“So what actually happened to Hrabal? Did he fall out of the window, or did he jump?” Many people have asked me that question, and when they see the dismayed look on my face, they answer it themselves with great confidence. I wish I could do that too, but I can’t. After all, I wasn’t…

Europe’s redemption lies in the re-affirmation of the Lisbon Strategy of 2000 (and of Göteborg 2001), a ten-year development plan that focused on innovation, mobility and education, social, economic and environmental renewal. Otherwise a generational warfare will join class and ethnic conflicts as a major dividing line of the EU society in decline. Back in…

Example of the former Soviet Union country Latvia

The countries of Eastern Europe—except for Bohemia— are economically weak while historically they are non- Western and peripheral.

Some notes on the debate on the current economic crisis

Why haven’t the political and economic rulers of the West decided to make a genuine diagnosis of the crisis, which started in 2007?

How Russia slips into a new economic recession

It is often said that the integration of the Muslim diaspora will be of crucial importance for the internal stability of Europe. For the countries of Central Europe the basic and much more important challenge will be overcoming the exclusion of the numerous Gypsy community. About 12 million people of Gypsy origin are now living…

Personalized communication channels make it possible for the politicians to express an opinion “off the record.” They try to counter the unprecedented collapse of trust in “the system.”

The 600th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations with Turkey offers a unique opportunity for Poland to build a permanent strategic partnership with the most dynamic neighbor of the EU

Whether as an irritant or as a balm, the Greek Civil War of 1943–1949 is back.

Has the EU prevented the worst—or made Viktor Orbán more powerful—or both? The challenge for democracyprotection by Brussels revisited.

Germany cannot afford a continuation of the past four-year’s policies. In the current state of the European Union, Berlin has to take responsibility.

In the wake of last October‘s early parliamentary election, few things are clear and definite in the Czech Republic. One thing that is clear though is that the Left has not won a victory that would enable two parties (Social Democrats and Communists) to form a majority government. This was to be expected. The other…

An interview with Lev Gudkov by Filip MemchesIn the past, the world was afraid of Russia and today the Russians are afraid of the world. In 1989 13% of the society said “yes” to the question if Russia had enemies. Today 78% of Russians believe so. This is an incredible change—says Lev Gudkov in conversation…

Twenty-five years passed from the collapse of communism in Europe. Much time has elapsed and much has changed in Europe beyond recognition. Therefore, it is quite legitimate to ask: Where are we now? And what is to be done?

The French, the Germans, the English and Americans wandering about the future course of their countries should study the recent history of Central and Eastern Europe and look at the current state of the region

Czech democracy, just like other new European democracies that emerged after the fall of communism in 1989, has undergone an unprecedented institutional modernization in the last 25 years, yet it still shows significant democratic deficits