Samurai or Kamikaze? Japan’s rearmament and insecurity in the name of security
As the 80th anniversary of Japan’s capitulation is approaching, a strange and unsettling ritual is unfolding in the East.
Politics
Latest reporting and analysis on politics.
Ukrainian ex-energy minister accused of corruption caught trying to leave the country
Ukraine's former energy minister, Herman Galushchenko, was dramatically detained aboard a train as he attempted to flee the country.
Macron criticises Meloni over solidarity statement on Deranque killing
French President Emmanuel Macron has publicly criticised Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni after she expressed solidarity regarding the killing of 23-year-old…
Austrian President criticised for seeming to say Ramadan more important than Lent
Austria’s President Alexander van der Bellen has incurred the wrath of many constituents by publicly congratulating Muslims on the start of Ramadan – while seemingly…
One choice for Europe: Defend Ukraine with your own blood or appease Russia
This week’s acrimonious breakup of the latest ceasefire talks between Russia and Ukraine has for the moment forestalled Europe’s quaking nightmare: That the…
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor arrested and homes searched over Epstein files
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the former Duke of York and brother to King Charles III, was arrested at his residence on the Sandringham estate in Norfolk.
‘Green’ means industry leaking out of Europe, a burden intolerable for investors
Over the past few years, the world has changed more dramatically than at any time since the end of the Cold War.
Polish court issues European warrant for opposition MP
A court in Warsaw has issued a European Arrest Warrant for an opposition Conservatives (PiS) MP.
Ten years on, is European populism on a road to nowhere?
Ever since populist-nationalism – or national-populism, if you like – broke through the establishment barriers in 2015/16 with Trump and Brexit, the general…
Sexual assault allegations and cover-up claims target top Spanish cop
A high-profile sexual assault investigation targeting one of Spain's top police officials has ignited a political firestorm, with opposition parties accusing the…
Slovakia threatens Ukraine with reprisals over blocked pipeline
Slovakia's prime minister today threatened to cut emergency electricity supplies to Ukraine if its neighbour does not reopen a pipeline that brings Russian oil to…
German court fines AfD politician €11,600 for use of stock photo allegedly showing Nazi salute
A state MP with the right-wing Alternative for Germany party (AfD) has been fined of €11,600 for printing an election poster that allegedly showed a man performing…
PM Tusk’s Polish coalition fragments as its centrist component falls apart
Poland’s ruling coalition is experiencing turbulence after a senior member of the government announced she and more than a dozen other MPs are leaving to form…
Part of German CDU wants to end online anonymity and make Big Tech pay for ‘news they steal’
As the German Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party’s congress nears, the local CDU branch of Schleswig-Holstein is pushing to scrap online anonymity.
France’s LFI backs group seen as responsible for killing student
France remains gripped by shock and political fury following the death of 23-year-old Quentin Deranque, a mathematics student and nationalist activist beaten to…
PM Tusk says Poland will borrow from EU for defence even if President vetoes move
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has said his government will go ahead with borrowing money under the European Union’s SAFE (Security Action for Europe).
Rubio: A distinguished and effective diplomatic chief
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s address to the Munich Security Conference last week has ricocheted around Europe and the world as a stirring and conciliatory…
EU gives Austria fiscal leeway to boost defence spending despite ballooning deficit
Austria can spend billions on buying new equipment for its military, even though the budget deficit is soaring and the country is under a European Union deficit…
Public opinion doubts if ‘more Europe’ is the way forward
In Brussels, these are the worst of times, but also the best of times.
German superior court says speaking ban for AfD leader was unlawful
The Bavarian Administrative Court has decided that two German towns were wrong to issue speaking bans for a leading representative of the right-wing Alternative…
European Commission launches investigation into Shein over childlike sex dolls and addictive platform design
The European Commission has opened formal proceedings against the Chinese fast-fashion giant Shein under the Digital Services Act (DSA), targeting the suspected…
Liars: German national TV caught using AI images of fake ICE arrest
Germany's ZDF public broadcaster has come under fire over an episode of its flagship heute journal news programme after it emerged it broadcast an AI-generated video…
Italy introduces new ‘law and order’ measures amid left-wing violence
Italy has introduced a “law and order” package in response to violent incidents linked to far-left groups in Italy and across Europe.
Rubio in Hungary, this could be a game changer
When I called a Hungarian politician, who is highly placed among the current political elite, yesterday evening and asked him how he assessed Marco Rubio's visit…
Prospective Dutch finance state secretary out for lying over studies
A nominee for Dutch State Secretary of Finance tasked with overseeing a contentious reform of taxes on unrealised gains, has stepped down following revelations that…
All the doomed UK has left is a cackling demented “That’s all, folks!”
The British Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, is an interesting (if only sort-of) example of what happens when life follows art.
Hungarian opposition leader says he’ll send Poles granted asylum by Orbán back home
The leader of Hungary’s main opposition party Tisza has promised that if elected into power he would send two Polish politicians granted asylum in his country…
LFI under fire after young student beaten to death by extreme-left activists
The French hard-left party La France Insoumise (LFI) is under fierce pressure after activists from a closely allied organisation are being accused of the killing…
US Special Envoy Grenell slams Germany’s Merz over meeting with US governor Newsom
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has caused consternation at home and abroad by meeting up with California governor – and potential Democratic presidential candidate…
The death of technocracy and the return of politics
Real political change tends to have more than one cause, and although it has become somewhat fashionable to reduce everything to a single issue – whether it is…