Naar dit soort plekken gaat, heel concreet, je geld als je doneert voor generatoren aan het front. Deze man studeerde ooit in Utrecht. Nu vecht hij voor zijn land. Als je iets kunt missen, de generator is er binnen een week. We hebben al 3 ton! Het is belasting aftrekbaar (ANBI) vvodiel.nl/doneren/

Nearly 500 US military strikes in 12 months - more than under Biden in four years. From 'America First' to 'Foreign Policy-First'? 📊 Our interactive analysis of US foreign policy under Trump, by @gspataf95.bsky.social: ow.ly/OeQv50Y8Gaf

It’s welcome of course but Ukraine’s security should not depend on the choices of a foreign, private company.

Finally…

Maybe time for Europeans to openly fund democratic (small d) orgs in the US?

Where could change in Russia really come from - elites or society? @markgaleotti.bsky.social shares his take on Russia’s possible futures.

The Draghi speech is well worth your time. He is right to openly call for deeper integration because that’s what it takes to survive in a hostile world. But then he ends on this, a message of hope. What Europe needs above all is self confidence and pride.

The word IF is the operative one here. IF the democratic middle powers banded together, they would be a major force in global politics. And they *are* more united than the BRICS which lack mortar. So power to the ‘Carney coalition’!

"This is not about changing the security bargain between the US and Europe. This is about Europe essentially finding itself alone with a partially hostile America.” Good piece by @benhallnews.bsky.social and @henryjfoy.ft.com. The Greenland crisis may be over (for now) but trust has gone. Now what?

America’s NATO allies have shifted from fearing US abandonment to fearing US hostility, and are now confronted to a new existential question: can the US security guarantee be trusted at all? @sbeverts.bsky.social rts.bsky.social in the @financialtimes.com

Freedom is not free, the slogan goes, Note that new Dutch govt intends to fund part of its defence and security ramp up with a "freedom contribution”, ie income tax levy, raising more than €3 billion a year. That is brave for modern politics. But the right choice IMHO.

💬 For Trump, the transatlantic relationship is no longer one between allies, but a US-dominated order based on coercion rather than consultation and rules. @sbeverts.bsky.social in @standaard.be on why Europe must detach from a worldview that no longer exists. www.standaard.be/economie/ste...

You have heard about that EU-India FTA? Read this Brief to understand that trade isn’t per se the main vector driving the partnership. The real action and potential are elsewhere. But unless we dive deeper into who wants what and why, we will not get far.

The world has changed, and so has the strategic context of EU-India relations. Expecting alignment won't work. A modular partnership, focused on practical cooperation in defence and innovation, is the way forward, argues Lizza Bomassi. ow.ly/14it50Y3KbM

Europa is niet zwak maar heeft wel een mentaliteitsverandering nodig. We moeten onze krachten omzetten in macht. Mooi om na de stress-test van deze week met @standaard.be te praten over wat Europa nu moet doen: (€)

Issuing threats is almost cost free for Trump. That’s why he does it all the time For the rest of us, it’s exhausting. That’s why we all look so tired…. Read the whole thread.

Europa is niet zwak maar heeft wel een mentaliteitsverandering nodig. We moeten onze krachten omzetten in macht. Mooi om na de stress-test van deze week met @standaard.be te praten over wat Europa nu moet doen: (€)

Wat doe je als Trump je aandacht monopoliseert en zijn aanval politiek en ideologische van aard is? Meebewegen of terugslaan? En wat kan diplomatiek handwerk nog bereiken? Groepsinterview in @nrc.nl

Mooi om met andere ex diplomaten het fenomeen Trump onder de loep te nemen - en vooral hoe Europa de rug recht moet houden en investeren in zelf denken en handelen ↘️

Mette Frederiksen appears to have excellent handwriting

So, bottom line is that to find true leaders we need to look to Canada and Ukraine. #EUCO #Davos

Leave it to the EU to turn what should have been a pr victory lap on a major trade deal in answer to Trump’s tariff bullying campaign into a spectacular self-own. It really is a deeply unserious union.

Thanks to the European Parliament for reminding us that at this time of global crisis, what we need is pointless gestures delivered by the an alliance of anti-Europeans and vested interests. (Is the Mercosur deal perfect? I'm sure it's not. But read the room, MEPs)

Major act of European self-harm ↘️

What Trump does above all is control our most precious asset: attention. This afternoon, he will make all sorts of pronouncements - creating a frantic search among Europeans on how to react. Usually divided It would be better if we stuck to thinking for ourselves and focusing on our own plans.

👉 @sbeverts.bsky.social introduces the event by outlining the difficulties inherent to understanding the current period of geopolitical upheaval: "It feels like a world of everything, everywhere, all at once."

