Rubrics » Bridging News
President Trump’s Trade War: The US-China Tariffs and Global Implications
No. 52, Mar.-Apr. 2025 This article examines the origins, mechanics, and global ramifications of the US-China trade war initiated under President Donald Trump’s administration, focusing particularly on the reciprocal tariffs imposed by both nations. While the policy was intended to address structural imbalances, such as trade deficits and intellectual property theft, the escalation of tariffs has revealed the deep interdependencies within global supply chains—especially those tied to China. The study analyses the impact of these measures on the United States, the European Union, and developing economies, as well as their implications for global manufacturing, trade norms, and geopolitical alignment. Drawing on classical and modern trade theories, the article argues that although protectionist measures may offer short-term leverage, they often undermine long-term global economic stability and efficiency. More
From Periphery to Power: The Digital Renaissance on the Fringe of Culture
No. 52, Mar.-Apr. 2025 Ulf Hannerz wrote back in 1989 that that the twentieth century culture can be characterized as having been built on centre-periphery relationships. This divide has allowed cultural diversity to flow transnationally, empowering cultural creativity through the exchange of ideas and values, especially in peripheral societies. More
Living Standards by Cities in Romania – Cluj Has Overtaken Bucharest
No. 52, Mar.-Apr. 2025 Cluj is just ahead of Bucharest in terms of local purchasing power and the amount needed for monthly expenses, according to data aggregated by the international website numbeo.com. Thus, with +0.7% in the first indicator and a slightly lower need for money for the same standard of living (despite higher rents), the capital of Transylvania marginally outperformed the capital of Romania. More
The Green Craze
No. 52, Mar.-Apr. 2025 Over the past few years, Western society has emphasized the importance of taking care of the environment. From providing access to volunteering opportunities, introducing ecological education in schools and adopting legislative projects such as the Green Deal in the European Union, everybody seemed to be consumed by the need to take care of our planet. Micro-trends such as veganism, replacing gas-powered vehicles with electric ones and slapping a sustainable sticker on every product on the market are now daily truths. The question is, however, are these efforts really directed towards the conservation of our precious resources or is this simply a smoke-screen to distract the masses from what’s going on behind closed doors? This article aims to draw attention to what might be the true effect of recent environmental policies, particularly in the EU space. More
The Geopolitics of Indignation and the Paradox of the Taboo Peace
No. 52, Mar.-Apr. 2025 For years, even whispering the word peace in the context of Ukraine was considered an act of geopolitical heresy. To suggest negotiations was to be instantly branded a Putin apologist, a traitor to democracy, a naive dreamer unwilling to confront the world’s harsh realities. The official narrative was simple and rigid: war was not just necessary but morally imperative, a struggle between good and evil that could only be resolved through complete and total victory.And yet, suddenly, everything has changed. The United States, under Donald Trump, has abruptly pivoted towards ending the war, leaving European leaders in a state of ideological havoc. Those who once fetishized war as an existential duty, who derided diplomacy as cowardice, are now scrambling, utterly unprepared to cope with the new geopolitical reality. More
Flat Earth and Rare Earths
No. 52, Mar.-Apr. 2025 The rules-based international order, through which global organizations were conceived for collective problem-solving, for reducing protectionist impulses and for stabilizing the postwar global economy, is a feeble exception to the world’s true “state of nature”: the anarchy of the balance of power. Fetishized by the idealists who naively believe in the vigor of its architecture, this “order” makes, by comparison, the flatness of the Earth seem like a reasonable hypothesis. More
Stuck in the Middle: The “Sale” of Tiran and Sanafir Islands
No. 51, Jan.-Feb. 2025 Egypt and Saudi Arabia, two worlds seemingly separated by the waters of the Red Sea, are bound by a connection that transcends physical borders. On one hand, Egypt, an ancient cradle of civilization, serves as the bridge between Africa and the Middle East, where deeply rooted traditions forge an identity that stands resilient against the winds of change. On the other, Saudi Arabia stretches vast and enigmatic, a land where the desert meets modern dreams, and the interplay of oil wealth and religion creates an economic and geopolitical powerhouse that resonates far beyond its borders. More
The Linguistic Divide: How Philological Decisions Shaped Markets and Economies
