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In The News

Elon Musk, AI And Holocaust Denialism — A Stress Test For Europe

An investigation has been opened into Grok, Elon Musk’s generative AI, after it gave Holocaust-denying answers. The problem comes from the reference data it uses and from differences between Europe and the United States. This raises questions about digital regulation at a time when Europe wants to ease the few rules that currently exist.

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Geopolitics In The News

Charlie Kirk Is Also A Rallying Cry For The Far Right Abroad

The assassination of Trump supporter Charlie Kirk has provoked strong reactions from the far-right internationally, as the culture war appears to accelerate around the world.

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Future Ideas In The News Society

The Machiavellian Science Of Immortality: Exposing Tech Billionaires’ Transhumanist Fantasies

Silicon Valley’s self-anointed philosophers promise digital immortality and Kantian rigor, yet their transhumanist ambitions reveal a darker inheritance: an evolutionary game of invisible rivalry. True transcendence won’t come from tweaking biology, but from dismantling the self-interest that entrenches inequality.

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In The News

Russia Launches “Massive” Airstrikes On Ukraine, Trump & Musk Trade Insults, Eid Mubarak

👋 Bonghjornu!* Welcome to Friday, where Russia launches massive missile and drone attacks on Ukraine, a U.S.-backed aid group closes all its distribution sites in Gaza and our daily quiz question is about a mission not-so-impossible for Tom Cruise. Meanwhile, Juan Carlos Ortiz for Colombian daily El Espectador looks at the dangers lurking behind the […]

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Economy Eyes on the U.S. Geopolitics In The News Israel-Palestine War Russia-Ukraine War

Gaza Aid Sites Close, U.S. Doubles Steel Tariffs, Mexico City Floods

👋 Saluton!* Welcome to Wednesday, where Trump doubles steel and aluminium tariffs, South Korea’s new president is sworn in and our quiz question takes you to one of Amsterdam’s iconic museums. Meanwhile, for Daraj, Iman Adel tells us the story of Laila Soueif, the mother of a jailed British-Egyptian activist who has been on a […]

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Eyes on the U.S.

Clash Of Egos? Competing Ideas? Bad Numbers? Unpacking The Collapse Of The Trump-Musk Duo

The unlikely alliance between Donald Trump and Elon Musk didn’t make it past the 100-day mark of the new presidency. What’s really to blame?

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Eyes on the U.S. Geopolitics Society

Musk Says He Restored USAID For Ebola Prevention In Uganda — But There’s No Money In Sight

Elon Musk, an unelected US official leading budget cuts, claims funding to contain Uganda’s Ebola outbreak “accidentally” ended temporarily. Ugandan officials say the US still offers support, but health workers argue that US help is gone.

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Economy Eyes on the U.S. special series Trump And The World

Trump’s Tariffs: 5 Questions To Know About An Auto Industry Thrown Into Upheaval

The car industry is in shock, with the announcement from Washington of 25% tariffs on auto imports to the United States. Here’s what every car owner and business needs to know about how this crucial industry will be affected around the world.

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Eyes on the U.S. Ideas Society

Musk’s Grok AI Tool Slams Indian Leaders — Will Modi React?

Elon Musk’s AI tool, Grok, has started challenging India’s political elite, calling out Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, and more. But will the government react to the irreverential bot?

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Geopolitics

A DOGE Life: An Old Idea Is Driving Trump’s Push To Privatize U.S. Government

Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s shrinking of the federal government through privatization is not just about cutting costs — it risks eroding democracy and widening inequalities.

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Future Geopolitics

How The Trump-Tech Alliance Is Turning Its Fire On A Brazilian Judge

Trump’s media company Truth Social and the far-right video platform Rumble have joined forces in a U.S. lawsuit against a Brazilian judge. The case, packed with conspiracy theories and legal acrobatics, is less about law and more about politics, turning the American courts into a stage for Bolsonaro’s allies and Trump’s broader war on institutions.

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Future Russia-Ukraine War

Signal To Ukraine? Inside Europe’s Rush For A Starlink Alternative

Ukraine needs satellite internet defense capabilities like that provided by Starlink. But do they really want to be dependent on Elon Musk? The good news is that Europe is not completely empty-handed. But time is of the essence.

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Geopolitics special series Trump And The World

Trump’s MAGA And Modi’s MIGA: United In Their War On Diversity And Inclusion

It is not surprising that many Hindutva groups in the U.S. support Trump’s policies. These align well with their own anti-migrant and anti-reservation stance back home.

