SEEKING REASSURANCE — After French President Nicolas Sarkozy in Washington last week, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the Bush ranch in Crawford, Texas, at the weekend, the flow of high-level European visitors continues in early December when Italy’s President Giorgio Napolitano is due to visit — followed in February by Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi. The White House wants to show it has friends in Europe to support its tough Iran policy, its efforts in Afghanistan, and its new missile defense deployment in Eastern Europe. Visiting European leaders, on the other hand, are seeking reassurance that Bush’s lame duck [...]
MOSCOW — After 26 years of serving as a captain in the Soviet Army, Nikolai Petrovich never imagined he’d be selling mushrooms past dark on a cold Moscow street corner. Petrovich, 75, says he remains a fervent supporter of President Vladimir Putin and that his $350 monthly pension check would normally suffice, if not for price hikes that have made this capital the most expensive in the world. “The government gives me some money, but prices have gone up so much, it’s not enough,” he says. “We must make some extra on our own.” Nearby about a dozen fellow retirees, [...]
After emerging victorious from a Nov. 11 runoff against Christian democrat first-round winner Alojz Peterle — prime minister when the country declared independence in 1991, and the favorite of the center-right government of Janez Jansa — left-leaning Danilo Turk will become Slovenia’s next president. Despite coming second in the first round on Oct. 21, Turk garnered two-thirds of the vote in the runoff, largely thanks to votes transferred from Central Bank governor Mitja Gaspari, a fellow left winger he narrowly beat. In the first ballot, Peterle won overall with 28.7 percent, while Turk had 24.5 percent and Gaspari 24.1 percent. [...]
