democracy

Foreign influence and malign interference are most often associated with adversarial actors such as Russia or China. Yet there are also areas in which US-based actors—both public and private—exercise pressure on European decision- and policymakers in comparable ways. Disputes over freedom of speech, censorship, and digital rights have become a new front line in transatlantic relations.

What is the future, if any, of the transatlantic relationship? Where do we stand on European sovereignty versus President Donald Trump? What should we know about the \'brave new world order\' proposed by Canadian PM Mark Carney? Should Europe try to keep the United States on board as long as possible or mobilize against it? Leszek Jazdzewski talks with Olaf Osica, a former director of the Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW).

After recent years filled with tragic events, conflicts, and global pandemics, many of us are, above all, hoping for a breakthrough in the form of an ending. An end to populism, an end to war, or an end to the right-wing offensive launched by Trump in 2024; an offensive that has swept across Europe, both Americas, and is steadily pushing us toward an open war with Putin’s Russia.

The daring attack by U.S. forces on the Venezuelan regime and the arrest of dictator Nicolás Maduro sparked a wave of controversy around the world. In Poland, reactions were fairly predictable: from enthusiastic praise of Donald Trump by circles associated with the Law and Justice party (PiS), to reflexive, often complete criticism of the U.S. president’s actions from many left-liberal groups.

The use of participatory budgeting (PB) has appeared in more and more democratically governed municipalities in recent years. According to the 2021 book “World Atlas of Participatory Budgeting,” this method is widespread primarily in Europe and secondarily in South America, in which the residents of the city can propose the use of a certain amount from the municipality’s budget.”

“When I was a child, the monarch of Liechtenstein told me: our duty is to protect people from power. If you have power, your first task is to limit the powers of the government, not to expand them.” Prince Michael of Liechtenstein said these words during a short visit to Lithuania. The guest, who was invited as a guest speaker to the 35th anniversary of the Lithuanian Free Market Institute, came as a surprise to many.

Tomio Okamura, the Czech Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, made a New Year\'s speech which is a prime example of economic populism that pretends to be \"common sense\" but is actually based on systematic simplification, confusion of terms, and false dilemmas. Underneath the appealing language of optimism and concern for \"ordinary people\" lies a set of claims that deny known facts, ignore the government\'s policy statement, and distort reality.

In 1776, three texts appeared almost simultaneously that helped define the political and moral architecture of the modern world. Thomas Paine’s Common Sense gave popular voice to the radical idea that political authority must rest on reason and consent rather than tradition. Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations provided a systematic account of how prosperity emerges from freedom, specialization, and exchange.

How to deal with the weaponization of information? What is the future (if any) of independent journalism? What does public interest information mean and why should it be protected? Have we lost the shared understanding of the world? And, if that is the case, how can we restore it? Leszek Jazdzewski talks with Patrice Schneider, Chief Strategy Officer at the Media Development Investment Fund.

How to interpret the results of the Dutch elections? What does the return of history to European affairs really mean? Is the EU a stage or an actor in the big drama of history? And what kind of Europe is emerging from Donald Trump\'s efforts to dismantle the American empire and the post-1945 world order? Leszek Jazdzewski talks with Luuk van Middelaar, the founding Director of Brussels Institute for Geopolitics.