European Institute

By Michael Mosettig, Foreign Editor, PBS News Hour

Considering that there are nearly 180 embassies clamoring for attention in Washington, it takes some special talent and skill for press attaches and counselors from middle and small nations to make distracted journalists and officials to pay them much mind.

Fresh on the heels of the announcement last week that China was threatening to cancel orders for 9 billion euros worth of orders for Airbus jetliners, seven of Europe’s leading aviation companies have joined forces this week to formally oppose the European Union’s tax on airline emissions designed to combat global warming.

By European Affairs

Top U.S. financial officials said Wednesday that Europe has made significant progress in surmounting the eurozone crisis. In testimony to Congress, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernake and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner expressed cautious optomism about the eurozone outlook and praised the European Central Bank (ECB) for its efforts to inject liquidity into the banking system to maintain financial flows.

Their testimony was the first top level public statement from the Obama administration on the crisis since the EU’s most recent steps to prevent debt default, especially in Greece. According to the New York Times, Geithner said that the European situation is far less worrisome than in late 2011, but still remains a threat to global recovery and to the U.S. economic outlook.

By European Affairs

All but two (the United Kingdom and the Czech Republic) of the twenty seven EU member states signed the new fiscal compact on 2 March. This inter-governmental agreement, aiming to prevent  a recurrence of the serious debt woes that have plagued Europe, will come into effect once it is ratified by 12 of the 17 states of the Eurozone, as most are expected to do via their respective parliaments.