Word: holdouts
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 2000-2009
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Final Holdout Signs...
There were no trumpet blasts or jubilant ceremonies to mark the occasion. But the decision by Czech President Vaclav Klaus to sign an agreement he loathed on Tuesday was momentous, nonetheless. The long-delayed passage of the Lisbon Treaty - the Czech Republic had been the last holdout among the European Union's 27 members - marks the end of an almost decade-long saga to reform the cumbersome institution and give it a stronger, more unified voice on the global stage...
Czech President Vaclav Klaus, a fierce critic of all things related to the European Union, is the only thing standing between Europe's élite club and its mighty future. Until he signs the Lisbon Treaty - the Czech Republic is the last holdout among E.U. members - the E.U.'s grand reform plan remains in limbo. While politicians across the continent have spent weeks wringing their hands, trying to figure out how to compel Klaus to sign the document, the majority of Czechs are standing behind their leader. "I actually like him. He is an intelligent man who knows what...
...everyone stands with the populist Klaus, though. Havel has blasted the President's holdout position as "irresponsible and dangerous." Author Jaroslav Rudis, who has written about the expelled Germans, also questioned Klaus' motives. "Every time I hear someone play this card I feel like the war has never ended," he tells TIME. "It's like it's from a different planet." Diplomats have griped that the Czech Republic's standing in the E.U. has hit a new low, with some talking about how the country could be denied a seat in the next European Commission. (Read "The Czech Republic...
...populist appeal that has gone over well in a nation that is only 32% literate (for women, the rate is 15%). His speeches are short and his slogans simple. He tailors his message to the region. At a recent rally in the eastern province of Panshir, a historic mujahedin holdout during the time of the Soviet invasion, he extolled the virtues of the valley's martyrs but warned that the lives of thousands will have been sacrificed in vain if the current government is allowed to continue. "We came out of 30 years of war to build a new nation...