Prof John O Brennan
@jobmaynooth.bsky.social
Professor of European Politics, Maynooth University, Ireland.
Posts on EU, Balkans and International Politics.
Author: The Eastern Enlargement of the EU.
Director, Centre for European and Eurasian Studies: https://www.maynoothuniversity.ie/europe
Posts on EU, Balkans and International Politics.
Author: The Eastern Enlargement of the EU.
Director, Centre for European and Eurasian Studies: https://www.maynoothuniversity.ie/europe
Pinned
A complete trade embargo with Israel is now needed
If Ireland really wanted to make a difference, and help end the genocidal Israeli onslaught on Palestinians, it should enact a comprehensive trade embargo on Israel and dare the EU authorities to inst...
www.irishexaminer.com
In this new piece, I argue that enacting the Occupied Territories Bill is not enough - Ireland should go further and institute a FULL trade embargo against Israel.
We should be aiming for a EU judicial test if the meaning of Article 2 of the Association agmt
www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...
We should be aiming for a EU judicial test if the meaning of Article 2 of the Association agmt
www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...
How on earth can these spineless so-called ‘Left’ activists even look at themselves in a mirror.
In the most clear cut case of aggression of our time, they are wholly and unreservedly on the side of the brutal aggressor.
In the most clear cut case of aggression of our time, they are wholly and unreservedly on the side of the brutal aggressor.
December 19, 2025 at 8:39 PM
How on earth can these spineless so-called ‘Left’ activists even look at themselves in a mirror.
In the most clear cut case of aggression of our time, they are wholly and unreservedly on the side of the brutal aggressor.
In the most clear cut case of aggression of our time, they are wholly and unreservedly on the side of the brutal aggressor.
Reposted by Prof John O Brennan
Huge new poll puts Plaid ahead of Reform with Labour and the Conservatives on just 10% each. willhaywardwales.substack.com/p/bombshell-...
Bombshell polling for Wales
If this is correct we are seeing a seismic shift
willhaywardwales.substack.com
December 17, 2025 at 7:41 AM
Huge new poll puts Plaid ahead of Reform with Labour and the Conservatives on just 10% each. willhaywardwales.substack.com/p/bombshell-...
Here we go on the merry go round once again.
⚡️🇺🇸 The US is preparing new sanctions targeting Russia’s energy trade, including its shadow fleet, if Putin refuses a peace agreement with Ukraine, - Bloomberg
‼️Measures could be announced as soon as this week, though the final decision rests with Trump.
‼️Measures could be announced as soon as this week, though the final decision rests with Trump.
December 17, 2025 at 10:51 AM
Here we go on the merry go round once again.
Brilliant piece from, Dr Johnny Ryan, on why Europe needs to confront directly on AI and tech regulation.
Every chancellery in Europe has should read this.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Every chancellery in Europe has should read this.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
This is Europe's secret weapon against Trump: it could burst his AI bubble | Johnny Ryan
Growth in the US economy – and the president’s political survival – rest on AI. The EU must use its leverage and stand up to him, says the Irish Council for Civil Liberties’ Johnny Ryan
www.theguardian.com
December 17, 2025 at 10:08 AM
Brilliant piece from, Dr Johnny Ryan, on why Europe needs to confront directly on AI and tech regulation.
Every chancellery in Europe has should read this.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Every chancellery in Europe has should read this.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
I’m sure this will be welcomed right across the EU -
Welcome back to our British colleagues and friends to the EU Erasmus Plus programme.
A small step in the direction of greater cooperation and better futures for young people. 🇪🇺🇬🇧🥃
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/d...
Welcome back to our British colleagues and friends to the EU Erasmus Plus programme.
A small step in the direction of greater cooperation and better futures for young people. 🇪🇺🇬🇧🥃
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/d...
