India and UAE will use local currencies in bilateral trade

One of the interesting developments in world politics has been the de-dollarization of international trade, increasing willingness to use local or other currencies instead of US dollar. One recent example of this has been the trade agreement between India and the United Arab Emirates (1). This agreement is interesting, because India and UAE are close allies of USA – for example, India and UAE are part of the India-Israel-US-UAE Alliance (I2-U2), economic group that was established in October 2021 (2).

References:

1) “India, UAE agree to use local currencies in bilateral trade” Middle East Monitor 16.7.2023

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230716-india-uae-agree-to-use-local-currencies-in-bilateral-trade/

2) “The India-Israel-US-UAE Alliance (I2-U2): Background and Objectives” Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies, Doha Institute 19.7.2022

https://www.dohainstitute.org/en/PoliticalStudies/Pages/the-emergent-alliance-between-the-us-israel-india-and-the-uae-i2-u2-background-and-objectives.aspx

Liz Cheney: “We are electing idiots”

Hello again after a while! A lot has been going on in the far-right scene and elsewhere in world politics, but before I write about other things, here is an interesting comment regarding American politics from Liz Cheney, daughter of infamous Dick Cheney who served as vice president under President George W. Bush during years 2001 – 2009:

“…I think that the country right now faces hugely challenging and fundamentally important issues. What we’ve done in our politics is create a situation where we’re electing idiots.”

Read the full story on The Hill:

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4070139-cheney-on-the-problem-with-american-politics-were-electing-idiots/

Potentially 12 million Americans believe that violence is justified in order to help Trump back to power

According to recent survey conducted by University of Chicago, roughly 12 million or 4.4% of the adult population in the USA believe that violence is justified in order to help former president Donald Trump return to the White House.

Read the full story on The Guardian:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jun/09/january-6-trump-political-violence-survey

FBI criticized for mass-shooting survival video

While the amount of mass shootings and mass killings continues to rise in the USA, FBI has been criticized for making a mass-shooting survival video. The video was released already in 2020 but it has now resurfaced. According to critics, the video will scare away foreign graduates and tourists. One critic wrote on Twitter: “America is broken. Instead of addressing the cause of the carnage, we’re talking about how to survive a massacre like it’s a damn tornado.”

Read the full story on The Guardian:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/may/15/fbi-mass-shooting-survival-video

You can follow the gun violence statistics on Gun Violence Archive:

https://www.gunviolencearchive.org

Acceptance of political violence in USA

During recent months there have been a lot of disturbing news about the violent plans and fantasies of the American far right. As the trials regarding the Capitol riot have continued, over 1,000 people have been charged for their participation in the riot on the 6th of January 2021. Nearly 85% of the people who have been facing charges do not have any known connection to extremist groups. (1) 14 members of far-right group Oath Keepers and four members of another far-right group Proud Boys, including their former leader Enrique Tarrio, have been found guilty of seditious conspiracy and other felonies. The Oath Keepers and the Proud Boys were accused of planning an “all-out war” and “violent overthrow” of the US Government. (2, 3, 4, 5) One far-right extremist, who took part in the riot, allegedly wanted to “wipe out” Jewish population in the USA (6). Republican far-right congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene said in December last year that if she and Steve Bannon, ex-strategist of former president Trump, had been in charge of organizing the insurrection at the Capitol, the attack “would have been armed” and they would have won (7). During his recent campaign trip, Trump embraced and praised a woman, who is an ardent supporter of Trump and who was jailed because of her participation in the Capitol riot and who believes that the members of Congress who voted to certify Biden’s presidential election should be executed. Trump has said that if he becomes president again, he will issue full pardons and a government apology to the rioters who stormed the Capitol. (8, 9)

Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson has expressed some controversial comments about the political violence during the Capitol riot. In March, Carlson caused outrage by showing selected security footage from the Capitol during the riot and by trying to portray violent attackers as peaceful protesters and tourists (10). Last week it was reported that Carlson wrote in one text message (11):

“…watching video of people fighting on the street in Washington. A group of Trump guys surrounded an Antifa kid and started pounding the living shit out of him. It was three against one, at least. Jumping a guy like that is dishonorable obviously. It’s not how white men fight. Yet suddenly I found myself rooting for the mob against the man, hoping they’d hit him harder, kill him. I really wanted them to hurt the kid. I could taste it. — …somewhere deep in my brain, an alarm went off: this isn’t good for me. I’m becoming something I don’t want to be. The Antifa creep is a human being. Much as I despise what he says and does, much as I’m sure I’d hate him personally if I knew him, I shouldn’t gloat over his suffering. I should be bothered by it. I should remember that somewhere somebody probably loves this kid, and would be crushed if he was killed. If I don’t care about those things, if I reduce people to their politics, how am I better than he is?”

