These events invite us to make a profound reflection on the credibility of current Western leadership. It becomes inevitable to ask ourselves what criteria we are using to select those who guide our political and economic destinies, and whether it is possible to maintain trust in a system where the personal ethics of its leaders seem so detached from their public responsibilities.

Sporting events are never completely devoid of political content, especially when states or athletes express their opinions regarding certain events. Well, with the approach of the 2026 World Cup, following the pressure on Europe, the violation of human rights and international law norms by the US, will Europe pretend this is just football, or is there something more important?

Power has returned as the primary language of international relations. Not hidden, not disguised, but openly asserted. And pretending otherwise does not make Europe principled, it makes Europe irrelevant.

Empathy fatigue from a constructivist standpoint highlights a shift in collective norms surrounding crisis and responsibility, transforming moral emergencies into expected features of international politics.

Volker Wittpahl: If I had a wish for Christmas, I would say if we had a kind of driving license for any smartphone and for every internet service for every citizen, no matter what age, then we wouldn't have this problem. But we will never get this license like a driving license for a car.

A proud member of the Union since 2013, Croatia has recently advanced its own integration by joining the Eurozone in January 2023, setting a precedent for neighboring states (Walker, 2023). Yet, increasing political turbulence risks undermining the progress and discrediting the EU.

From the 2000s onwards, it is possible to observe a shift in narrative rationality within International Relations. The idea is that subjects of International Law construct and act according to a set of narratives, and therefore, the historical analysis of these narratives is an appropriate means to understand existing geopolitical dynamics.