Wessel van Rensburg
@wildebees.bsky.social
The digital policy strategist you didn’t know you needed—using terms like 'sovereign data assets' as casually as most would say 'hello'.
Also geopolitics, innovation, industrial policy.
Location: Den Haag 🇳🇱 From: 🇿🇦
Also geopolitics, innovation, industrial policy.
Location: Den Haag 🇳🇱 From: 🇿🇦
Pinned
Why stablecoins are Silicon Valley's Pandora's box
Stablecoins betray the essence of money itself: credit.
www.reaction.life
New essay ↓ with Andreas Dombret www.reaction.life/p/why-stable... #stablecoins
Stablecoins are Silicon Valley's Pandora's box. The Trump admin just signed the GENIUS Act, but the warnings should be louder.
Here's what everyone's missing about why stablecoins betray the essence of money itself 🧵
Stablecoins are Silicon Valley's Pandora's box. The Trump admin just signed the GENIUS Act, but the warnings should be louder.
Here's what everyone's missing about why stablecoins betray the essence of money itself 🧵
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
Why does liberals struggle to deal with MAGA politics? Indeed why do liberals fear politics?
One answer: the tradition was born from Europe’s religious bloodletting. If metaphysical disagreement leads to slaughter, you build institutions that don’t require agreement on ends—only procedures. 1/x
One answer: the tradition was born from Europe’s religious bloodletting. If metaphysical disagreement leads to slaughter, you build institutions that don’t require agreement on ends—only procedures. 1/x
December 7, 2025 at 8:59 AM
Why does liberals struggle to deal with MAGA politics? Indeed why do liberals fear politics?
One answer: the tradition was born from Europe’s religious bloodletting. If metaphysical disagreement leads to slaughter, you build institutions that don’t require agreement on ends—only procedures. 1/x
One answer: the tradition was born from Europe’s religious bloodletting. If metaphysical disagreement leads to slaughter, you build institutions that don’t require agreement on ends—only procedures. 1/x
It’s absolutely not in the UK’s interest to be excluded from such a large trade area on its doorstep. So expect Farage to want to end the EU.
Mask is off: MAGA propagandist Will Chamberlain "It should be American policy to force the dissolution of the European Union. Punish countries that stay in, reward those that leave" #EuropeanUnion
https://i.redd.it/rpkzkvon0r5g1.png
https://i.redd.it/rpkzkvon0r5g1.png
December 7, 2025 at 2:53 PM
It’s absolutely not in the UK’s interest to be excluded from such a large trade area on its doorstep. So expect Farage to want to end the EU.
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
9/While the document seems to hint at continued security cooperation, in practice there are some flashing red warning signs. See the reported breakdown in US military cooperation with the German military.
www.thetimes.com/world/europe...
www.thetimes.com/world/europe...
German army chief says contact with US military cut off by Pentagon
Lieutenant General Christian Freuding fears the longstanding military partnership between the two allies is unravelling under President Trump’s administration
www.thetimes.com
December 5, 2025 at 1:47 PM
9/While the document seems to hint at continued security cooperation, in practice there are some flashing red warning signs. See the reported breakdown in US military cooperation with the German military.
www.thetimes.com/world/europe...
www.thetimes.com/world/europe...
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
6/In many ways, it is the mirror image of the Clinton internet freedom speech. The US sought to use its tech dominance to upend politics in autocracies. Now, these tools will be turned against our closest allies.
2009-2017.state.gov/secretary/20...
2009-2017.state.gov/secretary/20...
Remarks on Internet Freedom
2009-2017.state.gov
December 5, 2025 at 1:41 PM
6/In many ways, it is the mirror image of the Clinton internet freedom speech. The US sought to use its tech dominance to upend politics in autocracies. Now, these tools will be turned against our closest allies.
2009-2017.state.gov/secretary/20...
2009-2017.state.gov/secretary/20...
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
5/And it also lays out the tools to do this -- financial and technology dominance. See work with @himself.bsky.social on weaponized interdependence.
direct.mit.edu/isec/article...
direct.mit.edu/isec/article...
Weaponized Interdependence: How Global Economic Networks Shape State Coercion
Abstract. Liberals claim that globalization has led to fragmentation and decentralized networks of power relations. This does not explain how states increasingly “weaponize interdependence” by leverag...
direct.mit.edu
December 5, 2025 at 1:39 PM
5/And it also lays out the tools to do this -- financial and technology dominance. See work with @himself.bsky.social on weaponized interdependence.
direct.mit.edu/isec/article...
direct.mit.edu/isec/article...
