Dirk Hazell

Dirk Hazell has expressed hope that President Sarkozy's call for a global "Friends of Syria" will urgently command the widest international support.

"I called in this website half a year ago for President Assad to go. Today, the situation in Syria is now much worse than it was then.

President Assad had his chance to be better than what went before but words have not matched deeds and he has heeded the wrong counsel from within his regime.

Dirk Hazell has welcomed the massive endorsement, by two out of three voters, of the mainstream and moderate pro-European centre-right candidate in Finland's Presidential elections yesterday.

"In their Presidential elections, the Finnish people yesterday decisively rejected the type of euro-scepticism embodied by Mr Cameron's Conservative Party and euro-sceptics were decisively trounced in the first round of these Presidential elections.

Dirk Hazell has welcome the overwhelming endorsement of the Croatian people for EU membership.

"Yesterday's massive 66% endorsement by the Croatian people in favour of EU membership - a result virtually identical to that of the British 1975 Referendum - is welcome news.

In common with other democracies that have joined the EU, Croatian membership of the EU will be an opportunity to draw a line under repellent alliances and governments of the past and to extend democracy, prosperity and security within Europe."