Photo by Sasha Pleshco on Unsplash On 28 September 2025, Moldova arrives at a critical crossroad, not only electing a new parliament but also determining its geopolitical future. These elections will either reinforce the country’s commitment to European integration or lead to its transformation into a grey zone of instability along the borders of the…
Photo by Sasha Pleshco on Unsplash As Vladimir Putin wakes up each morning and finds that the planned conquest of Ukraine, launched nearly four years ago, still hasn’t worked will he try and settled for a smaller prize, the ancient Black Sea region of Besserabia, made famous in Olivia Manning’s novels of the second world…
Photo by Martin Krchnacek on Unsplash As the Czech Republic prepares for parliamentary elections on 3–4 October 2025, the country faces a pivotal moment in both foreign and domestic policy. Andrej Babiš, former prime minister and leader of the right-wing populist ANO party, which currently tops the polls, has declared his intention to halt a…
Photo by Valery Tenevoy on Unsplash The Socialists and Democrats in the EU Parliament are sounding the alarm over the rapidly deteriorating political crisis in Serbia. The group, the 2nd biggest in the assembly, is also calling out the European People’s Party (EPP) for what S and D calls its complicit silence and…
Photo by Elize Bezuidenhout on Unsplash In the last days of August, Sudan’s two rival governments both held cabinet meetings which, in their different symbolisms, reflected very different visions for the future of their benighted country. Those different visions were best captured in the redesigned state coat of arms that hung on the wall behind…
Photo by David Foodphototasty on Unsplash EU parliament President Roberta Metsola opened the September plenary session in Strasbourg with a minute of silence to remember lives lost in various tragedies in the EU and its neighbourhood. Metsola expressed her deep sadness following the derailment of the Elevador da Glória in Lisbon on 3 September. She…
Photo by Vony Razom on Unsplash Statement by President von der Leyen following the meeting of the Coalition of the Willing in Paris. “Today I was in Paris, where we just had the meeting of the Coalition of the Willing.” “We discussed security guarantees for Ukraine.” “It was a crucial meeting, because we…
Photo by MW on Unsplash Today, the world faces mounting uncertainties and challenges from prolonged conflicts and democratic backsliding to economic coercion and disinformation campaigns. Authoritarian regimes increasingly employ gray-zone tactics that undermine the rules-based international order. In this fragile global environment, peace cannot be taken for granted. Democracies must unite to bolster resilience and…
UN Photo/Loey Felipe When a general tightens his grip, it seems more likely he is afraid of losing it. How else to interpret the three significant power plays General Abdel Fatteh Al-Burhan, commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces has attempted in the last month? In July he ordered all armed groups out of Khartoum, though…
Photo by Sébastien Goldberg on Unsplash The European Commission has announced that it has pushed forward the proposed EU-Mercosur agreement to the Council. The Mercosur deal has, it is said by some MEPs, been split into a political section and a trade section that will have to be adopted by a qualified majority of Member…