UK to rejoin EU’s Erasmus student exchange programme
Exclusive: British students will be able to participate in EU-wide scheme from January 2027, sources say
www.theguardian.com
December 16, 2025 at 6:39 PM
I’m sure this will be welcomed right across the EU -
Welcome back to our British colleagues and friends to the EU Erasmus Plus programme.
A small step in the direction of greater cooperation and better futures for young people. 🇪🇺🇬🇧🥃
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/d...
Welcome back to our British colleagues and friends to the EU Erasmus Plus programme.
A small step in the direction of greater cooperation and better futures for young people. 🇪🇺🇬🇧🥃
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/d...
wonder whether these tone-deaf idiots at the Daily Mail ever ask themselves whether their own incessant decades long xenophobic campaigning against migrants to Britain could have anything to do with this?
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...
The great exodus: How Poles are ditching UK for their booming homeland
New statistics reveal that while 7,000 Poles arrived in the year ending last June, 25,000 returned home: a net outflow of 18,000. The UK's total Polish population has shrunk to 750,000.
www.dailymail.co.uk
December 13, 2025 at 9:18 AM
wonder whether these tone-deaf idiots at the Daily Mail ever ask themselves whether their own incessant decades long xenophobic campaigning against migrants to Britain could have anything to do with this?
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...
Is Trump breaking up with Europe? This is the question I discussed with Pat Kenny on Newstalk FM this morning.
Like many breakups, this one is messy but Europeans will be much better for being out the other side from an abusive partner.
www.newstalk.com/podcasts/hig...
Like many breakups, this one is messy but Europeans will be much better for being out the other side from an abusive partner.
www.newstalk.com/podcasts/hig...
Is Trump breaking up with Europe? | Newstalk
John O'Brennan, Professor of European Integration at Maynooth University, joined Pat on the show ...
www.newstalk.com
December 12, 2025 at 6:23 PM
Is Trump breaking up with Europe? This is the question I discussed with Pat Kenny on Newstalk FM this morning.
Like many breakups, this one is messy but Europeans will be much better for being out the other side from an abusive partner.
www.newstalk.com/podcasts/hig...
Like many breakups, this one is messy but Europeans will be much better for being out the other side from an abusive partner.
www.newstalk.com/podcasts/hig...
I will be joining @PatKennyNT @NewstalkFM at 10am to discuss the US relationship with the US and how it is changing
December 12, 2025 at 9:36 AM
I will be joining @PatKennyNT @NewstalkFM at 10am to discuss the US relationship with the US and how it is changing
On the Brendan O Connor show on RTE Radio One, I talk about the drones discovered over Dublin as President Zelensky arrived in Dublin this week.
The Irish state continues to neglect security and defence and there are very hard questions thrown up by what happened.
www.rte.ie/radio/radio1...
The Irish state continues to neglect security and defence and there are very hard questions thrown up by what happened.
www.rte.ie/radio/radio1...
The Newspaper Panel
Joining Brendan to dissect the stories making the headlines today, are Executive Director of TASC, Shana Cohen; Special Correspondent for the Irish Examiner, Mick Clifford; Chief Economist with Deloit...
www.rte.ie
December 7, 2025 at 3:56 PM
On the Brendan O Connor show on RTE Radio One, I talk about the drones discovered over Dublin as President Zelensky arrived in Dublin this week.
The Irish state continues to neglect security and defence and there are very hard questions thrown up by what happened.
www.rte.ie/radio/radio1...
The Irish state continues to neglect security and defence and there are very hard questions thrown up by what happened.
www.rte.ie/radio/radio1...
It shouldn’t be controversial to say that everyone who earns money should pay SOME income tax and social insurance.
Ireland’s tax base is dangerously unbalanced. And this isn’t just about corporate tax. We need a serious conversation about income tax.
Ireland’s tax base is dangerously unbalanced. And this isn’t just about corporate tax. We need a serious conversation about income tax.
December 6, 2025 at 10:34 AM
It shouldn’t be controversial to say that everyone who earns money should pay SOME income tax and social insurance.
