Comment: Europe is in a tight spot geographically and philosophically

With global politics shifting towards Asia and raw power replacing the old rules, the EU is looking increasingly vulnerable

Some European leaders privately fear the old, rules-based order is being replaced by a quadrangle of chaos comprising China, Russia, Turkey, and Trump’s America. Picture: Getty

Covid-19 has made a mockery of the world’s great powers.

US President Donald Trump promised to “make America great again”, but his administration’s handling of the pandemic has been anything but great. Chinese President Xi Jinping has often spoken of a “Chinese dream”, yet his own response to the crisis has relied on algorithmic authoritarianism. And Europeans who often pay lip service to multilateralism have met the pandemic with closed borders and national solutions, rather ...