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Category: Democracy

FMS in Warsaw: working together to build a strong, progressive network in Eastern Europe

Afgelopen weekend was Foundation Max van der Stoel in Warschau voor een veelzijdig programma dat volledig in het teken stond van internationale samenwerking, democratie en politieke ontwikkeling. Als medeorganisator van het Friends of Eastern Partnership (FoEP)-programma brachten we jonge progressieve activisten uit Armenië, Azerbeidzjan, Belarus, Georgië, Moldavië en Oekraïne samen. Tijdens trainingen, workshops en de […]

CODE RED – For democracy too?

Photo taken at the Liechtenstein Art Museum. Today’s Dutch Democracy Coalition event has been cancelled due to a ‘code red’ alert. We were due to start right now. It’s a great pity, because the democratic climate is also facing a ‘code red’ situation. And yes, that applies to the Netherlands too. Not because things have got as bad here as they have in the US or Hungary, […]

Is Montenegro on its way to joining the EU? Read our statement

Last week, the Max van der Stoel Foundation attended the ninth meeting of Friends of the Western Balkans (FoWB) in Podgorica, Montenegro. The meeting took place in the run-up to the EU-Western Balkans Summit in Tivat and brought together politicians, parliamentarians and experts from across Europe. During the conference, the future of EU enlargement […]

Democratic renewal in Moldova: building a shared European future

What does Moldova's European course mean for democracy in the country? That question was the focus of the Building Progressive Unity: Pathways to Democratic Renewal in Moldova conference in Chișinău. The conference was organised by the Foundation for Democracy and Progress, in cooperation with the Olof Palme International Center and Foundation Max van der [...]

Press freedom and resilience: how do we keep democracy strong in the digital age?

This article is a collaboration between Foundation Max van der Stoel (Martha Elias) and International Foundation Groenlinks (Yesmin Ayadhi). According to the latest RSF index, global press freedom is at a low point in the past 25 years. Even in countries that score relatively high, such as the Netherlands which ranks second, the question is how much [...]

Europe can no longer afford a moderate tone on Serbia

This piece was also published as an opinion piece together with Holandija Dijaspora in De Volkskrant on 29 May 2026. Last Saturday, on 24 May, one of the biggest demonstrations in Serbia's modern history took place. The demonstration was led by the student movement, which, since the Novi train station disaster [...]

Vita Kovalenko: From Maidan to the Dordrecht City Council

Kido Koenig (l) and Vita Kovalenko (r) with her book “Truth Under Fire” In 2007, Vita Kovalenko came to the Netherlands, but it was not until 2014 that her social engagement with Ukraine really took shape. The spark struck during the Maidan protests in Kyiv, which she followed via livestreams from her workplace in the Netherlands. “It [...]

Global Progressive Mobilisation in Barcelona: the pride of Sánchez

Of the many photos circulating from the huge congress in Barcelona, one that I took myself caught my eye and first thought was a failure. Pedro Sánchez was just on stage for his closing speech and had his eyes closed. On reflection, this very photo stood out: it radiates [...]

It ain't easy going green, part 3: Ukraine

EU enlargement is back on the agenda. After Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and following growing uncertainty about the United States’ role in Europe, EU leaders have increasingly stressed the need to expand the Union. Closer cooperation with countries in Eastern Europe and the Western Balkans is seen as important for the continent's security and [...]