In our 100th episode of ‘Brussels, my love?’, we discuss the delicate diplomacy and political turbulence behind the spectacular reopening of Paris’ Notre Dame Cathedral, and the fate of Syrian asylum-seekers after the fall of Assad’s regime.
ADVERTISEMENTWe are joined by Bart Szewczyk, global policy expert with the German Marshall Fund, Maria Tadeo, correspondent with Le Grand Continent and Nessim Achouche, policy expert with the Rosa Luxembourg Foundation.
The panel reflected on the recent meeting between US President-elect Donald Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who were both in Paris to see the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral.
It was a smart move to have Trump and Zelenksyy as the main guests of honour, Bart Szewczyk said — setting the stage for strong transatlantic ties and a way out of the long Russia-Ukraine war.
“I thought that was a very nice gesture on his [Trump’s] part, to come to Paris, to be part of this ceremony and part of this occasion”, Szewczyk said.
“He even wore a yellow tie with the blue suit,” a possible reference to the colours of Ukraine’s national flag, he said, adding: “I don’t know if that was intentional or not, but if it was, it was warmly received”.
The panel also reflected on Bashar al-Assad’s fall from power in the Middle East, and on the decision of many European states to suspend asylum proceedings for Syrians. Around 6 million people have fled Syria since the outbreak of civil war over a decade ago, and the jury is still out on whether or not the country is safe to return to.
Watch ‘Brussels, my love?’ in the player above.