When the U.S. president declared he would withdraw his country from the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, he triggered a worldwide discussion on the issue. For Europe it was a “major disappointment,” while similar assessments came from the U.N. secretary general, China, India and others.
Brussels, the capital of the European Union, has been under the spotlight last week because of the NATO Heads of State meeting.
Donald Trump’s first visit abroad is to Saudi Arabia in the Middle East. This will be followed by Israel and the Palestinian territories. Then, he will go to the Vatican and onward to Brussels to meet NATO leaders
France has a new president. Emmanuel Macron, the youngest leader of the country since Napoleon, is now in office after being sworn in with a solemn ceremony at the Elysee Palace on Sunday. Now people in France, Europe and elsewhere in the world are wondering: Will he succeed or will he not?
After two important visits to India and Russia, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s planned destinations for next week are China on May 14-15 and the United States on May 16-17. Then he will visit Brussels to attend a NATO summit. In Brussels, a high-level meeting with the European Union is also likely.
High-level visits play an important role in international relations. When a head of state or a prime minister pays an official visit to a country, it is believed to be a significant facilitator for giving new momentum to bilateral relations
2017 will probably be remembered as the “year of change” in the history of European politics.
When U.S. President Donald Trump instructed the U.S. military to strike Syria because of its reported use of chemical weapons, Chinese President Xi Jinping was on an official visit to the U.S. Some even suggest that the two presidents were at dinner, sitting next to one another, as the U.S. tomahawks were pounding the Al-Shayrat airbase in Homs.
Last week’s developments in the Syrian quagmire raised a very important question. Is the international community finally coming to terms with the view that a new political - and perhaps military - strategy is needed to plant the roots for lasting peace in Syria?
