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Connected: there was another round of Celebrity Deathmatch between Merkel and Schröder. Schröder opined that Merkel allows herself to be led by her ex-living-under-communism emotions in her policy towards Russia, which is misguided. CDU leaders opined Schröder is just envious at the access Merkel has...

I say a pox on both houses. Methinks Schröder rightly analysed a bad policy towards Russia, albeit his cynical 'realpolitik' wasn't all that deeply thought-through either. But the motivation he analyses is, I think, entirely wrong, and a thinly veiled macho mysogynist attack ('emotional unstable women'). The CDU reply doesn't need commentary.

*Lunatic*, n.
One whose delusions are out of fashion.

by DoDo on Wed Nov 21st, 2007 at 05:41:51 AM EST
His policy towards Russia (apart form the shameful comments about Russia's democracy, which were unnecessary) was fine. The Nordpipe makes a lot of sense for Germany and for Europe - it's in line with 40 years of gas diplomacy with Russia that has worked perfectly well for import-dependent countries like France Germany and Italy.

Avoiding provocations of Russia, and maintaining the UNSC's role are not stupid goals either.

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes

by Jerome a Paris (etg@eurotrib.com) on Wed Nov 21st, 2007 at 05:57:44 AM EST
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Jan Seifert had an interesting post on his blog a few days ago which more or less predicted that the pipeline would not be built as there would not be enough gas and political relations with Poland were improving.

The article is in German, but cited a CEPS briefing by Alan Riley (here), an IEA book (here) and a 2006 study by Milov, Coburn and Danchenko (here).

I wondered what your take on that would be.

by nanne (zwaerdenmaecker@gmail.com) on Wed Nov 21st, 2007 at 09:40:45 AM EST
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