To be effective, the new European commissioner for defense will need a unique portfolio and significant resources.

The new EU leadership faces the crucial task of advancing a more comprehensive agenda with Iran. To achieve this, the union must develop a long-term, inclusive strategy that prioritizes human rights, supports civil society, and regionalizes policies.

A consortium of 13 institutions has devised a ten-point plan for making the EU a more coherent and effective global actor.

To become a stronger global actor, the EU should reinforce its foreign policy through the high representative role, new policies, and strategic partnerships.

As its citizens head to the polls in June’s European Parliament elections, the EU faces an unprecedented combination of external threats. The incoming cohort of EU leaders will need to make bold decisions that bolster the union’s geopolitical power and render it a stronger global actor.

To quell the revolt sparked by Mahsa Jina Amini’s death in 2022, Iran committed crimes against humanity, including gender persecution. EU governments must coordinate to advance judicial accountability of those responsible while protecting vulnerable groups and countering digital repression.

The demise of the Roman Empire holds lessons for the EU’s system of governance. To fulfill its purpose of unity, Europe needs to develop a vision of community built on the rule of law and encourage states to cooperate in devising sound policies.

The power Iran projects on the international scene masks a fragile regime that fears for its survival. The EU should comprehensively assess the challenges Tehran poses and adjust its policy accordingly.

By awarding Mahsa Amini and the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement with the Sakharov prize, the European Parliament honored all those who have withstood the Iranian regime’s repression. But the EU should also take concrete steps to protect women and human rights defenders who have fled the country.

Iran’s regime is using digital repression to control the country’s citizens and further isolate them from the world. The EU should ensure safe online spaces for Iranian activists and tie its Iran policy into a comprehensive global strategy against digital authoritarianism.