No. 51, Jan.-Feb. 2025 In My Russia (Romanian language edition at Curtea Veche, 2024, in translation of Adriana Dănilă), Mikhail Shishkin argues that one of the defining moments in Russian history was the choice of the “Old Church” language for Kievan Rus instead of Latin. This decision, which had major consequences for the cultural, scientific, and geopolitical development of the Russian sphere, cannot be attributed to a single ruler. Rather, it was a long historical process linked to the influence of Byzantium and the Christianization of Kievan Rus. It is true that the seeds were sown by Vladimir I of Kiev (978–1015), who decided to Christianize Kievan Rus in 988, adopting Byzantine Orthodoxy as the official religion. Through this decision, the path of the Slavic liturgical tradition, introduced by Saints Cyril and Methodius, was chosen, making Old Slavonic the liturgical and administrative language of the emerging Russian state. The decision was consolidated during the reigns of Yaroslav the Wise (1019-1054) and Ivan III (1462-1505), the latter’s rule coinciding with the period when, after the fall of Constantinople in 1453, Russia proclaimed itself the heir to the Byzantine Empire, and Moscow began to be regarded as the “Third Rome”. By choosing a language within the Byzantine sphere of influence, Kievan Rus distanced itself from Latin (the language of the Catholic world) in favour of the Orthodox model. The choice belonged to Vladimir I, who had to decide between Orthodoxy, Catholic Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. More
The Caribbean Crossroads of Empires – St. Croix from Spain to the US
No. 51, Jan.-Feb. 2025 St. Croix Island is one of the most interesting places in the Lesser Antilles, and is today part of the US Virgin Islands. In addition to its indigenous history of habitation, the strategically located island has been passed around by almost every major empire of the era before arriving in 1917 under US rule, where it is located today and is part of an unincorporated territory and therefore not part of a US state with Senate representation or electoral votes for president. How it ended up in this situation is a fascinating discussion and its unique blend of cultures, including the Danish culture which otherwise became submerged in the US cultural mainstream in Northern US states. More
București-Ilfov, Leading Region in EU at Work Intensity
No. 51, Jan.-Feb. 2025 The work intensity of a household is the ratio of the total number of months that adult household members have worked during the income reference year and the total number of months the same household members theoretically could have worked in the same period. It is defined in levels, ranging from very low (household working time was equal to or less than 20% of the full potential) to very high (working time was more than 85% of the full potential). Generally, the higher the work intensity within a household (the closer people are to full employment), the lower the probability of being at-risk-of-poverty. More
Nevada’ Bonanza: How this Libertarian Paradise Came to Be
No. 51, Jan.-Feb. 2025 The earliest historical records date back to the 16th century, with the arrival of the first Europeans of Spanish origin in Mexican territory, aiming to conquer new lands for Spain. By 1535, Mexico had already become an integral part of Spain, along with the Nevada region. These were the first beginnings of the area as a component of the Spanish Empire, which also explains the origin of its name. The term “Nevada” has Spanish roots, derived from the expression Sierra Nevada, meaning “snow-covered mountain range” (Behnke, 2016). Thus, the Spanish colonies laid the foundational stones of the state, as they were the ones who associated the term “Nevada” (snow-covered) with the climatic conditions of the region during winter. Later, in 1821, the region became part of Mexico. However, the changes did not stop there, as Nevada was acquired by the United States in 1848, following the Mexican American War. This conflict began on May 13, 1846, after the United States had already annexed Texas a year earlier, paving the way for disputes with Mexico. The issue revolved around the existing border between the U.S. and Mexico, as the latter considered the Nueces River to be the northern boundary of its territory, while the United States claimed the Rio Grande as the official border, which included the Nueces Strip as part of Texan territory (Zeidan, 2024). Additionally, there were disputes regarding the recognition of Texas as American territory, with the United States affirming this claim, while Mexico was entirely opposed. More
Artificial (Un)Intelligence: Beyond Data and Into Human Complexity
No. 51, Jan.-Feb. 2025 The concept of Artificial Intelligence has captivated modern society, offering promises of advances from self-driving cars to digital personal assistants. However, the term “artificial intelligence” carries an inherent contradiction, and is actually an oxymoron. It combines the idea of intelligence—deeply tied to human experience, intuition, creativity, and emotional richness—with the mechanical nature of machine simulation. This contrast invites a deeper exploration of what true intelligence entails. Intelligence is more than the ability to execute tasks or generate outputs; it involves complex faculties like reasoning, self-awareness, and moral judgment, areas that seem beyond the reach of algorithms and data processing. More
