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Short political reports of the KAS offices abroad

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France and the war in the Middle East

A country in worry

Since October 7th, when the terrorist organization Hamas attacked Israel, it has also been felt in France how much this war affects and concerns society. After another fatal knife attack by an IS supporter on a teacher at a school in Arras, northern France, France imposed the highest terror alert level and 7,000 soldiers were mobilized across the country. There have now been numerous bomb threats against airports, schools and tourist sites such as the Palace of Versailles and the Louvre, and the French executive warned against an “import” of the conflict in the Middle East to Europe and France. In addition, pro-Palestinian demonstrations took place in many French cities. After Hamas's attack on Israel, French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin sent telegrams to the prefects of all departments demanding that pro-Palestinian demonstrations be banned. He also called for the organizers of these gatherings and the “troublemakers” to be systematically arrested. The police prefecture of Paris had also tried to ban planned demonstrations in the capital. However, a demonstration took place on the 19th of October, although the administrative court decided just before that “respect for freedom of demonstration and freedom of expression, which have the character of fundamental freedoms (...) is reconciled with the constitutional requirement of maintaining public order. On October 28, thousands of demonstrators gathered in Paris despite the ban on “demonstrations in support of Palestine”. There were 21 arrests and around 1,400 fines issued by law enforcement.

Anja Czymmeck, Nele Katharina Wissmann, Dimitri Mauchien
October 31, 2023
Country Reports
Pixabay / almathias

"Global Gateway" slowly gathers momentum

The Global Gateway Forum on October 25 and 26 in Brussels brought together high-level representatives from over 40 countries.

The meeting gave the EU the opportunity to publicly promote the Global Gateway infrastructure strategy, which was launched at the end of 2021, and to announce concrete project completions.

Dr. Olaf Wientzek, Jonas Nitschke, Louis Bout
October 30, 2023
Country Reports
IMAGO / ZUMA Wire

Ukraine and Israel: International Crises in the Election Campaign of a War-Weary USA

An Analysis One Year Ahead of the Election in November 2024

U.S. President Joe Biden calls it an "inflection point in history": The wars between Russia and Ukraine and between Hamas and Israel challenge American foreign policy - at a time when many Americans prefer to focus on their own country. This tension is shaping the upcoming election campaign.

Paul Linnarz, Jan Bösche
October 30, 2023
Country Reports
IMAGO / ZUMA Wire

Primaries in Venezuela

Two successes and one surprise

A success for the Venezuelan opposition and a success for liberal-conservative candidate María Corina Machado: On October 22, 2023, the opposition's self-organized primaries to determine a joint presidential candidate took place under difficult conditions. According to estimates, around two to three million voters took part, exceeding expectations. The participating parties are therefore unanimous in their assessment of the event as a success. The clear winner of the election is María Corina Machado, who, after counting 65 percent of the electoral files (as of the evening of October 23), has an unassailable lead with 93 percent of the votes. A clear success for Machado had already become apparent in the run-up to the election, so that all parties involved recognized her election victory early on. Many challenges accompanied the holding of the primaries, and there are more to overcome before the presidential elections are held in the second half of 2024. Shortly before the primaries, the Barbados Agreement between the government and the opposition surprisingly agreed on the period for the presidential elections and other related issues.

Annette Schwarzbauer
October 25, 2023
Country Reports
Adobe / HTGanzo

Regional elections in South Tyrol

People's Party loses - formation of government difficult

In South Tyrol, too, the days of absolute majorities are over: The South Tyrolean People's Party (SVP), the collective party of the German-speaking South Tyroleans, which has ruled continuously since 1948, suffered heavy losses in the regional elections on October 22, 2023: It lost more than 22,000 votes compared to the ballot five years ago, slumping from a previous 41.9 to 34.5 percent. In the future, it will have 13 deputies (two fewer than before) in the 35-seat provincial parliament in Bolzano. Against this background, the formation of a coalition, which must also include representatives of the Italian and Ladin language groups due to the principle of "ethnic proportional representation" enshrined in the autonomy statute, does not appear to be very easy.

