The World This Week – Turkey Elections, War in Ukraine, New protectionism, Eurovision

Across the Black Sea, they are bracing for battle. With so much of Russia’s military at the front, Red Square saw a scaled-down May 9th Victory Day parade although Vladimir Putin did manage to convince leaders of seven former Soviet states to drop in including some that have kept their distance from his special military operation. May 9th in Kiyv where the president of the EU Commission came to celebrate Europe Day alongside the president of candidate state Ukraine.

Joe Biden says he is relishing the prospect of running as the anti-Trump again in 2024 but the US president is often on a similar wavelength talking tough on China, shoring up the border with Mexico as a new policy goes into effect aimed at making it harder for asylum seekers to enter without first applying and he is delivered on his version of “America First”, massive green energy subsidies that are tempting European companies to move their business stateside. France’s president is now trying to fight fire with fire. Emmanuel Macron in the rust belt city of Dunkirk for the launch of a giant battery factory by Taiwanese ProLogium and another by Chinese maker XTC.

It  is that time of year when a whole continent indulges in a special kind of guilty pleasure. Eurovision song contest weekend. Dateline Liverpool by the banks of the Mersey. The home of the Beatles decked out in a lot of blue and yellow. That is because last year’s winner, Ukraine, is not in a position to host. The Eurovision song contest did not used to be so political. 

Produced by Alessandro Xenos, Juliette Laurain, Louise Guibert.