David Cameron, the UK's prime minister, commands many of the headlines
about the EU budget. None is balder or bolder than Die Welt's “Cameron
could decide the future of Europe”. “Britain is standing on a ledge,
while Europe screams, 'Don't do it!'” is the headline of a commentary
in the Guardian, which also has a long look at many of the key issues.
In an editorial, the French daily Le Monde calls on the UK to remain
part of the EU. The Financial Times finds something to leaven the
mood, claiming that “Hopes rise of EU budget accord with UK”, writing
that European Union officials claim Cameron has got ‘what he wanted',
although more complaints have been received from other countries over
the UK's rebate. Poland's Gazeta Wyborcza puts the chances of a deal
during the summit at fifty-fifty. Slovenia's Delo writes that there
are growing signs that a deal will not be struck at the summit.
Switzerland's Tages Anzeiger writes that the European Parliament is
threatening to block the budget.
The Guardian quotes a UK foreign-ministry official as stating that an
independent Scotland would have to start afresh as an EU member state.
Süddeutsche Zeitung writes that a Frenchman has been kidnapped in
Mali. The EU is joining forces with the African Union to launch a
military intervention in the country; the EU's role would be behind
the lines, in a supporting role.
The Czech daily Lidové noviny writes that the Syrian airforce has
attacked a hospital, killing 40.
Lithuania's Lietuvos Rytas has an update on efforts to form a
government, in the face of objections on the part of President Dalia
Grybauskaite towards the second-largest of the four coalition parties.
Antonis Samaras, Greece's prime minister, will demand of fellow EU leaders at a summit that starts in Brussels today that they unblock Greece's next bail-out tranche, writes To Vima. Samaras wants the leaders' commitment that the funds will be formally approved on Monday, when eurozone ministers meet in Brussels.
Austria goes into today's summit with incoherent demands, writes Die Presse in a commentary. On the one hand, it wants to see cuts to the EU's long-term spending; on the other hand, it resists any cuts to the payments it receives from the EU and to its rebate.
Turkey has requested that NATO deploy missile-defence systems to its border with Syria, writes Hürriyet Daily News.
President Barack Obama and Egypt's post-revolution Islamic leadership have forged strong links in diplomatic action to impose a ceasefire on Gaza, writes the New York Times.
The Wall Street Journal reports that the question whether to put Marshmallow Fluff over the traditional Thanksgiving sweet-potato casserole is dividing families across the nation.
