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It is sometimes a personal experience that brings abstract policy discussions to life. And so let me share with you a chat I had last Friday with an Uber driver in Auckland. Read more

On March 31st, at a meeting of member-countries, it was agreed that the UK would join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). The CPTPP is one of the world’s largest free-trade blocs, accounting for 13% of global GDP, 15% of global trade, and 500 million people. Read more

It would be an understatement to say France has long sought to define and assert its position. Because with France, you sometimes do not even know who it regards as its friends and foes. Read more

When Putin started his illegitimate war in Ukraine nearly 14 months ago, he claimed it was for its “demilitarisation and denazification”. Almost all security analysts, however, rejected this ridiculous suggestion. Read more

It was a sight to behold. Last week, members of the far-right Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ) interrupted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s speech at the Austrian Parliament. Read more

“We all know what needs to be done,” former President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker once said. “We just don’t know how to get re-elected after we have done it.” A need for reform can be clear, but implementing such reform can still be a politically Herculean task that risks backfiring on the reformer. Read more

Italy’s Prime Minister was scathing. Accusing Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy of causing the destruction of his own country, the Prime Minister swore never to meet with him. Read more

It is hard enough to understand the Germans in the best of times. Yet, in these times of crisis and war, even a native speaker may find it difficult to comprehend them. Read more