Merkel and Sarkozy meet over Euro crisis; US asks South Korea to cut trade ties with Iran; former Khmer Rouge official denies responsibility for killing two million during 1970s; Islamist parties win majority in Egypt; China commits to climate pledge; Peru declares state of emergency following protests at US-owned gold mine; and more

Top of the Agenda: Merkel and Sarkozy Meet over Euro Crisis

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy will meet in Paris today to develop a new joint proposal (NYT) to solve the ongoing eurozone sovereign debt crisis ahead of an EU summit on December 8. Merkel and Sarkozy are expected to move to amend European treaties in order to develop a greater fiscal union that includes centralized oversight over national budgets.

The German and French leaders have significant differences (BBC) to overcome. Merkel is an advocate for a more centralized EU, while Sarkozy favors preserving national sovereignty.

The two leaders will also focus on how to restore market confidence in the economies of Italy and Spain, where bond market yields have risen to unsustainable levels. In a preemptive move, Italy's new prime minister, Mario Monti, unveiled a $40.2 billion, three-year austerity plan (WSJ) that includes spending cuts, tax increases, and pension reform.

Analysis

The eurozone, once seen as a crowning achievement in the decades-long path of European integration, is buffeted by a sovereign debt crisis of nations whose membership in the currency union has been poorly policed, explains this CFR Backgrounder.

Many feel that if the EU is to survive, residents of its twenty-seven member countries need to develop a stronger sense of a common European identity. The continent's leading thinkers have plenty of ideas, but national governments are reluctant to give up power, says an article in Der Spiegel.

This New York Times magazine piece offers simple answers to complicated questions about what's wrong with Europe and whether it can be fixed.

 

PACIFIC RIM

U.S. Calls on South Korea to Cut Iran Trade Ties

A senior U.S. diplomat asked South Korea to help pressure Iran to end its nuclear program by suspending imports of Iranian petrochemicals (WSJ) and reducing imports of crude oil.

This CFR Crisis Guide traces Iran's history, its evolution as an Islamic republic, and its controversial nuclear program.

CAMBODIA: A former senior official in the Khmer Rouge regime (Telegraph) told a UN-backed war crimes tribunal in Phnom Penh that he and other leaders were not "bad people," while denying responsibility for the regime's killing of close to two million people during the 1970s.

 

ELSEWHERE:

Islamist parties win majority in Egypt

China commits to climate pledge at COP17

Peru declares state of emergency over protests

 

This is an excerpt of the CFR.org Daily News Brief. The full version is available on CFR.org.