Democracy will not die at the hands of a general, nor will it be buried by a classic coup d'état. There will be no tanks in the streets, no abrupt shutdown of parliaments, no immediate suspension of constitutions. Twenty-first-century democracy dies in a much more subtle, sophisticated, and therefore far more dangerous way: it dies at the hands of its own citizens, who are convinced they are defending it.

Donald Trump announced an Iran peace deal at the G7, sold domestically as a strategic win for the elections. However, concrete results contradict this narrative: Iran maintained its nuclear capacity and control of the Strait of Hormuz, while the regime was strengthened by nationalism. Gulf allies pulled back, Israel became isolated, and the US reaped only a discursive triumph for the domestic public, while the actual geopolitical balance changed very little.

Since 2025, Japan and South Korea have been reshaping their bilateral relations by prioritizing a strategic cooperation agenda despite the persistence of historical and territorial disputes. Unlike previous periods, the current governments have sought to compartmentalize sensitive issues, including Japan’s colonial legacy, wartime compensation, and the Dokdo/Takeshima islands dispute, preventing these disagreements from overshadowing cooperation in areas of shared interest.

In recent years, since Vladimir Putin came to power in Russia, the distribution and control over energy flows have been used as powerful tools of foreign policy by the Kremlin. Through their use, Russia has become a key trading partner for the European Union, which, until the beginning of the Russo-Ukrainian conflict in 2022, was the main destination for exports of commodities such as natural gas and oil from Russia.

The war in the Middle East is occurring at a decisive moment, when the European Union faces growing internal criticism of its climate policies. This is reflected in calls from national governments and industry leaders to increase pressure on Europe’s emissions trading system, or even to reduce carbon emission targets for new vehicles. Thus, the rise in oil and gas prices since the beginning of the war against Iran on February 28, 2026 represents a significant risk to the prog

The invitation extended by U.S. President Donald Trump to the leaders of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan to attend the 2026 G20 carries a well-crafted geopolitical rationale. The rise of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan on the international stage reflects a central aspiration for Central Asia to be more than merely a chess piece in the game of great powers—particularly as both countries present themselves as a “bridge” between Russia and the West, and as an energy and logistics hub lin