Articles

Editorial

“The crushed centre” – this was the headline of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung at the end of June in the context of the first round of the French parliamentary elections. It depicted a lilac-coloured Macaron whose filling groaned under the pressure of the surrounding pastry elements. That same day, the Economist wrote: “France’s Centre Cannot Hold”. In the background, the magazine showed the French national flag, the tricolour. But the centre stripe was missing.

Polarise and Rule!

Dysfunctionalities in the Georgian Political System

Polarisation is one of the greatest defects of the young Georgian democracy. When Georgia applied to join the EU in March 2022, the country was given a European perspective along with twelve recommendations. The most important point: political de-polarisation. However, the government and the opposition were unwilling to recognise the problem, let alone address it.

Polarised, but Present

The Political Centre in Spain

A uniform “political centre” or even a centrist party does not exist in Spain. The major parties clearly position themselves as centre-left or centre-right. Over the decades, this moderate degree of polarisation has not harmed Spanish democracy, and has in fact stabilised it. In recent years, however, polarisation has reached a point where it is eroding the country’s democratic institutions. Some of the factors driving this development are heterogeneous social values, separatism – and, not least, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez.

Rise, Fall and Repeat

The Story of Centrism in India

There have been notable changes in India’s political landscape over recent decades, with the rise of Hindu nationalism and social polarisation overshadowing longstanding centrist traditions and eroding important components of the “world’s largest democracy”. Will the results of the 2024 election be an opportunity to return to a more moderate approach?

The Indispensable Centre

Political Parties and the Milei Government in Argentina

After years of being under the radar, Argentine politics suddenly became a topic of interest with Javier Milei winning the presidency. The eccentric radical libertarian’s uncompromising plans for reform and his outrage at the “political caste” received worldwide attention. In reality, he has had difficulties implementing his drastic measures without the established political players. The defeated centrist parties have been put to the test and pushed to decide whether and how they wish to cooperate with the Milei government.

The Pink Galaxy

How Left-wing Authoritarian Networks Are Infiltrating Latin America’s Democracies and Damaging the Political Centre

“Progressive” politicians from Latin America in lockstep with Kremlin nationalists, Chinese communists and representatives of the Iranian mullah regime: This unlikely alliance can be explained by the common rejection of “US imperialism”, “neoliberalism” – and ultimately the liberal-democratic Western model of society. The authoritarian left in Latin America is increasingly operating as a transnational structure that explicitly recognises external authoritarian regimes as allies. Domestically, the actions of this “pink galaxy” in the countries of the region are leading to the erosion of the political centre and ultimately of democracy.

Präsidentschaftswahlen in Afghanistan

Fluch oder Segen für die Demokratie des Landes?

Vier Jahrzehnte Auslandsinformationen haben einen Bestand von mehr als 400 Ausgaben entstehen lassen, der so manchen Schatz bereithält. Manche Beiträge zeichnen Entwicklungen vor, die uns Jahre später eingeholt haben, manche Einschätzungen erscheinen heute wie Zeugnisse einer fernen Epoche. Für die vier Ausgaben dieses Jahres bereiten wir jeweils einen Artikel aus den verschiedenen „Ai-Dekaden“ online neu auf. Hier geht es ins Jahr 2009, als sich Hamid Karzai in einer von Betrugsvorwürfen überschatteten Wahl eine zweite Amtszeit als Präsident Afghanistans sicherte

Die zweite ­Verteidigungslinie Europas

Richtungswahl in der Republik Moldau

Der verheißungsvolle Fluchtort für viele Menschen in der Republik Moldau ist die Mitgliedschaft in der Europäischen Union. Die offizielle Aufnahme von Beitrittsgesprächen in diesem Juni – nur zwei Jahre nach Antrag – war gerade deshalb ein so wichtiger symbolischer Akt. Präsidentin Maia Sandu kann ihn „zu Hause“ als historischen Erfolg verbuchen. Es ist das klare politische Ziel ihrer Regierung, das Land so schnell wie möglich in die EU zu führen. Kann die Republik Moldau mit ihrer wechselhaften Geschichte, geprägt durch die sprachliche und kulturelle Nähe zu Rumänien, eine große russischsprachige Minderheit sowie die Vergangenheit als Teil der Sowjetunion, den Sprung nach Europa schaffen? Ein Blick auf die Chancen und Risiken eines ambitionierten Vorhabens.

Editorial of the issue "What Will Become of Globalisation?"

The World Trade Organization is sounding the alarm bells over it, as is the International Monetary Fund. The World Economic Forum is even asking whether it will spell the end for economic development among some sections of the global population. They are talking about geoeconomic fragmentation, in other words, the realignment of international trade flows along political blocs, thus the end of globalisation – at least as we have known it over recent decades, where economic efficiency was the key criterion for the alignment of goods and financial flows.

From Conflict to Connectivity

On the “Silk Road” of the Gulf States

With ambitious infrastructure projects, the Gulf states are establishing themselves as a central bridge for trade flows between East and West. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in particular seek to exploit their strategic ­position between the continents of Africa, Asia and Europe to make the leap into the post-oil economic era. But not only economic hurdles stand in the way – regional conflicts and geopolitical rivalries threaten to throttle the “Silk Road” of the Gulf.