Friday, October 25, 2013

What would they do without America to complain about?

European Union policy on Syria -- get outraged only when US might bomb Syria.

European Union policy on migration -- get outraged about alleged US snooping. As a Wall Street Journal news story notes:

It was just two weeks ago that European leaders expressed shock at the tragedy just miles off the Italian island of Lampedusa, where hundreds of African migrants died in a shipwreck. The loss of life in European waters drove home the sheer desperation that brings migrants from North Africa to Europe on precarious, life-threatening boat journeys. But it also exposed the problems faced by countries on the borders of the European Union. The migration issue was set to be discussed by EU leaders on Friday in Brussels on the second day of a two-day summit. But for the four countries that are the main gateways for migrants to Europe—Greece, Italy, Malta and Cyprus—the extent to which the issue was overshadowed by new allegations of U.S. spying on its European allies was likely jarring. EU leaders arriving at the summit Thursday mostly spent time criticizing the U.S. for its alleged spying, rather than commenting on the need to prevent such tragic losses of life in the Mediterranean. It's "surreal," said Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat.