Opinion
![Carles Puigdemont: How I pulled off my daring escape from Spain](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=320,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/15/GettyImages-2165269723-scaled.jpg)
Carles Puigdemont: How I pulled off my daring escape from Spain
The former Catalan president describes how he evaded capture by Spanish authorities.
![A Harris presidency could be a reset for Ukraine](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=320,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/13/GettyImages-1245775867-scaled.jpg)
![Russia’s links with Iran are growing stronger](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=320,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/12/GettyImages-1222294574-scaled.jpg)
![The mainstreaming of Islamophobia in the UK](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=319,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/12/GettyImages-2165019332-scaled.jpg)
![Europe needs a centrist agenda](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=320,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/07/GettyImages-2156551491.jpg)
![Democracy in dark times: Hopeful lessons from Greece’s 50-year odyssey](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=320,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/30/GettyImages-2155828631-scaled.jpg)
Democracy in dark times: Hopeful lessons from Greece’s 50-year odyssey
![Mainstream parties need radical centrism — not populist mimicry](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=320,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/29/GettyImages-2158301660-scaled.jpg)
A bad deal with Trump on Ukraine could at least postpone a worse one with Putin
It’s possible European NATO members could convince a Trump White House to leave Kyiv’s military backing to them — with some strings attached.
Europe should stop hand-wringing about Trump — and be more constructive
A little more reflection and a little less contempt might go a long way toward creating the kind of enduring transatlantic consensus we need.
NATO’s false promises are encouraging misplaced Ukrainian hopes
The alliance’s irresponsible policy toward Ukraine continues, providing false hope, making peace less likely and the war more dangerous.
‘Poor son of a bitch’: Biden once pitied an older politician reluctant to leave the stage
As a senator, Biden could see when it was time for an elder to pass the torch.
Israel’s ultra-Orthodox headache
The Haredim now find themselves the target of anger, not only from a broad swathe of the public but even from their traditional allies in the religious-right coalition.
France is at a historic turning point — and it has been here before
The New Popular Front stands on the cusp of a victory that has the potential to transform the course of French history.
What the China-Russia alliance means for the West
Putin’s recent visit to Beijing is one more sign of an evolving new Cold War.
The West’s biggest vulnerability is internal
It’s time for wartime leadership in America and its democratic allies.
NATO’s in denial about deterrence by denial
Taking the necessary steps to fully operationalize deterrence by denial is critical — especially before a possible change in America’s relationship with NATO.
Relearning lessons from the past: NATO and economic deterrence
There’s a growing need for the West to seamlessly integrate military deterrence with economic warfare once more.
Has the left jumped the shark?
Down in the polls, battered in elections and in many cases even deserted by the young, the progressive camp is bleeding support, while the right is on the rise.
Starmer will have to walk a US-China tightrope
There’s already some discord between the two countries when it comes to China, but there are areas where they could work on similar approaches.
Letter from Ukraine: How will my mom survive if I’m drafted?
It’s undocumented — or under-documented — special needs folks like my mom whose lives are at risk because of Ukraine’s new turbocharged mobilization law.
The media establishment lays on the horn: Joe must go
Calls for President Biden to step aside after a poor debate give new life to old resentments.
Let’s be a bit more honest about what a ‘European identity’ looks like
Emphasizing Europe’s “Judeo-Christian” heritage and looking only to antiquity betrays the European project, excluding the various peoples and entities that shaped the Continent.
London’s neighboring county Essex is turning red
Essex has demonstrated enduring loyalty to the Conservative Party. But in this July’s election, even this bastion of working-class Toryism looks imperiled.
Sorry Farage, Putin is provoked by Ukrainian independence — not NATO
By amplifying Putin’s bogus claims of NATO’s responsibility for today’s war, Western politicians like Trump and Farage risk legitimizing Russian imperialism.
To understand Georgia’s European identity, look to its past
It’s important to understand why the Georgian people take to the streets any time their Euro-Atlantic path is put into doubt.
Export controls on Russia might be working better than you think
The fact Moscow is so keen to discredit export controls may well be a clue that the measures aren’t ineffective.
What France can expect from a far-right National Rally government
It’s far less important to know how Le Pen exorcised her party’s past demons than how a National Rally government will exercise power.
A more humane approach to asylum is in Europe’s interest
In the coming years, there’s a real opportunity for fresh thinking that both protects those seeking safety and benefits newcomers and EU citizens alike.
Final blow to Chinese ‘neutrality’ on Ukraine war
With the dismissal of the Swiss peace conference, Beijing’s commitment to Russia has reached new heights.
London could become the European capital of state-owned asset seizure
Madrid’s appeal looks like it will determine just how vulnerable other EU countries are to their valuable assets being targeted in the U.K.
Europe’s at risk of losing the global tech race
As this competition is ultimately a race for progress, wealth and geostrategic influence, its importance for the Continent’s future cannot be overvalued.