What connects Kaczynski, Klaus and Cameron? The new European Conservatives and Reformists Group connects a lot of Central- and Eastern European small parties with the British Tories.

Here is a roundup from the European Journalism Centre’s Think About It blogging competition on the European Elections. Convicted Russian MEP, Slovakian photo contest for voters, Cyprus on the beach.

Central Europe seems to have escaped from an economic meltdown. However, a bigger problem may be the fear among political elites, some of whom will stick at nothing to stay in power and out of jail, and who treat Mr Berlusconi as their role model and political ally.

Today’s summit was a sign of the lacking leadership and vision in the EU. When the crisis will be over, Merkel and Sarkozy will be the leaders of the past, and the EU will look fundamentally different from today. The rift between the East and the West has become manifest. The Eastern member states have de facto formed a group within the Union and none of their demands were met by the majority.

After the IMF has formally accepted huge loan requests from Hungary and Ukraine (and also Iceland on the other periphery of the European economic area), Belarus, Bulgaria, Latvia, Romania, Poland, Serbia are in the waiting line -  not to forget our almost forgotten EU-applicant Turkey, too. I think the French presidency should send out another [...]