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Anybody else missing discussions on the future of EU. To me we seem to have forgotten the original convergence criteria for all member states and now only focusing on expanding with more member states. Including more states with totally different economies and social structures will only lead to more future conflicts. The original idea was to streamline the members economies and social structures so that an inner market without major differences could be achieved, and from there go towards even further integration.

The conflicts in the Middle East have had far-reaching effects. Agreements & ceasefires are constantly violated, and strikes continue. I appeal for maximum restraint & for agreements &international law to be respected.  More than ever, we need negotiations towards a just, #MiddleEast #Peace #Ceasefire #IL #EG #SY #PS #JO #QA #AE #SA #YE #KW #LB

The conflicts in the Middle East have had far-reaching effects. Agreements & ceasefires are constantly violated, and strikes continue. More than ever, we need negotiations towards a just, lasting peace in line with international law, including the @UN Charter & relevant UN #MiddleEast #PeaceTalks #InternationalLaw #IL #PS #SY

We believe that the organisation can play a role not only in ensuring peace and stability, but also in establishing uninterrupted and secure transportation corridors, which are vital for the prosperity of our peoples, and in areas such as energy supply security. As Türkiye, we are taking responsibility for resolving conflicts around us through dialogue and diplomacy.

The 7 Types of People Who Create Evil Societies Andrew Łobaczewski, a psychiatrist who lived under Nazism and Communism in Poland, proposed political ponerology: pathological personalities and social dynamics can generate totalitarian systems. He describes seven recurring types: 1) **Psychopaths**: power seekers who gain control via coercion, intimidation, and violence. 2) **Schizoids**: ideological engineers who craft abstract systems and utopian theories; if reality conflicts, they rationalize more rather than revise. 3) **Spellbinders**: propagandists who convert ideology into slogans, moral stories, and emotional appeals that sort “good/evil” and define the in‑group. 4) **The Spellbound**: true believers who absorb the message and enforce it socially, driven by moral certainty; they often recruit through institutions and peer networks. 5) **Adapted Conformists**: quiet enablers who comply from fear and self‑preservation, often within bureaucracy (“I’m just doing my job”). 6) **Resistors**: a moral minority who refuse cooperation and prioritize conscience, often paying costs like isolation or punishment. 7) **Bystanders**: a passive majority who stay silent through fear, confusion, and disengagement. Together: psychopaths hold power; schizoids supply ideology; spellbinders publicize it; the spellbound enforce it; conformists administer; bystanders tolerate; resistors challenge. Crucially, totalitarianism doesn’t require everyone to be fanatical—enforcers and ideologues can pressure the wider population to comply. It can arise under many systems (communist, fascist, theocratic, etc.), not just left vs right.

Multiculturalism or Liberalism… You Can’t Have Both Canada’s Combating Hate Act received royal assent on June 18 and became law in July, defining hatred as an intense and extreme emotion and extending emotion’s reach into government and criminal law. Supporters cite a 169% rise in reported hate crimes from 2018 to 2024, but the increase reflects predictable outcomes when groups with deep historical, cultural, and religious conflicts are placed together in large numbers while assuming differences will fade. “Diversity is our strength” can’t replace shared culture: cooperation at scale requires shared values and norms. Import enough difference quickly while demanding universal tolerance, and social order begins to fracture, leaving strangers who share a passport but little else—so the state steps in to do what culture once did. Multiculturalism can drift toward authoritarianism: the state expands to manage conflicts, neutrality becomes impossible without common standards, and unequal treatment follows. Britain illustrates the danger, with thousands of arrests in 2023 under communications laws for alleged offensive messages and long sentences for single posts. Meanwhile, authorities have shown hesitation toward major crimes involving protected communities, often citing fears of racism and community harm—creating a double standard. Canada also has examples, such as the Gladue principles, which require sentencing judges to consider the circumstances of Indigenous offenders, letting group identity influence state treatment. The multicultural liberal state was sold as open, tolerant, and equal—but if groups won’t “melt,” or fundamentally oppose one another, the result is increasingly unequal laws, more surveillance, and less liberty. Multiculturalism and liberalism are incompatible: without shared cultural standards, a society will be governed from above through laws, courts, and coercion.

PAKISTAN IS NOT ETERNAL. #ExPakistan must become part of the international debate. Pakistan already broke apart once in 1971 when Bangladesh won independence. Today, deep national, ethnic and constitutional conflicts remain unresolved. I support the democratic right of the https://t.co/FTO4oqYZUH #ExPakistan #Pakistan #Democracy #PK #BD

The best protection against food insecurity is peace. And the safest condition for peace is a world with #ZeroHunger. Today, I urged the Seucrity Council to use all tools at its disposal to help prevent & end conflicts, and to stop emerging risks from becoming wider crises of https://t.co/pNFrxPONfT #ZeroHunger #FoodInsecurity #Peace #Therearenospecificcountrycodesmentionedinthetweet.

