Global Agenda articles from May 2004

Global Agenda archives from May 2004

A May Day milestone.(growth of members)
May 3, 2004... After years of often tortuous preparations, the European Union is expanding from 15 countries to 25. The new entrants should catch up with its founder members eventually. But they might not want to emulate them too closely WHAT was a...

A setback for Sharon's Gaza gamble.(Likud Vote)(withdrawal of Israel troops from Gaza)
May 3, 2004... Ariel Sharon's Likud party has voted to reject his plan to pull Israeli troops and settlers out of Gaza. But the prime minister will still try to push it through the cabinet and parliament--if he can survive the political turmoil that is likely...

A setback for Sharon's Gaza gamble.(Likud vote)(withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza)
May 4, 2004... Ariel Sharon's Likud party has voted to reject his plan to pull Israeli troops and settlers out of Gaza. But the prime minister will still try to push it through the cabinet and parliament--if he can survive the political turmoil that is likely...

The end of Wall Street as we know it?
May 4, 2004... Frank Quattrone, one of the most prominent bankers during the dotcom boom, has been found guilty of obstructing justice and witness-tampering during an investigation into public share offerings. His conviction comes a few days after Google said...

A May Day milestone.(growth of members)
May 5, 2004... After years of often tortuous preparations, the European Union is expanding from 15 countries to 25. The new entrants should catch up with its founder members eventually. But they might not want to emulate them too closely WHAT was a...

China and the Fed: twin piques.
May 6, 2004... China and America are both about to start tightening monetary policy to ward off inflation. Financial-market traders have reasons to worry FEW people can hold a candle to Alan Greenspan, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, when it comes...

The coalition's reputation takes another hit.
May 6, 2004... The scandal over abuses of Iraqi prisoners by coalition forces continues to grow. Despite promises of punishment for those found guilty of such abuse--and doubts over the veracity of photographs showing abuse by British soldiers--the damage to...

Megawati squeezed between tough guys; Indonesia's election; Megawati squeezed between two tough guys.
May 6, 2004... Indonesia's frustrated voters have punished President Megawati's party in the country's parliamentary elections. She now faces serious challenges from two former generals in the forthcoming presidential vote INDONESIA'S President Megawati...

UNconscionable.
May 7, 2004... As the humanitarian crisis in the Darfur region of Sudan continues to spread, the country's appointment to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights prompts an American walkout THE cries of "hypocrisy" were as predictable as they were...

The comic opera ends; Post-Soviet strife; Georgia's second rose revolution.
May 7, 2004... Georgia's new president, Mikhail Saakashvili, has managed to gain control of the breakaway region of Ajaria following the dramatic exit of its autocratic leader. But, as he struggles to turn Georgia into a more normal, prosperous country, he...

Turbulence all round; European airlines; Trouble for the old, trouble for the new.(low cost pricing)
May 7, 2004... With Alitalia close to bankruptcy and easyJet's shares having taken a hammering after it admitted it will be hurt by new rivals, Europe's flag-carriers and low-cost upstarts alike are having to endure a bout of turbulence THE number of air...

The buck stops where?
May 7, 2004... Calls are growing for the resignation or sacking of Donald Rumsfeld, America's defence secretary, over coalition troops' abuse of prisoners in Iraq GEORGE BUSH is famously loyal to those closest to him. But that loyalty came under perhaps...

The buck stops where?
May 10, 2004... Calls are growing for the resignation or sacking of Donald Rumsfeld, America's defence secretary, over coalition troops' abuse of prisoners in Iraq GEORGE BUSH is famously loyal to those closest to him. But that loyalty has come under...

Putin's placeman assassinated.
May 10, 2004... A bomb attack by Chechen separatists has killed the breakaway Russian province's pro-Moscow leader, Akhmad Kadyrov. His murder has wrecked President Vladimir Putin's plans to subdue Chechnya and raises fears of even worse violence AKHMAD...

