Taiwan is an indispensible partner in global supply chains, producing more than 90 percent of the world’s high-end semiconductors and a significant portion of the advanced chips that are driving the AI revolution. Half of the world’s seaborne trade passes through the Taiwan Strait, making it a key international waterway, writes Lin Chia-lung. Yet even…
Author: Guest Contributor
Ukraine Bans Activities of the Russian Orthodox Church
On 24 August President Zelensky signed Law No. 8371 “On Protecting the Constitutional Order in the Field of Religious Organizations”, aimed at banning the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) which had been adopted by the Verkhovna Rada four days earlier, writes Willy Fautre. The law will come into effect 30 days after its publication. However, with…
Solving Mediterranean Migration
Photo by Eric Masur on Unsplash Irregular migration remains one of the most formidable challenges confronting even the most advanced and powerful nations globally. Despite ongoing international initiatives, substantial resources dedicated to addressing this issue, and significant advancements in technology designed to combat migration, it persists unabated. Statistics indicate a significant surge in levels of irregular migration over…
So Who Is Sir Keir Starmer?
Britain’s new Prime Minister is today the most solidly implanted leader of the left in Europe, and has the same age as Clement Attlee when he became Labour’s most famous premier (1945-51), writes Denis MacShane. It was Attlee who transformed Britain by nationalising most industries, creating a health service which even today is free for every…
Redesigning the EU’s Relations with Africa
Photo by Alex Radelich on Unsplash Africa’s needs are bottomless, but they should also be seen as lungs that could breathe new life into flagging European economies. Sadly, this far from original proposition has yet to reverse Europe’s retreat from Africa, writes Giles Merritt. EU policymakers would probably deny this and point to their new strategy for strengthening…
Pro-Putin Propaganda Activists Infiltrate Brussels
Photo by Miha Rekar on Unsplash Researchers of the Brussels-based NGO Human Rights Without Frontiers (HRWF) have just discovered an infiltration attempt by a pro-Putin Ukrainian media activist in the Brussels-EU Bubble where he plans to spread false information about Russia’s war on Ukraine and to damage the image of Ukraine. His name is Nikolay Moiseenko (Moysienko Mykola Viktorovich), writes Willy Fautré….
Will France Return to the Politics of Hate, Nationalism and Xenophobia?
Photo by Dawid Małecki on Unsplash The European Parliament elections with their low turn outs, unknown politicians, and use as a protest vote against incumbent governments have exploded into life with the decision of President Macron to dissolve the French Parliament, writes Denis MacShane. In effect he is holding a plebiscite asking the French people and indirectly the…
Europe’s Declining Influence in Africa
Photo by Thomas Bennie on Unsplash Europe is retreating from Africa in what seems likely to be the greatest shift of all in the 21st century’s new era of tectonic geo-political change, writes Giles Merritt. It is five hundred years since Henry the Navigator’s explorers set up Portuguese trading posts that eventually led to European colonialism. Africa was…
Religious Freedom Crisis in Japan
A delegation from the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU) Japan traveled to France to highlight the ongoing crisis of religious freedom in Japan and brought to light the severe social, political, and legal challenges facing the organisation, writes Peter Zoehrer. President Tomihiro Tanaka, who did not travel to France, sent a compelling…
Quo Vadis, Cohesion Policy?
Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash Cohesion Policy, the bedrock of Europe’s regional development, stands at a crucial crossroads. For decades, it has been instrumental in reducing economic, social, and territorial disparities across the EU. However, recent challenges demand urgent attention and adaptation, writes Thomas Schwab. Firstly, Cohesion Policy operates in a shifting global landscape. The Russian invasion…