We publish here in full an open letter signed by the 8 MEPs: Manfred Weber, Sandra Kalniete, David McAllister, Andrius Kubilius, Michael Gahler, Miriam Lexmann, Andrzej Halicki, Radosław Sikorski, “Belarusians supporting democracy who long for change are the moral victors of yesterday’s election. The result is clear: the majority of Belarus voted against Mr Lukashenko and in…
Taiwan is on the frontline of China’s sharp power, none more so than in the run up to this weekend’s presidential elections. In order to guard against infiltration from China and to protect Taiwan’s democratic way of life, the Taiwan parliament passed the anti-infiltration act on 31 December 2019. This was with one eye on the…
A major new polling report, published today by the Open Society Foundations, examines attitudes towards politics and civil society in Central and Eastern Europe, 30 years on from the fall of the Berlin Wall and the 1989 revolutions. The new report, entitled “States of Change”, draws on YouGov polling in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Germany,…
On the streets of provincial cities in Taiwan, election posters are already being displayed in anticipation of Taiwan’s general election due to be held on 11 January next year. The current President of Taiwan TSAI Ingwen from the Democratic People’s Party is seeking re-election in the Presidential contest. Simultaneously elections will be held for the…
The candidate for the main opposition party, Ekrem Imamoglu, has won 54% of the vote in the re-run of the Istanbul mayoral elections. Reacting to the win, the co-chair of Green Left Party Eylem Tuncaelli told this website, “The people have given a clear verdict on the AKP-MHP alliance’s refusal to step down in Istanbul despite their…
European council president Donald Tusk says he is “very happy” about the turnout in the EU elections, the highest for 20 years. Tusk said the 50 per cent turnout makes the parliament “more representative.” He said, “First and foremost, we are very happy about the turnout, which was the highest in 25 years. “This proves…
by Shada Islam, Director of Europe and Geopolitics at Friends of Europe It’s in the open. Clear and almost official: Donald Trump’s America is in a ‘clash of civilisations’ with Iran, China and – wait for it – the World Trade Organization. Washington’s list of foes is long and growing longer. Trump and his aides…
After gaining ground in national elections across Europe, authoritarian politicians also look set to do well in the European Parliament elections on 23-26 May 2019. Today’s report by Corporate Europe Observatory offers a comprehensive overview of and shocking insights into the authoritarian right across the EU, as hundreds of millions of European citizens prepare to…
In just under one month’s time on Sunday 9th June, 12 million Kazakh voters – just over two thirds of the population of the largest land-locked country in the world – will go to the polls to elect a new President. The election follows on the resignation in March of the widely respected President Nursultan…
(This article was first published in International Policy Digest at https://intpolicydigest.org/2019/05/10/building-georgian-statehood/) Parliamentary elections will be held in Georgia in November 2020 and the outcome promises to be the most crucial since the country gained independence 28 years ago, writes Nino Burjanadze Our democratic principles and traditional values will be at stake. The growing disillusionment of the…