A U-turn in the desert.
May 10, 2004... Just three months after calling for OPEC's oil-production quotas to be cut, Saudi Arabia is now calling for them to be raised SAUDI ARABIA, the oil industry's swing producer, has become its flip-flopper. In February, it persuaded the...

Putin's placeman assassinated.
May 11, 2004... A bomb attack by Chechen separatists has killed the breakaway Russian province's pro-Moscow leader, Akhmad Kadyrov. His murder has wrecked President Vladimir Putin's plans to subdue Chechnya and raises fears of even worse violence AKHMAD...

A U-turn in the desert.
May 11, 2004... Just three months after calling for OPEC's oil-production quotas to be cut, Saudi Arabia is now calling for them to be raised SAUDI ARABIA, the oil industry's swing producer, has become its flip-flopper. In February, it persuaded the...

Scrambling to control the damage.
May 11, 2004... Donald Rumsfeld looks secure in his job for now. But the scandal over the abuse of prisoners in Iraq is now causing wider damage, to George Bush, the British government, and support for the war overall DONALD RUMSFELD has many enemies, but...

Putin's placeman assassinated.
May 12, 2004... A bomb attack by Chechen separatists has killed the breakaway Russian province's pro-Moscow leader, Akhmad Kadyrov. His murder has wrecked President Vladimir Putin's plans to subdue Chechnya and raises fears of even worse violence AKHMAD...

A U-turn in the desert.
May 12, 2004... Just three months after calling for OPEC's oil-production quotas to be cut, Saudi Arabia is now calling for them to be raised SAUDI ARABIA, the oil industry's swing producer, has become its flip-flopper. In February, it persuaded the...

Scrambling to control the damage.
May 12, 2004... Donald Rumsfeld looks secure in his job for now. But the scandal over the abuse of prisoners in Iraq is now causing wider damage, to George Bush, the British government, and support for the war overall DONALD RUMSFELD has many enemies, but...

Sticks for Syria, carrots for the Palestinians.
May 12, 2004... President George Bush has imposed sanctions against Syria, to pressure its leader, Bashar Assad, to co-operate on Iraq and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Meanwhile, Mr Bush has written a conciliatory letter to the Palestinian leadership,...

Scrambling to control the damage.
May 13, 2004... Donald Rumsfeld looks secure in his job for the time being. But the scandal over the abuse of prisoners in Iraq is now causing wider damage, to George Bush, the British government, and support for the war overall DONALD RUMSFELD has many...

Sticks for Syria, carrots for the Palestinians.(George W. Bush has imposes sanctions against Syria)
May 13, 2004... President George Bush has imposed sanctions against Syria, to pressure its leader, Bashar Assad, to co-operate on Iraq and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Meanwhile, Mr Bush has written a conciliatory letter to the Palestinian leadership,...

A stunning defeat for Vajpayee.(India's Atal Behari Vajpayee)
May 13, 2004... Atal Behari Vajpayee and his ruling BJP have suffered a shock defeat in India's general election. Sonia Gandhi's Congress and its allies will take the reins of the world's largest democracy BAD for the credibility of almost every pundit and...

A U-turn in the desert.
May 14, 2004... Just three months after calling for OPEC's oil-production quotas to be cut, Saudi Arabia is now calling for them to be raised. The U-turn may not be enough, however, to reverse the surging price of oil SAUDI ARABIA, the oil industry's swing...

Scrambling to control the damage.
May 14, 2004... Donald Rumsfeld looks secure in his job for the time being. But the scandal over the abuse of prisoners in Iraq is now causing wider damage, to George Bush, the British government, and support for the war overall DONALD RUMSFELD has many...

Off the hook; South Korean politics; Roh's impeachment is overturned, and a leftish experiment begins.
May 14, 2004... South Korea's president, Roh Moo-hyun, can finally launch his country's experiment with left-leaning government, now that the Constitutional Court has overturned his impeachment UNLIKE his stunning election win 18 months ago, Roh Moo-hyun's...

