Sharp analysis by @sandertordoir.bsky.social @james-r-green.bsky.social on how Chinese tech investment in Europe is shifting and EU policy struggling to keep up.
Plenty of lessons for EU policymakers as they revisit FDI screeningΒ and ask themselves some tricky questions about Europe's openness.
04.03.2026 10:18 β
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Sometimes I forget how much I still love London, but not tonight.
03.03.2026 20:18 β
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Especially if you know that youβll be fighting to win back those voters at the next election π₯²
03.03.2026 13:50 β
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This strikes me as lacking in some elementary political instinct. If your voters leave your party and turn elsewhere, your first response shouldnβt be telling them theyβre acting stupid (even if you disagree with their reasons or if you think the alternative is populist).
03.03.2026 13:24 β
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For anyone wanting to understand what the Commission sees as "negotiable" in EU-UK relations, I've always said: follow EU-Swiss negotiations closely and read all the legal texts that come out.
And guess what, we now have texts of EU-Swiss common food safety area and electricity agmts!
02.03.2026 11:42 β
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Commission officials are hypervigilant about the possibility of the Swiss ratification process ending in failure (again, after the IFA debacle). And part of their strategy is avoiding agreeing anything with the UK that could be perceived as giving the Brits a more favourable deal than the Swiss.
02.03.2026 11:32 β
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Asserting international law only when it is in your own/allies interest means not being committed to international law at all. Being dragged into a war by more powerful allies against direct interest and better judgement means having no strategic autonomy. The UK Govt is in a mess.
01.03.2026 22:56 β
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I may be wrong, but Starmer's statement does not suggest that (a) the UK is acting in self-defence, or (b) force is the only feasible means to respond, or (c) that force is both necessary and proportionate now. So what exactly makes the UK's involvement permissible under international law?
01.03.2026 22:35 β
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From the UK govt's own legal position:
"The UK and its allies are permitted under international law to use or support force in such circumstances where acting in self-defence is the only feasible means to deal with an ongoing armed attack and where the force used is necessary and proportionate."
01.03.2026 22:28 β
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As always, my point about international law is that either you take it seriously or you do not.
It is hardly international law when you invoke it only against some nations but not others.
The clue is in the word βinternationalβ.
01.03.2026 22:09 β
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To be clear, Iβm not saying that EP had good reasons for ECJ referral (they were clearly playing politics using legal tools at their disposal). My point is simply that itβs a risky play, in the current conditions, for the Cion to proceed with PA without seeking EP consentβ¦
27.02.2026 21:05 β
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True, thatβs the effect of their actions. But you can also argue that MEPs were just exercising their treaty-based rights, and that other EU institutions didnβt do a particularly good job bringing MEPs on boardβ¦
27.02.2026 18:25 β
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EU moves ahead with provisional application of Mercosur. What isn't clear is whether the Commission will seek a confirmatory vote in the European Parliament. Provisional application doesn't require EP consent, but skipping a vote would break with precedent and risk inflaming relations with MEPs.
27.02.2026 14:55 β
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The EU's struggle to ratify the #Mercosur deal exposes a weakness in Europe's geoeconomic playbook, argues @antonspisak.bsky.social in a new @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social insight.
Read here: buff.ly/IESx33T
23.02.2026 11:01 β
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The SC ruling is big news, but itβs not the end of Trumpβs tariffs. It means Trump administration will almost certainly look for other legal hooks to bring them back. And product-specific (Section 232) tariffs on steel/alum remain unaffected. Expect a lot more uncertainty before Trump strikes again.
20.02.2026 16:16 β
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The ECB's bid to strengthen the euro's global role
As dollar dominance wobbles, Europe should boost the euroβs reach, led by bolder liquidity lines from the ECB.
New piece with former fellow ECB hand @thinicemacro.bsky.social.
At the Munich Security Conference, the ECB made its geopolitical move, opening repo lines to central banks globally.
It was probably the most consequential policy announcement at the conference.
1/
www.cer.eu/insights/ecb...
20.02.2026 09:40 β
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Great article @antonspisak.bsky.social
19.02.2026 20:23 β
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Thank you very much, John!
20.02.2026 09:44 β
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Killer conclusion - "Unless the EU finds a better way to align its domestic political and institutional incentives in line with its external aims, its ambitions will continue to outrun its capacity to deliver."
19.02.2026 12:15 β
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New from me: a short piece on what comes next for the EU-Mercosur deal (spoiler: more trouble), and what ratification hurdles tell us about the EU's capacity to deliver on its geoeconomic ambitions.
19.02.2026 10:52 β
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Some numbers on this problem from a short @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social paper I wrote last year.
www.cer.eu/insights/per...
17.02.2026 17:03 β
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This should be front-page news. The collapse in UK goods exports is the single biggest reason why UK economic growth hasnβt picked up in recent years.
Brexit is a big part of it, but thereβs also a major China shock to UK export competitiveness thatβs gone largely unnoticed in UK political debate.
17.02.2026 17:01 β
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Marco Rubio says Viktor OrbΓ‘nβs leadership is βessentialβ to US interests
US secretary of state hails βgolden eraβ in relations with Hungary and its pro-Russian premier
Worth noting that the only two European capitals on Rubioβs post-Munich tour were Budapest and Bratislava. OrbΓ‘n and Fico. This is the NSS in action: βcultivating resistance within European nationsβ. And itβs probably just the beginning.
www.ft.com/content/929c...
16.02.2026 19:37 β
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A pleasure to discuss aspects of the EU-UK reset from defence to trade with @jannikewachowiak.bsky.social & @antonspisak.bsky.social .
11.02.2026 10:39 β
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Missed this yesterday. Massive boost for Ukraineβs arms industry, who have been pushing for export controls to be lifted. Creates even more opportunity to develop new equipment, innovate and fund the defensive effort. Great news.
09.02.2026 07:45 β
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Morgan McSweeney resigns as Downing Street chief of staff
Exit of Mandelson protΓ©gΓ© comes as Sir Keir Starmer seeks to stave off leadership speculation
Right that the prime minister has resigned. His successor, Keir Starmer, has a very difficult inheritance.
08.02.2026 14:33 β
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Mr Fico's Smer has dodged a bullet there by
1) Running Mr Ε efΔoviΔ instead of Mr LajΔΓ‘k for president in 2019
2) Mr Ε efΔoviΔ losing and returning to the EC instead of Mr LajΔΓ‘k replacing him
3) Failing to secure Mr LajΔΓ‘k's appointment as the EU Special Representative for Central Asia
06.02.2026 22:23 β
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