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Foreign Policy

  • Trump vs. Petro: A Thaw in Relations or Return to Diplomatic War?

    2026-02-03

    U.S. President Donald Trump hosted Colombian President Gustavo Petro at the White House on Tuesday. Tensions were high ahead of the closed-door meeting. Trump has been critical of Petro, calling him an "illegal drug leader" and a "lunatic"

  • A Brief History of Confucianism

    2026-02-03

    For Chinese reformers in the 19th and 20th centuries, Confucianism was a convenient stand-in for everything they believed was wrong with Chinese society. Much of the baggage associated with it long predated its creation: patriarchy, ritualism, hierarchy. Confucians rose to dominance only after a court witchcraft scandal in 91 B.C.

  • How Malaysia Unlocked Trump

    2026-02-03

    Malaysia has preserved relatively cordial and productive ties to the U.S. by compromising its core principles. Trump has shown a distinct aversion to unambiguously opposing an adversary. Malaysia also benefits from sharing a broadly compatible worldview with Trump and his administration.

  • The United States Is Once Again Canada’s Biggest Threat

    2026-02-03

    The U.S. has long eyed Canadian territory. In 1774, the nascent Continental Congress in Philadelphia wrote a letter to Canadians, inviting them to join the efforts to throw off British control. “The Unanimous Voice of the Continent is Canada must be ours,” future President John Adams wrote in 1776.

  • Middle Powers Don’t Have to Work Together to Get Ahead

    2026-02-03

    Canada's Carney: We now live in a world where “the large, main power is submitted to no limits, no constraints” Finland, South Korea, and Taiwan leverage their specialized manufacturing capabilities to strengthen economic ties with the United States. Brazil and Vietnam, for instance, have made use of their abundance of critical minerals, coveted by Beijing and Washington.

  • In Minneapolis and Elsewhere, Do Street Protests Make a Difference?

    2026-02-03

    Pro-democracy protests are often driven by urban, educated, and middle-class citizens. This pattern makes these movements less threatening to illiberal governments. Mass protests have proven most effective at stemming democratic erosion if they can bring momentum into the halls of government.

  • The U.S. Is Ceding Its Africa Trade Advantage

    2026-02-03

    The House passed a $1.2 trillion spending package that includes reauthorization of the program until the end of the year. AGOA has supported an estimated 450,000 American jobs directly linked to U.S.-Africa trade. Congress should consider proposals to expand the agreement to include a wider range of sectors.

Politico

  • The steel porcupine: How Ukraine plans to defend itself after the war

    2026-02-03

    The meeting is scheduled to take place at 1 p.m. Thursday. The White House proposal came after Russian forces devastated the power and heating systems of Ukrainian cities during a bitterly cold winter. Ukraine’s Plan B is to be able to protect itself if allied security guarantees prove worthless.

  • Peter Mandelson built Britain’s Labour establishment. Now it’s torching him.

    2026-02-03

    European Commission says it “will not speculate on a possible second SAFE fund at this stage.” “I have always said anybody who has got information should be prepared to share that information in whatever form they are asked to,” U.K. prime minister says.

  • He refused to fight for Putin. Germany says it’s safe for him to go back.

    2026-02-04

    The coalition agreement lays out a series of ambitious goals. A Russian pacifist who fled the Ukraine front now faces deportation under tougher asylum rules. The Kremlin wants to review the document and “consult with our strategic partners”

  • Merz looks to Gulf ties to curb Germany’s reliance on the US

    2026-02-03

    A Russian pacifist who fled the Ukraine front now faces deportation under tougher asylum rules. A three-day trip to Arab Gulf states underscores Berlin’s pivot to ‘middle powers’ amid cooling ties with Washington and Beijing.

  • Greece pushes to recruit tens of thousands more Asian migrant workers

    2026-02-04

    Greece’s energy minister said U.S.-EU tensions had scared off potential buyers of American LNG. The government is simultaneously penalizing migrants who entered Greece illegally. As a sheep pox epidemic spreads through Greece, the government is sticking to its anti-vaccination policy.

  • 5 times the Winter Olympics got super political

    2026-02-04

    The Games have seen it all. Invasions, nuclear crises and Nazi propaganda: The Games have been through all of them. The Games are the most popular video game in the world. They are also the most successful.

  • Ursula von der Leyen to travel to Australia to seal EU security, trade deal

    2026-02-04

    Brussels and Canberra are reviving trade talks that collapsed at the end of 2023 amid disagreements over quotas of beef and lamb. After on-off talks since 2007, the two sides finally take the plunge, responding to steep U.S. tariffs.

  • German police detain 2 men suspected of warship sabotage

    2026-02-03

    Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s U.K. government has turned on Mandelson. Lawmaker Roderich Kiesewetter tells POLITICO the attack “fit a Russian pattern of using targeted acts of sabotage against militarily relevant and critical infrastructure.

  • UK police investigating Mandelson after Epstein files revelations

    2026-02-03

    U.S. President Donald Trump’s now-retracted tariff threats against EU countries had prompted calls to snub the event. The attack “fit a Russian pattern of using targeted acts of sabotage against militarily relevant and critical infrastructure”

  • Italy’s far-right League party splits as Salvini’s deputy quits

    2026-02-03

    Rising unemployment rate piles pressure on Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government. TotalEnergies is moving to resume operations after a five-year pause. The move follows outrage and regulatory pressure over online sales of sex dolls.

  • Germans saying ‘nein’ to the stein

    2026-02-03

    American President Donald Trump’s now-retracted tariff threats against EU countries had prompted calls to snub the event. Overall beer consumption is down but non-alcoholic beer sales, which are measured separately, are rising.

