Latest news with #IronCurtain
The Journal
6 hours ago
- Politics
- The Journal
Sinn Féin MEP calls on EU commissioner to withdraw 'deeply inaccurate' remarks about Ireland
SINN FÉIN MEP Kathleen Funchion has called on the EU's foreign commissioner to her withdraw remarks on Ireland's neutrality. During a debate at the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Tuesday on the upcoming Nato summit next week, Funchion criticised the EU's inaction on dealing with Israel's military operations in the Gaza, Iran and other parts of the Middle East. The Ireland South MEP later noted the sovereign right of each member state to choose its own foreign policies and if they participate in military alliances such as Nato. She said that the EU hopes it recognises Ireland's right to maintain its historical neutral stance. 'We in Ireland have a proud history and tradition of UN peacekeeping, and long may that continue,' Funchion said, adding that it was 'important to reference the creeping militarisation into EU politics'. 'This debate has been a combination of maddening and depressing for the past two hours, listening to the vast majority of speakers. I would also remind people that, at its core, the EU is supposed to be a peace project, and we should not move away from this' Other members also voiced concern over the fulfilment of international law obligations in the conflict during the debate and called for a renewed effort to achieve peace in the Middle East and in Ukraine. 'Peace does not mark end of suffering' During her closing remarks, the European Commission Vice President and foreign affairs Commissioner Kaja Kallas said that peace can only be achieved in Ukraine when the aggressor, Russia, is willing to negotiate. She addressed Funchion's remarks and claimed that Ireland had the chance for 'prosperity' in the years following the World War II, while the rest of Europe experienced 'atrocities'. She said, in that context, that a negotiated peace through surrender would not benefit countries under siege by others. Advertisement 'I want to address our Irish colleagues,' Kallas said. 'Peace doesn't mean the human suffering will stop. If you surrender, you [still] have the aggressor. [If] you say, 'Take all that you want', it doesn't mean that human suffering will stop. 'In our experience behind the Iron Curtain [the border between the Soviet Union and Europe during the Cold War] after World War II, countries like Ireland got to build up their prosperity, but for us, it meant atrocities, mass deportations, suppression of our culture and language. 'This is what happens, it is peace – but not freedom. It's not freedom of choice for people. And that is what the EU is all about and that's what we're fighting for.' 'Ill-advised remarks should be withdrawn' The remarks have been criticised as 'deeply inaccurate' by MEP Funchion, who said the vice-president was dismissive of the post-war experience of people on the island of Ireland. Funchion said Kallas' comments were 'ill-advised and deeply insensitive to the experiences of Irish communities still seeking justice to this day'. She added: 'Ireland too endured atrocities, from the Ballymurphy massacre to Bloody Sunday, where innocent civilians were shot and killed by British soldiers. Our people suffered internment without trial, and widespread discrimination in housing and employment, particularly in the North. 'Furthermore, the suppression of Irish language and culture has been an ongoing battle, as evidenced by the decades-long campaign for an Irish Language Act in the North. She added: 'I have written to the vice-president asking her to withdraw her remarks and to acknowledge the reality of Ireland's past.' Kallas' office has been contacted for comment. Includes reporting by Press Association Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
RTÉ News
21 hours ago
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Sinn Féin MEP calls on EU official to apologise over Irish comments
An Irish MEP has asked the EU's most senior foreign affairs official to apologise for suggesting Ireland's policy of neutrality is in part due to Ireland not having a modern-day understanding of "atrocities, mass deportations, suppression of culture and language". European Commission vice president and high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, Kaja Kallas, made the remarks during a debate on an upcoming NATO meeting at the European Parliament in Strasbourg in France. Responding to a discussion which involved various views on NATO, conflicts including Russia's war in Ukraine and whether the EU needs to increase defence spending, Ms Kallas, who is from Estonia, said: "I do want to address our Irish colleagues. I mean, yes, peace doesn't mean that human suffering will stop. "If, you know, you surrender and you have the aggressor and you say okay take all that you want, it doesn't mean that the human suffering will stop. "Our experience behind the Iron Curtain [the de facto border between East and West during the cold war], after the Second World War countries like Ireland got to build up their prosperity, but for us it meant atrocities, mass deportations, suppression of culture and language. "This is what happens. It is also peace, but it's actually not freedom, freedom of choice for people, and that is what an EU is all about, and that is what we are fighting for." In a statement today, Sinn Féin MEP Kathleen Funchion said: "I was astonished by Leas-Uachtarán Kallas's remarks, which displayed a clear lack of understanding of Ireland's history. "In my speech, I underlined Ireland's long-standing policy of neutrality, which was shaped by our own experience of colonialism and struggle for self-determination. "Vice President Kallas's suggestion that Ireland simply prospered in the post-war period without trauma or oppression is deeply inaccurate and dismissive of our island's experience. "Ireland too endured atrocities, from the Ballymurphy massacre to Bloody Sunday, where innocent civilians were shot and killed by British soldiers. "Our people suffered internment without trial, and widespread discrimination in housing and employment, particularly in the North. "Furthermore, the suppression of Irish language and culture has been an ongoing battle, as evidenced by the decades-long campaign for an Irish Language Act in the North. "Vice President Kallas's comments were ill-advised and deeply insensitive to the experiences of Irish communities still seeking justice to this day," she said. The Sinn Féin MEP continued that she has written to Ms Kallas's office "asking her to withdraw her remarks".
