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Europe

The re-election of US President Donald Trump has played a key role in prompting the launch of the ReArm Europe Plan, an initiative aimed at advancing Europe’s strategic military autonomy. Notably, the plan does not establish a common European defense force. Rather, it sets up a shared fund – worth €800 billion – to support individual EU member states’ military expenditures. To better understand the implications of this shift, Reset DOC spoke with Dan Smith, Director of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) and one of the world’s leading experts on armed conflict, defense policy, and disarmament.

International Affairs
Ukraine Between Attrition and Diplomacy: The Human Cost of War
Ilaria Romano 6 May 2025

“The other night the sky turned completely red, something that hadn’t happened in a while. We were really scared,” says Tatiana, a former tour guide from Kyiv, who, for the umpteenth time in the past three years, was woken up by explosions. “We’re still lucky compared to those living near the front line, but since the beginning of this war, no one has been able to sleep,” she says. “Almost every night we are woken by the sound of sirens, even though we no longer go down to the subway to wait for it to end.”
Religion
A Shepherd for the Poor, Peace, and Nature
Nadia Urbinati 22 April 2025

A son of Argentina, cradle of populism—a rhetoric that slices facts and ideas in two, goes straight for the emotions, and makes no concessions, because right and wrong must fall clearly on one side or the other. Argentine populism was socially nationalist in politics and conservative in values. Likewise, Pope Francis was a progressive populist on social issues and conservative on moral ones—after all, a position consistent with the principles of the Roman Catholic Church.
Political Theory
Habermas: Europe Must Go Ahead with its Integration
and Self-Defense
Jürgen Habermas 3 April 2025

Clearly there has never been seamless agreement among the leading national politicians of the West – and, more broadly, of the G7 countries – on their political perspectives; but they have always shared a background understanding of their affiliation to “the” West under the leadership of the United States. This political constellation has disintegrated with the most recent return to power of Donald Trump and the systemic change in the United States that this has set in motion, even if, formally speaking, the fate of NATO remains an open question for the time being. From a European perspective, this epochal break has far-reaching consequences – both for the further course and possible end of the war in Ukraine and for the need, willingness and ability of the European Union to find a redemptive response to the new situation. Otherwise, Europe will also be drawn into the maelstrom of the declining superpower.
International Affairs
In the Polish Presidential Elections, Ukraine Will Tilt the Balance
Fabio Turco 17 March 2025

On May 18, Polish voters will head to the polls for the first round of the presidential elections. A ballot, which is highly likely, is scheduled for June 1. After a year and a half in power, the center-liberal-progressive coalition—comprising the Civic Coalition, Third Way, and Lewica parties, and led by Donald Tusk—faces a true validation test. Depending on the outcome, this election could have significant repercussions for the legislature.
Political Theory
The Enigma of a New German Coalition
Lorenzo Monfregola 11 November 2024

The German Ampel, the so-called Traffic Light government coalition, is now history. Its collapse came on November 6th, just hours after Donal Trump’s election victory across the ocean. Germans won’t be voting for their next government on September 28, 2025, as originally scheduled; instead, snap elections will take place by the end of March at the latest, potentially even sooner. This will be one of Germany’s rare early votes – the last was in 2005 – in a country where political stability is the norm, making government crises all the more disruptive.
International Affairs
Georgia: Caught Between Russia and an Uncertain Europe
Luca Sebastiani 5 November 2024

The October 26 elections and the developments that followed have drawn international attention to Georgia in a way not seen for some time. This interest arose both from the uncertainty surrounding the vote and, especially, from the broader historical and political context: the ongoing war in Ukraine, renewed debates about European Union expansion, and concurrent, hotly contested elections and referendums in Moldova.
International Affairs, Migrations
Poland’s Immigration Law: Tusk’s Struggle to Hold the Center
Fabio Turco 29 October 2024

“Regain control, ensure security.” This is the slogan of a draft law promoted by Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and adopted by his government to outline the country’s migration strategy from 2025 to 2030. The proposal has sparked intense debate due to its strict measures, particularly the option to suspend the right to asylum when deemed necessary. Tusk aims to nearly eliminate “illegal” immigration by pursuing a radical approach, enacting measures that conflict with the Geneva Convention, the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, and even Poland’s own Constitution.
Society
Nobel Laureate Acemoglu on Automation, Inequality, and the Future of Society
Daron Acemoglu 14 October 2024
Society
Far-Right Shaping Germany’s Future, Despite Brandenburg Election Setback
Lorenzo Monfregola 24 September 2024

In Germany, September dealt a harsh blow to Olaf Scholz’s Ampel, the “Traffic light” coalition of Social Democrats, Greens, and Liberals. Elections on September 1 in the eastern states of Thuringia and Saxony underscored the government’s deepening crisis. While the September 22 vote in Brandenburg brought a faint glimmer of hope, particularly for the SPD, it was far from a solid win for the Ampel. Nationwide polls continue to show strikingly low support for Scholz’s cabinet, raising doubts about its ability to hold together until the next national election, set for September 2025.