Al Jazeera Interview

I spoke with Al Jazeera English about the legacy of the end of World War II in Europe, on the occasion of Victory Day, which is commemorated on May 8th or 9th depending on where you are.

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Below is my reflection on what that legacy means for Europe today, some of which also appears in this report: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0kTK5Bb3HTk

For decades, May 1945 stood as the symbolic beginning of a new Europe. A continent reborn from the ashes of fascism, anchored in peace, human rights, and liberal democracy. But that founding myth is losing its grip. Today, Europe is reliving parts of the 1930s as the very pillars that defined its postwar era are unraveling: economic security, democratic consensus, human rights, and collective defense.

The economic model that powered postwar Europe, industrial capitalism anchored in strong social foundations, is in decline. Europe was once the frontrunner of the green transition, but now it lags behind China. The European Green Deal is politically contested and economically underpowered. The backlash is growing, from farmers to fossil lobbies to mainstream conservatives pushing back against climate rules.

Democracy, too, is fraying. In a growing number of EU countries, radical right populists are leading the polls and setting the tone. From Geert Wilders in the Netherlands to George Simion in Romania, from the AfD’s gains in Germany to Italy, Austria, and beyond, centrist parties are being outflanked and outfoxed.

The postwar moral consensus, the “never again,” the memory of genocide, and the universal commitment to human rights is also under siege. Germany’s post-Holocaust reckoning once stood as a model. Now, across Europe, selective memory and moral relativism have crept back in. From the glorification of colonial pasts to the indifference toward and even condoning of the genocide in Gaza, the universalist frame that defined the liberal West has collapsed. When the Financial Times has a stronger moral compass than the majority of Europe’s elites, then all that talk about “European values” is meaningless.

And then there’s security. Russia’s war on Ukraine shattered the illusion of a peaceful European order. Trump’s return now threatens NATO’s credibility. In response, Europe is rearming but not rethinking. Instead of a collective vision for defense and diplomacy, we’re improvising with broken tools, pouring money into militarization while neglecting other, equally existential risks. Europe must recognize the intertwined threats of economic, social, environmental and military insecurities, and respond to them in a coherent framework.

We’re witnessing the degeneration of a system that once seemed permanent. The illusion that liberal democracy is the default setting of history is over. What replaces it is still up for grabs.