Inside Europe

Five years ago Croatia became EU's 28th member-state. The accession process was seen as in important step for the Balkan region and the “Ex-Yugoslav area” to become Europeanized. One interesting thin... Be More Curious...

Is the European Arrest Warrant Becoming a Political Tool?

Joseph Hammond

25/09/2018

All opinions in this column reflect view of the autor(s), not of Vocal Europe The saga of one of the European Union’s most problematic policies took an unusual turn late last month with an EU judicial body announcing that the European Arrest Warrant (... Be More Curious...

Will a European Plastics Ban really help the Environment?

Richard Mason

22/09/2018

Over the course of this year, it seems as though the debate on environmental protection has greatly shifted to the issue of plastics, namely the effects of ill-disposed of waste on marine life. This... Be More Curious...

The lady’s not for turning

Julien Hoez

21/09/2018

Theresa May’s disastrous participation in the Salzburg summit was evidently fresh in her memory. She was described as having “showed too much arrogance” in a miscalculation similar to David Cameron, had... Be More Curious...

Fighting Online Terrorist Speech

20/09/2018

William Echikson, a former senior policy manager at Google, is head of the Digital Forum at the Centre for European Policy Studies. David Ibsen is Executive Director for the Counter Extremism Project (CEP), a not-for-profit, international policy organiz... Be More Curious...

Why they just don’t get it

Julien Hoez

20/09/2018

Another suffocatingly hot day in the Palace of Westminster and another all-party parliamentary group meet in committee to discuss Brexit. Stephen Kinnock, Labour MP for Aberavon and Chairman of the All-... Be More Curious...

Sweden Elections: One Crisis, Two Major Parties, Numerous Outcomes

Christina Cigir

14/09/2018

Sweden’s recent elections has left a dual impression among many people: impressed and unimpressed. Ever since the 2015 migration crisis, Sweden has been placed in a predicament. This exact predicament h... Be More Curious...

Politics of the Street: How to respond to Germany’s far-right revival?

Julius M. Rogenhofer

13/09/2018

The German far-right successfully instrumentalises crimes allegedly committed by refugees to mobilise its supporters. These often violent rallies reveal an open affiliation of members of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) with neo-Nazi groups. To revers... Be More Curious...

Juncker’s State of the Union Speech: Time for European Sovereignty

12/09/2018

This morning was marked by the annual State of the Union speech to the European Parliament by the President of the European Commission in Strasbourg. Jean-Claude Juncker spoke for the fourth and last ti... Be More Curious...

EESC — Youth, digital and cooperation as pills to foster the European spirit

Sergio Caliva

12/09/2018

After the Commission’s adoption of the “Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on specific provisions for the European territorial cooperation goal (Interreg)”, on the 7... Be More Curious...

Can Macron still create a political cataclysm for the European election?

10/09/2018

With the European elections coming up in 2019, Emmanuel Macron’s possibilities to change the political landscape at the European level seem to not be as easy as expected. The last week of August was marked by the resignation of Nicolas Hulot, the quite... Be More Curious...

Can a Bavarian Make Europe Great Again?

Christina Cigir

07/09/2018

As the 2019 elections for the European Union’s commission president approach, the ongoing talks about an ideal candidate has granted its attention to leader of the European People’s Party, Manfred Weber... Be More Curious...

Polish and Romanian civil society in fighting for the freedom of Justice

Ana-Maria Caminski

05/09/2018

The times when the Law protected their citizens are passed away. With more than a century ago, nobody would ever thought after the falling down of the Czarist Imperium that a Law could be given in order... Be More Curious...

Looking Globally – Europe with Hard Power

31/08/2018

There have been a few moments in the last century of Modern Europe’s history that shaped the structure of the continent for the next decades. Without any doubt, World War One and World War Two have truly been defined as cornerstone of the destiny of Eu... Be More Curious...

Europe’s Concerns about Maldives Are Growing

24/08/2018

Europeans do not usually think about the Maldives in geopolitical terms, but rather as an idyllic holiday destination in the middle of the Indian Ocean. However, the fact is that this tiny island nation... Be More Curious...

Nearly a year of pre-trial imprisonment with no legal grounds, despite German Court ruling

Arnau Perello

23/08/2018

Two events have weakened Spain's reputation in the last month. The first one is the case of the €4 billion submarines that are too big for its own dock - after the modification that allowed them to floa... Be More Curious...