Daily Maverick
2 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
The new Iron Curtain: Eastern Europe mobilises for defence against Russian aggression
US President Donald Trump's threat not to respect America's Nato obligations has spurred Europe into action. Europe is preparing for war with Russia. On the one hand that seems like a statement of the obvious since European powers have been providing military support to Ukraine over the past three years. On the other hand it is striking to see and hear preparations for war taking concrete form along Nato's own eastern borders. To see the mobile air defence missile launchers recently deployed along the perimeter of the runway as you step off an aircraft at Poland's Rzeszów-Jasionka Airport, about 100km from the border with Ukraine. And Poland is mining its frontiers with Russia's Kaliningrad enclave and with Russia's close ally Belarus as part of its East Shield defence barrier, which some have likened to a new Iron Curtain rising across Europe. War with Russia — when it might happen, how to prepare for it — dominated discussion at the big Globsec security conference in Prague last week. The recent warning by German intelligence chief Bruno Kahl that Moscow could soon launch an attack on a European Nato member to test the alliance's Article 5 mutual defence obligations was the leitmotif of the conference, evidence that the threat was being taken very seriously. Europe jolting into action to assume greater responsibility for its own defence against Russia was the focus of discussion. 'Putin didn't wake up Europe. Trump did,' said Estonia's Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna, pertinently describing how the US president's threats not to respect America's Nato obligations had finally concentrated Europe's collective mind. At next week's summit in The Hague, Nato states are expected to increase defence spending from 2% of national GDPs to 3.5% on hard military items such as tanks, warplanes, air defence, missiles and extra troops. A further 1.5% will be spent on things like roads, bridges, ports and airfields. But there are differences about how and how soon to do that, with frontline states in the east demanding much faster, firmer action than western European states. Read more: War in Ukraine 'I believe there is no point to start preparing for the war after the war,' Estonia's Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur remarked dryly, in response to suggestions that the increased defence spending of Nato member states could take place over three to five years. No state is more frontline than Estonia, probably the most vulnerable of all Nato member countries, because of its exposed geography and relatively large Russian-speaking minority. When Kahl, head of Germany's Federal Intelligence Service (BND), said he had evidence Russia was preparing to test Nato's resolve, he added: 'They don't need to send tanks for that. They just have to send 'little green men' to Estonia to defend the allegedly oppressed Russian minority.' The little green men referred to the clandestine Russian soldiers without insignia who seized key strategic facilities in Crimea in 2014 in the opening phase of the Russian occupation of the Ukrainian peninsula. Romania's Defence Secretary Sorin-Dan Moldovan agreed with Tsahkna, saying his country needed extra Nato spending in 'three to five days, not three to five years'. And he dismissed talk of the eastern flank being more exposed than the western flank, saying increased defence spending was about the collective defence of all of Europe. For countries like the Czech Republic (aka Czechia) and Poland, the threat is not only about geography but also about history. As Czech Deputy Foreign Minister Jan Marian told visiting African journalists last week, 'in these two countries the understanding of the Russian threat is even more imminent' than for some other Nato countries, because 'we have our historical experience with Russian aggressive behaviour'. He refers to the fact that after World War 2 both countries were forced to become part of the 'Eastern Bloc' — satellites of the Soviet Union — and in 1968 Moscow and other countries of the Warsaw Pact sent tanks into what was then Czechoslovakia to crush the 'Prague Spring', a fragile blossoming of very modest freedom. Poland and Czechoslovakia then contributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, finally gaining their independence. Behind, but improving The EU took an important step towards greater autonomy and integration in its own defence last year when it appointed its first Commissioner for Defence and Space, Andrius Kubilius. He was asked at the Globsec conference, though, why the European members of Nato had collectively spent more than $3-trillion on defence over the past decade and yet still had 'tiny tank forces, smaller air forces and still felt threatened by a much smaller and weaker Russia'. Kubilius