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.
Commentary
Regional instability and souring US-Saudi relations
The continued souring of relations between the US and Saudi Arabia has the potential to radically reshape local geopolitical dynamics. But not one regional actor or outside power appears strong enough to dictate the pace or direction of change.
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.
China’s Third Plenum: great expectations
The resolution from the Third Plenum puts the party above all, clearly separating politics from economics. While there is still hope for change, there is overabundant evidence that Mr. Xi’s dream for China does not include the major reform that many hope for.
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.
Germany’s Russia policy: Bolder towards Moscow?
Despite the authoritarian tendencies of the Russian leadership, the protests of the past year have shown that Russian society is interested in greater political participation. It is time to replace Germany's elite-dominated Russia policy with a more balanced approach.
On Iran, Obama’s bigger challenge is with his allies
There is a tantalising prospect that the Iranian regime could become a partner to the US, rather than a rival. But when it comes to the Middle East, Obama’s thorniest problems come not from his enemies, but from his friends.