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Geopolitics Russia-Ukraine War

How Trump’s Attack Is Uniting Ukraine Around Zelensky — Like Putin Did Three Years Ago

Even his critics inside Ukraine are uniting behind Volodymyr Zelensky for standing up to U.S. President Trump and Vice President Vance to defend their nation’s interests.

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Geopolitics

Shadows Of The Weimar Republic: Why We Should Fear A Weak Germany

The German elections showed rising support for the far-right AfD, and increased dissatisfaction running rampant in German society, Polish columnist Bartosz T. Wielinski asks whether this runs the risk of history of the early 20th century repeating.

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Economy Green

Tesla Sales Sink In Europe — And It’s Not Just A Backlash Against Elon Musk

Demand for the U.S. automaker’s vehicles is waning, with sales of new Tesla cars almost halving in Europe in January 2025. While this is partly due to its CEO Elon Musk’s cahooting with President Donald Trump, there are also other factors at play.

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Eyes on the U.S. Geopolitics

Viva American Democracy! A Foreign Take On Why The “Trump Interlude” Will Pass

The daily spectacle of Donald Trump and his minions striking at institutions and backstabbing allies may be depressing, but the United States is more than that. Once the fever subsides, that vibrant, inclusive country will recall that greatness does not rest on meanness, thuggery or wealth.

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Eyes on the U.S. Geopolitics

The Trump Recipe: A New McCarthyism For Americans, Chaos For The World

One month after his return to the White House, Donald Trump’s second term is proving far more ideological, imperial and aggressive than the first, awakening memories of the 1950s communist witch hunt at home and shaking relations with European allies abroad.

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Geopolitics Russia-Ukraine War

Munich 1938-2025: Trump’s Plan For Ukraine Is A Historic Act Of Appeasement

In the span of just a few hours last week, Donald Trump turned Putin’s Russia from a pariah state to a partner. For French political analyst Dominique Moïsi, the “useful idiot” role that Trump is playing does however raise a fundamental question for Europe about its own global autonomy in the future.

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Food / Travel

Photos Of The Week: Munich Attack, Tel Aviv Protest, Barcelona Towers

With striking shots from Germany, Thailand, the U.S., Japan and more.

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Economy Green

Why We’re Falling Out Of Love With Tesla — And It’s Not Just About Elon Musk

The U.S. automaker is struggling with a severe drop in sales. This is, of course, partly due to its CEO Elon Musk’s cahooting with President Donald Trump. But there is something else going on.

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Geopolitics Society

“I’m Still Here” — Brazil’s Oscar Contender Is A Timely Portrait Of The Evils Of Dictatorship

A personal journey through memory, loss, and resilience — reflecting on Eunice Facciolla Paiva’s quiet strength, Marcelo Paiva’s storytelling, and the haunting echoes of dictatorship in today’s world. It’s a rare Oscars Best Picture nominee from Brazil.

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Economy Eyes on the U.S. special series Trump And The World

With New Tariffs, Why Trump Is Hitting Canada And Mexico Harder Than China

The American president had promised tariffs of at least 60% on all Chinese products. For now, it will be only 10%. Washington has other issues to negotiate with Beijing. Hitting old allies harder is part of a much different approach.

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Geopolitics Migrant Lives

“We’re Different” — Do Indian Immigrants Really Have A Place In Trump’s America?

The Indian middle class has a stake in the West’s future and must pick a side in its culture wars. The BJP should catch-up on MAGA’s long-term implications.

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Future

U.S. Asteroid Defense May Be Weakened By Musk’s Budget-Slashing

Funding for planetary defense has long had strong bipartisan support both inside and outside of U.S. Congress. But with the change of administration, could it be under threat?

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Food / Travel Geopolitics

Photos Of The Week: Freed Hostages, Trump Inauguration, LGBTQ+ Joy In Thailand

Among the images, are photos from Thailand, Gaza, Turkey, Japan — among other places.

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Eyes on the U.S. Ideas special series Trump And The World

Elon Musk’s Nazi Salute And The Grim Reality Of Attention Politics

To the German author, watching Elon Musk stretching his right arm out at a Trump political rally could mean only one thing. The Neo-Nazis agree. But what is the billionaire’s real game? A view from Die Zeit on the Hitler Salute outrage.

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Economy Eyes on the U.S. Geopolitics special series Trump And The World

Why Trump Is So Popular In China — And With The Chinese Diaspora

Donald Trump’s reelection has sent shockwaves through much of the world. Yet, surprisingly, many overseas Chinese — and even citizens within China — have openly celebrated his comeback. How does such admiration align with his openly anti-China rhetoric?