Cheap money, pricey oil; The world economy; Cheap money, pricey oil, and everyone behind the curve.
May 14, 2004... The monetary authorities in America, Europe and China are all "behind the curve" on interest rates, but they are not all equally relaxed about it CHEAP money and expensive oil sounds to many like a dangerous, inflationary combination....

Return of the Gandhi dynasty.(Elections)(Sonia Gandhi to lead India)
May 14, 2004... After the stunning defeat of Atal Behari Vajpayee and his ruling BJP in India's election, Sonia Gandhi, Congress's leader, is widely expected to become prime minister THE Congress party and the Nehru-Gandhi family have dominated Indian...

Seeking an honourable way out.(postwar plans to withdraw coalition from Iraq)
May 17, 2004... As insurgents kill another member of the Iraqi Governing Council, George Bush and Tony Blair are under pressure both to send more troops and to present a clear plan for how they will get out of Iraq MILITANTS fighting the American-led...

Seeing red; India's new government; The markets take fright.
May 17, 2004... The stockmarket in Mumbai, India's largest, has suffered its worst-ever fall. Investors have taken fright at the prospect of a new government, to be led by the Congress party's Sonia Gandhi, and relying on the support of India's Communists ...

Other reasons to worry; The world economy; With Japan and Europe doing better, markets find other reasons to worry.
May 18, 2004... The world recovery continues apace, with Japan and even Europe defying the doubters. So why are the markets still fretting? ECONOMISTS of a saturnine disposition are used to thinking of old Europe and ageing Japan as their intellectual...

Seeking an honourable way out.(sending troops to Iraq to control insurgents)
May 18, 2004... As insurgents kill another member of the Iraqi Governing Council, George Bush and Tony Blair are under pressure both to send more troops and to present a clear plan for how they will get out of Iraq MILITANTS fighting the American-led...

Seeing red; India's new government; The markets take fright.
May 18, 2004... Investors in India have taken fright at the prospect of a new government, to be led by the Congress party's Sonia Gandhi, and relying on the support of India's Communists FOR Sonia Gandhi, India's presumptive prime minister, the honeymoon...

Birth pains; India's new government; Gandhi's second thoughts.
May 18, 2004... Five days after results were declared in its general election, India is still waiting for a new government and a new prime minister. Sonia Gandhi, leader of the Congress party, met the president on Tuesday to discuss her progress in forming a...

Gandhi walks away.(Sonia Gandhi)
May 18, 2004... For five days after results were declared in India's general election, Sonia Gandhi was the country's presumptive prime minister. But faced with an opposition-led campaign against her because of her foreign birth, and turbulence on the...

Other reasons to worry; The world economy; With Japan and Europe doing better, markets find other reasons to worry.
May 19, 2004... The world recovery continues apace, with Japan and even Europe defying the doubters. So why are the markets still fretting? ECONOMISTS of a saturnine disposition are used to thinking of old Europe and ageing Japan as their intellectual...

Seeking an honourable way out.
May 19, 2004... As insurgents kill another member of the Iraqi Governing Council, George Bush and Tony Blair are under pressure both to send more troops and to present a clear plan for how they will get out of Iraq MILITANTS fighting the American-led...

Another gene genie out of the bottle.
May 19, 2004... The European Commission has lifted a five-year moratorium on genetically modified produce, by allowing the sale in Europe of one type of modified corn. But the battle by producers of such crops to win governments' and consumers' acceptance is...

The French government rides to the rescue; France's rescue of Alstom; European champions, as long as they're French.
May 19, 2004... The French government is finalising the details of a deal to rescue Alstom, a troubled engineering conglomerate. It is another example of the French policy of creating "national champions", even out of sickly companies, and it goes against a...