Ireland’s tax base is dangerously unbalanced. And this isn’t just about corporate tax. We need a serious conversation about income tax.
Ireland’s tax base is dangerously unbalanced. And this isn’t just about corporate tax. We need a serious conversation about income tax.
Good to see Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia. Belgium, and Spain announce that they will NOT participate in next year’s Eurovision (other countries to follow).
The EBU is a disgraceful organisation, completely oblivious to the genocide Israel has been committing in Gaza.
A watershed moment.
The EBU is a disgraceful organisation, completely oblivious to the genocide Israel has been committing in Gaza.
A watershed moment.
December 4, 2025 at 6:09 PM
Good to see Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia. Belgium, and Spain announce that they will NOT participate in next year’s Eurovision (other countries to follow).
The EBU is a disgraceful organisation, completely oblivious to the genocide Israel has been committing in Gaza.
A watershed moment.
The EBU is a disgraceful organisation, completely oblivious to the genocide Israel has been committing in Gaza.
A watershed moment.
This is an image that speaks volumes about what is really going on between Moscow and Washington: these Trumpist hucksters are trying to get Ukraine to surrender so they can go into business with Putin and the gang of thieves and killers that surround him.
They are the worst of the worst.
They are the worst of the worst.
December 2, 2025 at 10:34 PM
This is an image that speaks volumes about what is really going on between Moscow and Washington: these Trumpist hucksters are trying to get Ukraine to surrender so they can go into business with Putin and the gang of thieves and killers that surround him.
They are the worst of the worst.
They are the worst of the worst.
I spoke to Ireland’s Newstalk FM about today’s visit by Ukraine’s President Zelenskiy to Ireland, and why the security management of his visit constitutes a trial run for Ireland’s EU presidency next year.
www.newstalk.com/podcasts/new...
www.newstalk.com/podcasts/new...
Dublin on Lockdown: The Real Threats Behind Zelensky’s Visit | Newstalk
Volodymyr Zelensky is in Dublin at a moment of extraordinary pressure — both for Ukraine and fo...
www.newstalk.com
December 2, 2025 at 11:08 AM
I spoke to Ireland’s Newstalk FM about today’s visit by Ukraine’s President Zelenskiy to Ireland, and why the security management of his visit constitutes a trial run for Ireland’s EU presidency next year.
www.newstalk.com/podcasts/new...
www.newstalk.com/podcasts/new...
Simon Tisdall analyses what is at stake in Taiwan and argues that Donald Trump’s cluelessness is placing Taiwan in mortal danger, like Ukraine, or Czechoslovakia in 1938.
Xi Jinping is absolutely determined to take possession of Taiwan.
Who will stop him?
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Xi Jinping is absolutely determined to take possession of Taiwan.
Who will stop him?
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
China is bearing down on Taiwan – enabled by Trump’s weakness and vacillation | Simon Tisdall
The US hasn’t just left Ukraine vulnerable; it is also provoking Xi’s intensifying attitude towards what he considers a renegade province, says Guardian foreign affairs commentator Simon Tisdall
www.theguardian.com
November 30, 2025 at 1:07 PM
Simon Tisdall analyses what is at stake in Taiwan and argues that Donald Trump’s cluelessness is placing Taiwan in mortal danger, like Ukraine, or Czechoslovakia in 1938.
Xi Jinping is absolutely determined to take possession of Taiwan.
Who will stop him?
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Xi Jinping is absolutely determined to take possession of Taiwan.
Who will stop him?
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Performative cruelty at its worst.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
UK asylum seekers to be banned from taking taxis to medical appointments
Move, which is part of crackdown on costs, comes after it emerged Home Office spends £15.8m a year on service
www.theguardian.com
November 29, 2025 at 1:50 PM
Performative cruelty at its worst.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
How do we convince these ‘pacifists’ that you cannot make peace with tyrannical dictators? You have to defeat them.