answered that Nato's European members had underspent on defence for too long while looking for peace dividends from the US. He said the European defence industry had become very fragmented and had failed to use the power of a single market to improve its competitiveness. European nations were spending only 20% of their defence budgets procuring European production versus 60% on US defence production, undermining European defence productions. But he noted that things were changing. He recalled that Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte had said when Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022, Russia was able to produce more ammunition in three months than all Nato members, including the US, were able to produce in a year. However, Nato was improving. When the war started, EU states had promised Ukraine one million artillery shells and had only produced about 300,000 a year. This year it got up to two million shells. 'But still we are behind,' Kubilius said, adding that Nato was so far only meeting 53% of its targets for increasing its defence capabilities. He proposed various remedies, such as cutting red tape so that European defence companies could produce weapons jointly, and also said European countries should increase the joint procurement of weapons. These measures would both increase demand and decrease the costs of European defence production. But political will is clearly the key. War fatigue Daily Maverick likewise asked both Czech President Petr Pavel and Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky why Ukraine's many allies were unable to give it all the backing it needed, given their massive economic superiority over Russia. Lipavsky suggested the collective political will was lacking, saying: 'It goes back to the domestic debate in every allied state on how to support Ukraine and to what extent. 'You can follow the debate in the US, you can follow the debate in Czechia, you can follow the debate in Germany. 'So, yes, we have the power to do so (to help Ukraine win), we need to find a will, and I'm calling for that will regularly.' Pavel's reply was that Czechia and Ukraine's other allies did not aim to defeat or destroy Russia but just to help Ukraine to defend itself against Russia. He agreed that the West had the power to defeat Russia but remained cautious because it did not want to provoke Russia into a major conflict since it was armed with about 6,000 ballistic nuclear weapons. And even if Russia only deployed tactical nuclear weapons that would be disastrous. He said some European countries were cautious as they wished to resume economic relations with Russia when the war ended. But Pavel also observed that if Ukraine's allies had shown greater political will and fully supported the Ukraine from the start, it would have won the war in the first year and avoided the current stalemate where it now only seemed possible to reach a compromise settlement in which Ukraine would have to cede up to 20% of its territory that Russia occupies. And there is a danger that the unity of Europe's political resolve to support Ukraine may be weakening, even as the EU steps up its efforts to increase support. 'War fatigue' seems to be setting in among populations grown weary of war talk, and war spending. Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has opposed military support to Ukraine from the start. Slovakia's recently elected populist Prime Minister Robert Fico has also suggested that his country might be better off neutral. Karol Nawrocki, Poland's newly elected president, who takes office in August, is ambivalent on Ukraine. He has publicly expressed opposition to Ukraine's accession to Nato and the European Union while also saying Poland should 'support Ukraine from a strategic and geopolitical point of view'. And in Czechia, the opposition ANO party led by former prime minister Andrej Babiš, which is leading in the polls for October election, is also ambivalent about the war. He has criticised current Prime Minister Petr Fiala's shipping of heavy weapons to help Kyiv and his initiative to find and fund artillery ammunition for Ukraine's defence. Globsec published a list of seven possible scenarios for the progress of the war over the next two years, which assigned the highest probability, 38%, to a scenario in which the war of attrition continued but with 'lowered intensity of hostilities due to draining out of resources on both sides'. It noted: 'The trajectory of the war will be increasingly shaped by whether Europe, particularly a 'Coalition of the Willing', can swiftly and quickly construct a credible, unified military and economic support framework for Ukraine in the absence of strong US leadership. Failure to do so risks weakening Ukraine's long-term capacity to resist and may create openings for Russian coercive diplomacy or territorial advances.' DM
Local Germany
6 days ago
- Business
- Local Germany
