Katinka Barysch Quotations

The perception is that foreign investment is not good for jobs.

But for the Europeans, it is also important to maintain their good ties with the Russians and the Chinese. The cooperation or the lack of obstruction you see from Russia and China at the moment is from the fact that the Europeans gained credibility in the past by going down the negotiations path.

I don't think so. Every country is under pressure to defend their national interest.

What Merkel is trying to do is to restore to some extent that balancing function within Europe and between Europe and the U.S..

It is a proxy battle for a more flexible employment model versus what the French like to call a social model for Europe.

That episode reinforces the message that, yes, now we have 10 new members who are willing to fight for their interests.

I would look at economic policy trends here -- quite clearly growing state control seems to have some kind of impact on output development.

Merkel is against French protectionism, but she will not do anything to embarrass the French.

The Polish view seems to be a contingency view. If the EU cannot reach a deal with Russia, then the Poles seems to be saying Europe needs alternative plans. But it is clear several member states will not want to exclude Russia. Germany has already made that clear to Poland.

Belarus looks like being a bit of a train crash.

Europe now has to stand by its word and get tough with the Iranians.

European integration would actually be helpful for security of supply. That is because it could help you move resources around, as well as allowing you to devote more energy to research and development.

There's no doubt we will see a watering down of Merkel's program. When you look at the breakdown of the cabinet, it is clear that she will need a lot of skills to keep this government together.

The SPD mark on German foreign policy will be weaker.

Russia is a very different place from the way we saw it just three or four years ago.

The mood is against integration right now. Politicians have taken worries over the security of energy supplies and capitalized on them.

As economic competition increases and the pace of change accelerates, governments are trying to tighten their grip on what levers they have.

It's possible Bulgarian and Romanian accession will be put off. The reason would be not enough progress in fighting corruption.

I'm worried about Turkey because there's a deadline for them to lift restrictions on Cypriot ships going into their ports. This will come to a head and cause an incident.

I presume it will be someone of a lesser standing (than Schroeder), so the SPD mark on German foreign policy will be weaker.

By the standards of oil-producing countries, Russia's not a particularly nasty place, given that access in other major countries is even more restricted.

All you have to look at is how much energy Russia supplies to Europe. This shows you cannot exclude Russia.

The commission is right to be proposing a new European dimension of energy policy. The European angle is secondary for member states like France, which is sad. It will take time to make progress.