Four countries, one threat

Ana-Maria Caminski

22/08/2018

On the chessboard of the world, every pawn seems to be an important pawn. Especially when the stake of the game is the expansion of the political power by gaining of the old sphere of influence and the new ones. In February-March 2014, Peninsula Crimea... Be More Curious...

Robbery at Portuguese Base offers lesson for NATO

Joseph Hammond

08/08/2018

Grenades and high-explosives taken from Portuguese military base in a brazen heist are still unaccounted for over a year later. Portugal marked the first anniversary of a series of deadly wild fires ear... Be More Curious...

EU elections: what remains to be known before 2019

05/08/2018

The European Union is at a turning point, and 2019 will be the major benchmark in this process. If it all goes according to planned, the UK will leave the EU in March, and two months later, the European... Be More Curious...

Puigdemont is back, what is next?

03/08/2018

On Saturday 28 of July, the former President of the Generalitat de Catalunya Carles Puigdemont came back to Brussels after being detained in Germany. His return to Belgium was possible after the Spanish Supreme Courted lifted the European Arrest Warran... Be More Curious...

Will the Salvini-effect spread to Europe?

31/07/2018

The new Italian government, result of an extenuatingly long negotiating process between the League and the Five Star Movement (M5S), has been now in office for the past two months. Even though the role ... Be More Curious...

Can cyber attacks cause a major war?

30/07/2018

In the last two decades, the world has seen a rapid digitalization of services, both in civil society and state functions, thanks to the Internet and to the world wide web. As much as this is considered a p... Be More Curious...

American unilateralism vs. European multilateralism: the world is watching

26/07/2018

As the great powers keep on leaning towards nationalist and unilateralist positions, the world becomes an increasingly polarised – and thus more dangerous – place. It is no surprise for countries like China to question the international status quo, built b... Be More Curious...

Polish women’s rights are European women’s rights

19/07/2018

During his last visit to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, Mateusz Morawiecki, the Polish Prime Minister, gave a speech in which he addressed the critics made against the Polish state regarding its... Be More Curious...

NATO Summit: The Atlantic Drift

19/07/2018

Since he took office, President Trump has called on European NATO members to increase their military spending, in order to fulfil the pledge of 2% of national GDP assigned to defence, made during th... Be More Curious...

Spain: everything must change, so everything stays the same

Arnau Perello

18/07/2018

One of the greatest novels of all times is 'The Leopard' by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa. It is set in Sicily during the Italian unification, as the old regime comes to an end. The main character, the Sicilian prince Don Fabrizio, is initially reluctan... Be More Curious...

Catalonia — the growing role of the EU

17/07/2018

Last Thursday, the State court of the northern Schleswig-Holstein formally accepted the petition made by Spain, through a European Arrest Warrant (EAW), to extradite Carles Puigdemont. The former presid... Be More Curious...

Theresa May’s “turmoil”

Giles Marshall

12/07/2018

Donald Trump performed his usual pre-international meeting diplomacy this week, when he had a go at his allies and commended an authoritarian former enemy. If you’re a NATO ally, you got the full Trump ... Be More Curious...

Sanchez and Torra: two sides of the same coin

11/07/2018

Last Monday the new Spanish President Pedro Sánchez and the President of the Generalitat of Catalonia Quim Torra met in Madrid for the first time after the establishment of the new government in June 2018. The most evident outcome from this first meetin... Be More Curious...

US divorces Europe

10/07/2018

Viktors Domburs is an expert on the Baltic Countries and a political commentator. Europe is in the anticipation of NATO summit which will take place on June, 11-12 in Brussels. Before this meeting the Pentag... Be More Curious...

Could the Chequers Summit be the Brexit Breakthrough that Theresa May Needs?

Julien Hoez

10/07/2018

The new “Facilitated Customs Arrangement” that has been conceived by Theresa May may be seen as a success for the embattled Prime Minster. The result of the make-or-break Chequers cabinet meeting on 6 June ... Be More Curious...

Poland’s dilemma: Euro-scepticism and US cooperation

06/07/2018

As Poland is more and more on the conservative side and becoming a tenacious partner in European discussions, it seems, however, that it is open to a deeper cooperation with the United States. Since 2015 and the coming into power of the nationalist-cons... Be More Curious...

