30 Years of Post-Communism with Well-Deserved Gloom. But Why and By Whom? (written for The European Views*)

This isn’t a “Recylce Eastern Europe” sign but my gradation arc of post-communism in Eastern Europe – from most to least westernized, and from least to most oligarchical – going from the northwest down south and up to the northeast. Original map template derived from LizardPoint.com
(*This opinion / analytical article was written by Ivan Dikov for The European Views website.)

Western failures in Eastern Europe and at home, coupled with Eastern Europeans’ impotence, have entrenched post-communism, the highest stage of communism.

“A specter is haunting Europe. The specter of post-communism…” Continue reading “30 Years of Post-Communism with Well-Deserved Gloom. But Why and By Whom? (written for The European Views*)”

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Macron’s ‘Africans over Eastern Europeans’ Comment Shows EU Must Start Getting Its Priorities Right (written for The European Views*)

A grand bargain between Trump and Putin that Macron has been trying to broker has been one of the explanations for the recent perplexing behavior of the French President, at least according to some Russian analysts. Photo: Emmanuel Macron on Twitter
(*This opinion / analytical article was written by Ivan Dikov for The European Views website.)

Western Europe has overwhelming reasons, both geopolitical and civilizational, to prioritize Eastern Europe above other regions.

Continue reading “Macron’s ‘Africans over Eastern Europeans’ Comment Shows EU Must Start Getting Its Priorities Right (written for The European Views*)”

Looking behind France’s Shameful Veto on Albania, North Macedonia’s EU Accession Talks (written for The European Views*)

The EU integration prospects of the Western Balkans have been thrown in disarray by French President Emmanuel Macron, hopefully not as part of some sort of a nasty backstage deal among world powers. Map: EPP
(*This opinion / analytical article was written by Ivan Dikov for The European Views website.)

The rationale for Macron’s decision doesn’t make sense as purely “enlargement fatique”.

Continue reading “Looking behind France’s Shameful Veto on Albania, North Macedonia’s EU Accession Talks (written for The European Views*)”

Ukraine Is the Most Important Country for the EU. Here’s Why (written for The European Views*)

Unlike larger countries geographically eligible to join the EU, Ukraine isn’t enticed by the notion of its own empire from the past, present, or future. Map: Wikipedia
(*This opinion / analytical article was written by Ivan Dikov for The European Views website.)

Size and a desire to join set Ukraine apart from the rest of the world in a unique way as far as the European Union should be concerned.

Continue reading “Ukraine Is the Most Important Country for the EU. Here’s Why (written for The European Views*)”

Rewarding Erdogan, Forgoing the EU: the Moral from Volkswagen’s New Factory in Turkey (written for The European Views*)

The question of whether non-EU countries beat the EU for major investments because of its own self-imposed rules should be tackled as soon as possible by the entire Union. Map: Wikipedia
(*This opinion / analytical article was written by Ivan Dikov for The European Views website.)

The EU should rethink its state aid rules when it comes to foreign competition, and the EU multinationals – their approach towards the Union’s home turf.

Continue reading “Rewarding Erdogan, Forgoing the EU: the Moral from Volkswagen’s New Factory in Turkey (written for The European Views*)”

Eastern Europe: (Still) the Most Crucial of All Challenges Facing the European Union (written for The European Views*)

Western Europe is making the mistake of failing to focus enough on its Eastern European brethren. Map: Wikipedia
(*This opinion / analytical article was written by Ivan Dikov for The European Views website.)

Without figuring out how to complete successfully the integration of Eastern and Western Europe, the EU will be doomed to failure.

Continue reading “Eastern Europe: (Still) the Most Crucial of All Challenges Facing the European Union (written for The European Views*)”

New EC Chief Ursula von der Leyen: A Disappointment Already or the First to Make Sense? (written for The European Views*)

Ursula von der Leyen’s rise to arguably the EU’s top job has come as a surprising and illogical development. Photo: (Banner image: Ursula von der Leyen on Twitter)
(*This opinion / analytical article was written by Ivan Dikov for The European Views website.)

The next President of the European Commission could outplay the unpleasant Eastern European and Italian leaders who voted her into office. And she really should.


Continue reading “New EC Chief Ursula von der Leyen: A Disappointment Already or the First to Make Sense? (written for The European Views*)”

When the Germans Marching East Is a Good Thing. Can Germany Handle It?

German military equipment arriving in Lithuania as part of NATO’s Enhanced Forward Presence. Photo: Lithuanian Ministry of Defense

Germany needs to stand up, not as an aggressor or an imperialist power of the past, but as a defender of democracy. Continue reading “When the Germans Marching East Is a Good Thing. Can Germany Handle It?”

The EU That Should Have Pulled Itself Together Long before Trump

European Council President Donald Tusk has been outspoken in naming the threats to the EU. But to what end? Photo: Tusk on Twitter

The good people of the EU have had every chance to solidify their supra-national state as a benevolent power but didn’t.

Also, between Donald Trump and Donald Tusk, I like Donald Duck best… Continue reading “The EU That Should Have Pulled Itself Together Long before Trump”

Will Trump Let Eastern Europe Be ‘Trumpled’? By Russia or by Turkey?

Is this Cold War sign from West Berlin what’s awaiting Eastern Europe under America’s new President Donald Trump? Photo: Wikipedia

In the past few years, the cornerstone of Eastern Europe’s progress, the US security umbrella, has started to seem increasingly, and dreadfully, shaky. Continue reading “Will Trump Let Eastern Europe Be ‘Trumpled’? By Russia or by Turkey?”