Conflicts in different regions are choking arteries of global trade & squeezing the global food system. Navigational rights & freedoms are vital for international peace & security & the flow of essential goods. My appeal: - full respect for international law – including law of https://t.co/O9XrKteLyM #GlobalTrade #InternationalLaw #FoodSecurity #Nospecificcountriesarementionedinthetweet.

On World Humanitarian Day, we pay tribute to the humanitarian workers who dedicate their lives to helping others. As conflicts and disasters leave millions in need, the EU steps up as the world’s largest and most reliable donor. And through our Protect Aid Workers programme, we https://t.co/e1NM6CJoQt #WorldHumanitarianDay #AidWorkers #EUSupport #EU

🚨A new wave of uncontrolled mass migration is coming‼️ Over 150,000 dead, 14 million displaced, and 25 million facing hunger - the war in Sudan ranks among the most brutal conflicts in the world. A further wave of uncontrolled mass migration is now looming. Equally clear, https://t.co/Rk1KreHz5N #Sudan #MigrationCrisis #HumanRights #SD

There are signs of the Ukraine war and the Mideast conflicts getting intertwined. Illusions thrive that leverage grows by involvement in another crisis.. Beware of the risk that parties instead get bogged down in a conflict with starkly different dynamics and time perspective. #UkraineWar #MideastConflicts #Geopolitics #UA #MDE

Unlike his first term, when many of his most notable conflicts were with dissenters in his own administration, this time around US would-be gilded dictator has butted heads even with those who have proven themselves the most loyal to him https://t.co/siGR6UmQj6 #GildedDictator #PoliticalConflict #LoyaltyIssues #US

Today’s conflicts are increasingly regional in nature. Preventive diplomacy & peacemaking must be, too. The @UN's regional offices & envoys are among the most effective tools for preventive diplomacy, regional cooperation & creating space for political solutions. #PreventiveDiplomacy #Peacemaking #RegionalCooperation #Thetweetdoesnotmentionanyspecificcountries.Therefore #therearenocountrycodestoreturn.

The parties to the conflicts have extreme positions, which means war until someone's capitulation and victory. Peace is possible only with very large compromises. The highest manifestation of wisdom is ignoring insults and challenges. The more attention is paid to them, the more passions are inflamed. Ignoring blocks the initiative/aggressiveness/. The wars in Ukraine and Iran are probably coordinated. They will not be able to be resolved separately. The EU and Ukraine's peace proposal is an ultimatum for Russia's capitulation, which is unacceptable. Russia needs very big concessions to end both wars. Recognition of the Russian language as the state language for Ukraine. Ukraine a state of two peoples, Russians and Ukrainians. Ukraine to be equally connected to Russia and the West. Ukraine will not be accepted and tolerated by Russia as an anti-Russian factor. Without these conditions, both wars will not stop. The plan for Russia's exhaustion and capitulation is too ambitious and most likely unfeasible. The situation is intolerable for the whole world and cannot continue. Стороны конфликтов занимают крайние позиции, что означает войну до тех пор, пока кто-то не капитулирует и не одержит победу. Мир возможен только при очень больших компромиссах. Высшее проявление мудрости — игнорирование оскорблений и вызовов. Чем больше внимания им уделяется, тем сильнее разгораются страсти. Игнорирование блокирует инициативу/агрессивность. Войны на Украине и в Иране, вероятно, скоординированы. Разрешить их по отдельности не удастся. Мирное предложение ЕС и Украины — это ультиматум России на капитуляцию, что неприемлемо. России нужны очень большие уступки, чтобы положить конец обеим войнам. Признание русского языка государственным языком Украины. Украина — государство двух народов, русских и украинцев. Украина должна быть в равной степени связана с Россией и Западом. Украина не будет принята и терпима Россией как антироссийский фактор. Без этих условий обе войны не прекратятся. План истощения и капитуляции России слишком амбициозен и, скорее всего, неосуществим. Ситуация невыносима для всего мира и не может продолжаться.

Welcome back to POLYPHONY, an independent publication from Sweden exploring world affairs, global cultures, literature, art, and history. We look beyond headlines to examine the deeper currents shaping our changing world through rigorous analysis and storytelling. This week’s POLYPHONY Notes explore a world of opposing currents: Europe’s evolving security role, intensifying conflicts, global power competition, and the strategic shifts reshaping an uncertain world. Explore “World affairs | This week” and our latest literary memoir, “The weight of a single word: Woman.” Read, share, subscribe and contribute to POLYPHONY. https://polyphony26.substack.com/p/world-affairs-this-week