Research Area

05/02/2019

Publications, Russia

With the recent rise of tensions in the Azov Sea, Russia-EU relations seem to have reached a new low after the Salisbury attack. However, some European political parties, and notably the so-called populis... Be More Curious...

POLICY PAPER — EU Support to Dismissed Civil Society in Turkey: Yes, There is a Better Alternative

Stephanie Leysen

04/02/2019

It has been fourteen years since the negotiations on Turkey’s accession to the European Union (EU) were formally opened and the process has been bumpy to say the least. Whereas the European leaders ... Be More Curious...

Italian Politics — which way to the European elections?

Alessio Tardivo

02/02/2019

The Italian electoral campaign for the European elections in May finally started and the latest projections on the topic have generated a turmoil in the country. According to Europe Elects, Salvini’... Be More Curious...

A challenge for New Year: who will buy the Leviathan gas?

Ana-Maria Caminski

20/01/2019

Israel

The days when treasures seekers were looking for gold are not entirely left behind. If at the beginning of modern epoch, the fighting was for the fields of gold, in our post-modern world is for the fiel... Be More Curious...

Federalism or Centralism: Competing Visions for Iran’s Future

Editorial

20/01/2019

Iran

Ghazaei is a writer and sociologist residing in Amsterdam. He is a political activist and translator of various books on politics, philosophy and sociology. You can follow him on Twitter. The ever-increa... Be More Curious...

Public say for far-right, the Trojan horse

Vicky Pathiakaki

18/01/2019

The rise of far-right has brought to the forefront the debate about whether such ideas should or not have a public say and as to whether they should occupy public space and time. Many even argue that if... Be More Curious...

What are universities for in an era of authoritarianism?

Zeynep Mentesoglu

16/01/2019

“This is unprecedented. A U.S. institution has been driven out of a country that is a NATO ally. A European institution has been ousted from a member state of the EU” stated the CEU president Mich... Be More Curious...

An independent Ukraine Orthodox Church: why now?

15/01/2019

Beyond Europe, Publications

In Ukraine, this year’s celebrations for the Orthodox Christmas on January 7 assumed a whole new meaning, as the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has now gained its religious independence - or autocephaly - fr... Be More Curious...

The Battle for Europe: Europe in 2019

Julien Hoez

12/01/2019

2019 is shaping up to be an exciting, if worrisome, year for Europe. While everything seems to be slowing down in preparation for the eventual hand-over of institutional positions, time never stands sti... Be More Curious...

Vocal Cast with Mimoza Kusari-Lila

Ebubekir ISIK

31/12/2018

Vocal Cast, Western Balkans

As part of our Vocal Cast series that are supported by Science 14, we have talked to Mimoza Kusari-Lila, former deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo and member of Kosovar Parliament where she leads the polit... Be More Curious...

OPINION — The Militarisation of Culture in Iran

Editorial

28/12/2018

Iran

Mohammad S. Alzou’bi is a Fellow at the International Institute for Iranian Studies. The human identity among different nations around the world are shaped according to the nature of region and surround... Be More Curious...

OPINION — Why is tension in Cyprus rising again?

Tionenji Lishomwa

27/12/2018

Inside Europe, Turkey

For much of the international community watching, ‘Ayşe will go on holiday again’ means very little. Especially if 1974 is before your time, you may have wondered what such a bizarrely innocuous phrase ... Be More Curious...

OPINION — Spanish banks and Supreme Court at work: housing bubble under construction

Arnau Perello

24/12/2018

Business, Inside Europe

The lack of independence of the judiciary system, its sloppy performance, as well as the lack of control of rent increases by the successive governments, remain rampant in Spain. All of these are exemp... Be More Curious...

OPINION — VOX: the ultra-right enters the political game in Spain

Alejandra Finotto

20/12/2018

Given the ascent of ultra-right political parties such as the “Rassemblement National” led by Le Pen in France, or the “Lega Nord” headed by Salvini in Italy, many were wondering why this kind of moveme... Be More Curious...

OPINION — Where Hungary’s future lies

Leonardo Veneziani

19/12/2018

The fall of the Berlin Wall and of the Soviet Union, in 1989 and 1991 respectively, were a sign of fate. From that moment on, a large part of Europe was finally free from despotism and tyranny that went... Be More Curious...

Are Yellow Vest protests taking ground in Israel?

Marie Shuqha

17/12/2018

Israel

In the Israeli city of Tel Aviv, hundreds of people dressed in fluorescent traffic-safety vests protested against the high cost of living such as food items and utilities. Groups in Israel’s social m... Be More Curious...

