Bulgaria: students to the rescue
Mistrust is the basic idiom of Bulgarian politics. The prolonged crisis in Bulgaria exposes the bankruptcy of an entire political system in desperate need of renewal.
European Power
International justice and the prevention of atrocities
What place should the international community give to justice and accountability in its response to conflicts involving mass atrocities? A new ECFR project analyses a series of cases where international efforts to end conflict have taken different approaches to justice
A Westphalia moment at Geneva?
The most problematic component of political and strategic competition in the MENA region has been the cultivation and manipulation of sectarian agendas. The Geneva meetings over Iran's nuclear programme, however, may prove to be the beginning of the end to the region’s most troublesome conflict.
French resistance to a deal with Iran: un petit problème?
Fingers are pointing to the French for stalling a joint statement between the E3+3 and Iran over its nuclear programme. But there's still room to remain positive about the pace at which diplomacy can come to fruition in these talks.
The NSA and the weakness of American power
The public outrage that the NSA has spawned could be more damaging to the transatlantic relationship than the Iraq war was a decade ago. The real toxicity of the NSA revelations is that they replace a sense of shared values with deep public mistrust on both sides of the Atlantic.
Assessing the talks with Iran: a step towards pragmatism
There has been consensus amongst the negotiators that the discussions had been positively led by Iran in a very different manner than previous talks. The key message from these rounds of talks is that the Iranian team provided details for their proposal rather than a vague or impractical framework.
Does more Merkel mean less Europe?
If Angela Merkel’s astounding electoral success is owed to her synchrony with the average German, then there is every reason to suspect that the new government will not deviate much from the preferences of the median German voter
Merkel’s anti-mandate
This election shows how much Merkel’s pragmatism has sucked the life out of national politics. The result of her victory could be to suck it out of European politics next. Her politics of “small steps” will rule out decisive moves on banking union or debt.
Germany’s views on the European crisis won’t change
Germany will continue to dissapoint the rest of Europe. Angela Merkel will remain cautious and resistant to grand plans, no matter how much Europeans want her to act.
Ten things to know about the German elections
On Sunday Germans will vote in a general election – but what does it mean for the rest of Europe? Can we expect more decisive leadership and a greater vision for Europe from Germany after the elections? Here is a short guide why this election matters to Europe