One might think that Germans, above all other people, would understand this.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
One might think that Germans, above all other people, would understand this.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Germany raised its citizens to hate war. Now it wants us to enlist in the army – but we say no | Mithu Sanyal
The war in Ukraine is a crime. But European leaders should be working for peace, not preparing young people to fight and die, says German academic Mithu Sanyal
www.theguardian.com
November 28, 2025 at 8:38 AM
How do we convince these ‘pacifists’ that you cannot make peace with tyrannical dictators? You have to defeat them.
One might think that Germans, above all other people, would understand this.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
One might think that Germans, above all other people, would understand this.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
What is one more lie when they spend day and night lying to their supporters?
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...
RFK Jr taunts Donald Trump with pointed 'Thanksgiving dinner' photo
RFK Jr. trolled President Donald Trump after sharing an edited Thanksgiving photo with him, Elon Musk , and Donald Trump Jr.
www.dailymail.co.uk
November 27, 2025 at 9:54 PM
What is one more lie when they spend day and night lying to their supporters?
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...
A beautiful winter sunset on Dublin’s River Liffey.
November 25, 2025 at 5:28 PM
A beautiful winter sunset on Dublin’s River Liffey.
This should be mandatory reading in every chancellery and university in Europe.
November 23, 2025 at 8:16 PM
This should be mandatory reading in every chancellery and university in Europe.
Should have been obvious to EU leaders from earliest point of 2025 that NATO was dead. Instead of ramping up support for Ukraine, Europeans have deluded themselves into thinking that ‘Trump whispering’ will work, and save Ukraine from dismemberment.
It won’t.
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...
It won’t.
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...
Trump says Ukraine has ‘zero gratitude’ for peace plan amid international talks
US president appears to roll back from demand Zelenskyy sign by Thursday amid claims Russia authored the text
www.theguardian.com
November 23, 2025 at 4:52 PM
Should have been obvious to EU leaders from earliest point of 2025 that NATO was dead. Instead of ramping up support for Ukraine, Europeans have deluded themselves into thinking that ‘Trump whispering’ will work, and save Ukraine from dismemberment.
It won’t.
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...
It won’t.
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...
What will it take for Irish people to understand that Russia does not 1/ recognise or 2/ respect our military neutrality?
November 22, 2025 at 10:35 AM
What will it take for Irish people to understand that Russia does not 1/ recognise or 2/ respect our military neutrality?
There are a LOT more Nathan Gills around, including some in Ireland. Let this stern sentence be a warning to them that if you take Putin’s money you run the risk of a stern sentence like this one.
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Reform UK’s former Wales leader jailed for taking bribes for pro-Russia speeches
Police say Nathan Gill received at least £40,000 while he was an MEP from Oleg Voloshyn, an alleged Russian asset
www.theguardian.com
November 21, 2025 at 2:00 PM
There are a LOT more Nathan Gills around, including some in Ireland. Let this stern sentence be a warning to them that if you take Putin’s money you run the risk of a stern sentence like this one.
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Reposted by Prof John O Brennan
All the rape, torture, and murder will be brushed under the carpet, a great lesson for any future war criminals.
November 21, 2025 at 7:08 AM
All the rape, torture, and murder will be brushed under the carpet, a great lesson for any future war criminals.
Trump’s plan for Ukraine
November 21, 2025 at 7:55 AM
Trump’s plan for Ukraine
Reposted by Prof John O Brennan
Welcome to Donald Trump’s America—where it’s fine to be a Nazi or in the KKK.
U.S. Coast Guard will no longer classify swastikas, nooses as hate symbols
The military service, which falls under the Department of Homeland Security, has drafted a new policy that classifies such items “potentially divisive.”
www.washingtonpost.com
November 20, 2025 at 8:37 PM
Welcome to Donald Trump’s America—where it’s fine to be a Nazi or in the KKK.