The mid-term elections in the United States are not just a set-back for President Obama at home: they will also limit his capacity to lead in the international arena at a time of rising powers and greater competition.

A historian of the future writing about the decline of the West should include a few lines on the events of October 2010. The EU gave up some privileges at the IMF, but it's not clear that the rising powers will now play by the West's rules.

The announcement of a Franco-British defence partnership will be a watershed in European security thinking. Once that Rubicon has been crossed it will raise questions for their EU partners, and perhaps this will have a profound bearing on whether Europe can keep a seat in the global game.

The EU could be at the East Asia Summit that is beginning in Hanoi, and it could carry a compelling and coherent message that would be listened to be the Asian states, Russia and the US. But it isn't. This must change.

Eine interessengeleite deutsche Europapolitik ersetzt zunehmend die historisch bedingte Symbiose zwischen Deutschland und Europa. Im post-romantischen Europa des 21.Jahrhunderts bestimmt sich Deutschlands Rolle neu – wie viel Europa darf es sein und was ist der Preis von Nicht-Europa?

One of the gravest challenges to Russia is thought to be the country's demographic crisis. But once migrants are taken into account the numbers don't look quite as bad. However this could have the result of turning a demographic crisis into an ethnic one. 

Spain has a new minister of foreign affairs - Trinidad Jimenez. So what are the priorities? Firstly, to restore international confidence in Spain, but then to think of the long term challenges in a world that is changing quickly.

The Deauville summit involving Sarkozy, Merkel and Medvedev was always likely to be a non-event, beyond the recognition that Europe is now a multipolar continent. Instead we need a new system - an informal trialogue on European security that would keep the EU united, Russia post-imperial and Turkey European.

Europe's pathetic reaction to Liu Xiaobo's Nobel peace prize showed an urge by EU leaders to not only render themselves internationally irrelevant, but also a determination to cover the EU itself in ridicule. Europe must decide whether it wants to play a role in the new world order, or bend like reeds in whichever direction the wind is blowing.

Britain's defence review is deeply flawed because it is based on a self-deluding picture of the world. It brings to mind the spectacle of the Viking King, Canute, who one thousand years ago commanded the tide to stop on an English beach.

Just possibly, EU defence ministers may have realised that only their personal engagement will ensure co-operation between their military staff. This is vital as European countries look for a way to retain effective security capabilities in an era of shrinking budgets.

Europe is now shifting away from the 'democratic enlargement' paradigm that marked the first decades of the post-Cold War world. The EU needs to search for an alternative vision, engaging Turkey as a regional power and understanding the changes in Russia's perspective as it seeks to modernise.

The meeting of Angela Merkel, Dmitri Medvedev and Nicolas Sarkozy at the French seaside resort of Deauville on Monday 18th has the right agenda - European security - but the wrong actors. A trialogue involving the EU, Russia and Turkey would be the best way to rethink security in Europe.

Obama’s increased use of drone attacks has left many people on both sides of the Atlantic unsure how to react. A new approach, based on human rights principles, is needed to assess their permissibility.

A trade deal with South Korea proves that Europe can get things done when it wants. So why is the EU's policy with China such a puzzle? Perhaps it should learn from Germany, which is showing how to talk tough to Beijing while still achieving its aims.