If Europe wants to remain a symbol of democratic, open spaces, it must defend its values not only with hard power but with imagination and empathy. This means positioning culture at the heart of EU policy.

Since the financial crash of 2008, large volumes of funding are now flowing through entities whose balance sheets are opaque, leverage difficult to measure, and activities capable of amplifying shocks when liquidity becomes scarcer.

In this long read, EUobserver explores what to watch in 2026 — from geo-economics and global power shifts to key elections across the bloc, defence needs, climate dreams, migration dilemmas, technological developments, and social tension.

Across Europe, mayors and local councillors are facing a disturbing rise in harassment, threats, disinformation, and even physical violence. These aren’t isolated incidents — they are a growing pattern. And they’re not 'just politics'. They are deliberate attempts to silence, intimidate, and push people out of public life, warns the Council of European Municipalities and Regions.

A French banker inside Euroclear, who flew to Russia 155 times for "private" reasons, allegedly tried to connect the company's CEO, Valérie Urbain, with Russian spies and threatened her when she declined, according to an investigation by EUobserver, Humo, De Morgen, and Dossier Center.

Today, we kick off an anniversary campaign to convince new supporting members to join EUobserver's mission of providing the information citizens need to safeguard EU democracy.