The European Union is blackmailing Thailand to buy 6 aircrafts from Airbus for €1.3 billion ( roughly $2.4 billion) or face steep tariffs on its fish and prawn exports. A few weeks ago they also imposed high tariffs on exports of cumarin in order to protect a french company who also manufactures cumarin. Now after the tsunami even the EU negotiators find these demands somewhat embarrasing (though apparently not embarrasing enough to drop the demands).
This is fairly typical for leftist European politicians-first extort money from the taxpayers and give them away to the poor in order to appear good-then prevent the same people from getting out of poverty on their own through productive activity.