Germany and last Kaiser's heirs agree to keep treasures on display
The agreement ends a century-old dispute between the state and the Hohenzollern family, descendants of the last German emperor and king of Prussia, Kaiser Wilhelm II, who abdicated after World War I. "After 100 years, we have amicably resolved a dispute dating back to the transition from the monarchy to the republic," said Culture Minister Wolfram Weimer, hailing the "historic success". The collection reportedly covers 27,000 objects including paintings, sculptures, coins, books and furniture. "Countless works of art that are of great importance to the history of Brandenburg, Prussia, and thus Germany will now be permanently accessible to the public and continue to form the centrepieces of our museums and palaces," said Weimer. Prince Georg Friedrich of Prussia said in a statement that "it has always been my goal to permanently preserve our shared cultural heritage for art-loving citizens and to make it publicly accessible". "The solution now found provides an excellent basis for a new partnership between the state cultural foundations and my family." Under the agreement, previously disputed objects will be transferred to a non-profit Hohenzollern Art Heritage Foundation, with two thirds of the board made up of public sector representatives, and one third by the aristocratic family. Advertisement Lost behind Iron Curtain The ancient House of Hohenzollern ruled the German Empire from its establishment in 1871 until Wilhelm II was forced to abdicate in 1918, going into exile after Germany's defeat in World War I. The Prussian royals were initially to be stripped of their properties but a deal was later worked out under a 1926 law. The imperial family received millions of Deutschmarks and kept dozens of castles, villas and other properties, mainly in and around Berlin but also as far away as today's Namibia. However, after Nazi Germany's World War II defeat, Soviet occupation of eastern Germany and communist rule led to additional expropriations. The riches lost behind the Iron Curtain only came back into reach for the Hohenzollern family with the 1989 fall of the Berlin Wall. Under a 1994 law, people whose property was expropriated by the Soviets have a right to claim compensation -- but only if they did not "lend considerable support" to the Nazi regime. The family fought for years to recover the treasures but dropped the bid in 2023 when a family representative acknowledged that Kaiser Wilhelm II "sympathised with the Nazis at times". The deal announced on Friday was sealed after the German Historical Museum Foundation gave its approval, following the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation and the Prussian Castles and Gardens Foundation in Berlin-Brandenburg.
Mint
12-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Mint
Travel: A walk around Karlovy Vary, a Czech spa town
"You must have a sip," the guide insists, in a gentle but persuasive tone. The sip in question is from a thin shooting geyser around which is built a wide, shallow basin, enveloped in warm steam. In the bright afternoon sun, falling droplets and steam from the geyser catch the light rays and convert them into rainbows that vanish as quickly as they appear. Any lingering doubt about the nature of the spring is swiftly dispelled by the distinct sulphurous smell that hangs in the air. A changing tableau of people approach the spring, fill tiny, fist-sized juglets from the geyser, chug it and move on. How bad can it be, I think to myself and follow suit—and promptly gag. The water is metallic, acrid and vile. Yet, in the Czech town of Karlovy Vary, about two hours west of Prague, more than a dozen hot springs (as well as 300 smaller ones), are revered as the springs of health, wellness and longevity. Known locally as Karlsbad/Carlsbad, Karlovy Vary (literally Charles' spring) was a European spa town for centuries before Czechia got swept behind the Iron Curtain. It is named after Charles IV, the 14th century Roman Emperor and king of Bohemia. During and after Charles' rule, the thermal springs gained a massive reputation for having incredible medicinal properties, ranging from relieving muscular and gastrointestinal problems to curing gout and obesity. So much so that the fashionable to fawning and everyone in between flocked to the town—Russian Tsar Peter the Great, Kemal Ataturk, Goethe, Marx, Beethoven, Wagner... What the fashionable set also did was inspire wedding-cake like architecture: a blend of ornate neo-Baroque, neo-Renaissance and art nouveau with pastel facades and frothy embellishments that invoke luxury and grandeur. As if all this fame was not enough, the town has also hosted an annual film festival since 1946, considered eastern Europe's biggest. The town suffered a period of ignominy during the Cold War but as the Iron Curtain crumbled, its popularity soared again. To the extent that Unesco named it one