EU threatens visa requirement for U.S. diplomats

[Ten*K]

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission will propose forcing U.S. diplomats to apply for visas to travel to the European Union from January 1, 2009 unless Washington moves towards granting citizens of all EU states visa-free entry.

"No tangible progress has been made regarding the United States despite all efforts of the Commission and individual member states," the EU executive said on Wednesday.

"Citizens of 12 EU member states continue to require a visa when traveling to the United States," a statement said.

"Therefore, the Commission will propose retaliatory measures e.g. temporary restoration of the visa requirement for U.S. nationals holding diplomatic and service/official passports as from January 1, 2009 if no progress is achieved."

Most older EU states belong to the U.S. visa waiver program, which allows their citizens to travel without visas.

But this does not apply to 11 of the 12 mostly ex-communist countries that joined the 27-member bloc in 2004 and 2007, or older member Greece.

Visas are a sensitive issue in EU-U.S. relations.

Washington's refusal to extend its visa waiver systematically to all EU newcomers causes resentment in countries that are among the most loyal U.S. allies -- some with troops fighting under American command in Iraq and Afghanistan.

A decision by the Bush administration earlier this year to sign separate visa deals with several ex-communist central European countries -- instead of with the EU as a whole -- sparked tensions within the bloc and across the Atlantic.

The United States has said it plans to allow some new EU states in its visa free program this year. The EU executive says its January 1 threat is meant to put pressure on the United States to deliver on this announcement.

"It is unacceptable that nationals from some third countries can benefit from visa free travel to the EU whilst some of our fellow EU citizens can't travel visa-free to those countries," EU Justice and Security Commissioner Jacques Barrot said in the statement.

Washington says it can only allow countries in its visa-free program according to specific security and migration requirements.

I'm sorry, but why, exactly should we care? Because the flood of radical impoverished islamists is finally driving you crazy? so send them HERE, to the one place on THE PLANET they want to see destroyed, right? European Union, you can fuck right off. I'm sure our diplomatic folks will have no problem obtaining visas to transfer information.... and if we don't, well... that's why we have the internet.

I have several friends in the U.K., and after all the shit their government has put the people through, the one thing they regret the most is that they joined the E.U. Now, whole neighborhoods are being taken over in the U.K. by the islam folk, with the 'leaders' demanding the right to sharia law not just for islamists, but for EVERYONE in the community.

No no, you pricks can go right to hell.

[vic2367]

well said ten*k

[Asmodeus6]

Close the borders for a year and watch the entire world have a fit. America sucks so bad, but they piss and moan we won't let them in. Build your own disney land and eat a dick!

I don't understand why they don't just fly to Mexico and walk right in like everyone else does. Our borders are arbitrary anyway these days. Visa? For what?

[D-FENS]

Build your own disney land and eat a dick!

The French already have their own Disney Land and AFAIK, they eat plenty of dicks, too.

[mojo]

Shouldn't sovereign countries have the right to decide this for themselves and not have a blanketed treaty with something like the EU ... they don't us control of who they approve into the EU.

[edstephan]

There are very few sovereign countries in Europe. They gave up their sovereignty when they joined the EU, like they are trying to do here with the North America Union.
Ed

[pex]

Shouldn't sovereign countries have the right to decide this for themselves and not have a blanketed treaty with something like the EU ... they don't us control of who they approve into the EU.

There's a specific equation that can give legitimacy to a supranational agent for several sovereigns...

If every nation in in the EU treatied with every other nation in the EU to be governed by the EU, the EU is therefore an agent agreed upon but what might be legal treaties.

If the US then treaties with all EU countries to accept EU as an agent for the EU countries, then the US and the EU can do business.

This is all, of course, according to the common complain that the US-UN relationship is supposedly illegitimate because we can only have treaties with other nations or whatever, and that all treaties in all these countries would be legal according to their constitutions or similar.

So if each sovereign is legitimate, and they all cede, according to the several treaties, powers to an executor...have they not decided?

[jerkin]

They all need a visa anyway, it's the only card accepted at the olympic games. You know why all the trees in the U.S. lean to the East? Because Europe sucks!

[theshadow]

Been thinking about this all day. Don't know why it's stuck in my crawl but it is. So here's my solution. The EU is a NON-Governmental body, it has control over member nations, but is not elected by the people of the nations and hence we can not enter to agreements or negotiations with it. Let them mandate this restriction, and when they do, WE hold the member nations responsible. That means, BLANKET REVOKE of the Visa free visitation, for ALL member nations of the EU. Not only the common citizen, but like they are threatening their diplomats, and others. We further take that one step further, ALL EU Member diplomats and Staff, be it in their Embassy, Consulate, or UN MUST return home until they obtain said VISA (good for no more than 3 months and then must reapply). Said restrictions will be lifted WHEN the EU lifts theirs, and terminates what ever Staff implemented the idea to begin with.

It's time we started acting like an Independent World leading nation again, and stopped acting as the world's whipping boy. The world respects strengths and exploits weaknesses,so it's time to stand up and be counted.

[pex]

The EU is a NON-Governmental body, it has control over member nations, but is not elected by the people of the nations and hence we can not enter to agreements or negotiations with it.

They voted reps who made the decision for them. Is our Supreme Court a non-governmental body because it was appointed by select representatives and not a direct vote of the people themselves, or is the Supreme Court a non-governmental body because the Constitution created it, the Constitution having not been created by a direct vote of the people?