John Kampfner
17 February 2022
The Labour Party are ready for a lame duck shoot
Many in Keir Starmer’s party now believe a wounded Boris Johnson staying in power offers their best chance of election victory
Read the full article14 February 2022
Why has Germany been so slow to act over Ukraine?
Olaf Scholz is moving at last, but energy dependency and World War II guilt lie behind what could prove a fatal apathy
Read the full article03 February 2022
Boris’ Brain is missing: Why Munira Mirza’s departure is a fatal blow to Johnson
The departing head of policy tried to translate some of Johnson’s clownish musings into something practical.
Read the full article27 January 2022
Would the end of the licence fee spell the end of the BBC as we know it?
Even before Nadine Dorries’ intervention, the BBC was planning a shake-up to its funding. By JOHN KAMPFNER
Read the full article16 December 2021
What a Russian invasion would mean for already anarchy-filled Ukraine
Facing rare criticism at home, Vladimir Putin is preparing a crowd-pleasing war against what he considers a ‘fake’ country.
Read the full article09 December 2021
Can Scholz work a miracle in the shadow of Merkel?
Germany’s new chancellor faces a tough task in steering a risk-averse country through the radical change of modernisation.
Read the full article30 November 2021
The battles ahead for Merkel’s successor
Olaf Scholz's in-tray is bulging, and Germany is braced for change. But can a cautious chancellor deliver it?
Read the full article24 November 2021
Olaf Scholz seals the deal drawing a close to the Merkel era
Scholz doesn't do charisma. True to form, he delivered his address seriously and without needless bumbling or theatrics.
Read the full article18 November 2021
Why Poland needs to turn to Germany for support during border crisis
The posturing of Putin and Lukashenko on the Poland-Belarus border risks lives while leaving Europe on the brink of erecting walls.
Read the full article21 October 2021
COP26: The old diplomacy won’t save our planet
Global tensions mean self-interest as much as collaboration will be key to cracking climate change.
Read the full article21 October 2021
Berlin’s disaster of a new airport is a model of German inefficiency
The country has a reputation for doing things better. But Berlin’s disastrous new airport shows that given a chance, it can stuff things up just as badly as everyone else.
Read the full article12 October 2021
New hope is in the air for Austria and Czechs
Two downfalls hint at a return to more respectable politics in countries at the heart of the continent.
Read the full article30 September 2021
France’s familiarity with political scandals
As former president Nicola Sarkozy is sentenced to house arrest for illegal campaign financing, JOHN KAMPFNER wonders why French politics seems so susceptible to financial scandal.
Read the full article27 September 2021
Decoding the German election: Why every party woke up feeling miserable
The country's curious election has changed everything.. we just have to wait to see how it has changed.
Read the full article23 September 2021
AUKUS deal leaves transatlantic alliance weaker than before
Regardless of its merits, the cack-handed handling of the defence deal between the US, UK and Australia risks handing the initiative to China and Russia.
Read the full article15 September 2021
Angela Merkel’s departure will have consequences for Germany… and the wider world
Post-war Germany has been characterised by good governance and solid leadership. But as the country goes to the polls to replace Angela Merkel, Germans – and the wider world – fear its good run is coming to an end.
Read the full article27 July 2021
Why Germany’s Greens failed to rise on floods
The country's tragic floods might have been expected to boost support for the Greens ahead of September's elections. But this doesn't appear to have happened
Read the full article24 July 2021
An eyewitness to history: Watching the Berlin Wall go up
Berlin journalist Annette von Broecker’s life has spanned her city's division and reunification
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