Gandhi walks away.
May 19, 2004... For five days after results were declared in India's general election, Sonia Gandhi was the country's presumptive prime minister. But faced with an opposition-led campaign against her because of her foreign birth, and turbulence on the...

After Sonia, Singh steps in.
May 19, 2004... Following Sonia Gandhi's decision not to put herself forward as India's prime minister, Manmohan Singh has accepted the job. A much-respected former finance minister, he may nevertheless lack the political skills to keep the new ruling...

The storm before the calm?
May 20, 2004... Ignoring worldwide condemnation--even from America--Israel is pushing on, for the time being, with its military offensive in Gaza, while behind the scenes working on a new plan to withdraw permanently from the strip WHEN resolutions are...

After Sonia, Singh steps in.
May 20, 2004... Following Sonia Gandhi's decision not to put herself forward as India's prime minister, Manmohan Singh has accepted the job. A much-respected former finance minister, he may nevertheless lack the political skills to keep the new ruling...

The storm before the calm?
May 21, 2004... Ignoring worldwide condemnation--even from America--Israel this week pushed on with its military offensive in Gaza, while behind the scenes working on a new plan to withdraw permanently from the strip WHEN resolutions are put to the United...

Handing off power--but to whom?(leaving Iraq)
May 21, 2004... It has been a dismal stretch for the coalition in Iraq, leaving America and Britain keener than ever to find an exit strategy. But after a police raid on America's former favourite Iraqi, the future is cloudier than ever FOR some, Ahmed...

The storm before the calm?
May 24, 2004... Ignoring worldwide condemnation--even from America--Israel has pushed on with its military offensive in Gaza, while behind the scenes working on a new plan to withdraw permanently from the strip WHEN resolutions are put to the United...

Handing off power--but to whom?(political aspects of Iraq)
May 24, 2004... It has been a dismal stretch for the coalition in Iraq, leaving America and Britain keener than ever to find an exit strategy. George Bush plans to outline such a strategy in a series of speeches but, for now, the future looks cloudier than...

Amsterdamned; OPEC and the G7; Petrol-pump politics.
May 24, 2004... Worried by rising oil prices, the rich world's finance ministers have called on oil producers to pump more oil. OPEC, the producers' cartel, is split over whether to oblige IN A previous incarnation, Manhattan was known as New...

After Sonia, Singh steps in.
May 24, 2004... Following Sonia Gandhi's decision not to put herself forward as India's prime minister, Manmohan Singh has accepted the job and been sworn in. A much-respected former finance minister, he may nevertheless lack the political skills to keep the...

Unhappy families.
May 25, 2004... Time for some soul-searching by emerging-market investors, again. Thank you Russia, again "ALL happy families are alike; all unhappy families are unhappy in their own way," wrote Leo Tolstoy at the beginning of "Anna Karenina". In capital...

The storm before the calm?
May 25, 2004... Ignoring worldwide condemnation--even from America--Israel has pushed on with its military offensive in Gaza, while behind the scenes working on a new plan to withdraw permanently from the strip WHEN resolutions are put to the United...

Amsterdamned; OPEC and the G7; Petrol-pump politics.
May 25, 2004... Worried by rising oil prices, the rich world's finance ministers have called on oil producers to pump more oil. OPEC, the producers' cartel, is split over whether to oblige IN A previous incarnation, Manhattan was known as New...

The people's lawyer strikes again.
May 25, 2004... New York's attorney-general has sued Richard Grasso, seeking the return of more than $100m from the huge pay package that got the New York Stock Exchange's boss sacked last September. The move comes as the exchange faces renewed pressure to...

A sovereign Iraq, full of foreign troops; The handover of power in Iraq; A sovereign country, full of foreign troops.
May 25, 2004... A speech by George Bush and a draft UN Security Council resolution have provided some of the details of a "full" transfer of power in Iraq. But a huge coalition force will remain in the country. Balancing security and sovereignty will not be...

