The known Eurosceptic Italian Minister for European Affairs Paolo Savona said he fully backed the Euro as it’s “indispensable” even though the currency union needs to be “perfected” in regards to its system of governance. He urged that the ECB should be given a “new statute” similar to Federal Reserve. And, it’s “fundamental that the ECB should be able to act on exchange rates.” A so called “Plan B” was laid out in his book, written just before becoming minister, for an orderly exit from Euro if necessary. Savona emphasized that was written as a “analyst”. He said “there is no plan B and I never asked to leave.”
Savona, who has been highly critical on Germany, said that it’s a “great country from many points of view, culturally, economically and politically.” But he pointed out a major difference between him and many German economists. He noted that “they tend to see stability as a necessary condition for growth, while I am part of a group who sees growth as a necessary condition for stability.”
Italy was nearly in another political an constitutional crisis after President Sergio Mattarella vetoed Savona as economy minister. The anti-establiahment coalition of 5-Star Movement and the League quitted forming the government. But then, they came back with Giovanni Tria as Economy Minister and kept Savona in the cabinet as Minister for European Affairs
Trump wants to stop war games for negotiation in good faith with North Korea
US President Donald Trump confirmed his intention to stop military exercise with South Korea while the negotiation with North Korea is in progress. He said in a Fox News interview in Singapore that “we’re not going to be doing the war games as long as we’re negotiating in good faith.” “So that’s good for a number of reasons, in addition to which we save a tremendous amount of money”. And, “you know, those things, they cost. I hate to appear a businessman, but I kept saying, what’s it costing?”
It’s unknown how Trump himself interpret the meaning of “negotiating in good faith”. Or he’s having different application of the words to different people. By the same logic, Trump should have stopped the threats of steel and aluminum tariffs to EU, Mexico and Canada, and refrain from raising the stakes with auto tariffs. Then, these parties can “negotiate in good faith”.
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham blasted the idea of cost cutting as ridiculous as “it’s not a burden onto the American taxpayer to have a forward deployed force in South Korea.” He added that “It brings stability. It’s a warning to China that you can’t just take over the whole region. So I reject that analysis that it costs too much, but I do accept the proposition, let’s stand down (on military exercises) and see if we can find a better way here.”