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The arguably most controversial sports event of this year is only a few days away: the 2022 football world cup will kick off on Sunday, the 20th of November in the Qatari city of al-Chaur at a stadium that didn’t exist before 2015. As it became clear that none of the 32 football associations considered boycotting the event, the big question was passed on to the public: to watch or not to watch.
Since Russia launched a full-scale military invasion into Ukraine on February 24, 2022, ongoing attacks have caused over three thousand civilian deaths and internally displaced over seven million people, according to UN statistics. Alongside this irreversible destruction comes the imminent threat to Ukraine’s rich cultural heritage. The conflict has destroyed sites such as a Gothic revival library in Chernihiv and the Kuindzhi Art Museum in Mariupol. Monuments, museums, art, and culture represent sources of collective memory as well as powerful identity.
As Finland and Sweden announced their bid to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) ranks, Turkey has warned to veto the membership of the Scandinavian allies unless they meet some diplomatic preconditions first. This is nothing new for NATO as new countries being admitted depends on the approval of all of its existing members. In this situation, Turkey is putting its foot down against its allies as a bid to counter terrorism.
The Conference on the Future of Europe is one of the most important events affecting the European Institutions. The Conference allowed European citizens and beyond to become involved in the debate on what Europe they want to see, setting priorities. By creating a space for debate it allowed citizens to discuss current topics such as climate change and environment, digital transformation and human rights. It also built an ideal bridge between Europe and third countries.
Salvador de Madariaga's (1886-1978) contributions to the Theory and History of the European Union are of outstanding importance, often ignored and must be claimed. Beyond the myth of the man – poet, man of letters, diplomat, statesman, university professor – the work of the Spaniard transcends for being the gaze of Spain in front of the European Union.
As the Russian military, after failing to swiftly occupy Ukraine, turns to its now traditional tactics of attacking the population in the occupied territories, a wave of anger towards Russians is following the wave of solidarity with Ukrainians. In a well-intentioned attempt to shield the Russians from discrimination, the West falls into a dangerous trap of substituting collective guilt with collective innocence. Both are a blessing for the propaganda machine built by the Kremlin over the years.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has raised the issue of the EU’s dependencies on Russia. For this reason, an European Gas Policy will be introduced by next month. “REPOWER” represents a plan to make a more affordable, secure and sustainable energy in Europe, anticipating the future Gas Policy key points.
The latest European Citizens Initiative that made headlines and managed to pass over 1 Million signatures was the Stop Finning - Stop Shark Trade Initiative. The initiative has the aim to legally ban the trade of shark fins in Europe. However, up until the rise of the initiative and its push on social media platforms such as Instagram, the issue was barely recognised and only was a problem European conservationists, and environmentalists knew of, not European citizens. The factuality of the latter points to a larger problem within the EU which is its lack of attentiveness and transparency when it comes to its species protection and nature protection laws.
In Turkey's upcoming 2023 legislative election, the youth is seen as a key to salvation from an authoritarian regime and to promote democratization. The election is planned to take place exactly 10 years after the Gezi Park protests, which was the biggest reaction against the establishing authoritarian course. Last year, the role of youth was decisive in politics for election promises and the effects were felt in public discussions. Under worsening economic circumstances, President Erdogan's vote base consolidation is no longer easy.
The generation gap does in not going to close, according to the ruling coalition AKP-MHP’s future projection. This is also the most important indicator of the collapse of Erdoğan’s pious youth project that has been applied for many years. However, young people in Turkey struggle with severely restricted individual freedoms and harsh economic conditions.
As NATO is bracing for the potential next round of escalation of the war conflict in the east of Ukraine, countries heavily reliant on Russian fossil fuels, like Germany, constantly seem to fail in prioritizing the integrity of NATO and the security of its allies first. If the Western democracies are to remain strong and independent, they have to realize that the danger posed by the collaborationists within is by no means smaller than that from the external opponents of the liberal order.
