Giuseppe Sacco In the history of the Catholic Church, there have been, to date, 266 Pontiffs. Of these, 217 – four out of five – were born in what is now the Italian Republic. In particular, all the Popes during the 455 years between the pontificate of Adrian VI (1522–1523), originally from the Netherlands, and that of the Polish John Paul II (1978–2005), were Italian. But how can this extraordinary predominance be explained in the most universal institution in human history? ...

Chloé Maurel Since the early 2020s, artificial intelligence (AI) has become a major issue in global governance, raising economic, environmental, and ethical challenges. The rapid advances of machine learning systems - particularly generative models and autonomous systems - has given rise to new political, economic, and societal risks: manipulation of information, automation of warfare, mass surveillance, the amplification of technological inequalities, and systemic risks linked to advanced systems. An energy-intensive technology ...

Philippe Ward Ten years after the 2016 referendum and more than five years after leaving the single market, the United Kingdom resembles neither the Global Britain promised by Brexit enthusiasts nor the wasteland predicted by its most radical opponents. In April 2026, the country finds itself in a phase of uneasy normalization: a pragmatic yet difficult realignment with the European bloc, against a backdrop of economic slowdown and political fragmentation. ...

As expected, just one hour before the deadline set by Donald Trump to “unleash Hell,” the United States announced a new trucewith Iran. An event that was easy to foresee, given the international contextin which a highly significant role is played by a clownish president whose truevocation is that of a speculator capable of extracting personal profit fromabrupt stock market fluctuations. Fluctuations that are themselves easy toanticipate, since he can provoke them directly by virtue of the political roleto which Americans have unwisely elected him. ...

Contrary to the hopes of those who spreading rumors about his possible resignation, Pope Francis died in action. The way one could expect from a man such as he was, a fighter steadfast in his convictions in defense of the common good, of justice, and of the poorest on earth, he feared nothing and no one. Never afraid of expressing his political views – sharp and lapidarily succinct, as in the case of “NATO barking at Russia” – he was endowed with clear-sightedness that professional historians or literary scholars have rarely been able to match. So that it is no coincidence that the Palestinian people—victims of the most brutal and deliberate massacre of this century—have always considered him a faithful friend, whose evening phone calls to the catholic Parish in Gaza were nothing less than an unceasing appeal to humanity to put an end to the ongoing martyrdom. Such as was his latest walkabout. ...

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. ...