Carlson’s text message about the video he saw reportedly caused panic among Fox’s board and top-level executives, and officials were worried that the contents of Carlson’s messages could become public and prove embarrassing for the network.

According to polls, majority of Americans are worried about political violence. Last November, week after the attack on the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, 88% of American adults were “concerned that political divisions have increased the risk of politically motivated violence” in the USA. However, supporters of the two main parties blamed each other: 66% of Democrats blamed the Republican Party for the risk of violence, and 56% of Republicans blamed the Democratic Party. (12)

Several polls have also revealed that some Americans accept political violence. According to a poll that was published in March this year, 27% of Republicans approved the Capitol riot on the 6th of January 2021 and 54% of Republicans thought that the rioters “participated in legitimate political discourse” (13). Last year, University of California published a vast survey that had quite disturbing findings. According to the survey, roughly 20% of American adults believed that political violence is justified at least in some circumstances and 3% believed that political violence is usually or always justified. Around 41% agreed with the idea that “in America, native-born white people are being replaced by immigrants” and roughly the same proportion of the respondents believed that “our American way of life is disappearing so fast that we may have to use force to save it”. Over 12% said that they would be willing to “threaten or intimidate a person” and 10% were willing to “injure a person” in the pursuit of their political objectives. Quite shockingly, 7.1% said that they would be willing to kill a person to advance an important political goal. 50.1% of the respondents agreed with the contention that in the next few years there would be another civil war in the USA. (14)

References:

1) “1,000 people have been charged for the Capitol riot. Here’s where their cases stand” NPR 25.3.2023

https://www.npr.org/2023/03/25/1165022885/1000-defendants-january-6-capitol-riot

2) “Six Additional Oath Keepers Members and Affiliates Found Guilty of Charges Related to Capitol Breach” U.S. Department of Justice 21.3.2023

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/six-additional-oath-keepers-members-and-affiliates-found-guilty-charges-related-capitol

3) “Enrique Tarrio, three other Proud Boys convicted on seditious conspiracy” The Hill 4.5.2023

https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/3987941-tarrio-and-other-proud-boys-convicted-of-seditious-conspiracy/

4) “Oath Keepers called for ‘violent overthrow’ of US government, trial hears” The Guardian 18.11.2022

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/nov/18/oath-keepers-trial-closing-arguments-capitol-attack

5) “Proud Boys were ready for ‘all-out war’ before January 6, prosecutors argue” The Guardian 24.4.2023

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/apr/24/proud-boys-jan-6-attack-trial-closing-arguments

6) “Military Veteran Who Allegedly Wanted To ‘Wipe Out’ Jews Convicted In Capitol Attack” Yahoo! News 7.3.2023

https://news.yahoo.com/military-veteran-allegedly-wanted-wipe-170829451.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmZpLw&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAKUnob9ixA8n8oI8fulf7nxIyA1y0Q2YkMubFfSaZL4tdyrK5ZbEAqUseRAPnIUsaYfz4fytYpYw_KaUMf4uNVfjvRReyhOXSMbUWmACYGgbdszznQm2aAXSEupa1zqbCXJ3w28hgmiTDO3Exi-tEp7-G7n_RtCNd4WP2EAHCN2T

7) “Marjorie Taylor Greene: Capitol attack ‘would’ve been armed’ if I was in charge” The Guardian 12.12.2022

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/dec/12/marjorie-taylor-greene-jan-6-capitol-attack-armed-speech

8) “Donald Trump embraces Jan. 6 defendant who wants Mike Pence executed” NBC News 28.4.2023

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/donald-trump-embraces-jan-6-defendant-wants-pence-executed-rcna81958

9) “Trump vows pardons, government apology to Capitol rioters if elected” The Washington Post 1.9.2022

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/09/01/trump-jan-6-rioters-pardon/

10) “Fox News’ Tucker Carlson distorts capitol attack footage to push pro-Trump conspiracy theories” Le Monde 8.3.2023

https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2023/03/08/fox-news-tucker-carlson-distorts-capitol-attack-footage-to-push-pro-trump-conspiracy-theories_6018559_4.html

11) “Tucker Carlson text about ‘how white men fight’ alarmed Fox leaders before ouster: report” The Hill 3.5.2023

https://thehill.com/homenews/3985372-tucker-carlson-text-white-men-fox-leaders-before-ouster-report/

12) “Americans express broad concerns about the risk of political violence: POLL” ABC News 4.11.2022

https://abcnews.go.com/US/americans-express-broad-concerns-risk-political-violence-poll/story?id=92621243

13) “More than a quarter of Republicans approve of Capitol attack, poll shows” The Guardian 16.3.2023