For 50 years, the dollar has been America’s ultimate weapon. But Trump is eroding the rules that sustain it. Europe’s deep entanglement with the US financial system is now a strategic vulnerability, warns @sbeverts.bsky.social. Read the analysis🔗 ow.ly/nMXF50XZy6h

💥 What are Europe’s top security threats in 2026? @vanghel.bsky.social & @gspataf95.bsky.social analyse the findings of the Global Risks to the EU survey & what they reveal about Europe’s security environment. Read 🔗 ow.ly/Xqvt50Y002s

Another excellent piece by @sbeverts.bsky.social, arguing inter alia for stresstesting EU financial dependencies. www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2026/...

"We’ve tried flattery, distraction, bargaining, hoping the tornado would pass. It was an analytical & political mistake. This is not about rebalancing transatlantic relations. This is about coercion & ideological & territorial dominance by the US". @sbeverts.bsky.social. www.ft.com/content/d13b...

Quoting me on Europe's need to balance retaliation for tariffs against the damage Trump cd do to European security eg by cutting off sales of weapons & munitions. What I also said was that Europe has to resist: if it rolls over, it will be open season for Putin & others to seize neighbours' land.

“We’ve tried flattery, distraction, bargaining, hoping the tornado would pass. It was an analytical and political mistake. This is not about rebalancing transatlantic relations or doing ‘deals’. This is about coercion and both ideological and territorial dominance [by the US],” My sense ↘️

And so it is: Those countries that have stood up to the White House — such as China and Brazil — have generally seen Trump climb down. In the classic style of a bully, the US president loves humiliating the weak. But he often backs off fast from anything that looks like it might be a fair fight.

In a world of economic coercion and rampant nationalism, it matters that EU is get trade deals done. Next up: EU-India FTA at end of Jan. Yes, the politics is complicated and the economic value not huge. But the signal is crucial. We are not alone and open for business.

The story of Europe: it’s late, very late, but not too late. Finally some more assertive action against Russia’s shadow fleet. Sanctioning them alone will not do the trick.

Thousands of Chinese Fishing Boats Quietly Form Vast Sea Barriers www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

Europe’s most underpriced risk in 2026? Financial dependence on the US, argues @sbeverts.bsky.social. As Trump is undermining confidence in the dollar, the end to the US-led financial system is no longer unthinkable - leaving Europe dangerously exposed. carnegieendowment.org/europe/strat...

Hoeveel Europees goud ligt eigenlijk opgeslagen op Amerikaanse bodem? Als Europa dat goud in een geopolitieke crisis – zeg, rond Groenland – zou opeisen, zijn we er dan absoluut zeker van dat het zonder voorwaarden wordt teruggegeven? Mijn stuk in @nrc.nl over Europa's financiele afhankelijkheid:

"Europe’s biggest underpriced risk is financial dependence on the United States" I argue for @carnegieeurope.bsky.social. Great set of 'blind spots' with @cerianbond.bsky.social, @sophiabesch.bsky.social @dimitarh.bsky.social @jakubjanda.bsky.social @alanderminna.bsky.social and more

“A citizen is not a customer and sovereignty is not a service”. Spot on👌by @marietjeschaake.bsky.social

And … we are back to blaming the victim.

European troops being rapidly replied to defend European territory. Good. Not against Russian aggression but US threats. Less good. Every hour we spend on this manufactured crisis is one we don’t spend on defending ourselves from non-manufactured threats.

One way to get a home advantage in the World Cup.

Greenland PM Jens-Frederik Nielsen: "If we have to choose between the US & Denmark here and now, we choose Denmark. We choose NATO. We choose the Kingdom of Denmark. We choose the EU." "Greenland does not want to be owned by the US. Greenland does not want to be governed by the US" he later added.

European governments and companies should pay closer attention and up their game. ↘️

As Trump pressures Fed Chair Powell…

“From relatively small increases in common spending to a full-fledged digital currency, the EU has game-changing tools at the ready…it could use a “buy European” policy and its ample savings to build domestic supply on everything from AI to most weapons in a matter of years.” Why don’t we?

To unleash ICE on Native Americans is beyond parody…

“It's better to do something significant at 24 than being perennially paralysed by the need to act at 27." Me on why Europe struggles to defend its interests & how it can overcome a "psychology of weakness" on @epc-official.bsky.social podcast with @almutm.bsky.social

"There's an unwillingness from Europeans to think & act in terms of power & to hold their own in a hypercompetitive world. It doesn't have to be this way." @sbeverts.bsky.social on Europe's "psychology of weakness" on @epc-official.bsky.social podcast. 🎙️ Listen: on.soundcloud.com/m8EV3cn2w9b4...