After years of failed conditionality, Europe needs a new rights strategy in the Middle East: 👉 focus on what’s possible — protect lives, defend space, set red lines. Step by step beats empty rhetoric @ecfrmena.bsky.social ecfr.eu/publication/...

Danger will not disappear even when the war in Ukraine ends. We need to toughen our defences against Russia. The Defence Readiness Roadmap outlines our plan to fill capability gaps with clear goals and timelines. Extract of my press remarks ↓

In times of populist pressure, leadership isn’t about chasing applause but holding course. Macron’s choice to defend institutions + France’s role abroad isn’t escapism — it’s statesmanship. The presidency’s strength is part of what protects 🇫🇷 democracy @politico.eu www.politico.eu/article/emma...

And so it starts… www.politico.eu/article/germ...

400,000 civilians in #Sudan's El Fasher are trapped in famine under RSF siege — a genocide unfolding in real time. The world stays silent. The #UAE could stop it today by telling the RSF to withdraw. Read via @foreignpolicy.com ⤵️ foreignpolicy.com/2025/10/16/uae-sudan-rsf-war-weapons

With the #NobelPeacePrize announcement due tomorrow, awarding it to Sudan’s Emergency Response Rooms would honour citizens’ power to serve humanity amid war — & refocus attention on a country where 150k+ have died, 15M displaced & 25M face hunger www.prio.org/news/3634

El-Fasher, Sudan — besieged by the RSF since May 2024 — has become “an open-air morgue” for starving civilians. The world’s silence is shocking. Since 2023 Sudan has seen 150k civilians killed, 15 million displaced & 25 million people facing acute hunger www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/10...

Must-read @ecfr.eu : Putin’s Valdai speech marks a shift. He brands Europe “enemy #1”, vows more military pressure, backs far-right parties & steps up info warfare — while praising Trump as a model. Europe must reinforce defence and resilience ! ecfr.eu/article/enem...

Vladimir Putin has finally said the quiet part out loud. For the first time since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, he has explicitly blamed Europe for the war, writes @abarbashin.bsky.social @ecfreuropeansec.bsky.social https://bit.ly/46PIkhV

"From my prison cell in Georgia, I implore Europe not to abandon us to Russia. My fellow journalists are putting their lives in danger every day, but we refuse to surrender to a regime that threatens Europe’s own security" #MziaAmaglobeli www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

99% of the UK’s digital traffic flows through subsea cables. Russia’s spy ship Yantar has been caught loitering over them. A new @financialtimes.com investigation exposes how Moscow is mapping — and maybe preparing to cut — Europe’s digital lifelines. www.ft.com/content/0b35...

Europe has been facing 'confrontation' with Russia for a while now. What is new is the quality of this 'hybrid war', raising security + resilience concerns. Especially as Russia has used these tactics since the invasion of Crimea in 2014 @politico.eu www.politico.eu/article/euro...

A bit of a u-turn, but credit where credit is due: Trump “#Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form”. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Zwei russische Kampfflugzeuge sind nach Angaben des polnischen Grenzschutzes in die Sicherheitszone einer Bohrplattform in der Ostsee eingedrungen. Die Jets flogen offenbar im Tiefflug über die Bohrplattform Petrobaltic.

Nato confirms it intercepted Russian aircraft over Estonia as EU calls violation a ‘dangerous provocation’ www.theguardian.com/world/live/2...

Diese „Deepstate“-Rhetorik polarisiert und desinformiert bewusst. Sie macht Beamt*innen zur Zielscheibe, schwächt Vertrauen – und ist gefährlich für unsere Demokratie. #DemocracyUnderPressure www.nius.de/politik/news...

In Breakthrough, U.S. and Three Arab Powers Agree on #Sudan Peace Roadmap @crisisgroup.org www.crisisgroup.org/rss.xml

China's Xi, Russia's Putin share vision for new global order at security forum www.reuters.com/world/china/...

Fascinating @nytimes.com investigation: China’s influence in U.S. politics doesn’t just play out in DC — it starts in local elections. 🧵 www.nytimes.com/2025/08/25/n...

In leadership — whether in government, business, or civil society — truth must never become a loyalty test. The cost of distortion is strategic failure. www.bbc.com/news/article...

No concessions, no ceasefire: how Putin outplayed Trump in Anchorage www.ft.com/content/2866...

#Sudan: the world’s most ignored war 14M displaced — more than Ukraine & Gaza combined. 4M fled to the poorest countries. 150K+ dead. 25M hungry. 17M kids out of school. Cholera & malaria rampant. No rules, no protection. No one coming @anneapplebaum.bsky.social www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...

My long read for @ecfr.eu and probably the publication im most proud of in all my years doing this. A deep dive into how Russia retrenched in Libya, uses it to project power from Ukraine to the Sahel, and the many lessons Europe or other frontline states can learn from it ecfr.eu/publication/...