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/mar/16/quarter-republicans-approve-capitol-attack-trump-legitimate-political-discourse

14) “One in five US adults condone ‘justified’ political violence, mega-survey finds” The Guardian 20.7.2022

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jul/19/one-in-five-us-adults-condone-political-violence-survey

Mass killings in gun-loving USA

Mass killings in the USA seem to become an increasingly worrying problem this year. The latest mass killing took place on Friday night in Texas, where an intoxicated man shot five of his neighbors after they had complained about the noise he caused while shooting in his yard. That incident was the 17th mass killing and 174th mass shooting in the USA this year. This may be a record-breaking year for mass killings. There has been a mass killing approximately every 6.5 days, so far. (1)

Americans love guns. According to statistics, USA has by far the highest rate of civilian gun ownership in the world, 120.5 civilian-owned guns per 100 people. Falkland Islands has the second highest rate, 62.1 guns per 100 people. (2) About 46 % of Americans live in a household that has a gun. During the COVID-19 pandemic (March 2020 – March 2022) there was a noticeable increase in gun sales. 20 million guns were sold per year during 2020 and 2021 and 18 % of the American households bought a gun since the start of the pandemic. During previous years (2010 – 2019) approximately 13 million guns were sold each year. (3)

Republicans and other hardline right-wingers have defended fiercely the right to own and carry a gun and they show their love for guns. When American talk show host Bill Maher talked about political advertising in the USA, last year, he also showed how politicians like to shoot things – watch, for example, a video of Republican far-right congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene where she shows how she would want to handle “the Democrats’ Socialist agenda.” (4) Republican far-right congresswoman Lauren Boebert insisted on bringing a gun to Capitol in January 2021, soon after the Capitol riots (5). During recent National Rifle Association (NRA) lobbying leadership forum, Republican governor Kristi Noem told to the audience that her two-year-old granddaughter has several guns (6). Republican politicians have proposed more than a dozen bills to remove gun safety laws, cut taxes for gun buyers, and offer special protections for the firearm and ammunition industries (7). 26 states in the USA allow people to carry a concealed gun without a permit and 25 states allow people to carry a gun openly without a permit (8, 9). Incidentally, most of these states are ruled by Republicans.

References:

1) “Texas man fatally shoots five neighbors after noise complaint, sheriff says” The Guardian 29.4.2023

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/apr/29/five-people-killed-in-south-east-texas-shooting-cleveland

2) “Gun Ownership by Country 2023” World Population Review

https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/gun-ownership-by-country

3) “One in Five American Households Purchased a Gun During the Pandemic” NORC 24.3.2022

https://www.norc.org/NewsEventsPublications/PressReleases/Pages/one-in-five-american-households-purchased-a-gun-during-the-pandemic.aspx

4) “New Rule: The United States of Dumb-merica” Real Time with Bill Maher 4.6.2022

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dMOfwUP0F0

5) “Boebert Clashes With Capitol Police After Setting Off Metal Detectors” CPR News 12.1.2021

https://www.cpr.org/2021/01/12/boebert-clashes-with-capitol-police-after-setting-off-metal-detectors/

6) “South Dakota governor says her two-year-old grandchild has several guns” The Guardian 15.4.2023

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/apr/15/south-dakota-governor-kristi-noem-grandchild-guns-nra

7) “The GOP’s extreme bills: Repeal gun safety laws” The American Independent 20.3.2023

https://americanindependent.com/gop-extreme-bills-repeal-gun-safety-laws/

8) “Which States Allow The Permitless Carry Of Guns? [Infographic]” Forbes 6.4.2023

https://www.forbes.com/sites/katharinabuchholz/2023/04/06/which-states-allow-the-permitless-carry-of-guns-infographic/?sh=245b2dd84e85

9) “Florida becomes 26th state to allow permitless carry of concealed guns” Axios 3.4.2023

https://www.axios.com/2023/03/31/desantis-florida-gun-laws

Developing cooperation in BRICS

Political expert Marco Carnelos wrote in January that year 2022 will probably be seen as “a watershed, when the world began its tectonic shift from a post-Cold War unipolar order to a still undefined and uncertain multipolar one.” The conflict in Ukraine has led to a situation where “Global West and Global Rest” are “on two different tracks regarding the conflict and other global issues” and the “Western-centric perceptions of world events have been utterly dismissed for the first time.” Carnelos referred to a foreign minister from one of the BRICS countries who said that “the problems of Europe and the US are no longer the problems of the whole world.” Carnelos also pointed out that BRICS – economic bloc consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – has become increasingly popular. Many traditional allies or partners of the USA, for example Saudi Arabia and Turkey, are keen to join BRICS. (1) BRICS will decide this year whether it will admit new members to the bloc (2).

