Death of former Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze
Eduard Shevardnadze died today, Monday July 7th, at the age of 86. He was the diplomatic face of late USSR policies before being elected President of Georgia in 1995.
Eduard Shevardnadze died today, Monday July 7th, at the age of 86. He was the diplomatic face of late USSR policies before being elected President of Georgia in 1995.
Moldova has been increasing its political and economic ties with the European Union since the signature of the Association Agreement on June 27th, alongside Ukraine and Georgia. In comparison to the turmoil created in Ukraine by its rapprochement with the European Union, very little attention has been given to former Soviet nations such as Moldova and Georgia who are involved in a similar move westwards. Nevertheless, European agreements have large implications for these countries.
Precies een maand na het Politiek Café over de Nederlandse bijdrage aan de missie in Mali organiseerde de FMS een bijeenkomst over de revoluties in de Arabische wereld: het Politiek Café “De Arabische Lente: drie jaar later”. Hoe gaat het nu met landen als Egypte, Tunesië Libië en Syrië waar drie jaar geleden de wereld volledig op zijn kop werd gezet? Wat voor paden hebben zij ieder bewandeld? En wat kunnen wij doen om het proces van democratisering te stimuleren? Een verslag van een bijzonder interessante avond.
Between 19 and 22 of June Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) Belgrade office, European Forum for Democracy and Solidarity and Foundation Max van der Stoel (FMS) organised the first seminar of the 2014 Course for Promising Politicians. The event took place in Bečići, Montenegro, and focused on ideology and policies. FMS trainers Souad Haouli and Michiel Emmelkamp, Novo društvo (Croatia) trainer and SDP international secretary Karolina Leaković conducted the training.
A few days only after the three kidnapped Israeli teenagers were found dead near the contentious city of Hebron, the body of a 17-year-old Palestinian was in his turn found on the outskirts of Jerusalem yesterday. This succession of events has increasingly strained relations in the region, leading to the largest clashes in the Occupied side of the city in years.
Het bleef tot op het laatst een spannende strijd, maar uiteindelijk wist Bram van Ojik zijn titel 'Fair Politician of the Year' te prolongeren: gisteren nam hij de prijs in ontvangst uit handen van de Foundation Max van der Stoel (FMS). Roelof van Laar van de PvdA zat hem wel op de hielen, maar bleef hem net achter met een klein verschil.
On the night of July 1st the ceasefire between pro-Russian separatists and the Ukrainian state was put to an end by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. In his address to the nation, he declared that Kiev "will attack and liberate [its] land. Not renewing the ceasefire is [its] response to terrorists, rebels, looters." This statement followed the multiplication of aggressive actions by pro-Russian separatists in the Eastern part of the country. The ceasefire had been effective for ten days, without a clear diminution in the conflict’s intensity and renewed breaches of the truce. Ukrainian Foreign Minister stated on Monday that the ceasefire had led to 27 Ukrainian servicemen being killed and 69 wounded during more than 100 violations of the ceasefire by rebels.
Following our previous coverage of June 8th elections in Kosovo, declared as positive and democratic, the country has entered a profound political crisis. The opposition parties’ alliance against the PDK’s election victory have increasingly being challenging the political and institutional organization of Europe’s youngest state. Indeed the Vetevendosje’s demands to end the EU-led talks between Belgrade and Pristina still prevent the opposition from forming a majority.
Militant Sunny rebels in Syria’s northern Raqqa province have hailed the change of name by Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) into Islamic State and the declaration of a new Calipahte on 29 June. After the deceleration by Islamic State spokesman Abu Mohammad al-Adnani, Sunny rebels held a parade and cheered the leader of the Islamic State, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, as new Caliph. The promulgation came after the organization conquered a large part of Iraq to add to its territory.
Door Arjen Berkvens, directeur Foundation Max van der Stoel
De Amerikaanse invasie in Irak was het” hoogtepunt” van Westerse interventiepolitiek in de afgelopen 25 jaar. De aanwezigheid van massavernietigingswapens was de Amerikaanse rechtvaardiging voor het beginnen van deze oorlog, maar toen die er niet bleken te zijn, werd het brengen van democratie tot hoogste doel verheven. Deze doorzichtige verantwoording achteraf had tot dramatisch gevolg dat alle democratieondersteuning in een kwaad daglicht kwam te staan, zoals we nu zien in Oekraïne. Er zijn echter vele goede manieren om van buitenaf de democratisering van landen te ondersteunen.
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