Why the UK needs to Commit to Cannabis

Richard Mason

04/07/2018

As one of the most widely-used drugs around, the criminalisation of cannabis is blocking an untapped goldmine of potential for Britain. Swathes of money are diverted to the traders of the black market, user... Be More Curious...

Where are Europe’s Christian democrats?

03/07/2018

The politics of migration have triggered a resurgence of identity based appeals to the European populous. The political right, in particular, uses Christian values and heritage as a rallying cry against soc... Be More Curious...

When will migration determine the EU’s fate?

02/07/2018

On 28 June 2018, EU heads of state or government met in Brussels following the necessities to start a discussion on the current hot themes regarding the Union such as migration, security and defence, Russia’s sanctions, Brexit, economic and financial affai... Be More Curious...

Can Intelligence Agencies Really Protect Us?

Yvonnemarie Antonoglou

29/06/2018

Inside Europe, The Opinion

Generally speaking, the intelligence management cycle refers to the continuous process of tasking, collecting, processing, analyzing, and disseminating intelligence information. It constitutes the overa... Be More Curious...

Council distrusts parents with junk food proposals

Bill Wirtz

27/06/2018

The European Council has adopted draft conclusions regarding the marketing of so-called “junk food” products, in which it calls for restrictions on advertisement, in an effort to protect children. The targe... Be More Curious...

Balkans, don’t let them say — it’s difficult

Milena Harito

20/06/2018

Western Balkans is a great place to travel. Eating great various food in Tirana, taking a bath in Buljarica, Montenegro, following a show in Belgrade or having a good coffee in Sarajevo and a lot of other leisure activities. Here days seems longer and time... Be More Curious...

The Dublin system is crumbling, what will come next?

18/06/2018

The Aquarius shines bright in the middle of the sea, its orange hull stands out vividly from the deep blue sea that surrounds it. Six hundred and twenty nine people rescued from precarious dinghies by vario... Be More Curious...

The statistic, protection of personal data, and the single digital market

Ana-Maria Caminski

17/06/2018

25 May 2018. This day will enter with certainty in history. After two years, the proposal for reforming the old Directive 95/46/EC (‛Data Protection Directive’) and the Police Directive was finally adopted... Be More Curious...

Increased role and sovereignty for urban areas — a key to handle migration crisis

Vladan Lausevic

09/06/2018

Away forward for Europe to handle the challenges and opportunities around immigration would be the increased role and sovereignty for urban areas, in both smaller and larger cities. The local level of governance is a place where most of the interaction... Be More Curious...

Building castles in Spain

Arnau Perello

08/06/2018

Nine years after the disclosure of a huge corruption scandal, Mariano Rajoy and his Popular Party have finally been ousted from government. The new PM, Pedro Sánchez, holds a very weak majority in the Spani... Be More Curious...

Catalan Issue and European Affairs Swivel in Sanchez Government

05/06/2018

On 1st June 2018, for the first time in the history of Spain, the government was dismissed by the opposition. The prime minister Mariano Rajoy was forced to leave his position in favour of Pedro Sanchez, as... Be More Curious...

Why scandalising the German Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) is hypocritical

Julius M. Rogenhofer

05/06/2018

Scandalising improprieties in how asylum requests were processed at individual branches of the German Federal Office for Migration and Refugees is hypocritical because it overlooks the political context in which these decisions were taken. An objective inv... Be More Curious...

A country in jeopardy

Michele Di Salvo

31/05/2018

Has been defined the longest "government crisis" of republican history, but what we have witnessed in these last three months is nothing but a litmus test of how far it is nothing but a game for amateurs to... Be More Curious...

A week to forget for Italian politics

29/05/2018

Admittedly, Italian politics has always been a bit turbulent and hard to follow. Never a boring moment, never a dull election, and most certainly never a conventional plan to follow. But the last few months... Be More Curious...

Brussels is concerned over Italy’s Two Bad Boys

18/05/2018

Well over two months after its general election, Italy is still missing a government. On March the 4th Italians were called to choose new representatives for both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, and the results of the ballots have destabilized the ... Be More Curious...

Who makes Expenses Plan for the Baltic States?

17/05/2018

The Baltic states today are no more a clean sheet of paper waiting for somebody to write something on. During almost 30 years of independence from the USSR the authorities have been cleaning the countries from ... Be More Curious...

What common ground will Theresa May find with President Erdogan?

Robert Ellis

13/05/2018