The current BRICS countries have also been talking about their developing cooperation. A little while ago, a delegation from the South Africa’s ruling party ANC visited United Russia Party in order to discuss “recalibration of the global order” (3). Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in January that BRICS countries will discuss creating a common currency at the group’s summit in South Africa in August (4). During his recent visit to China, Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva criticized the dominance of US dollar in world trade and suggested that developing nations should use alternative currency (5). Brazil and China agreed to boost their economic and other cooperation. The relations between Brazil and China were strained when Brazilian far-right president Bolsonaro was in power (6). Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is also visiting Brazil – this and President Lula da Silva’s visit to China are part of diplomatic reset and Lula’s determination to recover Brazil’s international reputation after Bolsonaro’s disastrous presidential term. Lula also wants to take actively part in international politics and he would like Brazil to be involved in peace brokering in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. (7)

References:

1) “US-China: How 2022 saw the old world order start to crumble” Middle East Eye 19.1.2023

https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/us-china-old-world-order-crumble-how

2) “BRICS discussing decision on Saudi Arabia, Iran memberships this year” Middle East Monitor 16.2.2023

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230216-brics-discussing-decision-on-saudi-arabia-iran-memberships-this-year/

3) “S.Africa party officials in Russia for talks on new ‘global order'” A News 2.4.2023

https://www.anews.com.tr/world/2023/04/02/safrica-party-officials-in-russia-for-talks-on-new-global-order

4) “Russian FM says BRICS group to consider common currency” Anadolu Agency 25.1.2023

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/economy/russian-fm-says-brics-group-to-consider-common-currency/2797085#

5) “Lula Advocates From China For De-dollarization In World Trade” TeleSUR 13.4.2023

https://www.telesurenglish.net/news/Lula-Advocates-From-China-For-De-dollarization-In-World-Trade-20230413-0020.html

6) “Lula and Xi pledge to boost ties in Beijing meeting” Al Jazeera 14.4.2023

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/4/14/lula-and-xi-pledge-to-boost-ties-in-beijing-meeting

7) “Lavrov’s Brazil visit highlights Lula’s neutral foreign policy despite US dismay” The Guardian 17.4.2023

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/apr/17/brazil-lula-neutral-foreign-policy-lavrov-visit

Notes on far-right parties and politics in Europe

Last week, Finland became the latest country to join NATO. However, Finland also became the latest country in Europe where far-right party surged in elections. Finns Party (Perussuomalaiset) nearly won the elections and received 20% of the votes. Support of far-right and right-wing populist parties has remained strong in Europe and far-right parties have become part of mainstream politics, so it is possible that Finns Party will be part of the new Finnish government – the former version of the Finns Party was part of Finnish coalition government during years 2015-2017. (1, 2, 3).

Here is a list of support of some far-right parties in European countries. Most of the parties in the list are considered to be far-right parties, for example Belgian party Flemish Interest (Vlaams Belang) or Spanish party Vox. Some parties are considered to be hardline right-wing populist and/or nationalist parties bordering on far-right, for example Polish party Law and Justice and Hungarian party Fidesz – these two ruling parties have caused conflict with the European Union because of their breaches of the rule of law in their countries and they have also been trying to unite the hardline nationalist and far-right parties in Europe (7).

Austria Freedom Party of Austria FPÖ 28%
Belgium Flemish Interest / Vlaams Belang 24%
Bulgaria Revival 14%
Croatia Homeland Movement DPMŠ 9%
Cyprus National Popular Front ELAM 7%
Czech Republic Freedom and Direct Democracy SPD 9%
Denmark Denmark Democrats DD 9% Danish People’s Party DF 4%
Estonia Conservative People’s Party of Estonia EKRE 17%
Finland Finns Party PS 20%
France* National Rally RN 20% Reconquest REC 5%
Germany Alternative for Germany AfD 15%
Greece* National Party – Greeks EKE 3.9%
Hungary Fidesz 50% Our Home Movement MH 10%
Italy Brothers of Italy Fdl 29% Lega 9%
Netherlands Party for Freedom PVV 9 % Forum for Democracy FvD 5%
Poland Law and Justice/United Right ZP 36% Confederation Freedom and Independence 9% Kukiz’15 2%
Portugal Enough / Chega 13%
Romania Alliance for the Unity of Romanians AUR 18%
Slovakia Republic REP 9% People’s Party – Our Slovakia L´SNS 2%
Slovenia Slovenian National Party SNS 2%
Spain Vox 15%
Sweden Sweden Democrats SD 18%

(Polling information was taken from Politico’s Poll of Polls or PolitPro* website, some information about the political parties is also from Europe Elects website, 4, 5, 6)

The situation in Europe, and in the West in general, is similar to the 1930’s. The far right has been getting stronger. Last December, after the arrests of the members of the Reichsbürger movement in Germany, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that the “biggest threat of terrorism” is posed by far-right and white supremacist groups in the West (8). However, there seem to be two far-right trends that are sometimes intertwined. First of all, support for the older ethno-nationalist, racist and antisemitic far right seems to have increased. Some far-right parties, for example German party Alternative for Germany (AfD), have veered further to the right (9). There are also new openly fascist parties with connections to neo-Nazis, for example Blue-and-Black Movement (Sinimusta Liike) in Finland and National Party – Greeks (EKE) in Greece (10, 11).

