Expelling diplomats is one of the oldest and most conspicuous ways for states to express their displeasure. The recent diplomatic dispute between Hungary and Russia made headlines in Budapest, but several parts of Africa have witnessed far more serious diplomatic confrontations throughout 2026.
If Viktor Orbán were to become UN Secretary-General, would it be a diplomatic triumph for Hungary—or the ultimate reward for years of serving other powers’ interests at the expense of his own country?
Europe is being urged to “reclaim its sovereignty” by weakening the institutions that allow it to act collectively. As foreign governments, political mavericks and actors with lunatic agendas exploit its divisions, the continent remains frighteningly dependent on outside suppliers for its energy and digital infrastructure. This promised return to sovereignty could leave Europeans with even less control over their own future.
The building located at 19 Nashashibi Street in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem has served Great Britain’s interests for nearly two centuries. The Consulate General, housed in this British-owned property, oversaw London’s relations with Palestinians in Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza (while also providing consular services) until very recently. Israel ordered the closure of the British Consulate General after London banned imports originating from illegal Israeli settlements.
Two days after Marco Rubio invoked European values against the backdrop of the Acropolis, a U.S.–Russian diesel agreement presented Europe with a very different reality. Beyond the immediate consequences for Ukraine, the episode raises a broader question about Europe’s economic vulnerability, strategic autonomy and its ability to deal with Russia from a position of strength.
Donald Trump, the president of the United States, who, from certain angle seems to work to dismantle the EU—and who, on the two most critical issues of his presidency to date, China and the Middle East, has done the exact opposite of what he promised, and what was expected, thereby setting the stage for profound political changes in the U.S.—met with Xi Jinping. In the United States. On home turf.
The World’s Largest Sporting Event Arrives at a Critical Historical Moment.
The FIFA World Cup has always been more than football. It is one of the very few events capable of capturing the attention of billions of people simultaneously, transcending borders, languages, religions, and political systems. Yet the 2026 FIFA World Cup, hosted jointly by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, may prove to be significant for reasons that extend far beyond sport.
For more than three decades, Moldova has stood somewhere between geography and geopolitics, between a Soviet inheritance and a European ambition. Today, as Chişinău edges closer to the European Union, the country’s journey offers a revealing test case for whether the EU is truly prepared politically, institutionally, and economically to absorb new members in an era defined by war, shifting power balances, and internal fragmentation.
Few countries illustrate Europe’s fractured geopolitical landscape as vividly as Moldova. A nation of under three million people, it has carried the heavy weight of contested histories, overlapping identities, and unresolved conflicts for more than a century. Today, Moldova again finds itself at a moment of profound transformation—caught between war on its border, competing political narratives at home, and the gravitational pull of the European Union.
In the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Trade (Külgazdasági és Külügyminisztérium) in Hungary there operates a State Secretariat for the Aid of Persecuted Christians and for the Hungary Helps Program.¹ According to official descriptions, no other country in the world has a state or diplomatic body with this exact name or mandate.² The budget line for this Secretariat appears in the Ministry’s chapter of the state budget under the title “Hungary Helps Program” (HHP) and at the sub-heading of that name.³ For the current year, the appropriation is approximately HUF 5.6 billion.⁴
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