For years the European Union has struggled to give more coherence to its institutions. Despite the recent economic recovery, these institutions have remained imperfect. They have proved incapable of responding adequately to the refugee crisis, to the rise of populism and nationalism in many EU’s … [Read more...] about European Defence: Back to Tervuren?
Keep foreign hands off Afghanistan
By Gabriela Marin Thornton and Arwin Rahi For much of its history, Afghanistan has been a battlefield for conflicts over regional influence in what has been called the Great Game. Now a weak state with deep ethnic divisions, located in a challenging security environment, Afghanistan is a key front … [Read more...] about Keep foreign hands off Afghanistan
The Roma/Gypsies: “Outcasts” of Europe
[dropcap]I[/dropcap]n January 2013, Zsolt Bayer, a founding member of Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party, said that: “Most Gypsies are not suitable for cohabitation. They are not suitable for being among people. Most are animals, and behave like animals… Animals should not exist”. Zsolt Bayer was talking … [Read more...] about The Roma/Gypsies: “Outcasts” of Europe
The real winner of the Ukraine crisis could be China
The crisis in Ukraine has plunged US-Russian relations to their lowest point since the Cold War. Crimea is now Russian territory. Although prisoners of war have been exchanged and both sides have agreed to pull back heavy weapons, the accord signed on February 12 in Minsk has failed so far to stop … [Read more...] about The real winner of the Ukraine crisis could be China
Romania’s revolution: 25 years on
25 years after the beginning of the Romanian Revolution. I am standing in the University Plaza in Bucharest. My memory is channeling echoes of gun shots and student resistance; the smell of perspiration and burned candles; the murmur of songs buried into the cold asphalt; the asphalt once soaked in … [Read more...] about Romania’s revolution: 25 years on
The Nation-State’s Fight for Survival: Scotland and Catalonia
Even if Scotland and Catalonia do not secede this time around, quests for secession and autonomy will not go away because in Europe the nation-state does not respond in a meaningful way to the needs of its citizens. L’État est mort? No, it is still around, but ethnicity is marching on, and … [Read more...] about The Nation-State’s Fight for Survival: Scotland and Catalonia
