Georgi Gotev Archives

In Skopje, there is hope that the elections in neighbouring Bulgaria will unlock the country’s veto on the start of North Macedonia's EU accession negotiations before the end of the year. This Brief is an educated guess at whether such a scenario - which would be greatly beneficial to the volatile Western Balkans - could materialise.

The European Commission has been caught by surprise. In its efforts to fight disinformation, it developed instruments to monitor Russia. However, new research shows that the anti-vaxxer disinformation campaign to which many EU citizens have fallen victim actually originates in the United States.

Poland can count on EU solidarity over the escalating Belarus border crisis. But this solidarity has its limits while people are dying at the EU external border, trapped in freezing conditions.

The current stand-off at the Belarus-Polish border will enter geopolitics textbooks. At least we hope so, because the alternative is that it might trigger an outright war, and then we will forget about textbooks.

It took a pandemic to realise just how different societies in the more successful West and in the less prosperous East of Europe are.

The EU is walking a tightrope when it comes to Taiwan, the island described by pundits as the most dangerous place on Earth right now.

There is no universally accepted definition of hybrid warfare, but all agree that it’s a kind of war that doesn’t look like a war, although it aims at achieving the same objective: cause major harm to the enemy, through unconventional means, which are cheaper and more effective.

Last week, Queen Elizabeth was caught expressing her annoyance at world leaders snubbing the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow.

Is the sudden departure of a number of prime ministers, who have faced accusations of corruption, just a coincidence?

The current energy price spike is something of a storm. But it is also wind in the sails of nuclear energy in Europe, after many years of being given the cold shoulder.

The recent surge of electricity and gas prices to record heights across Europe has a huge potential for EU-bashing in member states, something the EU institutions should try to avert — if they can.

It’s not easy to make sense of the thousands of stories about Nord Stream 2. To make it simple, Russia and Germany want the pipeline, while Ukraine, Poland, and the US are against it. But why should Ukraine, Poland, the US and others meddle into what looks like bilateral business?

The EU is quick to call for de-escalation in case of conflicts, it is ambitious about setting itself targets such as “strategic autonomy”, and it succeeds to make its voice heard in the world.

The author of this brief was present at the Thessaloniki 2003 summit, where EU leaders pledged to the Western Balkan countries that they would join the bloc when they are ready. It was a critical juncture. EU enlargement was on its …

The sudden rise of tensions between Serbia and Kosovo (adding Albania to the latter) coincided with the German elections held on 26 September. But is it a coincidence?

The latest news is that Central European leaders signed a joint declaration today saying immigration should not be the answer to the EU’s demographic challenges and calling on the bloc to keep family policy under national jurisdiction. In other words, they want to have it their way.

The EU has had a glorious period of big projects — the single market, enlargement, the euro. Reform in this period, including treaty change, was driven by the sheer scope of these huge projects.

“Tout va très bien, Madame la Marquise, tout va très bien, tout va très bien,” a popular French song goes. This has become a proverbial catchphrase to express an attitude of blindness in the face of a difficult situation - …

The rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan is a tragedy for the Afghans, but it has also provided a sad indication of the growing xenophobia in the EU.

This author of the Brief is back from the country with the lowest vaccination rate in the EU – Bulgaria - where only 15.5% of the adult population is fully vaccinated, while the EU average is …

An old joke goes: “What does the good Lord do to punish the Americans? He sends them tropical storms, hurricanes, tornadoes. And what does the good Lord do to punish the other nations? He sends them Americans.”

There is news you want to hear, and news you will ignore. These days, Europeans are packing for their summer vacations. The news we don’t want to hear is that by the time we return from well-deserved holidays, the next wave of COVID-19 will have gathered force.

Cyprus is an excellent destination for holidays, but it is also a geopolitical volcano. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who doesn’t miss an opportunity to annoy the EU and infuriate Greece, is very active during this holiday season. Among other things, …

It’s summertime and the livin’ is easier. Fish are jumping and although COVID is high, and a nasty variant too, it's not yet at everyone's doors, at least for the time being.