among 11 great spa towns of Europe in 2021. Also read: Head to Lisse for tulips without the crowds Spread over both banks of the river Tepla, Karlovy Vary is situated in the pristine Sokolov basin surrounded Slavkov forest full of bogs, lush green meadows and pine woods. Just outside the historic centre of town, an ornate 19th century building is the first indication of the town's celebrity status. Called Kaiserbad locally, it is better known as the famous Casino Royale in the eponymous James Bond movie. A cobble-stoned pathway from here along the river leads to the town centre. Inserted between the cobble-stones are metallic plaques with globally-recognised names: Marx, Kafka, Beethoven, Wagner, but also movie celebrities such as Robert De Niro, Michael Douglas, Gregory Peck, Antonio Banderas, Scarlett Johansson and many more, as a tribute to its famous visitors. The cobbled path follows a bend in the river and opens into Stara Louka, the main street, which is also dubbed the Hot Spring Street for obvious reasons. Located along this path are nearly a dozen thermal springs ranging between 30 and 73 degree Celsius, housed in elegant colonnades. These are interspersed with stacked 18th and 19th century buildings in beautiful pastel shades housing swanky boutiques, swish showrooms, restaurants, bars, cafes and souvenir stores. It is from one of these that my guide Natalie buys me a pretty white and blue ceramic juglet, called a spa cup, for tasting the spring water. During peak season, the street swirls with tourists but on a pleasant weekday afternoon at the end of April, it isn't crowded at all. The river bends once more and in the crook is the first of the colonnades, Vridelni Kolonada (Hot Spring Colonnade), my first encounter with the spring water. Made of glass and concrete, the colonnade is relatively new and is dedicated to Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. And for good reason: it houses the most spectacular of Karlovy Vary's geysers, the Pramen Vřídlo, which shoots up 10m. At over 73 degrees Celsius, it is also one of the hottest of the springs. Inside the structure, the vapours are denser and tickle the nose and I hastily exit the building. Further ahead are two of the town's most beautiful and iconic buildings built around the springs. Mlynska Kolonada (Mill Colonnade) is a neo-Renaissance building from the late 19th century; it is a longish structure stretching for more 120m and held up by over a hundred Corinthian columns. The ornate architecture encases five springs that spurt water at temperatures ranging from 53 degrees Celsius to 65 degrees Celsius. 'They are not as bad as the first one," Natalie says. Having done it once, I decide I may as well try the others. Each one is a different: pungent, salty, tingling, bitter. 'That's because of the different minerals the water encounters when rising to the top. Each is also known to have its own medicinal properties," she says. Round the corner is the Trzni Kolonada (Market Colonnade), also from the 19th century. But where the previous one is ornate and solid, Trzni feels pretty and delicate with an intricate white lattice-work facade. Inside are three springs gushing out of hydrant-style contraptions. I taste some more of the warm waters, by now having becoming inured to the strong flavours. Once or twice I am surprised by a mildly fizzy taste. 'That's because of carbon dioxide content," Natalie says. As the evening shadows lengthen, it calls for looking at the town from a different perspective: a hot air balloon ride over the spa town. From up above, Karlovy Vary feels like something out of a fairytale—lush green forests, meadows and hillocks framing houses and buildings topped by red gabled roofs with the Tepla winding through it. Back in Stara Louka, dusk has fallen and golden light spills from every establishment, their reflections shimmering on the Tepla's surface, turning the street into an enchanting place. It is the perfect setting to taste Karlovy Vary's other famous liquid, Becherovka. The first sip, out of a shot glass, is almost an assault on the senses, leaving me sputtering and teary-eyed, as the liquid burns a path as it goes down. It is sharp, with menthol being the overwhelming flavour but is laced with notes of ginger and cinnamon. Drunk as an aperitif or digestif, Becherovka was created over 200 years ago by pharmacist Josef Vitus Becher as an antidote for gastric problems, combining 20 or more ingredients. It is unclear why and when it made the transition from the medicine cabinet to the bar. Its ABV strength at upwards of 40% could be the overpowering reason. I sip some more and discover subtler flavours such as citrus, spices and herbs. With each sip, it tastes better and better. As I begin to enjoy it, I am amused that becherovka, much like the town's hot springs, has begun to grow on me. Also read: From Botswana to New Zealand, travel to the southern hemisphere this summer
