ECtHR Ruling May Lay the Ground for Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccination

April 19, 2021

A landmark ruling by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) ruled that compulsory vaccination can be considered « necessary in a democratic society » potentially setting a legal precedent that will serve as a reference in the ongoing debate on whether COVID-19 vaccination should be made compulsory.

Politico: European Sovereignty has Lost Macron

April 12, 2021

Politico reports that since his election in 2017, Emmanuel Macron has been a champion of the concept of “European sovereignty” but recently the French President has signaled in speeches and interviews that national sovereignty and national politics are growing in the EU and are here to stay.

Populist Leaders Meet Seeking ‘European Renaissance’

April 07, 2021

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban hosted talks with Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and Italy’s former interior minister, Matteo Salvini, in hopes of creating a new nationalist political force on the European stage which Orban described as a « European renaissance ».

EU Leaders Struggle to Grip Coronavirus Crisis

March 29, 2021

As European leaders continue to deal with the Coronavirus crisis, country leaders are divided on how best to resolve many issues including vaccine production and distribution.

Hungary, Poland win Top Court Fights with EU

March 24, 2021

Hungary and Poland won separate tax disputes with the European Union after the two nations were accused by the EU Competition Commissioner of alleged unfair fiscal arrangements.

Visegrad Group Marks 30 Years

March 24, 2021

Leaders from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia gathered in the Polish city of Krakow to mark 30 years of the Visegrad Group, an informal body of political and economic cooperation in the region founded in 1991.

How All-Powerful Institutions Keep Europe in Gridlock

By David Elstein

March 17, 2021

Open Democracy has published a summary of historian Perry Anderson’s essay, ‘Ever Closer Union?’, which explores the significance of the various institutions within the European Union and how they minimize democracy.

How the European Union Prefers Power Grabs to Democracy

By David Elstein

March 17, 2021

Historian Perry Anderson in a summary of his essay that was published in the London Review of Books, explains how the the EU has demonstrated its preference for power grabs to democracy through a series of ‘coups’ across decades which allowed European institutions to hold increased power, undermining the role of nation states and voters in the process.

Heltai: Hungary’s Move to Leave EPP

March 17, 2021

Péter Heltai editor and podcast host at the Budapest-based Mathias Corvinus Collegium, explores the background and impact of the recent move of Orban to move his party, Fidesz, out of the European People’s Party.

Orbán Leaves the European People’s Party (EPP)

March 08, 2021

Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban left the European People’s Party (EPP) group in the E.U. Parliament, after the center right group approved a rule that would allow them to suspend Orban’s Fidesz party for failure to comply with various E.U. measures.