  • EU Commission looking into Mandelson’s Epstein links

    2026-02-03

    EU “assessing” potential rule breaches after Epstein files suggest ex-Commissioner gave advance notice of €500 billion bailout to save the euro. EU ‘assess’ possible rule breaches following Epstein files.

  • Nigel Farage says Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor should testify on Epstein links

    2026-02-03

    PM Keir Starmer was “unaware” of historic social media posts by Alaa Abd El-Fattah. The Reform UK leader says facing US grilling is probably the only chance the royal has “to clear his name”

  • Is Putin ready for peace? Abu Dhabi talks will tell.

    2026-02-04

    Ukrainian president’s speech at the World Economic Forum underscores his frustration. U.S. president offered his allies little comfort in Davos. Democratic governor suggests slumping markets could pull him back from threats.

  • EU parliament chief calls for ‘exorcism’ of ghosts in UK ties

    2026-02-03

    “I did not authorize, request or agree to anyone mentioning my name to Jeffrey Epstein,” Maroš Šefčovič says. “I am disappointed but I accept the decision of the Commission and I’m happy that this long process has finally come to a conclusion,’ Henrik Hololei says.

LRT

  • Belarusian oppositionist urges Lithuania to restore transport links with Belarus

    2026-02-03

    Maria Kalesnikava, a leading Belarusian opposition figure recently freed from prison, urged Lithuanian authorities to restore more intensive transport links with Belarus. She called for restarting passenger train services between Minsk and Vilnius and restoring bus connections. Lithuania has closed most of its border checkpoints with Belarus and has significantly reduced passenger bus services. A flutist by profession, Kalesnikava campaigned for banker Babaryka during the 2020 presidential election. After his arrest, she joined the team of opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya. She was sentenced to 11 years in prison in 2021.

  • Lithuanian PM says Vilnius ‘jumped in front of a train’ with Taiwanese office

    2026-02-03

    Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė says Lithuania made a strategic mistake by allowing a Taiwanese representative office to open in Vilnius. She argues the move was not coordinated with the European Union or the United States. Since mid-May last year, there have been no accredited Chinese diplomats or other staff in Lithuania.

  • Lithuanian PM says relations with Belarus unlikely to improve

    2026-02-03

    Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė says relations with Belarus are unlikely to improve in the near future. She accuses Minsk of favouring displays of force over dialogue. No specific meeting between Lithuanian and Belarusian deputy ministers is being arranged.

  • Lithuanian prosecutors launch investigation after Epstein files reveal local connections

    2026-02-03

    Lithuanian prosecutors have opened a pretrial investigation into possible human trafficking after reviewing information revealed in correspondence of US financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Epstein files reportedly show connections with several Lithuanian artists and models, as well as the spouses of two cultural organisations.

  • Foreign tourism to Lithuania rises 4.4%, 1.5m visitors came last year

    2026-02-03

    The number of foreign travellers visiting Lithuania rose 4.4% last year to 1.5 million. About 77% of foreign visitors said Lithuania was their main travel destination. 90% rated their overall experience positively, according to the State Data Agency.

  • Lithuania detains Turkish man accused of running bribery scheme with former NATO official

    2026-02-03

    Bahadir Hatipoglu, 50, is accused of bribing Ralf Grywnow, a 70-year-old former NATO official. Prosecutors allege the two men engaged in a scheme spanning several years. Both men face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on each count.

  • Lithuania will press for EU sanctions extension on Belarus – president

    2026-02-03

    Gitanas Nausėda says he will push firmly for the European Union to extend sanctions on Belarus. He cites Minsk’s continued alignment with Russia, repression of political opponents and what he described as escalating hybrid attacks against Lithuania.

  • Lithuanian president says there are risks in ‘overly close’ ties with China

    2026-02-03

    Lithuania does not welcome the near-collapse of diplomatic ties with China. President Gitanas Nausėda said restoring diplomatic relations with China would require goodwill from both sides. Lithuania sees significant risks in closer cooperation with Beijing.

  • Lithuanian businessman quits event organising over Epstein links

    2026-02-03

    Valdas Petreikis is mentioned in some of the documents released by the US Department of Justice related to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The documents indicate that in 2017, a foundation operating in the US Virgin Islands linked to Epstein transferred 75,000 euros to the Vilnius-based company Fors projektai. The records also show that Baleto Teatras (Ballet Theatre) received $18,000 in April 2018 and another $10,000

  • Nationality, race, Crimea: foreigners face barriers in Lithuania’s rental market

    2026-02-03

    Research found that foreigners frequently encounter unexplained refusals, ignored messages, inflated financial demands and pressure to rent without formal contracts. Landlords usually ask to switch to Lithuanian or English, or continue in Russian if comfortable.

📊 VoxEU

  • Pricing cascades: Inflation in a networked economy

    2026-02-04

    When aggregate demand rises, firms experience higher sales and only moderately higher costs. But when the cost of a crucial input increases substantially, it triggers a pricing cascade. Central banks need tools incorporating sectoral linkages and state-dependent pricing to anticipate waves of supply-side surges in prices.

FT Markets

✍ Blogs

Paul Krugman

  • American Democracy Will Not Die in Darkness

    2026-02-03

    The Washington Post adopted the slogan “Democracy dies in darkness” in February 2017. Peter Bergen says predictions of creeping authoritarianism both underestimated and overestimated MAGA. He says the flip side of the naked extremism of the MAGA power grab is that it has produced a remarkably strong backlash. Bergen: Republicans are being punished at the polls. Everything points to a blue wave in November. Many people in MAGA simply can’t accept losing power. Trump is now calling for “nationalizing’ the midterms, meaning to put voting and the counting of votes under his administration’s control.

Šeši Nuliai

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