The second trend is the Jewish and pro-Israel far right. This trend seems to be particularly strong within the American-Israeli alliance. I will write more about the developments in the American-Israeli alliance separately, but USA and Israel have also been operating actively with the far right in Europe. Professor Cas Mudde wrote in 2021 that there are “at least four major strands of far-right international networks” in which the American conservative movement, including the Republican Party, participates. The first far-right strand is the global Christian right. The second strand is the “national conservativism” movement that was developed by Israeli think-tanker Yoram Hazony. The third strand is the long-standing connection between some Republicans and European far-right parties – this connection is built on “a shared ideological core of nativism, authoritarianism and populism.” The fourth strand is the conservative far-right network in the Spanish-speaking world that has been built by Spanish far-right party Vox. (12) Some American far-right projects in Europe haven’t gone according to plan. Steve Bannon, ex-adviser of former president Trump, tried to bring the European far-right parties to his anti-EU organization The Movement, but he failed. Bannon also failed to establish “academy for the Judeo-Christian West” that was supposed to train right-wing “gladiators” in Italy. (13, 14)

Jewish far right found common ground with the wider Western far right when the Islamophobic counterjihad movement became stronger over 20 years ago. Many key persons in the counterjihad movement have been Jewish, for example American far-right writers Pamela Geller and David Horowitz as well as neoconservative Daniel Pipes and Austrian-Israeli Dr. Manfred Gerstenfeld. Egyptian-born Jewish writer Gisèle Littman alias Bat Ye’or started to use the term “Eurabia” and created Islamophobic conspiracy theory that inspired numerous members of the counterjihad movement and other far right, including Anders Breivik who killed over 70 people in Norway in 2011. Some prominent members of the counterjihad movement have also been ardent friends of Israel, for example American far-right blogger Kenneth Sikorski who wrote his blog Tundra Tabloids in Finland and Dutch far-right politician Geert Wilders whose Party for Freedom PVV has had quite strong support in the Netherlands. (15, 16, 17, 18, 19)

Some Jewish politicians have joined European far-right parties. When The Times of Israel interviewed some of them in 2017, two of their unifying traits were their anti-Muslim attitude and support for Israel. French far-right party National Rally has attracted some politicians who have Jewish roots, for example Louis Aliot and David Rachline, who are currently vice presidents of the party, and Michel Tooris who was interviewed by The Times of Israel. (20, 21) In December 2021, French Jewish far-right media personality and presidential candidate Eric Zemmour decided to establish his own far-right party Reconquest. Reuters reported that the name of the party “evokes the historic period known as the Reconquista, when Christian forces drove Muslim rulers from the Iberian peninsula.” (22) Incidentally, Santiago Abascal, leader of the Spanish far-right party Vox, has used the term “Reconquista” in his political campaigns (23). During the French presidential elections last year, 53% of the voters based in Israel, who were eligible to vote in those elections and voted, voted for Zemmour (24, 25). André Ventura, who is dubbed the “Zemmour” of the Portuguese politics, is the leader of the new far-right party Chega that has gained popularity quite quickly. Ventura announced a little while ago that Chega will organize “far-right world summit” in Portugal next month. (26, 27, 28)

Israel and particularly Benjamin Netanyahu and his party Likud have been developing cooperation with European far-right parties a long time. Likud has invited several European far-right leaders to Israel. One reason for this has been their common opposition of Islamism. Israel has also looked for allies against any criticism against Israel in the European Union. Last month, Israeli foreign minister Cohen asked his Italian counterpart “to work to prevent European involvement in Israel’s domestic matters and in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict” after the foreign policy chief of the European Union had criticized Israel’s actions. (29, 30) New Israeli far-right coalition government has also sought advice from the Polish government regarding their judicial overhaul (31). Italian far-right government and Israel agreed to deepen their strategic and other cooperation, last month (32). There have also been strong supporters of Israel in the Spanish far-right party Vox. The strategist of Vox, Rafael Bardají, who has also been called “Darth Vader” of the party, has been one of the leading neoconservatives in Spain and long-time supporter of Israel. Last November, Bardají criticized President Biden and American “wokeism” and he believed that Netanyahu would be better and stronger Western leader. (33, 34, 35, 36)

