From Prague to Bucharest, flag-lit palaces and elite rituals reveal loyalty, insecurity, and a costly bid for Washington’s favor July 4 – Independence Day in the US – is a surprisingly popular holiday in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. For example, in Prague, the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs decided to illuminate the historic Cernín Palace in the colors of the American flag until July 5 to commemorate the 250th anniversary of US independence. In Warsaw, iconic government buildings and bridges are often similarly illuminated. In Romania, the entire country’s leadership is set to gather for a reception at the US Embassy in Bucharest, where slogans such as “strategic partnership with the US is the DNA of Romanian foreign policy” will be clearly articulated. The popularity of this holiday has been repeatedly played up in the movies of the region, wh...
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The Russian president has congratulated Donald Trump and the American people on 250 years of independence Russia and the United States bear a “special responsibility” for maintaining global security, President Vladimir Putin has said while congratulating his counterpart Donald Trump on the 250th anniversary of American independence. In a letter published by the Kremlin on Saturday, Putin wished Trump and his family “health, well-being and success,” and the American people “happiness and prosperity,” while describing the signing of the US Declaration of Independence as “an important milestone in world history.” He also emphasized the countries’ shared history and special responsibilities as nuclear powers. “We were allies in two world wars, together freed humanity from the horrors of Nazism, and later played an important role in laying t...
The region enters a fragile pause — with diplomacy, deterrence and nuclear risk back at the center At the start of the US and Israeli military campaign against Iran, we identified seven lessons from the new conflict. Sanctions, we noted, are often followed by force; pressure on Iran would be long-term; concessions to the attacking side wouldn’t work; the leadership of the targeted country would become one of the main targets; internal unrest would encourage external intervention; support from friendly states would matter, but wouldn’t solve the victim’s problems, and finally, the balance of power would remain the decisive factor in security affairs. Force answered with force is a crude instrument, but it remains an effective way of halting escalation. Now that the conflict appears to have been paused, we can draw several further lessons, even while recognizing that this pause is likely to ...
The parachutist appeared to clip trees while carrying a giant US flag during an Independence Day event in California A skydiver carrying a giant American flag crashed into a hospitality tent during an Independence Day rodeo in California. The accident happened during the opening ceremony of the Folsom Pro Rodeo near Sacramento, California on Thursday. The event is one of the city’s annual Fourth of July traditions held this year as part of celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of the signing of the US Declaration of Independence. The event traditionally begins with a parachutist delivering the flag into the arena. Holy smokes!!! Huge crash at the Folsom Pro Rodeo Thankfully he walked away with no injuries 🙏🏼 pic.twitter.com/z4rYPPlNvL — TONY™ (@TONYxTWO) July 4, 2026 Video circulating on social media shows the banner becoming snagged on trees just outside the arena,...
Only 39% of Generation Z correctly linked the celebration to the adoption of the Declaration of Independence Nearly half of Americans do not know what the country’s 250th anniversary is actually celebrating, despite overwhelming majorities saying they are proud and grateful to be American, according to the Cato Institute. The milestone commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, when the 13 American colonies declared independence from Great Britain. The think tank published its Fourth of July national survey on Thursday, saying the poll of 2,253 US adults was conducted by Morning Consult on June 25-26. It found “civic ignorance” about US history and the system of government, with 46% of Americans not knowing what the country’s 250th anniversary commemorates, while 53% correctly identified it as the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. ...
As the French parliament votes in favor of the legalization of euthanasia, the president’s decade in power solidifies its gloomy symbolism After France became, in 2024, the first country on Earth to ‘enshrine’ abortion in its Constitution, French MPs have now passed a bill to legalize euthanasia. The bill still needs to get the approval of the Senate, but at this stage it is probably a simple formality, as only some Catholic associations are protesting and well, you know, summer time is always a great time to pass controversial laws. With the usual French habit of twisting concepts in order to better market them, they coined euthanasia as “aide à mourir” (help to die), while the most famous French outlet Le Monde wrote about a “compassion law” whose goals is to “conciliate individual freedom and fraternity.” How characteristically French. We w...