The people's lawyer strikes again.
May 26, 2004... New York's attorney-general has sued Richard Grasso, seeking the return of more than $100m from the huge pay package that got the New York Stock Exchange's boss sacked last September. The move comes as the exchange faces renewed pressure to...

Still plotting, still recruiting.(al Qaeda)
May 26, 2004... As President Bush's intelligence chiefs warn of possible terrorist attacks on the scale of the Madrid bombings, a leading security think-tank says al-Qaeda still has around 18,000 trained operatives--and is fast recruiting more THE...

Amsterdamned; OPEC and the G7; Petrol-pump politics.(oil ministers of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) met Group of Seven to discuss oil prices)
May 27, 2004... Worried by rising oil prices, the rich world's finance ministers have called on oil producers to pump more oil. OPEC, the producers' cartel, is split over whether to oblige IN A previous incarnation, Manhattan was known as New...

Still plotting, still recruiting.(intelligence chiefs warn of possible terrorist attacks of al-Qaeda)
May 27, 2004... As George Bush's intelligence chiefs warn of possible terrorist attacks on the scale of the Madrid bombings, a leading security think-tank says al-Qaeda still has around 18,000 trained operatives--and is fast recruiting more THE Olympics,...

Rumbling from the right.(political picture of America)
May 27, 2004... George Bush is in slightly better shape than he appears--but far worse than anybody imagined at the start of the year FOR a wartime president, George Bush has been relatively sparing in his use of the bully pulpit. But on Monday May 24th he...

Darfur's long shadow; Sudan's conflicts; Peace in the south, spreading war in the west.
May 27, 2004... The north and south of Sudan have made peace after a civil war spanning almost half a century, in which 2m have died and twice as many have been displaced. But a separate conflict in the western region of Darfur still rages--and may destabilise...

From Amsterdam to Beirut; OPEC and the G7; Petrol-pump politics.
May 28, 2004... Worried by rising oil prices, the rich world's finance ministers have called on oil producers to pump more oil. OPEC, the producers' cartel, is split over whether to oblige IN A previous incarnation, Manhattan was known as New...

The end of an era; Umberto Agnelli's death; The end of an era at Fiat.
May 28, 2004... The death of Umberto Agnelli, chairman of Fiat, almost certainly brings to an end his family's dominance of the troubled Italian industrial group. Fiat's heavy debts may prompt a sale of the core car division THE death of Umberto Agnelli,...

Allawi takes on the job from hell.
May 28, 2004... Ayad Allawi, a leading Shia politician who had opposed Saddam Hussein from exile, is set to become Iraq's prime minister. Given the state the country is in, his task will be unenviable THE task of putting together an interim government to...

Still plotting, still recruiting.(al Qaeda)
May 30, 2004... As George Bush's intelligence chiefs warn of possible terrorist attacks on the scale of the Madrid bombings, a leading security think-tank says al-Qaeda still has around 18,000 trained operatives--and is fast recruiting more THE Olympics,...

Ariel Sharon up against the wall.(non approval of plan)
May 31, 2004... After a marathon cabinet debate, Ariel Sharon is weakened by his failure to win support for his "disengagement" plan with the Palestinians. But he has won support in his Likud party for the principle of removing at least some Jewish settlements...

The end of an era; Umberto Agnelli's death; The end of an era at Fiat.
May 31, 2004... The death of Umberto Agnelli, chairman of Fiat, almost certainly brings to an end his family's dominance of the troubled Italian industrial group. Fiat's heavy debts may prompt a sale of the core car division THE death of Umberto Agnelli,...

Allawi takes on the job from hell.(Iyad Allawi new Prime minister of Iraq)
May 31, 2004... Ayad Allawi, a leading Shia politician who had opposed Saddam Hussein from exile, is set to become Iraq's prime minister. Given the state the country is in, his task will be unenviable THE task of putting together an interim government to...