To neutralise Islamic State terrorists is a priority

It is urgent to pull together an international response to the Islamic State terrorists. This is no time for further hesitation, for soul-searching strategies, for non-critical political considerations.

The key move at this stage is to form a coalition of like-minded states – that excludes Assad´s government and Iran – and agree on what needs to be done to neutralise the threat. Among other things, it is important to share intelligence on key IS leaders, on convoys and deployments, on depots, and make a much greater use of offensive drones. To contain and destroy should be the key objectives. 

On trust

The Bled Strategic Forum is taking place today and tomorrow. In Bled, of course, Slovenia. This is a new kid on the block of international strategic meetings but looks promising. The Slovenian government invests a lot on it. And it´s trying to make it the key annual event of the kind in the Balkans. It is also making use of it to promote Slovenia as a crossroads in that part of Europe, for politics and business.

This year´s event puts a lot of emphasis on trust. Trust is critical for good leadership. And it is rapidly disappearing from politics, commerce and social relations. That´s a major loss, and I agree with the proposition. No trust, no progress. No trust, no social cohesion.

The debate of matters like this one is important. They look soft but they are at the core of a better world. 

The UK is getting close to a very dangerous European crossroads.

Donald Tusk, who has just been appointed as the next President of the European Council, said at the end of the day that he cannot imagine the UE without the UK being a member. This is a wise statement. The UK´s place and future is within the Union. However, what we see more and more, in the UK, is that the populism against Europe is getting stronger and stronger. The chances of a no-vote that would force the UK to leave the EU are real. If that happens then both the UK and Europe would have lost. But that´s the nature of politics. One starts a process and then the process becomes a major avalanche. I am afraid that´s the case with the British referendum on the EU membership.

Unless Labour wins the next round of elections…but even in that case, once the dice are thrown it will be very difficult to stop the game or to nullify the outcome. 

End of summer vacations

End of August, end of summer holidays. This summer has been however a very busy one. And as we get into full gear in September, we will see an international scene pretty crowded by a number of key issues. The fragility of the politics has an obvious impact on the economy and the international business climate. But I have to say that surprisingly there is some kind of euphoria on the international financial front. A bit as if the politics and the financial matters were happening in two different worlds. And they are, in many ways. Russia and Ukraine, Syria, Iraq and ISIS, Libya and Egypt, the Ebola crisis, all that looks like crisis in distant planets. Big financial funds and the masters of global business transactions have been able somehow to isolate those crises and they believe the risk of contagion is today lower. But we forget that planets can also get into each other´s trajectory and crash. Prudence is then the right approach as we get into the new season.

Merkel and Eastern Europe: let the lady try her best

Angela Merkel is investing a lot in her country relations with Russia. Germany has a lot of interests in Russia and does not want the tensions between EU and Moscow to get worse. They are already pretty bad, that´s true. But any further deterioration would mean not only that the sanctions regime would continue to bite but also new measures. They would certainly penalise the Russians. They would also bring quite a bit of pain to the EU economies, particularly to the German one. In the circumstances, the German interests – an easing of the tensions on matters related to Ukraine – coincide with the European ones. It is therefore good news to see Merkel trying to find a solution. She has the authority, the resources, the power, and also very good access to Putin´s ears. Let´s hope there will be some progress in the very near future. 

Incompetence is the shortest road to leadership

Incompetent people often have the necessary arrogance that pushes them to leadership positions. And then we become more and more led by people that in normal circumstances should not be in power. 

Qatar should be told to keep away from ISIS

The role and the goals of Qatar in Middle East and also in Africa need to be carefully scrutinised. The Qatari authorities were very much behind the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. They invested billions to support the government of former president Mohamed Morsi. They have been very much behind Hamas in Gaza. And now there are questions being raised about their alleged assistance to the terrorist group ISIS.

In many ways, one has to be clear. Qatar should be challenged. And it is also important to underline that any regime that supports ISIS is an accomplice to a criminal organisation of dark-age fanatics. ISIS has no place in the modern world. And no civilised state should think that funding ISIS will serve its own national interests.

I am for a tough and clear diplomacy in this type of situations. 

Common sense is good leadership

Holiday time is no time for comments on international affairs. But it is a time to be optimistic about the common sense of key international leaders. It is not difficult to rock the boat. But it is true leadership to keep the steering straight, clear of the rocks and the sand banks. Common sense is a great leadership quality. Not always appreciated, as media and people like it when there is a big splash, but the truth of the matter is that the current balance in international affairs is good for peace and prosperity in many of our countries. 

Summer break, please do not disturb, we are Europeans

I am now at Vilamoura village in the middle of Algarve, Portugal. This is traditionally a week when the European affairs stop and people just want to think about the beach, the sun and the drinks. But this year summer has been different, with too many things going on in the international arena. People in Iraq, Libya, Liberia, Ukraine and some other hot spots should be told that Europeans do not like to be disturbed by dramatic events in August. Those people who ignore it and get into crisis do it at their own risk. The Europeans are now at the beach…

Brighter days

A sunny day gives a lot of colour to one´s environment.