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August 28th, 2008
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European Roundup


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FRANCE A nationwide ban on smoking in bars, restaurants, nightclubs and cafés took effect Jan. 1 with a 24-hour grace period for New Year’s celebrations. Anyone caught smoking in these places will be fined 450 euros, according to the BBC. France follows the United Kingdom, Spain, Ireland, Italy, Sweden and parts of the United States in the trend to ban smoking in public places.

RUSSIA A government agency has denied reports that it signed a deal to supply Iran with anti-aircraft missiles, according to a Dec. 29 report in The New York Times (NYT). The Iranian defense minister claimed Russia had agreed to equip Iran with S-300 missiles, but the Russian agency, the Federal Military and Technical Cooperation Service, said no such deal was being discussed with Iran. 
BELGIUM The capital city, Brussels, canceled its New Year’s Eve celebrations because of an alleged plot to free an al-Qaida suspect, Nizar Trabelsi, who had been convicted for planning to blow up an air base in Belgium used by U.S. personnel, according to a Dec. 30 BBC report. Fireworks in Brussels were canceled and the Christmas markets closed early.
EUROPE Detention camps for foreigners have “mushroomed” across the European Union over the past decade, according to a Dec. 30 International Herald Tribune report. There are currently 224 detention camps throughout the EU, capable of housing over 30,000 people such as asylum seekers and illegal immigrants who are awaiting deportation.
SPAIN As many as 1.5 million people gathered in Madrid’s Colon Square Dec. 30 to demonstrate in favor of the traditional family, according to the NYT. The demonstration comes two months before the Socialist government, which has legalized same-sex marriage and made divorce easier, will seek re-election.
UK A UK fund established to compensate Nazi victims has paid £22 million, or 10 times its original budget, the BBC reported Dec. 28. The Enemy Property Claims Assessment repaid people who lived in enemy countries and had their assets in the United Kingdom frozen. The fund was meant to end three years ago but is still receiving applications, the BBC reports.
GERMANY Foreign Minister and Vice Chancellor Frank-Walter Steinmeier is pushing for a minimum wage of between 7.20 and 7.50 euros, according to a Dec. 30 Forbes report. However, the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce, the industry association BDI and employers’ groups ZDH and BDA have spoken out against minimum wages.
FRANCE President Nicolas Sarkozy announced that France will suspend diplomatic relations with Syria for what it says is Syria’s attempts to block the installment of a consensus president in Lebanon, according to a Dec. 30 BBC report. Relations will be restored when France has proof that Syria is not blocking the installment. 
TURKEY Five people were detained and are being held for possible trial on suspicion of links with al-Qaida, according to a Dec. 30 Reuters report. The arrests followed police operations in five Turkish cities, including the capital Ankara, and the earlier detention of 19 people. For fear of bombings, authorities also increased security in main cities in anticipation of the New Year’s holiday.
UK In the wake of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto’s assassination, UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown has promised to “step up” efforts to defeat terrorism in Pakistan, according to a Dec. 28 BBC report. Brown also offered condolences to Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, and urged him to hold the country’s planned elections in the new year.


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