Dr. Nino Galetti, Ulrich Mayer
October 25, 2023
Country Reports
Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung e. V.

Arbeiten an der Inklusion

Inklusion weltweit – Aktueller Stand aus Griechenland

Griechenland befindet sich im Übergang. Die Zeit nach der Krise der 2010er Jahre führt nicht nur zu einer wirtschaftlichen Erholung, sondern trägt auch zu sozialen Veränderungen bei. Im Zuge dessen werden die Bedürfnisse und der Alltag von Menschen mit Behinderungen für die Gesellschaft immer wichtiger. Hier präsentieren wir einen ersten Überblick über aktuelle Vorhaben, die das Leben für Menschen mit Behinderungen erleichtern.

Marian Wendt, Martha Kontodaimon
October 24, 2023
Country reports with a difference
IMAGO / Xinhua

Argentina has voted

Peronism is alive

Presidential and legislative elections were held in Argentina on October 22. Contrary to almost all predictions, incumbent Economy and Finance Minister Sergio Massa of the ruling Unión por la Patria alliance won the most votes with 36.68%, ahead of self-proclaimed anarcho-capitalist Javier Milei (La Libertad Avanza) with 29, 98%, Patricia Bullrich (Juntos por el Cambio) with 23.83%, Juan Schiaretti (Hacemos por nuestro país) with 6.78% and Myriam Bregman (Frente de Izquierda y de Trabajadores - Unidad) with 2.7%. Thus, Sergio Massa and Javier Milei will face off in a runoff election on November 19. After finishing only in third place in the primary elections on August 13, the Peronist government alliance succeeded, against all expectations, in mobilizing the entire Peronist apparatus. Thus, the elections turned out similarly surprising and unpredictable as the August elections. Thus, everything remains open in the race for the presidency, but the majorities in the National Congress and the distribution of power in the provinces have already been determined (for the most part).

Susanne Käss
October 24, 2023
Country Reports
Fiona Goodall/Getty Images

Parliamentary elections in New Zealand

The Nationals "Back on Track"

New Zealand has held general elections on 14 October. The National Party led by Christopher Luxon seems to have achieved the most votes. Pending the counting of the “special votes”, they will form New Zealand’s next government.

Eva Wagner
October 23, 2023
Country Reports
IMAGO / Rolf Simeon

Shift to the Right in Switzerland

SVP Wins on a Broad Front

While climate policy hardly played a role compared to the last Swiss parliamentary election, the SVP scored a clear election victory with its migration policy issue. It is followed by the SP, Die Mitte, the FDP, the Greens and the Green Liberals.

Andrea Ellen Ostheimer
October 23, 2023
Country Reports
IMAGO / ZUMA Wire

A celebration of democracy

Pro-European opposition wins Polish parliamentary elections

Poland's national-conservative government has lost its political majority after eight years in power. After all votes were counted, the democratic opposition parties won the elections to the Polish Sejm and Senate on October 15th: Koalicja Obywatelska (Citizens' Coalition, KO), Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe (Polish People's Party, PSL) and Polska 2050 (Poland 2050) - the latter both running together in the electoral alliance Trzecia Droga (Third Way, TD) – and Lewica (Left). Observers describe this result as a historic turning point, which is marked by a record voter turnout of 74.38% - the highest since the political change in 1989. In the coming months, Poland will face important decisions regarding its domestic and foreign policy. 180-degree changes can be expected in European and German policy, in socio-political issues, and in the style and rhetoric of a new government. The economic and institutional environment remains challenging because financial leeway is becoming narrower and powerful veto players have to be taken into account. Furthermore, there are important local and European elections coming up next year, which is why there are fears that the election campaign will simply continue. The PiS in particular will make things anything but easy for the new government and will make every attempt to damage the three-party alliance.

David Gregosz, Thomas Behrens, Dr. Daniel Lemmen
October 20, 2023
Country Reports
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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.

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