Aikerim Bektemirova analysed 120 posts on the social media platform ‘Threads’, focusing on Kazakhstan’s March referendum. Her findings reveal that critical narratives spread further than supportive ones. Here, she argues that digital platforms amplify emotional and confrontational content, creating unbalanced online political debate
Theoretical frameworks dominating the study of anti-gender politics both enable and constrain our understanding of the phenomenon. Susana Galán and Tutku Ayhan argue that the existing frameworks are not helpful for studying anti-gender politics in the Southwest Asia and North Africa (SWANA) region. Here, the authors explain why, suggesting alternatives
The EU's ambition to strengthen defence cooperation is exposing new tensions at the heart of EU leadership. Maya Ikene argues that the Future Combat Air System reveals the limits of the Franco-German 'engine' of European integration and why future European defence initiatives may require broader coalitions beyond Paris and Berlin
Why do regime-change wars re-emerge when global order is under strain? As multilateral institutions lose effectiveness and legitimacy, Fulvio Attinà argues that states are increasingly turning to unilateral or coalition-based force. Interventions such as those in Iraq, Libya, Ukraine, and Iran reflect not isolated crises, but a deeper process of coalition reconfiguration during systemic transition
On 28 January 2026, Roza Roovers, Hassan Naderi Far and Gigi Maria Massaro spoke with Lithuanian security expert Margarita Šešelgytė. With global power balance in flux, Šešelgytė suggests that many traditional assumptions in international relations theory no longer explain today’s security environment
Chile has elected extreme-right candidate José Antonio Kast as its new president. His victory, argues Anitta Kynsilehto, may reflect a broader process of rewriting political memory in the post-dictatorship era, suggesting that Chileans' memories of 'never again' moments are beginning to fade
Europe’s support for the US-Israeli war on Iran, in the hope of securing American backing for Ukraine, is a strategic mistake, argues Shamsoddin Shariati. Rather than buying goodwill in Washington, European leaders are undermining their own security, credibility, and strategic autonomy
Endre Borbáth argues that Tisza’s breakthrough in Hungary was not simply the product of anti-incumbent anger or Péter Magyar’s personal appeal. It rested on a combination of cross-cutting grievances, participatory organisation, and intensive campaigning that turned a new party into a credible vehicle for regime change
Last week we awarded our annual £500 prize for the best Loop blog piece in the previous calendar year, as judged by an independent jury. Here, Managing Editor Kate Hawkins presents the longlisted pieces — and revels who has taken this year's top spot
First ladies in Latin America are more than ceremonial figures. They influence public policy, advance political careers, and build power within the core of the executive branch – without a formal mandate, or accountability. Carolina Guerrero Valencia shows why ignoring them means misreading presidential power itself
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