BERLIN — “The King is dead. Long live the King!” is a traditional proclamation made following the accession of a new monarch. The same pragmatic approach was adopted by the EU Commission President when the new Ukrainian President visited Brussels Monday on his first official trip abroad: José Manuel Barroso, … Continue Reading…
BRATISLAVA, Slovakia — When Aleksander Lukashenko, the authoritarian president of Belarus, recently began a campaign to intimidate and punish members of the country’s disobedient Polish community, he opened a new front not only with neighboring Poland, but also with the EU as a whole. That challenge must now be met … Continue Reading…
BUCHAREST - In the historic beginnings of the Olympic Games in ancient Greece, athletes would all carry olive branches to the Games as a symbol of peace. While the actual olive branches are no longer an official part of the Games, to this very day the Olympics remain … Continue Reading…
WASHINGTON — Ask most Americans and Europeans to identify Vladimir Filat or find Moldova on a map and you’re likely to get a blank stare. Both, however, are worth getting to know. Filat is the new prime minister of Moldova, a small country of four million people that emerged from … Continue Reading…
BELGRADE — The landslide victory of Ivo Josipović in the January 10 presidential elections in Croatia bodes well, not just for the country, but also for the Western Balkans as a whole — not least for the region’s hopes for membership in the European Union. The 52-year-old Social Democrat, a … Continue Reading…
BELGRADE — After nearly 18 years, the citizens of Serbia, Macedonia, and Montenegro are free to travel to European Union Schengen area countries without visas. A decision by the Council of Ministers of the European Union on November 30 opened the borders on December 19. This long-awaited decision was met … Continue Reading…
WASHINGTON, DC — On the eve of this week’s Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and NATO Ministerial meetings, in addition to a NATO-Russia Council gathering, Russian officials unveiled their long-awaited proposal for a new European Security Treaty. The Medvedev proposal, as it has become known, has been … Continue Reading…
BERLIN — This year has been full of celebrations of the peaceful revolutions of 1989, arguably the most important advance of freedom, democracy, and human rights in history. But this year has also seen rapid European rapprochement with (and some might say appeasement of) one of the world’s worst autocrats: … Continue Reading…
PARIS — On November 18, the European Council selected Herman Van Rompuy and Catherine Ashton to become, respectively, President of the European Council for a two and a half year-term, and High Representative/Vice-President of the Commission for external affairs for a five-year term. In Europe and beyond, comments have ranged … Continue Reading…
BRUSSELS — To many people outside of Brussels, the process that resulted in the selection of Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy as President of the European Council and Catherine Ashton to the dual-hatted position as High Representative for External Affairs and Vice President of the European Commission was a … Continue Reading…