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Sarkozy's plan is, in any event, hardly racing along. The French proposal was originally meant to encompass only the 19 countries along the Mediterranean rim. But Merkel led a push to include all E.U. nations, a move that many fear could dilute what was already something grandly ambitious. And for all Sarkozy's fine words, most of the hard work of sorting out North Africa's problems will have to be done by those who live there...
...from coming. What might work better can be seen on a farm 100 miles (160 km) south of Tunis. Here the vision of a Mediterranean Union is in full flower. David Jacob is the technical manager for Agroland Tunisie, a 370-acre (150 ha) joint venture with Chanabel, a French farming conglomerate based near Lyons. Jacob is showing top officials from Tunis the new field of baby nectarine trees that were planted in January. He brought the latest techniques for hydration and pruning from France, and knows what pleases the European eye and palate. Moving over to a grove...
There are signs that Europe has awakened to the problem. On June 2, for instance, the University of Toulouse 1 inaugurated the Toulouse School of Economics, offering English-language graduate courses, thanks to $52 million in donations from corporate donors. A change in French law last year granted state-run institutions like Toulouse more autonomy, so such fund-raising efforts could become widespread in France. In Germany, where local governments have been free to levy tuition fees since 2005, federal and local governments have earmarked some $3 billion to promote excellence in research at selected universities through to 2011. Others...
Among the 15 people liberated was the most high-profile FARC hostage of all, former Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt - a French-Colombian whose six-year-long captivity had become a cause célèbre in Europe - as well as three American defense contractors who had been held for more than five years, one of the longest U.S. hostage ordeals ever. Surrounded by his top military brass, Colombian Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos said, "They were rescued safe and sound...
...city hall there was changed last November to a haunting image of a drawn woman with downcast eyes, taken from a proof-of-life video released at that time. In April, fears had mounted that Betancourt, 46, might be near death - supposedly from hepatitis B. French President Nicolas Sarkozy dispatched Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, himself a physician, and an emergency medical team to Colombia to await her release. Betancourt's release was one of Sarkozy's campaign promises. But after waiting for days the plane returned to France, having failed in its mission. With Wednesday's rescue, Herve Marot, spokesman...