COMMENTARY — As Soros University leaves Hungary, so does academic freedom

15/12/2018

On 3 December 2018, Hungary’s Central European University (CEU) declared that it has been forced out from its campus in Budapest by the far-right government of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. The decisi... Be More Curious...

COMMENTARY — How effective is the European Court of Human Rights against the human rights violations in Turkey?

Mehmet Onur Cevik

15/12/2018

As it is known by most, Turkey has been in an extraordinary atmosphere since the 15 July 2016 attempted coup. Fotis Filippou, Amnesty International's Deputy Europe Director, describes this atmosphere wh... Be More Curious...

Brexit: the never-ending story continues

Julien Hoez

11/12/2018

Theresa May had hoped that 11 December 2018 would become a historic day, where her parliament would vote to pass the Withdrawal Agreement, signalling the end of Britain’s participation within the Europ... Be More Curious...

Huge disparities in European breast cancer care shown by new index

Editorial

11/12/2018

With nearly 100,000 women lose their life to breast cancer every year in the European Union it is the most lethal cancer diagnosis for women in the EU. And while health systems of the 28 differ... Be More Curious...

Forget enlargement. First, the EU needs a ‘war on corruption’ to stave off extreme nationalism

Youssef Kobo

10/12/2018

Since the Schuman and Europe Declarations in 1950 and 1951 respectively, it has been the stated aim of the EU to strengthen democracy amongst its members. The EU is, contrary to sceptical or reductionist v... Be More Curious...

OPINION — Beware of Russia’s bilateral cyber world order

Marta Barandiy

07/12/2018

Russia

This piece, which was first published on Euromaindanpress, was co-authored by Marta Barandiy and Katria Tomko. Russia, the United States, France, and China held secret talks on cybersecurity in Pari... Be More Curious...

COMMENTARY — The Turkish model: How Turkey has coped with 3.6 million Syrian refugees

Robert Ellis

06/12/2018

There is one issue that has preoccupied Europe since the outbreak of civil war in Syria in 2011: immigration. More than six million Syrians are internally displaced and five million have fled to neighbo... Be More Curious...

COMMENTARY — No option left? In the Azov Sea, the EU is all Talk and No Action

04/12/2018

Publications, Russia

On November 25, Russian border patrol boats seized three Ukrainian naval vessels in the Azov Sea — two artillery boats and a tugboat — as they were attempting to pass through the Kerch Strait and used w... Be More Curious...

OPINION — Democracy under Threat? The Future of Democracy in the European Union

Yoeri Maertens

03/12/2018

Last week East-Flanders' Europe Direct Information Centre hosted a lively debate about the future of the European Union. Senior transatlantic fellow of the German Marshall Fund Rosa Balfour and Fidesz M... Be More Curious...

OPINION — How Russia may be isolated on energy trade

Ana-Maria Caminski

02/12/2018

Russia

After the division of Russian empire in the end of First World War, a new concept has appeared in the political field. Intermarium was the answer of newly independent states at the Eastern imperialism. ... Be More Curious...

REPORT — High Level Conference, 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

01/12/2018

On 20 November 2018, the European Parliament (EP) held a High Level Conference to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). The Conference launched the EP’s... Be More Curious...

COMMENTARY — Brexit: a promising agreement for Northern Ireland but many challenges ahead

Bob Groome

28/11/2018

The recently published withdrawal agreement spells the beginning of the end for Brexit. Theresa May and the EU believe the agreement is the best outcome resulting from the EU-UK negotiations. This 585-p... Be More Curious...

COMMENTARY — European army: a problematic dream?

27/11/2018

The concept of a European army has been widely discussed in the past years and particularly weeks, raising many questions about the possibility of such an idea becoming a reality. Where did the noti... Be More Curious...

POLICY BRIEF — “Elections” in Donbas: more European involvement needed to change the status quo

25/11/2018

Publications, Russia

On November 11, so-called “elections” were held in the occupied territories of Donetsk (DNR) and Luhansk (LNR), in the Eastern area of Ukraine commonly referred to as Donbas. The two self-proclaimed... Be More Curious...

POLICY PAPER — The revival of EU-Turkey relations: Erdoğan’s double strategy of rapprochement

Ebubekir ISIK

25/11/2018

Following the attempted coup d’état since July 2016, Turkey has been pursuing a two-track strategy towards the European Union (EU). Mainly, because of the course of action adopted by President Erdoğ... Be More Curious...

