Hello, everyone. Today at WPR, we’re covering the emerging trilateral partnership between Israel, Greece and Cyprus and what it means for the region; and a ranking of U.S. presidents on foreign policy. | But first, here’s our take on today’s top story: |  | U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Munich, Feb. 13, 2026 (AP photo/Alex Brandon, Pool). |
| As this year’s Munich Security Conference gets underway, one speech more than any other hangs over the annual gathering of defense policymakers, analysts and businesspeople: U.S. Vice President JD Vance’s address to the event in 2025. | Some who were in the room remember it almost like a surprise attack. Vance accused the leaders in the room of failing to uphold democratic values and censoring their political opponents while “opening the floodgates” to millions of “unvetted immigrants.” What would it take, Vance asked, for Europe to realize that it was time to “take our shared civilization in a new direction?” | Since then, President Donald Trump’s administration has taken many opportunities to show just what it means by this “new direction.” It has codified its antipathy toward Europe in its National Security Strategy, hosted leaders of the extreme far-right Alternative for Germany party at the White House, and threatened to forcibly annex Greenland. | The response from Europe has, in typical European fashion, been haphazard and disjointed. Many countries are taking steps to boost their defense capabilities—fueled in part, ironically, by demands from the U.S. for greater alliance burden-sharing—but fiscal and political constraints are producing a wide disparity in results. On the trade and investment front, European leaders are seeking new opportunities with China, though concerns over national security and human rights persist. And in a speech Friday in Munich, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said his government had begun confidential negotiations with France about a European nuclear deterrent. | What does all of this amount to? A degree of “derisking,” perhaps, but not enough for Europe to really strike out on its own. Merz acknowledged as much in his speech when he said the U.S. and Europe should “repair and revive trans-Atlantic trust together,” framing a continued partnership as continuing to be in U.S. national interests. After all, “In the era of great-power rivalry, even the United States will not be powerful enough to go it alone,” he said. | Indeed, the marriage may be an unhappy one, but in many senses, both the U.S. and Europe still need each other. One example is the network of U.S. military bases in Europe, which, as WPR’s Ulrike Franke wrote last month, are “critical for the global reach of America’s military and its ability to carry out operations beyond its homeland.” As much as Trump and his aides castigate Europe for freeriding on Washington’s largesse, the reality is that U.S. bases on the continent “are not solely or even primarily there for Europe’s defense, but rather because the U.S. needs them to project power beyond Europe,” Ulrike added. | Even the Trump administration realizes this, which may be why it sent a “good cop”—Secretary of State Marco Rubio—to this year’s Munich Secretary Conference instead of Vance. If Munich in 2025 was the scene of a painful fight, 2026 may provide the setting for some much-needed couples therapy. |
|
| | Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos struck an optimistic tone at a meeting Wednesday in Ankara, with Erdogan noting the disputes between the two countries are “complex” but “not insurmountable.” Yet despite the warm smiles and handshakes, a range of disputes continues to cast a shadow over regional relations in the Eastern Mediterranean. One of the sources of unease for Turkey is the recent flurry of defense agreements that Greece has signed with Israel and the Republic of Cyprus, each of which have their own frictions with Ankara. Jonathan Gorvett reports on what this emerging alignment means for the region. | | | Presidents Day weekend is an opportune time to reflect on the role of the U.S. presidency and how it has evolved over time, as well as to take note of the accomplishments and failures of the people—so far all men—who have held the office. As such, that also makes it an opportune time for one of the most entertaining and argumentative pastimes of anyone who has ever taken an interest in America’s highest elected office: ranking the presidents. Political scientists and historians regularly offer their lists of best and worst presidents, with foreign policy being a favorite area to judge. WPR columnist Paul Poast weighs in on one of Washington’s favorite parlor games. | | | U.S.: President Trump on Thursday revoked a landmark 2009 finding by the Environmental Protection Agency that greenhouse gases are a danger to public health. In remarks at the White House, Trump characterized the ruling as “a disastrous Obama era policy that severely damaged the American auto industry and massively drove up prices for American consumers.” Zealan Hoover, a former senior adviser to the EPA under President Joe Biden, told The Washington Post that revoking the decision “doesn’t change the reality of climate change—it just denies it.” | U.K.: The High Court in London ruled Friday that the British government’s ban on a prominent pro-Palestinian advocacy group was unlawful, a stinging defeat for Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Judges said that classifying Palestine Action as a terrorist organization was a disproportionate infringement on the activists’ freedom of speech. The ban remains in place for now as the government appeals the decision. | China: On Thursday, authorities in Beijing announced new measures “to curb a fierce price war among automakers that has caused massive losses for the industry,” the Associated Press reports. The new rules, released by the State Administration for Market Regulation, prohibit automakers from setting prices below production costs. As the AP notes, the price war among Chinese manufacturers has resulted in billions of dollars in losses at a time of weakening demand for automobiles. | Thailand: Following its upset victory in last Sunday’s general election, the ruling Bhumjaithai Party announced it will join with the populist Pheu Thai party—which placed third in the election—to form a coalition government. Polls ahead of the vote had indicated a strong performance for the progressive reformist People’s Party, but it fell short of those expectations. | Mexico: The Mexican navy seized several tons of cocaine from smugglers during a rare joint operation with U.S. forces in the Pacific. | | More from WPR | | Read all of our latest coverage here. |
|
Comments
Post a Comment
Welcome to my geopolitics blog site. This is a Hawaii Island news site focusing on geopolitical news, analysis, information, and commentary. I will cite a variety of sources, ranging from all sides of the political spectrum.