References:

1) “Finland’s centre-right party claims win amid tight election” Euronews 3.4.2023

https://www.euronews.com/2023/04/02/finlands-national-coalition-party-set-to-win-election-public-broadcaster-says

2) “What the recent wins for far-right parties in Europe could mean for the region” NPR 1.10.2022

https://www.npr.org/2022/10/01/1126419403/what-the-recent-wins-for-far-right-parties-in-europe-could-mean-for-the-region

3) The first Finns Party in the Finnish coalition government 2015-2017 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sipilä_Cabinet

4) Politico’s Poll of Polls: https://www.politico.eu/europe-poll-of-polls/

5) PolitPro: https://politpro.eu/en

6) Europe Elects: https://europeelects.eu/european-union/

7) “The game is not over: Fidesz, Law and Justice, and far-right cooperation in the EU” European Council on Foreign Relations 27.5.2022

https://ecfr.eu/article/the-game-is-not-over-fidesz-law-and-justice-and-far-right-cooperation-in-the-eu/

8) “UN chief says ‘biggest terror threat’ is white supremacy in West” Middle East Eye 20.12.2022

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/un-chief-says-white-supremacy-west-biggest-terror-threat

9) “Far-right AfD chief Jörg Meuthen quits party” EURACTIV 28.1.2022

https://www.euractiv.com/section/politics/news/far-right-afd-chief-jorg-meuthen-quits-party-amid-ideological-differences/

10) “Openly fascist and racist party has set its sights on parliamentary elections” Helsinki Times 15.12.2022

https://www.helsinkitimes.fi/finland/finland-news/domestic/22679-openly-fascist-and-racist-party-has-set-its-sights-on-parliamentary-elections.html

11) “Greek neo-Nazis seek ‘loopholes’ to run in elections” EURACTIV 6.4.2023

https://www.euractiv.com/section/politics/news/greek-neo-nazis-seek-loopholes-to-run-in-elections/

12) “Surprised to see US Republicans cozying up to the European far right? Don’t be” The Guardian 15.10.2021

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/oct/15/us-republicans-european-far-right

13) “Steve Bannon’s effort to export his fiery popularism to Europe is failing” Reuters 2.9.2020

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-bannon-europe-idUSKBN25T1NZ

14) “Steve Bannon’s right-wing ‘gladiator school’ booted from Italian monastery” Business Insider 8.9.2021

https://www.businessinsider.com/steve-bannon-right-wing-gladiator-school-booted-from-italian-monastery-2021-9?r=US&IR=T

15) Counterjihad in Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counter-jihad

16) Counterjihad in Powerbase: https://powerbase.info/index.php/Counterjihad_movement

17) “The myth of Eurabia: how a far-right conspiracy theory went mainstream” The Guardian 16.8.2019

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/aug/16/the-myth-of-eurabia-how-a-far-right-conspiracy-theory-went-mainstream

18) “Controversy at London seminar on antisemitism” Islamophobia Watch 6.12.2012

https://www.islamophobiawatch.co.uk/controversy-at-london-seminar-on-antisemitism/

19) “Europe’s Most Provocative Far-right Politician Is Looking to Israel for Answers” Haaretz 11.12.2020

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2020-12-11/ty-article/.premium/europes-most-provocative-far-right-politician-is-looking-to-israel-for-answers/0000017f-db13-df0f-a17f-df536e920000

20) “Why these 5 European Jews are promoting far-right parties” The Times of Israel 31.3.2017

https://www.timesofisrael.com/why-these-5-european-jews-are-promoting-far-right-parties/

21) National Rally in Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Rally

22) “Far-right French presidential hopeful promises ‘reconquest’ at rally” Reuters 6.12.2021

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/far-right-french-presidential-hopeful-promises-reconquest-rally-2021-12-05/

23) “El “patinazo” histórico de Vox: Abascal presume de liderar la Reconquista con un casco de otra época” El Español 7.3.2019

https://www.elespanol.com/cultura/20190307/patinazo-historico-vox-abascal-presume-liderar-reconquista/381462690_0.html

24) “L’abstention et Eric Zemmour, gagnants du premier tour parmi les Français d’Israël” The Times of Israel 13.4.2022

https://fr.timesofisrael.com/labstention-et-eric-zemmour-gagnants-du-premier-tour-parmi-les-francais-disrael/

25) “Over half of French voters in Israel pick far-right Zemmour for president” The New Arab 12.4.2022

https://www.newarab.com/news/over-half-french-voters-israel-pick-far-right-zemmour

