European Union

This paper first turns to the question of the EU’s impact on democracy in would-be and new Member States and whether it has helped to overcome the division of the continent. The EU’s ability to trigger liberal democratic reforms in candidate countries should not be overestimated, especially when it faces illiberal and authoritarian governments.

The events happening in Ukraine are dividing the German public like hardly any other political event before. But this is not so much about Ukraine. The empathy or antipathy for the revolt against the Yanukovych regime is blanketed by a deeper difference: the view of Russia.

Most important now is that the international community responds speedily and clearly to what amounts to a Russian occupation of the Crimea and the additional threat of Russian troops being stationed in Ukraine.