After a long consultation, the European Union decided this is the time of women. It is necessary a bit of time to formalize and then finalize the appointment, however, at the moment, it seems almost certain that next October 31st, Christine Lagarde (at the European Central Bank), Ursula von der Leyen (at the European Commission), Josep Borrell (as High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy), will be the new heads of the European institutions.
Politics
For the past weeks, most critics and some supporters have accused Emmanuel Macron of being absent from the current “crisis”. The French railways SNCF and Paris Metro RATP have been on strike for 30 days over a pension reform and Macron has barely addressed the situation.
In recent times, the Balkan region has recorded important news concerning the international relations. In fact, the western Balkans’ states are achieving substantial progress: Montenegro has become the 29th member of NATO; The Republic of North Macedonia ended a years-long dispute with Greece over its official name and it is working towards the full membership in NATO; Peace talks on the future of Kosovo are moving ahead. Overall, tensions in the Balkans are decreasing.
Until now, the U.S. foreign policy has been characterized by tension. But given the anxiety about President Donald Trump and what his administration might do – pull out of NATO, start a war with Iran or North Korea – it was something to be grateful for.
Vladimir Putin – the modern Tsar of Russia– is serving as President of Russia since 2012, previously holding the position from 2000 until 2008. In between his presidential terms, he was also the Prime Minister of Russia under his close associate Dmitry Medvedev (Putin was barred from a third consecutive term by the Constitution). However, Vladimir Putin gained 76% of the March 2018 presidential vote and was re-elected for a six-year term that will end in 2024.
On 24 July, Sir Boris Johnson became the new Prime Minister of United Kingdom, after the disappointing mandate of his party colleague Theresa May.
President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he is planning to sign a tentative trade agreement with China in Washington on January 15