A debate on the US-influence, Covid-19, restricted individual freedoms and the question how the EU should define its role.

Conversations on the occasion of Germany’s EU Council Presidency. A dossier by our Brussels office. On 1 July 2020, Germany assumes the Presidency of the Council of the European Union for six months. Given the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Presidency will face major challenges. The dossier covers Green proposals and initiatives regarding the European Green Deal, the future of the EU and the role of the EU in the world.

The way the Covid-19 pandemic has been dealt with has raised many questions for the future of the European project. How have the EU institutions and Member States managed the crisis so far? What challenges will coincide with the German EU Council Presidency in terms of crisis management and the future of the EU?

The German government must fight for a Real Green Deal for Europe that combines economy and ecology and sets the course for a socio-ecological market economy. Dr. Ellen Ueberschär describes what that could look like.

Amidst the Covid-19 crisis in Egypt, a recent chain of events reveals the systemic violence that the regime of President al-Sisi exerts. To address those developments, what’s behind them and how international actors might respond to them, we are speaking with Amr Magdi, Middle East researcher at Human Rights Watch.

The murder of George Floyd amidst of a global pandemic has triggered a global conversation among the Black diaspora and its progressive allies. In the editorial for our #BlackLivesMatter focus, award-winning journalist Gary Younge analyses the current debates in the U.S. and in Europe.

While restrictions against the pandemic are gradually being lifted throughout Europe, the situation in Armenia is worsening. The capacities of hospitals are exhausted. Armenia is in a de facto state of emergency as a result of the pandemic, which could turn into a political crisis. Our colleague Eviya Hovhannisyan from Yerevan reports the current developments in the interview.

Europe could still emerge from the pandemic crisis sustainably positioned and strengthened, but only if the Franco-German tandem works. The plans for a reconstruction fund of 500 billion euros mark a turnaround in the right direction.