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Eyes on the U.S. Geopolitics special series Trump And The World

What A U.S. Tech Oligarchy Means For The Rest Of The World

In his final address to the nation, just days before his departure, U.S. President Joe Biden warned against the emergence of a “tech-industrial complex” that threatens democracy; a charge against tech barons, including Elon Musk or Mark Zuckerberg, who have pledged allegiance to incoming President Donald Trump.

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Eyes on the U.S. Geopolitics special series Trump And The World

To Europe, Trump’s America Looks As Threatening As Putin’s Russia

Will America become revisionist, unilateralist and expansionist under Donald Trump’s second term? In the early 1970s, French philosopher Raymond Aron spoke of the United States as an “imperial republic,” Now, in 2025, there is potentially much less “republic,” and much more “imperialism.”

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Geopolitics Ideas

Alice Weidel, The Moderate? Why Even Elon Musk Shouldn’t Trust Germany’s AfD Leader

Elon Musk is hosting Alice Weidel in an interview on X, having tried to convince the American tech billionaire she’s not an extremist. But who is Weidel, really? She’s described the Germans as “slaves” of the U.S. and quotes the infamous text of a nationalist philosopher that is a dog-whistle for the far right in Germany.

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Geopolitics

Cecilia Sala’s Liberation Is A Huge Win For Meloni — With A Wink From Trump

The release of journalist Cecilia Sala from Iranian prison after 21 days is a triumph of diplomacy and urgency, orchestrated by the Italian Prime Minister herself. Meloni used an urgent meeting with Donald Trump to help unlock the negotiations.

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Future Geopolitics

Why Elon Musk Is Trying To Conquer Europe, From The Far Right

Emmanuel Macron, Keir Starmer, and Olaf Scholz have all responded in the past few days to Elon Musk statements siding with Europe’s far right. Among top European leaders, U.S. tech billionaire seems to only have eyes for Italy’s Giorgia Meloni.

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Geopolitics Ideas

A Sideways 2025 Forecast: War, Peace And The “Noise” Theory Of Geopolitics

The previous world order, based on the domination of a few superpowers, has been turned upside down in 2024. Will this be the year of explosions, or the year of reactions? French political theorist Jacques Attali explains the theory of order through noise.

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Economy Eyes on the U.S. Geopolitics

State Efficiency? What Elon Musk And Trump Don’t Understand About Government Spending

U.S. President-elect Trump has tasked billionaire businessman Elon Musk with making the government cost-efficient. That may be an admirable objective, but the ideology driving it is wrong-headed… and dangerous.

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Economy Eyes on the U.S. Future

Trump’s Victory Marks New Dawn For Crypto — And A Global Spike In Corruption

With a pro-crypto agenda and substantial backing from industry investors, Donald Trump’s presidency is poised to reshape the landscape of digital currencies, promising a future where Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies thrive under favorable regulations and government support.

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Economy Eyes on the U.S. Future special series Trump And The World

How Trump’s Return Could Turn Into A Huge Opportunity For European Tech

The United States seeks to strengthen its competitive edge over the European Union through broad deregulation. While this poses a genuine risk, it also presents Europe with a chance to step up and fill a void, globally.

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Eyes on the U.S. Future Geopolitics special series Trump And The World

Trump, Musk And The New Oligarchy Of Tech-Driven Political Power

With the announcement that Elon Musk will become part of Donald Trump’s administration, the tech billionaire’s influence on the U.S. will keep on growing. From pouring hundreds of millions into Trump’s campaign to bending social media narratives, Musk’s actions underscore the ease with which the techno-oligarchy can buy political sway, writes Natalia Viana of Brazil’s leading investigative platform Agência Pública.

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Eyes on the U.S. Geopolitics

Hubris Of Victory, Everywhere Musk: Reading Tea Leaves On Trump II

The first appointments of Donald Trump’s upcoming administration signal a firm stance on divisive issues like immigration, but the influence of figures like Elon Musk remains uncertain. An analysis of early steps and their implications.

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Eyes on the U.S. Ideas Society Women Worldwide

Revenge Of The Bros? How Trump’s Win Emboldens Young Men, Subverts #MeToo

Donald Trump set out to win over young, disengaged heterosexual men as a core constituency. And he succeeded. As he embarks on a second mandate, German journalist Alice Hasters asks what it means for the #MeToo movement.

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