chinton - don't call on me. I have a laundry list of actions that our friends and allies made to undermine the union. <ng> With friends like that..... <ng>
Re: double citizenship. Yesterday was 40th anniversary of the Elysee Convention of 1963 by which France and Germany reconciliated after the wars. Chirac/Schroeder are not the same pair as De Gaulle/Adenauer. Nevertheless, today both French Chamber of deputees and Bundestag are meeting together in Versailles.
Last week, France and Germany tried to accelerate the union integration their way (France is the largest agricultural supplier of the union, Germany the largest industrial. France gets the most of Euro budget, Germany pays the most.) Integration in a way that would split the union in two groups: fast industrialized rich countries, vs. laggards.
The double citizenship idea was to allow both French and Germans to be part od the same judicial/political integrated group. Why? My passport has two mentions: heading: European Community, sub-title: Kingdom of Belgium. The Union also has another goal: get rid of political boundaries and promote transnational nations. Many nations have been split into 2 or more countries through the centuries, while sharing the same culture and values. This is something national politicians don't like as they lose their grip on national voters.
So, double citizenship is an odd (politician) concept as the ultimate goal (Schengen Treaty) is to grant each European the same rights, whichever country he is from.
All this rant without a word on UK. Well,.... UK is member of the Union, but the country which contributes the less financially and has, relative to contributions, the highest return. UK has always taken the side of the US against the Union. With friends like this..... In essence, with the coming enlargment of the Union, the Union can live without the UK. So, expect the UK to demand to be part of the Eurozone. Problem: they are 180 tons of gold short to pay their entry ticket to the Euro (15% gold coverage).
Rambling, ranting, you asked for it. |