precisely what the job would entail remains unclear. Opposition to a Blair presidency is particularly fierce in Germany, reports the Guardian .
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BBC
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Feb 18, 08 8:26 PM CST
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Serbia called home its US ambassador today to protest America's recognition of Kosovo's independence, the BBC reports. Serbian PM Vojislav Kostunica called the move Serbia's "first urgent measure," and warned that envoys in other countries that recognize Kosovar autonomy will soon be withdrawn.
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BBC
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Feb 12, 08 12:05 PM CST
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EU investigators raided Intel’s German office today, searching for evidence that the chip maker has broken antitrust laws, the BBC reports. The European Commission has already opened a case against Intel for monopolistic business practices, but officials said the surprise raid was the first step in its investigation, signaling that the company could face other allegations of misconduct.
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New York Times
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Feb 7, 08 4:27 PM CST
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Europe's main election watchdog will boycott Russia's March 2 presidential vote due to excessive Kremlin restrictions, the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights announced today. The group had agreed to send just 70 monitors to oversee the campaign, the New York Times reports, but when Russia barred them from arriving earlier than two weeks before the election, negotiations broke down.
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Associated Press
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Feb 5, 08 9:40 AM CST
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Serbia's coalition government approached collapse today, only days after voters gave a new mandate to pro-Western president Boris Tadic. His reelection has led to a face-off with his PM, who opposes his intention to sign a new EU trade agreement. The PM sees EU overtures as a ploy to trick Serbs into letting Kosovo secede. One minister told the AP that the government could collapse within 48 hours if Tadic signs as expected Thursday.
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BBC
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Feb 3, 08 5:05 PM CST
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Pro-West Serbian President Boris Tadic won a second-round reelection today that many saw as a referendum on Serbia’s entry into the European Union. He nabbed more than 50% of a vote that drew Serbia's highest turnout in 7 years. In defeat, challenger Tomislav Nikolic warned the EU not to blackmail Serbia over integration. Nikolic ran as a nationalist, urging tight relations with Moscow.
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Guardian (UK)
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Feb 2, 08 12:38 PM CST