Ian Bond

The fact that the UK did something stupid and self-destructive does not mean that Trump has not done something with even worse consequences.

Hard to disagree. One of many steps Trump has taken to weaken the power & influence of the US in the world.

The West, and especially the Europeans, have done less than they could have done to show that they value the #OSCE.

🆕 @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social insight by @cerianbond.bsky.social

Read here: buff.ly/E0CkmLd

Over his 25 years in office, #Putin has violated all ten Helsinki principles and many other #OSCE commitments, including on military transparency.

🆕 @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social insight by @cerianbond.bsky.social

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Venäjä rikkoi Etyjin – Ex-suurlähettilään mukaan Helsingin henkeä silti tarvitaan | Verkkouutiset Venäjä rikkoi Etyjin – Ex-suurlähettilään mukaan Helsingin henkeä silti tarvitaan | Verkkouutiset

Kokeneen brittiläisen ulko- ja turvallisuuspolitiikan asiantuntijan, suurlähettiläs @cerianbond.bsky.social mielestä Etyjin rooli Euroopan turvallisuusarkkitehtuurissa on pitkälti unohtunut, ja pääsyyllinen siihen on Vladimir Putinin johtama Venäjä.

www.verkkouutiset.fi/a/venaja-rik...

I'm looking forward to chairing the discussion at @libdems.org.uk conference on 22 September.

Education for Citizenship in Times of Global Challenge This open access book investigates the ways in which young people around the world are prepared to undertake their roles as citizens.

I would say Finland and Sweden do well, but that's an unscientific impression rather than the result of deep research such as this (NB - this is not the Tufton St IEA think-tank, but an international body assessing educational attainment, based in Amsterdam): link.springer.com/book/10.1007...

Excellent thread, though I'd say media (il)literacy is only part of problem; broader lack of civic education means people don't understand how a democratic state should function, which bits of government do what, what taxes pay for, what their rights are & why, making them easy prey for charlatans.

Forty years later, the signing of the Helsinki Final Act continues to have an impact on European security - EUROPP The Ukraine crisis dramatically raised the profile of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), with the OSCE playing a role in discussions between Russia, Europe and the United ...

Another decade slips by

blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/2...

Only when Mikhail Gorbachev rose to power in the Soviet Union in 1985 did the communist bloc start taking CSCE human rights and democracy commitments seriously.

🆕 @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social insight by @cerianbond.bsky.social

Read here: buff.ly/E0CkmLd

Paul Fritch & I thinking along similar lines on reaching back to elements of the Helsinki Process that worked & may be relevant again when peace is restored in Europe - even if I fear that’s still a long way off. Here’s my take: www.cer.eu/insights/hel...

We need to walk and chew gum at the same time. Invest in defence and invest in renewables - which also means investing in weakening the Russian economy, so heavily dependent on oil and gas revenues.

He added: “Is it what the EU wanted? No. Is it ideal? No. But if this agreement sticks — big if — it will provide a certain degree of predictability.” @nytimes.com

Europe Made Major Trade Concessions to Trump. How Did That Happen? Some European politicians are dismayed that the European Union did not drive a harder bargain, but facing the threat of a damaging trade war, officials say they had little choice.

It might nevertheless be one of the better results Europe could have obtained, said @aslak.bsky.social, a research fellow at @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social.

“A lot of the initial reaction is that this a political defeat, this is a humiliation for the European Union,” Mr Berg said.

buff.ly/CzwH65Q

"Mr. Sefcovic suggested that issues including security, Ukraine and Russia also factored in. Europe has been working hard to keep the United States engaged in NATO at a time when Russia is more aggressively expansionist, ... ."

Governments have to explain that unless Russian imperialism and expansionism are stopped in Ukraine, no-one in Western Europe will be getting welfare. I think that message is already getting through in some countries. If you want a welfare state, you first need a secure state.

Levels of defence spending & defence capability are way below what's needed to deter a Russia which is increasingly on a war footing. Soft power is a good thing, but not much use for defeating military aggression, though we'll need it in future once Russian expansionism has been stopped.

Thanks!

I have lots of sympathy for this argument, but in the end, it's better for Europe to spend 3.5 per cent less efficiently than it cd, than <2 per cent, also less efficiently than it cd. Best of all, of course, wd be spending 3.5 per cent (or 5 per cent) efficiently. I'm not holding my breath, though!

Romanticizing the Soviet Union is a marker of deep ignorance

No country willingly joined the USSR, Eastern Europe was occupied by Moscow

That’s why liberation brought prosperity and safety to those who joined NATO & EU

🇺🇦 was invaded by 🇷🇺 not because it was in NATO, but precisely because it wasn’t

This is exactly the point. The Commission played its cards terribly but only because this is what members states pushed it to do, with neither demonstrating vision of a strong and united Europe and the courage to defend it

Having served in the UK Delegation to the OSCE just as Putin came to power & began to undermine the organisation, I'm under no illusions about its weaknesses. But the Helsinki principles from which the OSCE grew are still a good starting point for managing an adversarial relationship with Russia.

Exactly right.

Important & alarming investigation by @hopenothate.org.uk , showing Russian efforts to incite violence & far-right terrorist attacks in the UK (&, I suspect, in Europe & the US too). The gov’t needs to step up work on building societal resilience - & demonising migrants won’t help!

Lets see what comes out. But Shahins take is going to age well - I fear.

@shahinvallee.bsky.social

A lot of experts backed retaliation but alas.

ip-quarterly.com/en/how-eu-bo...

The Routledge Guide to the European Union Written by experts, this long-established and definitive guide to the workings of the European Union provides comprehensive, straightforward and readable coverage of this sometimes misunderstood and…

You can purchase the book here: buff.ly/jjV3mfD

If you missed the launch of 'The Routledge Guide to the European Union (2nd edition)'
with @cerianbond.bsky.social, Mark Leonard @ecfr.eu & @armida.bsky.social you can watch the recording here: youtu.be/5eDXPjxPpUA

Happy Launch Day! 🚀 Congratulations, and thank you for publishing with us. Sign up for this event below. ⬇️

📅 JOIN US - ONLINE TODAY: Hybrid launch of 'The Routledge Guide to the European Union (2nd ed)' with @cerianbond.bsky.social‬, Mark Leonard ‪@ecfr.eu‬ & @armida.bsky.social‬

Email reception@cer.eu for further info & registration
@tandfresearch.bsky.social @routledgebooks.bsky.social

Look forward to speaking at this @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social event tomorrow to launch @cerianbond.bsky.social's book. Expect lots of discussion about the EU's direction of travel and future of the institutions.