Our World

BREXIT: On June 23rd 2016, when the British electorate chose to leave the EU, it was rejecting the status quo. Britain had been ensconced in the EU for 43 years, and Brexit was the insurgent option onto which unhappy voters could project their hopes and fears. Ten years on, the sky has darkened amid trade wars, real wars, a rising China and an erratic and confrontational Donald Trump. Brits have realised that their hopes for life outside the EU have not been fulfilled. Brexit itself is now the status quo, and they have turned against it (European Council on Foreign Relations).

Brexit isn’t working: British voters are ready for a European future – European Council on Foreign Relations Ten years on from the referendum, the British electorate has moved on from its old divisions and—in a world of crisis—is embracing an ambitious move back toward

NATO/USA: U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that the United States will conduct a six-month review of U.S. basing and force posture in Europe for what he called “NATO 3.0.” “[W]e’re doubling down on our effort to make NATO what it always was supposed to be, a balanced alliance with Europe in the lead for its own defense,” Hegseth told NATO defense ministers in Brussels June 18 (Arms Control Association). (Link: ▶️ https://www.armscontrol.org/act/2026-07/news/us-plans-review-force-posture-europe.)

ITALY/USA: The split between Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and U.S. President Donald Trump is political and personal far more than it is ideological. Meloni continues to subscribe to a civilizational understanding of the West centered on its Christian heritage, cultural—and implicitly ethnic—homogeneity, and the defense of traditional values. She also remains convinced that Europe’s security and strategic role ultimately depend on close alignment with the United States in defending that Western heritage. In this sense, her worldview remains compatible with that of much of U.S. national conservativism (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace).

Taking the Pulse: Has Meloni Broken MAGA’s Civilizational Axis? When Giorgia Meloni very publicly rebuked Donald Trump’s disparaging remarks about her, it surprised many who saw her as a European extension of Trumpism. Is the spat a sign of trouble in the radical right’s transatlantic axis?

AFRICA/BRICS: Africa is now one of the most represented regions in BRICS, with three full members, South Africa, Egypt and Ethiopia, and two partner states, Nigeria and Uganda. This presents an opportunity to strengthen coordination around shared continental priorities, particularly economic integration, industrialisation and development finance. Yet the three members engage with the grouping through separate national channels and have no common reference point to compare positions before decisions are taken (South African Institute of International Affairs).

Common Ground: Insights for Stronger African Coordination in BRICS This report is an outcome of 'Common Ground: An African BRICS Policy Retreat', convened by SAIIA and SABTT in May.