Asset Publisher

Country Reports

Short political reports of the KAS offices abroad

Publications

Flickr / Commonwealth Secretariat / CC BY-NC 2.0

Elections in Sierra Leone in the context of geopolitical instability

Julius Maada Bio was re-elected as Sierra Leone's head of state on June 24, 2023, to lead the country of nearly 9 million people through tumultuous times

The results of the June 24 elections for the president, parliament and local mayors are out. The incumbent head of state Julius Maada Bio was reelected. He must now navigate his country of almost nine million through ever more stormy waters.

IMAGO / ITAR-TASS

New friends in the "eastern vector"

Upheaval in the foreign policy of Belarus

For decades, the foreign policy of the Republic of Belarus resembled a pendulum game between East and West. But following the crackdown on the peaceful protests in 2020, the "Ryanair incident" and the artificial migration crisis, the regime isolated itself from the West. Lukashenka's complicity in Russia's war of aggression also severed traditionally important ties with Ukraine. In the shadow of Moscow's crushing dominance, Minsk has recently made efforts to deepen its relations with countries of Central Asia, China and Iran. It remains to be seen how Lukashenka's "mediation" in the Wagner uprising will affect his foreign policy leeway.

EPA-EFE/Robin Utrecht

Erdrutschsieg und politische Fragmentierung

Die Niederlande nach den Provinzwahlen 2023

Erdrutschsieg und politische Fragmentierung – die Niederlande nach den Provinzwahlen 2023

IMAGO / NurPhoto

Guatemala has voted: Surprises and messages

Guatemalans cause historic runoff: two leftist parties fight for the presidency

Elections were held in Guatemala on 25 June: The President of the Republic, the Congress, 340 mayors and municipal councillors as well as the members of the Central American Parliament (Parlacen). Since none of the presidential candidates achieved an absolute majority, the second round will take place on 20 August. The second round of voting will take place on 20 August, but not in the constellation predicted by the polls. For the first time in Guatemala's democratic history, candidates from two parties belonging to the moderate left-wing spectrum, Sandra Torres (UNE) and Bernardo Arévalo (SEMILLA), are standing in the run-off. While a number of detailed results for the congressional and municipal elections are still awaited, one thing is clear: these elections have provided some surprises, contain a clear message to the political class as a whole and ensure two more exciting months before the 2nd round of elections.

KAS

Feminist Foreign Policy: Mongolian Style

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock's visit to Mongolia

The German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is traveling to Asia’s first all-female Foreign Minister conference in Ulaanbaatar: time to fact-check Mongolia’s newly discovered “Feminist Foreign Policy”. Not at least because Baerbock started to invoke Mongolia's example to underline her own German Feminist Foreign Policy.

IMAGO / NurPhoto

China: The new superpower in space?

A new arms race

The United States sees itself in a "space race" with China. But from Beijing's perspective an arms race in low earth orbit between the U.S. and China has long since begun. In reaching for the stars, China and the U.S. are not only competing for national prestige and global technological leadership, but also for geopolitical influence and military power.

EdvanKun

Klare Voten bei Volksabstimmungen – kleine Fortschritte im Bereich der Außenbeziehungen

Letzter Abstimmungssonntag vor den Wahlen – Eckwerte für Verhandlungen mit der EU, beginnende Debatte zur Rolle der Schweiz in der Welt

Die vergangenen Tage und Wochen in der Schweiz waren gleich aus mehreren Gründen beachtenswert: Der erste Abstimmungssonntag des Jahres 2023 am 18.6. in der Schweiz wartete mit wichtigen Vorlagen auf und war zu einem gewissen Grad ein Stimmungstest für die Parlamentswahlen im Oktober. Dabei votierte das Schweizer Stimmvolk recht deutlich für ein Klimaschutzgesetz, für das COVID-Gesetz und – mit überwältigender Mehrheit – für die Umsetzung der OECD-Mindeststeuer. Die Beteiligung lag mit rund 42,5% etwas unterhalb des Mittels der letzten Jahre. Gewinner des Abstimmungssonntags waren die Parteien des moderaten bürgerlichen Lagers, mit ihren Abstimmungsempfehlungen, darunter auch die christdemokratisch geprägte EVP-Partnerpartei „Die Mitte“. Verlierer des Abstimmungssonntags sind neben der SVP vor allem die Sozialdemokraten (SP), die mit ihrer ablehnenden Haltung zur OECD-Mindeststeuer selbst ihre eigene Kernklientel offenbar nicht überzeugen konnten.

IMAGO / APAimages

Turkey after the elections

May makes everything new?

In the run-off elections of the Turkish presidential elections on 28 May, incumbent Recep Tayyip Erdoğan won against challenger Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, after the People's Alliance led by his AK Party had already won the majority in the Turkish parliament. When the old, new president presented the cabinet for the 28th legislative term on 3 June, the selection of the appointed ministers caused a stir. The current country report takes a look at announced steps and planned projects of the new government, then introduces some of the members of the new cabinet and analyses tendencies and trends for the coming period.

Imago / AAP

Timor-Leste at a crossroads

Old challenges for a new government

On June 26, Timorese President and Nobel Peace Prize laureate José Ramos-Horta will come to Germany to meet with Chancellor Scholz and President Steinmeier. Ramos-Horta is traveling at a crucial time for Timor-Leste. The small country is the most stable democracy in Southeast Asia, but it is also facing an economic precipice. Additionally, it is increasingly at risk of being caught between the geopolitical fronts in the Indo-Pacific.

IMAGO / Le Pictorium

The Blue Helmet Mission in Mali is facing its end

Further aggravation of the security crisis in the Sahel

Mali has asked the U.N. Peacekeeping mission in the West African country to leave. The military government is focusing on its partnership with Russia to battle jihadists. While the army has regained some territory with the help of Russian mercenaries and Russian-made helicopters central Mali, a hotspot of violence, but is unable to keep territory.

Asset Publisher

About this series

The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung is a political foundation. Our offices abroad are in charge of over 200 projects in more than 120 countries. The country reports offer current analyses, exclusive evaluations, background information and forecasts - provided by our international staff.

Ordering Information

Editor

Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung e.V.