Yannis Pretenteris

The old political landscape is no more, but a new landscape has yet to take its place

Nothing that has happened is a shock, or even a surprise. We just have to understand the world we live in and what we can expect from it. What is deeply worrying, though, is our inability to do that.

On the eve of a presidential election of old, the great American President Abraham Lincoln warned that “a house divided against itself cannot stand.” It was 1858 and a bloody Civil War was soon to follow. Strangely enough, his description is also a perfect fit today for a nation that increasingly resembles the “Divided States […]

The opening of the autumn session in the Greek Parliament revealed a change of scene, though the new set is made up of old materials. The majority of New Democracy is at odds with a minority representing an older version of the party, though it hasn’t suffered much in the way of turbulence as a […]

You end a war when you win it. Or you end it when you realize you can’t win it. But in the Middle East today, we have an endless war. To be precise, a war Israel is winning but not ending. A war whose hostilities are being forever extended and prolonged. Even though Gaza has […]

The party-political storms may be raging in a teacup for now

A fundamental feature of historical ruling parties is that they don’t seek partners or beg for a "helping hand".

This isn’t the first time the Middle East has lived in fear of a generalized conflict, and it probably won’t be the last. But an out-and-collision has yet to occur for two reasons. First, because the paramilitary organizations of the “resistance” have seemed too weak to take on Israel’s military might. Hamas is well on […]

There are still two weeks to go before the first round of the election for a new President for PASOK. Recent polls haven’t revealed much public interest in the proceedings (Pulse, 18/9), but two weeks is long enough to prove them wrong come voting day. What is certain is that, to date, the six candidates […]

It doesn’t take a brilliant political brain to realize the Opposition is in complete and utter disarray; it’s clear to anyone with eyes in their head. And it’s going to be another two or three months, maybe more, before they’ve managed to work through their multiple issues. It’s not a pleasant sight. Because who wouldn’t […]

SYRIZA is looking more and more like a sinking ship every day. A ship without a rudder, drifting who knows where as the crew fight among themselves and with the passengers. Unfortunately, this is the second largest party in the Greek Parliament we’re talking about. The official Opposition. Till now, the spectacle has had something […]

After one electoral year (May 2023-June 2024) and four elections, all of which it won, the government clearly needs a restart. A reboot. Which is fair enough. Because, for governments, the clock doesn’t start ticking from the last election, but from the first. And the Mitsotakis premiership is already in its sixth year. What’s more, […]

A few weeks after Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the race, Kamala Harris’s candidacy appears to have been a game changer for the US presidential election. And while the impact has been momentous, it clearly hasn’t been surprising. It was obvious to everyone that the outgoing President had reached his physical limits. Sadly, time halts for […]

August is a no-news month. We’ve heard it over and over. We’ve taken it on board. Besides, most journalists are on holiday. Although the newspapers and TV channels keep on publishing and broadcasting. Even if there’s no news, even with fewer journalists on the job. What August does have, though, is fires. Every year—regular as […]

With war in Ukraine and the Middle East, race riots in the UK, the threat of terrorism hanging over France and Belgium, unrest in Germany, and the specter of Jihad and Putin hovering over Europe, any talk of “national security” is either made in jest or hopelessly naive. Not simply because security is the second […]

Yet again, the Middle East is on the verge of a major conflagration. The smell of gunpowder is in the air once more. Every new wave of bloodshed is a response to the one before it and the seed for the one that follows. I don’t know many people who will be mourning the death […]

"above all else, democracy is a culture"

"We’ve made a democracy, now we have to make the democrats".

So, obviously, we don't expect Erdogan and Mitsotakis to settle accounts that go back multiple decades. But we do expect them to talk.

France holds its breath at the polls. And with France, the whole of Europe. In the second round of the parliamentary elections today, a broad (though far from cohesive) coalition of centrist, center-right and center-left forces plus “unbowed” and unbalanced voters on the Left will be attempting to prevent Le Pen’s rise to power. Will […]