Cold war 2.0

[Virtual ghost]

Overall the organisation yesterday was smooth and swift, but there were some issues with mail ballots from abroad not getting to the embassies on time. Apparently Wagenknecht considers challenging the election because mathematically those people could have voted BSW in which case they might have saved her party. She was 13.456 votes short of the 5% hurdle. The matter is under investigation.

When I wrote that post I was about 99% sure that something like this will happen. They came too close to be silent now.

 

[Virtual ghost]

Ukraine could join EU before 2030, says von der Leyen
I suppose you can call this one a "bombshell".


Macron to Trump: Make trade war with China, not with us
As I was saying, doing a trade war against friends and foes is the same time is strategy that is quite unlikely to work.



EU offers its own ‘win-win’ minerals deal to Ukraine

EU eyes €200B secret weapon as Trump dominates Ukraine peace talks

 

[Virtual ghost]

The things is that Trump is breaking away from what US policy was for decades/generations. Which is keeping Europe satisfied and thus standing in line. Therefore if you break away from that you are basically creating a major new competitor. Since Europe is pretty developed in global context and EU with all of it's close neighbors has over 200% of US population. Therefore if Europe starts to wake up for real after decades of sleeping US will almost surely find itself in the situation that it's global influence will be evaporating. Especially since most of the world doesn't have too positive opinion about it to begin with. Therefore if Europe wakes up US simply wouldn't be able to keep up with everything that is going on globally. What means losing ground politically and economically. However Trump is going directly for that scenario.


We are potentially looking at some quite "interesting" times ahead.

 

[Red Herring]

I am currently watching an interview with British historian Timothy Garton Ash. As he succinctly puts it: Europe is simultaneously under attack from three directions: from the East by Russia, from the West by America and from the bottom by nationalist populism.

Since we have limited influence on Russia and Trump, I would think that this means one of the best investments and moves for more security would be to quench the forst fire within. Now, if this was easy it would have been done a long time ago, but I think calming the existential fears and unrest at the bottom of society would go a long way and also make it easier to form a united European front against agression from the other two sides.

 

[Virtual ghost]

Romanian police haul in election front-runner Călin Georgescu for questioning

 

[Virtual ghost]

Romanian police haul in election front-runner Călin Georgescu for questioning

Romania: Prosecutors probe canceled election front-runner

MAGA heavyweights lash out over Romanian police raids targeting Călin Georgescu


This is going to be a mess however you turn it.

 

[Virtual ghost]

 

[Virtual ghost]

Regarding the above.

Trump says he will slap European goods with 25% tariff


I mean ok, but doing trade war on multiple fronts is almost surely pretty bad idea.
However this would basically be the end of Tran Atlantic relationship as we know it. As I said, as long as NATO exists there is a chance that we can turn back the clock and go back how the world was some 30 years ago in political sense (more or less). However if the Alliance is off the table then this is one completely new era.

 

[Virtual ghost]

Since we have limited influence on Russia and Trump, I would think that this means one of the best investments and moves for more security would be to quench the forst fire within. Now, if this was easy it would have been done a long time ago, but I think calming the existential fears and unrest at the bottom of society would go a long way and also make it easier to form a united European front against agression from the other two sides.

Austria: Centrist parties form coalition without far-right

And this will be another brick in that wall.

 

[Red Herring]

Jailed Kurdish leader calls for group to disarm, in major shift that could shake up Turkey and Middle East

 

[Virtual ghost]

Trump says British ‘can take care of themselves’ in Ukraine

Zelenskyy invited to March 6 EU summit on defense and Ukraine

Polish ex-PM charged with abuse of power for trying to organize elections during Covid

Orbán’s government bans Budapest Pride in ‘public form’

Bosnia tensions build as Serb leader is sentenced for undermining peace

How Czech-Slovak relations went south as Robert Fico turned east

 

[Virtual ghost]

 

[Virtual ghost]

 

[The Cat]

Regarding the above.

Trump says he will slap European goods with 25% tariff


I mean ok, but doing trade war on multiple fronts is almost surely pretty bad idea.

Musk is the Mister Morden of our time.
And well I trust the rest is easy to see parallels. Some fucking how all the warnings were apprently too subtle.​

 

[Red Herring]

EU, India agree to finalize free-trade pact this year, von der Leyen says

Time to strengthen some other friendships, I guess

 

[Red Herring]

EU reveals plans to hit climate goals by helping dirty industries clean up - European Commission recommits to 90% emissions cut by 2040, and will support steel and cement in transition

"Even if I knew the world will come to an end tomorrow, I would still plant a young apple tree today" - Martin Luther

 

[Virtual ghost]

Ukraine updates: Zelenskyy leaves after clash with Trump

The leaders didn't sign the critical minerals agreement, and their joint press conference was also canceled.

This is big news.

 

[Red Herring]

This is painful to watch ...

 

[The Cat]

Monstrous.

 

[Red Herring]

We will step up our support to Ukraine so that they can continue to fight back the [aggressor]. Today, it became clear that the free world needs a new leader. It’s up to us, Europeans, to take this challenge - Kaja Kallas