Baby boomers get tough
The conversion of German foreign minister Joschka Fischer from pacifist Green to the superhawk of Kosovo stunned the EU's four neutral members at the General Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg. Only four years ago, Germany's constitutional court was agonising over whether their troops could participate in a UN peacekeeping operation beyond their borders. Now the Luftwaffe is bombing Belgrade and the general staff is dusting off those blood-stained second world war maps.
The shock for the neutrals came when Fischer presented his draft statement for all 15 EU nations to sign, insisting that Nato's military action against Serbia is "both necessary and justified." The EU's four non-Nato members-Sweden, Finland, Austria and Ireland-all squirmed. Finland's Tarja Halonen said that in her language, the word for "justified" had strong judicial implications, and she could not endorse it. "How about 'warranted?'" suggested Robin Cook, and Joschka Fischer nodded; that was fine with him. Belgium's Erik Derycke and France's Hubert V?drine raised amused eyebrows, knowing that the French text would still carry the word justifi?. But the neutrals finally went along.
Then Italy's Lamberto Dini raised a fuss about the line which said "all those who planned, authorised and executed the brutal campaign of forced deportation, torture and murder should be held personally accountable and brought to justice before the International War Crimes Tribunal."
"This is too much, too much," said Dini. They would probably all find themselves negotiating with Milosevic again at the end of the crisis. The EU should not bind itself to hauling him up on war crimes charges. Again Robin Cook, the barrack-room lawyer in the General Affairs Council, suggested that there was a difference between personal responsibility and legal liability. As everybody began trying to talk Dini round, Dini kept muttering about his domestic political difficulties. Hubert V?drine said that he understood perfectly; he, too, was part of a coalition which depended on Communist votes. But that was not stopping France from being the second biggest contributor of warplanes after the Americans.
Happy yanks
The American diplomatic contingent, who always wait in the wings at EU Council sessions, occupying a discreet corner of the press room, were ecstatic at the way the dithering Europeans had finally come good. They were particularly pleased that Fischer's draft Stability Pact for southeastern Europe held out the carrot of eventual membership of both Nato and the EU for all the Balkan states, including Serbia. The one thing the Americans did not get, despite prior lobbying of the British and Germans, was a firm EU commitment to tighten sanctions on Serbia. The US particularly wanted to block all travel by Serb finance ministry officials and block all Serbian energy imports. "No prizes for guessing why the Greeks blocked that one," grumbled one American observer.
Edith Cresson smiles
Meanwhile, back in Brussels, Edith Cresson may have lost the services of her notorious dentist, but, like all the other nominally "resigned" commissioners, she still gets her full salary and the use of her official car with two full-time chauffeurs. The ice lady of Chatellerault was even seen to smile coldly the other day, when she heard that in their outrage at her remaining in office, the British Tory MEPs had resolved to boycott all meetings at which she would be present. "So, they seek to deny me the pleasure of snubbing them?"
Next, the unions
The powerful commission trade unions are hopeful that the second report of the Committee of Wise Persons will doom commission secretary-general Carlo Trojan and the top bureaucrats just as the first report sank the Santer commission. The unions blame Trojan for the attempt last year to reform their pay, conditions and jobs-for-life. But the unions should not celebrate too soon. The second report is due in June, just as Santer's replacement, Romano Prodi, will be demanding that all the EU heads of government give him a mandate to do to the Brussels unions what Margaret Thatcher did to the British miners. Blair, Schr?der and Spain's Jos? Maria Aznar have all agreed that Prodi must get full backing to cleanse the stables. The smart money is on a big strike in October, just in time to disrupt the first summit of the Finnish presidency.
Balliol days
Hearing that David Bostock, the number two at the British mission in Brussels, had gone back to run EU policy in the cabinet office, his old Balliol history tutor was recalling how Bostock had specialised in the government of Robert Peel. Useful stuff, mused the don: Ireland troubles, repeal of the Corn Laws (the CAP of its day), and the great split in the Tory party. Meanwhile the British mission is dreading leaks to Newsnight, now that Jeremy Paxman's brother has been posted to Brussels as Head of Chancery.
