Politics

The past year was full of events related to the ongoing crisis of the rule of law in Poland. The last few months have been dominated mainly with the issue of the \"milestones\" attached to the National Reconstruction Plan and the disagreement within the ruling coalition as to how to achieve them. Among other things, for this purpose the infamous Disciplinary Chamber was abolished and replaced with Chamber of Professional Responsibility.

In December 2022, the Hungarian government launched its 12th national consultation, asking voters about their views on the Ukraine-Russia war and the European Union\'s sanctions. The consultation, as usual was filled with manipulated questions, false dilemmas, and vague expressions, and was preceded by a strong, one-sided Eurosceptic and state-funded campaign.

While work on Estonia\'s newly drafted National Security Concept began before the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Prime Minister Kaja Kallas (Reform) says that the changed security situation has made its adoption all the more pressing.

Everyone should understand the meaning of the word \"cost\". You can try avoiding expenses, but costs will still come, one day. What is happening in Georgia now is very much about neglecting the meaning of the word \"cost\" by politicians, mainly in the West. However, costs cannot disappear through wishful thinking. Current decision makers may try to hide from them, but they may return at a higher rate.

The Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC) is a Hungarian organization, which – according to its website – \"is the leading talent promotion institution in the Carpathian Basin.\" However, it is much more than that. Nowadays, the Mathias Corvinus Foundation offers an immense collection of educational programmes, publications, with a network of businesses and think tanks abroad, having a significant lobby power.

A legislative solution (act) on the introduction of a principle the 10H was adopted in 2016. The 10H rule assumed a minimum offset distance between settlements and wind turbines of 10 times the height of the turbine. In practice 99.72 per cent of the country is excluded from building new onshore wind turbines.

Last year in Poland was marked by heated discussions linked with the provision of European Union Recovery Funds, which have been promised to the Polish government on condition that it successfully restores the rule of law, infringed through multiple reforms of the ruling coalition. Introduced over the last seven years, they largely touched upon the judiciary system, increasing its dependence on the legislative branch.

On November 8 the US elected all congressmen, 1/3 of senators, 36 governors and hundreds of officia;s at the state and local level. However, one of the main roles in the entire campaign was played by past and present presidents. Joe Biden, along with Barack Obama, encouraged people to vote for the Democratic Party, while Donald Trump waged battles within the Republican Party.

We pay too little global attention to what is happening in China. The Communist Party persistently continues the policy of a restrictive lockdown in response to COVID for over 2.5 years. Funnily enough, this policy is probably an ideal dream for many opinion leaders in Poland, given their position just a few months ago. But seriously, in the Chinese authoritarian system, this sanitary regime is more violent than anywhere else in the democratic world.

Russia. The word still evokes images of conspiracy behind gray concrete blocks, while a strong military marches through the streets in a tour de force of the iron hand that rules the harsh country. The Kremlin was working hard to ensure that this stereotype, of influential and ruthless Soviet toughness, is exaggerated. Disinformation, ostentatious secret service operations and bellicose rhetoric all served this illusion.