European Institute

By Erik Peterson, “European Affairs" Editorial Assistant

Undeterred by its economic crisis, the European Union has stepped forward with a sizeable aid package for Egypt, the key nascent democracy emerging from the Arab Awakening.

By Erik Peterson, “European Affairs” Editorial Assistant

The European Union announced last week it was opening an anti-dumping investigation into Chinese solar panel companies, perhaps following the lead of the U.S. which has already taken preliminary action.

The complaint was submitted to the European Commission on July 25^th by EU ProSun, an industry association that represents the majority of EU solar companies, including German firm SolarWorld. The complaint outlined in the European Commission memo alleges that solar products imported from China are entering the European market with prices below market value, giving the Chinese companies an unfair advantage.

By Michael D. Mosettig

It's polling season again and not just in the last two months of the  U.S. Presidential elections. Two think tanks known for their comprehensive  surveys published  new studies of public opinion  this week, one barely  mentioning Europe and the other showing more parallel trans-Atlantic  attitudes than the daily headlines might suggest.

UPDATE—This morning the German federal Constitutional court upheld German participation in the European bailout fund. But it did impose the condition that any more money for the 500 billion euro fund will require approval of the German parliament.

At 10 am Wednesday morning in Germany, a panel of eight judges will  issue a ruling on whether the permanent European bailout fund passes constitutional muster in that country.

The case has brought unprecedented international attention to the federal constitutional court (Bundesverfassungsgericht) that sits in  Karlsruhe, hundreds of miles southwest of Germany's political and economic  centers of Berlin, Munich and Hamburg.