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Hollande waits to hear of Cameron’s EU reforms

The French president François Hollande heads to the UK on Tuesday with frustrated French diplomats hoping the UK Prime Minister will finally reveal a little more about his much-hyped plans for EU reform.

Hollande waits to hear of Cameron's EU reforms
Can you at least let us know what you want Mr Cameron? Photo: AFP

When David Cameron visited Paris back in May to open talks over his plans for EU reform the French were left a little bemused given that he failed to lay out any concrete ideas.

Speaking to the press after the Elysée meeting, Hollande said Cameron had revealed “some information” but that he looked forward to hearing more about what the Prime Minister had to say in future talks.

Four months on, and Hollande may get that chance when he heads to the UK on Tuesday for a brief stay at the Prime Minister’s country residence.

Cameron, who has been hit with bizarre allegations he inserted “his private parts into a dead pig's mouth”, is desperate to win support from France for his reforms, but frustration has grown in Paris that there is still no meat on the bones of what exactly the Prime Minister is proposing.

“Until we see a ten-page document laying out their proposals, it’s difficult to know completely what they want and what they mean,” a French government official was quoted in the Financial Times.

“This ten-page document must be somewhere but we are yet to see it.”

So far Cameron has only suggested that he wants reform in four key areas before he can commit to campaigning to keep Britain in the EU before the planned In/Out referendum to be held in 2016 or 2017.

His chief requirement is a change to laws surrounding access to benefits by EU migrants. Cameron wants restrictions on benefits unless migrants have lived in the country for four years.

He is also expected to demand an opt-out from one the EU's core principles of forging an “ever-closer union” between member states.

A spokesperson for France's presidential palace said: “Reforming the EU, yes, but it must benefit all of Europe and not just the UK.

“Yes to increasing competitiveness and simplification, but no to deregulation and social cuts.”

Before his visit to Paris in May, Cameron was warned by the French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius that he was playing a dangerous game.

“The British population has gotten used to being told: 'Europe is a bad thing', and the day they are asked to decide, the risk is that they say Europe is a bad thing,” said Fabius.

Fabius said that one couldn't “join a football club and decide in the middle of the match we are now going to play rugby”.

Both France and Germany have repeatedly said they will resist any British attempt at full on treaty change but both Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have suggested they are willing to look at ways of creating a two speed Europe as they push for more integration in the eurozone.

The leaders are also set to discuss Europe's response to the refugee crisis, with the UK under pressure to take in more refugees than the 20,000 it says it will welcome over the next five years.

At a recent press conference, Hollande suggested the UK should take on more responsibility for the crisis if it wants to be able to persuade EU nations to back its reform plans.

During his visit to London Hollande will also officially open the new Lycée international school in north London.

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Swiss decision to purchase US fighter jets could force second referendum

Switzerland's decision to purchase US-made fighter jets could be put to a referendum,

Swiss decision to purchase US fighter jets could force second referendum
Swiss fighter jets. Photo: JOE KLAMAR / AFP

Switzerland’s government on Wednesday backed the purchase of 36 F-35A fighter jets from Lockheed Martin to replace its fleet and five Patriot air defence units from fellow US manufacturer Raytheon.

Switzerland’s current air defence equipment will reach the end of its service life in 2030 and has been undergoing a long and hotly-contested search for replacements.

“The Federal Council is confident that these two systems are the most suitable for protecting the Swiss population from air threats in the future,” the government said in a statement.

‘No Trump fighter jets’: Swiss don’t want to buy American planes

The decision will now be put to the Swiss parliament — and also risks being challenged at the ballot box, with left-wingers and an anti-militarist group looking to garner enough signatures to trigger a public vote.

The F-35A was chosen ahead of the Airbus Eurofighter; the F/A-18 Super Hornet by Boeing; and French firm Dassault’s Rafale.

For the ground-based air defence (GBAD) system, Patriot was selected ahead of SAMP/T by France’s Eurosam.

“An evaluation has revealed that these two systems offer the highest overall benefit at the lowest overall cost,” the government statement said. Switzerland is famously neutral. However, its long-standing position is one of armed neutrality and the landlocked European country has mandatory conscription for men.

“A fleet of 36 aircraft would be large enough to cover Switzerland’s airspace protection needs over the longer term in a prolonged situation of heightened tensions,” the government said.

“The air force must be able to ensure that Swiss airspace cannot be used by foreign parties in a military conflict.” 

Long path to decision 

Switzerland began to seek replacements for its ageing fleet of fighter jets more than a decade ago, but the issue has become caught up in a political battle in the wealthy Alpine nation.

The Swiss government has long argued for the need to quickly replace its 30 or so F/A-18 Hornets, which will reach the end of their lifespan in 2030, and the F-5 Tigers, which have been in service for four decades and are not equipped for night flights.

In 2014, the country looked set to purchase 22 Gripen E fighter jets from Swedish group Saab, only to see the public vote against releasing the funds needed to go forward with the multi-billion-dollar deal.

Bern launched a new selection process four years later, and a referendum last year to release six billion Swiss francs ($6.5 billion) for the purchase of the fighters of the government’s choice squeezed through with 50.1 percent of voters in favour.

During the referendum campaign, the government warned that without a swift replacement for its fleet, “Switzerland will no longer be in a position to protect and even less defend its airspace by 2030”.

Currently, the fleet does not have the capacity to support ground troops for reconnaissance missions or to intervene against ground targets.

Meanwhile Switzerland’s current GBAD system is also old and lacks the capacity to meet the widening spectrum of modern threats.

The military currently relies on a range of Rapier and Stinger short-range missiles that have been in service since 1963.

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