Last month, a few weeks into the random detentions and denied entries at the US border, I was supposed to go to Princeton University as a guest lecturer to discuss global fascism. I asked the professors who invited me whether they thought it was safe to come. When I was in Turkey, European journalist friends … Read more
To be honest, mothers make me sad. Especially working mothers with small children. Sometimes, when I see a woman in the late afternoon – pushing a buggy, a sniffling toddler in tow, tote bags swinging from her shoulder and two dark circles around her eyes – I want to cross the street. Not out of … Read more
Southern and south-eastern Europe have experienced a spate of thunderstorms that have resulted in significant rainfall and hail across parts of the Balkans. After a hot start to May in the area took temperatures into the high 20s celsius, thunderstorms widely developed from Monday. One particular thunderstorm, which developed over Slavonski Brod, Croatia, reportedly brought … Read more
Not much about Britain’s post-Brexit relationship with the European Union is settled, but Keir Starmer can justifiably claim it has been “reset”. That word was artfully chosen before last year’s election to dress low aspiration as high diplomacy. There are 10 days of negotiation before the summit in London, where a new UK-EU partnership is … Read more
As the sun sank behind St Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday evening without smoke emerging from the the Sistine Chapel chimney, some in the crowd began to wonder why the first vote of the conclave was taking so long. Speculation included a malfunctioning stove and a medical emergency. Some thought disagreements between cardinals may have delayed … Read more
In the city where a dethroned Polish king once governed a French province and built enduring landmarks, the leaders of France and Poland will sign a treaty on Friday that could be the first formal step towards extending French nuclear deterrence over central Europe in this new era of US unreliability. The treaty of Nancy … Read more
There goes the cliche about German politics being stable but dull. Germany finally has a new leader, but only after a day of drama, suspense and historic twists. The conservative Friedrich Merz failed to secure a majority confirming him as chancellor in the first round of voting in the Bundestag. In eight decades of postwar … Read more
Despite Russia’s occupation of its territory, missile attacks on its infrastructure and the enormous human costs of the war, Ukraine’s economy has been impressively resilient. Its effective military resistance against a much stronger adversary is in fact underpinned by this successful economic management. Rather than face institutional sclerosis or even collapse, Ukraine’s state capacity has … Read more
The election of Friedrich Merz as chancellor by German legislators on Tuesday morning was meant to end months of political instability, since the collapse of Olaf Scholz’s government half a year ago – itself the result of bitter infighting at the top. Many fear that this could be the last chance to keep out the far-right … Read more
Of all the shocks to have hit Europe over the past three months, none is more devastating than the realisation that the continent may no longer be able to count on a US security guarantee. Even if Donald Trump’s disdain for Europe had been telegraphed well in advance, few imagined a world in which a … Read more