Incisive podcast by @jpuglierin.bsky.social and Mark Leonard on What’s next for Berlin under Chancellor #Merz (Expect more executivization of foreign policy, but also more coherence, more ambitious role in defence and security + strong EU focus) shows.acast.com/65b12b49ff5a... @ecfr.eu

Europa investiert in Verteidigung – aber immer noch zu langsam, zu ineffizient und zu national. 🪖 20 von 28 NATO-Staaten in Europa investieren inzwischen über 2 % ihres BIP in Verteidigung. Doch diese Investitionen verlaufen zu unkoordiniert und deshalb ineffizient. (1/7)

🇩🇪MP @rodki.bsky.social rightly calls Trump’s proposed #Ukraine peace plan a “capitulation document,” warning it would legitimize Russia’s war of aggression.“Europe’s security is at stake.” If Putin is rewarded for invading Ukraine, it won’t end with Ukraine www.deutschlandfunk.de/cdu-aussenpo...

Russian attacks on Kyiv kill nine as Trump accuses Zelensky of preventing peace www.bbc.com/news/live/cv...

Probably the end of her 2027 Presidential ambitions: Marine Le Pen found guilty of embezzlement www.politico.eu/article/fran...

Syria is living on borrowed time. The interim government should pursue security, economic and governance reforms simultaneously, recognising their interdependence. www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-...

Over the past decade, #Russia has re-entrenched itself in #Libya, making the country the main hub of its African operations. @tmegrisi.bsky.social on Russia, Libya and the Kremlin’s playbook for fragile states @ecfrmena.bsky.social t.co/nBDIZxnX0I

A worrying precedent — potentially chilling for free speech. A jury has ordered Greenpeace to pay at least $660 million over Dakota Access pipeline protests. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Danish PM: Europe must ‘be totally able to defend ourselves’ www.politico.eu/article/dani...

#Russia attacks two Ukrainian hospitals after Putin rejects full ⁦‪#Trump‬⁩ ceasefire plan #Ukraine www.bbc.com/news/live/cl...

China is tightening its grip on Georgia's strategic position in the Middle Corridor through Anaklia Port, which was once seen as the West's opportunity to strengthen its economic foothold in the Black Sea region. www.nytimes.com/2025/03/13/w...

#Russia says it does not want a temporary ceasefire in Ukraine www.ft.com/content/c169...

Trumpcession - US stock market loses $4 trillion in value as Trump plows ahead on tariffs m.economictimes.com/markets/stoc...

Philippines ex-leader Duterte arrested on ICC warrant over drug killings www.bbc.com/news/article...

Inside Russia’s shadow war in the Baltics: sabotage incidents has exposed the vulnerability of Europe’s undersea infrastructure Lithuania’s ex-FM Landsbergis warns: “It’s a dangerous game… We postpone stronger action, Russia escalates again.” ig.ft.com/baltic-sea

In trade as in hockey, #Canada will win… @mark-carney.bsky.social www.bbc.com/news/live/cg...

Deadliest #Syria clashes since Assad’s ousting. Fighting between security forces & pro-Assad loyalists has left 1,000+ dead, including 750 civilians, with security forces revenge killings surging. Thousands have fled as violence escalates. www.bbc.com/news/article...

Trump's Greenland message: U.S. will control it 'one way or the other' www.cnbc.com/2025/03/04/t...

Europe’s leaders pledged to increase defense spending, NATO chief say. “we urgently have to rearm Europe” @vonderleyen.ec.europa.eu www.politico.eu/article/euro...

Ukraine is Europe! We stand by Ukraine. We will step up our support to Ukraine so that they can continue to fight back the agressor. Today, it became clear that the free world needs a new leader. It’s up to us, Europeans, to take this challenge.

It’s imperative for Europe to step up after today’s shocking Oval Office meeting. Trump and Vance ganged up on #Zelensky , undermining #Ukraine at a critical moment. The U.S. is shifting—Europe must now lead in defending Ukrainian + European sovereignty www.nytimes.com/live/2025/02...

Die USA senden widersprüchliche Signale, die Zweifel daran nähren, ob die USA in einen Krieg mit Russland ziehen würden, wenn es etwa um ein kleines Land an der Ostsee geht. Das muss Alarm bei uns auslösen & massive Investitionen in die eigene Verteidigungsfähigkeit! www.wiwo.de/politik/deut...

Minerals deal will only succeed if Trump offers security guarantees, #Zelenskyy says www.politico.eu/article/mine...

Starmer slashes UK aid budget to boost defense spending as Europe scrambles to rearm, fearing U.S. abandonment. A major shift as the continent braces for a future with less American protection www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

There are 193 UN member states, but only a handful of bully states. The UN General Assembly just backed a resolution condemning Russia’s war on #Ukraine - a majority stood for justice, while Russia, Belarus, N.Korea, and the U.S. voted against. Time to unite. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/f...

Only freedom fries again on Air Force one… #Macron #Trump bsky.app/profile/news...