A Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system arrives at Osan Air Base, South Korea, March 6, 2017. Nine years later, components of the same system were transferred from the Korean Peninsula to the Middle East. U.S. Air Force photo. Jeremy Larlee. -"The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoW) visual information does not imply or constitute DoW endorsement." On April 8, 2026, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth stood at the Pentagon podium and declared the objectives of Operat

Uniting food and community, Foodbank is a space full of inspiration. Located at Landbouwbelang (also known as LBB), the coolest non-profit organisation in the Maastricht region promotes sustainability by raising awareness about unnecessary food waste and actively reducing it. Foodbank is a place where everyone is welcome, and where people come together not only to save food and share it with others, but also to cook and enjoy delicious meals made from perfectly good food that

“You know what I fucking did to get back to you? “No.” Grace replies, her voice quiet. “You know what I fucking did— to get back to you? Sam shouts, using a crowbar to destroy the newly renovated kitchen. “You know how he fucking suffered?” Sam rages. “He fucking suffered because of YOU!” he says, pointing fingers at Grace. “And what have you done to my fucking house, my fucking kids, Grace?” In his rage, Sam continues to destroy the kitchen, and Grace's devastated eyes

On April 21, 2026, the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum opened a discussion on “Hybrid Threats and Disinformation: The Role of Civil Society in the Armenian Elections” in Brussels. The conference gathered European Union policymakers on one side, represented by MEP Miriam Lexmann, MEP Andrey Kovatchev, and Jan Latal from European Union External Action Services; on the other side civil society representatives, including Lousineh Hakobyan from the NGO Europe in Law Associ

«Je suis fasciné par les orques, car elles sont pleines de mystères.» Ce n’est pas exactement la phrase d’ouverture à laquelle on s’attendrait de la part de Guillaume Meurice lors d’une interview. Laissant de côté la satire politique pour un (petit) moment, nous avons commencé notre interview, donnant immédiatement le ton d’une discussion autour de l’une de ses passions les plus chères : son admiration pour les orques. S’il est encore nécessaire de le présenter: Guillaume Meu

“I am fascinated by orcas, as they are full of mysteries.” This is not exactly the opening line you would expect from Guillaume Meurice during an interview. Leaving political satire on the side for a (little) while, we started our interview, immediately setting the stage for a talk about one of his dearest passions: orcas. For the non-French readers among you, Guillaume Meurice is a 44-year-old comedian, radio host, and author of several essays and novels. He is also an anim

In 2018, a British rock band released a song that sounded less like music and more like a news feed having a breakdown. “Love It If We Made It” by ‘The 1975’ was written as an introspective reflection of the social and political climate happening since 2016. It was not a protest song. It was not a call to action. It was something more unsettling, a shrug dressed up as a scream. “It’s the gem of hope amongst all of the rubble.” - Matty Healy, The 1975 "Love It If We Made It"

In our ever changing society, we have fallen in line with viewing the Middle East through a very narrow lens. This lens is deeply problematic. Governments, particularly U.S.-backed states like Israel, have long shaped policies directly impacting the lives of citizens in the region. Additionally, Western outlets tend to portray citizens as enemies and reduce lived human experiences to mere statistical numbers. As students, we are introduced to a variety of perspectives of the

Maastricht is a large student city, with 23.000 students coming here to study, live, and shape daily life. However, when it comes to political representation, this reality translates into few seats at the municipal table. In 2022, only 7% of municipal councillors in the Netherlands were under 30. The average councillor was over 50. Therefore, students are hardly represented in daily local politics. This matters. Decisions on housing, mobility, safety, and public spaces direct

“I still think about our revolution in 2018 when all Sudanese people were on the streets, united against Omar al-Bashir. The most beautiful was the sit-in on April 6, 2019, outside the General Command headquarters. We were all in the square. I remember people saying this was the future of Sudan.” — Musa, age 40, from Khartoum We are living in a day and age where some are granted the privilege to remain ignorant, while others suffer daily. If you belong to the former category

The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about – Oscar Wilde. Hello, welcome back to our eighth edition of Loosely Talking, where we reflect on our lives between the cobblestones. We wanted to avoid this topic, but living in Maastricht, it’s impossible to ignore. Today, we’re talking about dating. More specifically, the syndrome that seems to have struck us all. There must be something scientifically wrong with Maastricht. One would think that with t

One of the grandest love letters to the city of Venice can be found at The European Fine Arts Fair (TEFAF) 2026. Though a month has passed since the event, conversation and sharing of impressions of those who have had the chance to attend continue to stir. Through painting and illustration, the highly anticipated annual art fair walked its patrons through squares, canals, and centuries. It became a beguiling invitation to those who have never been, and a chance to fondly reme

The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about – Oscar Wilde. Hello, welcome back to Loosely Talking, where we reflect on our lives between the cobblestones. Let’s be real – even though the cobblestones are beautiful, they can get boring. This is a transcript of a conversation we had with Maastricht during a late night at LBB [ We are sitting on the couches, complaining about Maastricht, when all of a sudden they appeared – SHIT] Us: Oh, hey Maastri

The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about – Oscar Wilde. Hello! Welcome to our sixth issue of Loosely Talking, where we reflect on our lives between the cobblestones. Happy Easter! We hope you ate loads of chocolate in-between egg hunts and time in the sun! While preparing today’s column, we (for the first time), entered into a full-blown disagreement. Who has better chocolate? Celia insists the Belgians do, while Ella defends the Germans. Here i

Whilst the current crisis in Iran has demonstrated that geography is a strategic asset in times of conflict – with the Strait of Hormuz bringing global energy trade to a standstill when it was closed – this strategic chokepoint is, unfortunately, not the only one threatening what little stability appears to remain in the region. Another strategic point could be held hostage, but this time extending the conflict zone beyond the Gulf States to include the countries of the Horn

The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about – Oscar Wilde. Hello! Welcome to our fifth issue of Loosely Talking, where we reflect on our lives between the cobblestones. Welcome to April! What better way to kick it off than with a celebration that demands no budget, no family dinner, no formal outlet. All you need is a little sense of humor and some imagination to make someone's day a little brighter or worse… April Fools' Day is our kind of celebr

Welcome to the new six part series here at the Diplomat, called Democracy Dismantled . My name is Ella Leffler, I am a third year UCM student studying international relations and philosophy. As a German-American, the history and state of U.S. politics has frustrated me for as long as I can remember taking an interest in politics. The past year however, has been especially angering. Donald Trump has facilitated a multitude of domestic and especially international violations,

in the back of my mind there’s a door big hardwood door painted white, cracks in its paint a testament of time that’s passing by. the door left ajar, invites to a storage-like room, where one can stop by and think of all the things that lay covered in dust, present, and past, in my mind’s labyrinth of tall, standing shelves. on one shelf, there’s a home: cozy and warm, parental love, filled with laughter, music, and games, blankets and hugs, kisses goodnight, my duvet tight;

As the war in Iran is now into its fourth week, concerns are growing that this could pull Europe and in particular the Netherlands, into economic instability. According to a report by the Atlantic Council , Europe’s decision to move away from using Russia’s pipelines for oil following the war on Ukraine in 2022 is now putting pressure on Europe to find other means of refilling their reserves. Even though the war unfolding in Iran might seem distant to students in Maastricht,

Life feels like it’s passing by in a blur— where has time gone? With exam season luring me into a constant schedule of studying, university work had me in a chokehold. It was a practical one week, a project the next and a proposal to write the day after— it had me occupied. So occupied that my unread messages had been piling into one big, giant list. Friends whom I had the time to meet so much last year, suddenly were the very people I only see weeks after. On top of that, th