The fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December 2024 marked a turning point in Syria’s recent history, opening a phase characterized by deep uncertainty but also by the possibility of change. In this new context, Abu Mohammad al-Julani, now known as Ahmed al-Sharaa, has emerged as a central figure in the country’s transitional process. His trajectory reflects a significant evolution, not only on a personal level but also within the broader Syrian political landscape, marked by a shift from an insurgent approach to a still-evolving governance structure. Understanding al-Sharaa’s current role therefore requires retracing the path he followed to consolidate his power during the Syrian war. In this process, al-Sharaa not only strengthened his authority but also gradually transformed the nature of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the organization he leads. ...

In the same way that the United Nations, back in 1947-48, had proposed making Jerusalem an ‘international city’, many voices, over much of the world and over many decades, have spoken out in favour of ‘internationalising’ the Amazon, the largest expanse of primary forest on the planet. For some, the Amazon rainforest, a source of water and oxygen and an outstanding reservoir of biodiversity, should be seen as a global public good, belonging to us all. It is an idea somewhat reminiscent of the Pachamama or ‘Mother Earth’ concept in Andean culture. ...

In March 2023, the United Nations Water Conference brought together some 10,000 representatives of UN member states, NGOs and businesses in New York, and called for the appointment of a UN Special Envoy on Water* to address the urgent need to ensure greater respect for the human right to this essential resource. This imperative is underpinned by the UN General Assembly resolution adopted on 28 July 2010, recognizing “the right to safe and clean drinking water and sanitation as a human right that is essential for the full enjoyment of life and all human rights”. Indeed, water, one of the Earth’s natural resources, is not just another commodity, and given its vital importance to humankind, it is only fitting that it should be considered a global public good, a common good. ...

European governments—and the media that follow their lead—continue to react to Donald Trump’s “National Security Strategy” as if the current president had invented Washington’s hostility toward any genuine European unity, whereas he has merely made it provocatively explicit, in well-tested alignment with Moscow. In doing so, the President of the United States provides Europeans with a valuable opportunity to define and focus the urgent correction of the structure and direction of the European Union, toward its independence —not merely “autonomy”— in strategic terms, restoring to its peoples the only sovereignty possible. A further paradox is that Giorgia Meloni —the supposed sovereigntist and former fascist who, as Prime Minister of the Italian Republic, allows herself to be kissed on the head by Joe Biden, only then to become the factotum (certainly not a courtier) of Donald Trump— reminds our homegrown pseudo-Europeanists that there exists another Europe beyond the current EU: that of Ventotene. It will not happen now, but that must be the perspective. ...

Now that the White House is occupied by a figure whom calling “questionable” would be an understatement, many are beginning to recognize a geopolitical fact that has eluded them for more than thirty years: European and American interests do not coincide. In reality, they never have. Just think of the underlying reasons for the American Revolution, through which the thirteen colonies emancipated themselves from the English motherland in 1776—exactly two hundred and fifty years ago. “No taxation without representation” was the slogan. And to express their indignation, they threw a shipment of tea—the pride and glory of the British crown—into the sea. The ultra-conservative Tea Party movement, from which Secretary of State Marco Rubio emerges today, takes its name from this episode. ...

Today the whole world is discovering Pedro Sánchez, the Spanish socialist leader who heads a left-wing coalition government. His “no to war” in Iran resonates as a powerful warning signal in the face of the deadly danger threatening the system of collective security established in 1945. The United Nations—whose true meaning was an “organization of nations united against fascism”—was meant to prevent any new war. This “no” is also a resounding rejection of Trumpism. Pedro Sánchez is the only European head of government to oppose head-on the war sought by Donald Trump, by refusing to allow the United States Air Force to use American bases located in Andalusia. By contrast, France and United Kingdom have granted the U.S. military access to their bases as American aircraft methodically bomb Iran, in disregard of international law. This refusal is all the more striking given that Trump’s war initiative appears wholly reckless: a war against a country with a millennia-old history could lead the world toward general chaos. ...