Europe

The German parliamentary election campaign played out on the internet as never before. In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, this was certainly necessary, but it brought with it all the evils we have previously seen in US election campaigns: disinformation campaigns and hate speech were used to discredit candidates, paid political online advertising and foreign influence circumvented basic democratic values. As a woman, Annalena Baerbock the Greens' candidate for Chancellor, was particularly affected. The elections have shown that what we need, in Germany and the EU, are better media skills for the population and clear rules for communication platforms.

Germany has voted. The SPD, Greens and FDP come out of the elections as the winners, but take a very different view of the results – depending on their expectations and the pressure they feel upon them to act. By and large, the trend towards a party system in which no single party dominates continues. Constituency seats played a very particular role in these elections. This brief analysis provides an overview of the initial results, with a more comprehensive, empirical analysis to follow in the next few days.

Just days after Taliban violently seized control of Afghanistan, the Greek Minister for Migration and Asylum, Notis Mitarakis, has warned of a repeat of the situation in 2015 and announced that Greece will not be the “gateway to Europe for illegal Afghan migrants”.

In recent days, there has been a lot of talk in the EU about an emerging “wave of refugees” or “migration disaster”. However, the real disaster is the failure of Western governments to rescue people from Afghanistan who deserve our protection, the Director of our office in Brussels, Eva van de Rakt, comments.

In this time of triple crises, with intersecting impacts from the pandemic, the climate emergency, and persistent economic inequality, the global community and its leaders face a “Kairos moment” – a turning point at a critical time for action. The choice is whether to continue with failed policies that have brought the world to this perilous juncture or to retool global economies and systems. Imaginative and transformative approaches could address climate change and other environmental, health, and social threats, based on equity and justice, including gender-equitable access to sustainable finance.