26) “Portugal’s abrasive far-right leader tipped for surprise poll gain” Yahoo! News 28.1.2022

https://www.yahoo.com/now/portugals-abrasive-far-leader-tipped-070605617.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmZpLw&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAADh7CZBWwvRE7hsvEEmfv_bLreCvId8ncuTI9vk1MxjcOsI9sFqAv5rf29LF1bvWc6QcX30R8kYmE6tR5syZ5qcRMPLdzDMnf-Mt12AB8b8mt8djdwW3S0ujNmw6tRkFWi33z49EtkBZV1cVp7Fn8kxim7v_x2hGPieHyCxPuQWN

27) “Portugal : les raisons de la percée d’André Ventura, le Zemmour portugais” L’Express 1.2.2022

https://www.lexpress.fr/monde/europe/portugal-les-raisons-de-la-percee-d-andre-ventura-le-zemmour-portugais_2167203.html

28) “Portugal party Chega sets far-right world summit with Brazil’s Bolsonaro, Italy’s Salvini” Yahoo! News 7.4.2023

https://sports.yahoo.com/portugal-party-chega-sets-far-194017141.html

29) “Netanyahu’s flirtation with the far right” Le Monde Diplomatique 12.10.2018

https://mondediplo.com/outsidein/netanyahu-s-flirtation-with-the-far-right

30) “FM Cohen accuses EU foreign policy chief of equating Israeli terror victims with terrorists” The Times of Israel 14.3.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/fm-cohen-accuses-eu-foreign-policy-chief-of-equating-israeli-terror-victims-with-terrorists/

31) “Polish deputy FM: Israel consulted with us on overhauling judiciary” The Times of Israel 27.3.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/polish-deputy-fm-israel-consulted-with-us-on-overhauling-judiciary/

32) “Foreign policy and defence: Italy and Israel deepen strategic ties” Decode 39 13.3.2023

https://decode39.com/6126/foreign-policy-defence-italy-israel-strategic-ties/

33) “Bannon sets his eyes on Spain” European Council on Foreign Relations 24.10.2018

https://ecfr.eu/article/commentary_bannon_sets_his_eyes_on_spain/

34) Information about Rafael Bardají: https://octavianreport.com/contributor/rafael-bardaji/

35) “El ‘Darth Vader’ de Vox se queda sin sitio en el nuevo equipo de Abascal” El Plural 23.2.2020

https://www.elplural.com/politica/espana/darth-vader-vox-queda-sitio-equipo-abascal_233825102

36) “Israel: The Last Option for the West” Middle East Forum 3.11.2022

https://www.meforum.org/63771/israel-the-last-option-for-the-west

UN resolution regarding climate justice

The United Nations has adopted a historic resolution that should make it easier to hold polluting countries legally accountable when they fail to tackle the climate emergency. The resolution was co-sponsored by more than 120 countries, including the UK, but not the USA.

Read the full story on The Guardian:

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/mar/29/united-nations-resolution-climate-emergency-vanuatu

Israel on a collision course

The events in Israel have taken an extraordinary turn after Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right coalition government rose to power at the end of last year. Hundreds of thousands Israelis have protested during 11 Saturdays against Netanyahu’s government’s political decisions and plan to complete judicial overhaul. The government’s plan “will allow the Knesset to override court decisions with the barest majority, preemptively shield laws from judicial oversight altogether, and put the selection of all judges in the hands of coalition politicians”. According to opponents, the plan will “drastically weaken Israel’s democratic character, remove a key element of its checks and balances and leave minorities unprotected”. Violence against the protesters seems to escalate. (1) Some opponents have also said that Netanyahu’s far-right government is planning a “coup” and Israel is in danger of becoming a “dictatorship” or “fascist theocracy” (2, 3, 4, 5, 6). President of Israel Isaac Herzog warned last week that civil war in Israel is “within touching distance” (7).

More moderate and liberal members of Jewish diaspora have been worried about Netanyahu’s government. Large amount of liberal American Jewish leaders and Jewish organizations have opposed the judicial overhaul and other actions of the government. British Labour MP Margaret Hodge wrote, “Netanyahu has brought Israel to a dangerous moment. We, the Jewish diaspora, cannot just stand by.” (8, 9, 10) Over 100 former Israeli diplomats have expressed their concern that Netanyahu’s government will harm foreign ties (11). The USA and UAE have put their planned meetings with Netanyahu on hold (12). President Biden told Netanyahu yesterday that he backs compromise regarding the judicial overhaul. Netanyahu has claimed to Biden and some European leaders that Israel will remain a democracy. (13, 14, 15) At the same time a rift has emerged between Netanyahu’s government and some Western states. According to recent media reports, a senior Israeli government official claimed without any evidence that the mass protests against the government’s judicial overhaul have been partially funded by the Biden administration (16). Netanyahu has also asked all cabinet ministers to avoid traveling to USA and to avoid meeting US government officials, until Biden invites him to the USA (17). Israel has also signaled that European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell is not welcome to Israel after he has criticized Israel’s actions (18). Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen has claimed that the EU is interfering in Israeli domestic affairs, for example after the EU parliament organized a debate titled “Deterioration of democracy in Israel and consequences on the occupied territories.” (19)