Brexit threatens to turn EU’s divide into an unbridgeable chasm

Ebubekir ISIK

15/11/2018

Guy Verhofstadt, the European Parliament’s chief Brexit negotiator, recently wrote an article condemning those “mini-Trumps” who are driven, not by genuine desire for reform, but “power and personal enric... Be More Curious...

Russia Still Angry about Spanish Missile

Joseph Hammond

12/11/2018

Russia

RRussian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that a NATO air patrol in Estonia came close to firing a missile sparking World War III. “A Spanish fighter recently accidentally fired an air-to-air miss... Be More Curious...

80 years after Kristallnacht — A new wave of anti-semitism in Europe

Xavier Ruiz Trullols

08/11/2018

Pittsburgh attack proved why we can’t ignore anti-Semitism. The Anti-Defamation League warned that there was an increase of anti-Semitic incidents in the United States in 2017 compared to the previous y... Be More Curious...

POLICY PAPER — The EU and the Western Balkans 6: a difficult wedding

Sergio Caliva

07/11/2018

Publications, Western Balkans

The Balkan Region, and particularly the Western part closer to the EU, consisting of the so-called WB6 – Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia – has always had a fund... Be More Curious...

POLICY BRIEF — The Belgian Jews: To stay or not to stay?

01/11/2018

Israel, Publications

Belgium, with a Jewish population of about 40,000, has witnessed an increase in antisemitism in the past few years with attacks on the internet leading the charge. In 2012, the European Union Age... Be More Curious...

POLICY PAPER — The power of Article 7: Protection of European values or punishment tool? An analysis of the Polish case

29/10/2018

Article 2 of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) defines the EU as founded on the values of “respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, inc... Be More Curious...

Monday Talk with Katharina Von Schnurbein, European Coordinator on Combating Antisemitism

29/10/2018

Israel, Monday Talks

As Part of our Monday Talks series, we have conducted an interview with Katharina Von Schnurbein, European Coordinator on Combating Antisemitism, to discuss the rise of Antisemitism in Europe and the Eu... Be More Curious...

What’s wrong with Ukraine banning two propaganda channels?

Marta Barandiy

27/10/2018

Beyond Europe

The Parliament of Ukraine has recently voted for a Resolution that proposes to shut down two national TV channels – NewsOne and 112 Ukraine. The MPs accuse them of spreading Russian chauvinist propagand... Be More Curious...

The Threats from Within: Road to the 2019 EU Elections

24/10/2018

The elections are approaching. On 23-26 May 2019, the citizens of the European Union will be called to vote for their representatives in the European Parliament. The elections take place every five year... Be More Curious...

Monday Talk with Fulvio Martusciello, Head of European Parliament’s Delegation to Israel

22/10/2018

Israel, Monday Talks

As Part of our Monday Talks series, we have conducted an interview with Fulvio Martusciello, Chair of European Parliament's Delegation to Israel, to discuss about current state of the relations between ... Be More Curious...

Nigel Farage Pleads for a Europe of Sovereign Nation-States

Yoeri Maertens

12/10/2018

Listen the entire speech by Nigel Farage Two weeks ago, Nigel Farage was invited by the Flemish nationalist and conservative student association KVHV to give a guest lecture at Ghent University, Belg... Be More Curious...

EU-movie quotas are cultural protectionism

Bill Wirtz

10/10/2018

The European Parliament calls for a 30 per cent mandatory quota of European productions for audiovisual content providers, surpassing the Commission's suggested 20 per cent. We have to call this proposa... Be More Curious...

Iran Deal and Two State Solution: Merkel Agrees to Disagree with Netanyahu

09/10/2018

Israel

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has just concluded her visit to Israel. This is probably her last visit to Israel as Chancellor, and it is a routine and sombre one. There was no breakthrough regarding t... Be More Curious...

Franco’s will

Arnau Perello

09/10/2018

It has become customary in Spain, whenever a so-called socialist cabinet starts its new mandate, to approve some eye-catching law. In this way, the new government always looks more liberal than the prev... Be More Curious...

Riace case: Are pro-migrant authorities under attack?

Zeynep Mentesoglu

08/10/2018

Inside Europe, Society

"What will all the do-gooders who want to fill Italy with immigrants say now?" wwrote Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini referring to the arrest of Domenico Lucano, known by his migrant frie... Be More Curious...

Was it a coup d’état on 10 August 2018, in Victory square, Bucharest?

Ana-Maria Caminski

06/10/2018