JAPAN

JAPAN
Yomiuri Shimbun, Tokyo, Feb. 15: The U.S. Energy Department announced its Global Nuclear Energy Partnership on Feb. 6, reversing a decades-long policy against reprocessing nuclear fuel. This decision will affect the atoms-for-peace programs of not only Japan but many other countries.
The partnership would be a grand initiative to establish a global recycling system to separate energy elements -- uranium and plutonium -- from spent fuel and turn them into new reactor fuel.
Nuclear power plants are very effective in alleviating the energy crisis as well as battling global warming. We support the new U.S. policy and say Japan should cooperate with the partnership in developing a new technology.
If the GNEP were set up, many countries would be relieved of the burden of dealing with spent reactor fuel.
Fly in ointment
The potential fly in the ointment is that countries with nuclear reprocessing capabilities, including the United States, would gain a hold over the nuclear plants of countries that are dependent on their fuel recycling services.
Japan holds a special position in this regard as the only non-nuclear nation in the world that is approved internationally to reprocess nuclear fuel, a technology it promotes as a national policy.
Japan must achieve nuclear fuel recycling quickly and transmit to the world the fact that it has safe nuclear technology and a strong commitment to the peaceful uses of atomic energy.
NORWAY
Aftenposten, Oslo, Feb. 14: Not just the British army but all of Western society faces a serious challenge after the release of a video showing British soldiers abusing Iraqi youth.
In makes little difference that the video shows the young people first throwing stones at the soldiers. It should make little difference. The behavior was unacceptable.
The mistreatment reveals a sky-high stress level of soldiers in the pressed situation.
Right and wrong
But it is precisely in such situations that ethics and morals, understanding right and wrong, should kick in. Soldiers must bring with then a heavy ballast of values, values that are strengthened in training.
In addition, the military command structure must be developed and trained so that the morals of a group of soldiers cannot break down when things get heated.
We have already seen, especially at the Abu Graib prison near Baghdad, how wrong things can go when education, training and unclear leadership signals all pull in the wrong direction.
Such failings are something no army and no society can afford or have the right to commit.
ITALY
La Stampa, Milan, Feb. 15: The European Parliament on Thursday will be called to express itself on the European directives on services, a very important proposal that, if approved, could create millions of jobs and give a formidable impulse to the stagnant growth of the European economy.
Compared to an earlier version, the bill that will be voted appears vastly weakened. Some of the changes look acceptable, because they represent a step forward, others are gravely damaging and should be rejected.
Economic freedom
The bill is gravely damaging for the exceptions it introduces to the general principles of economic freedom ... making it legitimate to impede access to foreign competitors to protect employment in the market for a specific service.
Also, a long list of activities that were to be opened to competition is to be excluded from the directives: notaries, lawyers, pharmacists, taxi-drivers and local transportation firms, and so on.
If these disastrous regulations are approved, the European Parliament would embarrass itself gravely: it would blatantly sacrifice the interest of consumers to the pressure of small, but very powerful lobbies that keep the European economy hostage, (and it would) make it harder for young people to find a job.
DENMARK
Jyllands-Posten, Viby, Feb. 15: Some have mistakenly believed that it was fair game to lunge at a small country like Denmark with a trade boycott, threats and insults. Of course it is not in a civilized world, and it is symptomatic that leaders in the Muslim world are tempering the outrage as Denmark's support in the Western world is reaching full strength.
The EU Commission's head, Jose Manuel Barroso, was the latest to come on stage with his unreserved and wholehearted backing to Denmark and the freedom of speech.
Muhammad crisis
It is especially noteworthy that Germany and France, which split the EU by taking their own stands in the action against Saddam Hussein, were among the first to come to Denmark's rescue without reservations of any kind in the present Muhammad crisis.
It is valuable that there is no doubt that the EU, in such a serious situation, stands united behind fundamental democratic values. It could turn out to be more important than a paper with a treaty that cannot gather full support in the European hinterland. This could lead to a new and better beginning that can give new meaning and that also can get the EU to concentrate on important initiatives in a global context.