References:

1) “As violence against protesters escalates, opposition blames Netanyahu’s ‘incitement’” The Times of Israel 18.3.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/as-violence-against-protesters-escalates-opposition-blames-netanyahus-incitement/

2) “Israel: Netanyahu moves a step closer with ‘judicial coup’ bill in parliament” Middle East Eye 14.3.2023

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-netanyahu-moves-step-closer-judicial-coup-bill-parliament

3) “Hundreds of elite IDF reservists stop showing up for duty over judicial overhaul” The Times of Israel 19.3.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/hundreds-of-elite-idf-reservists-stop-showing-up-for-duty-over-judicial-overhaul/?utm_source=article_hpsidebar&utm_medium=desktop_site&utm_campaign=coalition-to-push-ahead-with-judicial-overhaul-bills-to-assist-netanyahu-and-deri

4) “Here comes the new regime in Israel: Benjamin Netanyahu’s ‘democratic dictatorship’” The Times of Israel 12.1.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/here-comes-the-new-regime-in-israel-benjamin-netanyahus-democratic-dictatorship/

5) “Israel’s former spy chief warns that country could turn into a ‘dictatorship'” Middle East Eye 17.3.2023

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-judicial-reform-spy-chief-shin-bet-dictatorship

6) “Tel Aviv mayor warns Israel heading toward a fascist theocracy” The Times of Israel 2.12.2022

https://www.timesofisrael.com/tel-aviv-mayor-warns-israel-heading-toward-a-fascist-theocracy/

7) “Israeli president warns of civil war as Netanyahu rejects judicial compromise” The Guardian 16.3.2023

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/mar/15/israeli-president-civil-war-is-within-touching-distance

8) “169 liberal US Jewish leaders sign letter expressing concern over Israeli government” The Times of Israel 1.2.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/169-liberal-us-jewish-leaders-sign-letter-expressing-concern-over-israeli-government/

9) “In highly unusual move, major US Jewish group decries proposed judicial overhaul” The Times of Israel 21.2.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-break-from-policy-major-us-jewish-group-decries-proposed-judicial-overhaul/?utm_source=article_hpsidebar&utm_medium=desktop_site&utm_campaign=yesh-atid-mulling-plan-for-all-opposition-mks-to-resign-to-protest-judicial-overhaul

10) “Netanyahu has brought Israel to a dangerous moment. We, the Jewish diaspora, cannot just stand by” The Guardian 3.3.2023

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/mar/03/benjamin-netanyahu-israel-jewish-diaspora-palestinians

11) “Over 100 ex-Israel diplomats fear Netanyahu gov’t will harm foreign ties” Middle East Monitor 30.12.2022

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20221230-over-100-ex-israel-diplomats-fear-netanyahu-govt-will-harm-foreign-ties/

12) “Invites for Netanyahu to visit US, UAE on hold as discomfort with government grows” The Times of Israel 16.2.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/invites-for-netanyahu-to-visit-us-uae-on-hold-as-discomfort-with-government-grows/

13) “Israel: Biden tells Netanyahu he backs compromise on judicial overhaul” Middle East Eye 19.3.2023

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-biden-netanyahu-compromise-judicial-overhaul

14) “Macron warns Netanyahu over judicial overhaul, settlements” The Times of Israel 3.2.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/macron-warns-netanyahu-over-planned-overhaul-of-israeli-judicial-system/

15) “On Berlin visit, Netanyahu denies he’s working to curtail independence of judiciary” The Times of Israel 16.3.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-berlin-netanyahu-tells-scholz-israel-is-and-will-remain-a-liberal-democracy/

16) “Source close to Netanyahu accuses US of funding rallies against judicial overhaul” The Times of Israel 12.3.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/source-close-to-netanyahu-accuses-us-of-funding-rallies-against-judicial-overhaul/

17) “Netanyahu said to bar ministers from meeting US officials until Biden invites him” The Times of Israel 15.3.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-said-to-bar-ministers-from-meeting-us-officials-until-biden-invites-him/

18) “Israel signals EU foreign policy chief unwelcome in Israel” The Times of Israel 16.3.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-signals-eu-foreign-policy-chief-unwelcome-in-israel/

19) “EU foreign policy head defends parliamentary debate on Israel as tough love” The Times of Israel 15.3.2023

https://www.timesofisrael.com/eu-foreign-policy-head-defends-parliamentary-debate-on-israel-as-tough-love/