EU: ,Has the war in Ukraine made the EU a geopolitical actor? – by Nicoletta Pirozzi

The war in Ukraine represents the greatest geopolitical challenge facing the European Union. Moscow attacked Kiev with explicitly imperialist aims, with a view to restoring what it considers its rightful ‘sphere of influence’ in the European neighbourhood, thus implicitly threatening other European countries (including EU members).

The aggression also entails a systemic element. Vladimir Putin’s Russia is promoting an autocratic-state model in the European neighbourhood, in contrast to the democratic polity towards which countries such as Ukraine and Georgia have been striving—the value system on which the EU is founded and which it seeks to project.

This has led the union to rethink radically its relations with Russia. The traditionally co-operative approach is giving way to a sort of containment strategy, which will last for the foreseeable future. Hence the reflection on how to end the energy and technological dependencies that bind Europe to Russia, the offer of substantial support to democracy in countries threatened by its expansionism and the defence of the resilience of our societies from Russian interference through disinformation and cyber assaults.

Most fundamentally, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has pushed the EU to exercise a proactive role at regional and global levels, thus testing its ability to implement the ‘strategic autonomy’ it has been advocating for a long time. And in its immediate reaction to the menace coming from east, the EU has shown a unity and resolve many—perhaps including Putin—did not expect.

Read more at: Has the war in Ukraine made the EU a geopolitical actor? – Nicoletta Pirozzi

The world in 2022: another year of living dangerously - by Simon Tisdall

On the brink of a new year, the world faces a daunting array of challenges: the resurgent Covid-19 pandemic, the climate emergency, the struggle between democracy and authoritarianism, humanitarian crises, mass migration, and trans-national terrorism. There is the risk of new inter-state conflicts, exacerbated by the breakdown of the rules-based international order, and the spread of lethal autonomous weapons. All in all, for most people on Earth – and a handful in space – 2022 will be another year of living dangerously.

Read more at: The world in 2022: another year of living dangerously | World news | The Guardian