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
2/In terms of substance, the document is clear, a key problem in Europe is the EU: "We stand for the sovereign rights of nations, against the sovereignty-sapping incursions of the most intrusive transnational organizations...The larger issues facing Europe include activities of the European Union."
December 5, 2025 at 1:36 PM
2/In terms of substance, the document is clear, a key problem in Europe is the EU: "We stand for the sovereign rights of nations, against the sovereignty-sapping incursions of the most intrusive transnational organizations...The larger issues facing Europe include activities of the European Union."
Neo-royalism
5/The reason it seems so confusing is this is not about a specific dispute. It is an attempt to shift the underling principles of the international system to what @segoddard.bsky.social call neo-royalism -- a system based not on rules but hyper elite interests.
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
Further Back to the Future: Neo-Royalism, the Trump Administration, and the Emerging International System | International Organization | Cambridge Core
Further Back to the Future: Neo-Royalism, the Trump Administration, and the Emerging International System - Volume 79 Issue S1
www.cambridge.org
December 7, 2025 at 2:47 PM
Neo-royalism
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
Breathtaking, but now expected.
1/US stepping up attacks on the EU. This has left many in Europe scratching their heads but it is part of the neo-royalist agenda. The EU stands for the rules based order and stands in the way of a new order based not on rules but clique interests.
www.politico.eu/article/top-...
www.politico.eu/article/top-...
Top US official says EU regulation ‘undermines’ NATO ties
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said Europe’s policy agenda was hurting its credibility in Washington.
www.politico.eu
December 7, 2025 at 2:18 PM
Breathtaking, but now expected.
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
Ursula von der Leyen’s European Commission should continue to enforce its digital rules with an iron fist despite the outcry from U.S. officials and big tech moguls, co-chair of the Greens in the European Parliament Bas Eickhout told POLITICO.
Keep hitting US Big Tech with fines, Europe’s Greens tell von der Leyen
EU Greens chief tells POLITICO Brussels “should pick on this battle and stand strong” in the face of U.S. backlash.
www.politico.eu
December 7, 2025 at 11:54 AM
Ursula von der Leyen’s European Commission should continue to enforce its digital rules with an iron fist despite the outcry from U.S. officials and big tech moguls, co-chair of the Greens in the European Parliament Bas Eickhout told POLITICO.
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
Good and nuanced long-read from Finbarr on Germanys economic woes and the role of China.
Wuttke’s hypothesis - that the EU will react more firmly than China believes - is one that I share although how it pans out in practice remains uncertain.
Wuttke’s hypothesis - that the EU will react more firmly than China believes - is one that I share although how it pans out in practice remains uncertain.
December 7, 2025 at 10:23 AM
Good and nuanced long-read from Finbarr on Germanys economic woes and the role of China.
Wuttke’s hypothesis - that the EU will react more firmly than China believes - is one that I share although how it pans out in practice remains uncertain.
Wuttke’s hypothesis - that the EU will react more firmly than China believes - is one that I share although how it pans out in practice remains uncertain.
How to deal with the US's national security strategy?
Germany's past has an answer.
Germany learned the hard way: a democracy that treats anti-democrats and democrats as equivalent players invites its own burial. Weimar’s procedural purity became self-destruction. 1/x
bsky.app/profile/wild...
Germany's past has an answer.
Germany learned the hard way: a democracy that treats anti-democrats and democrats as equivalent players invites its own burial. Weimar’s procedural purity became self-destruction. 1/x
bsky.app/profile/wild...
“This is, quite straightforwardly, a program for regime change in Europe, aimed at turning it into an illiberal polity. Accomplishing this transformation would involve undermining existing liberal governments in cahoots with Europe’s own far right,”
Trump's new National Security Strategy: what if groypers cosplayed George Kennan?
www.programmablemutter.com/p/america-ha...
www.programmablemutter.com/p/america-ha...
December 7, 2025 at 9:16 AM
How to deal with the US's national security strategy?
Germany's past has an answer.
Germany learned the hard way: a democracy that treats anti-democrats and democrats as equivalent players invites its own burial. Weimar’s procedural purity became self-destruction. 1/x
bsky.app/profile/wild...
Germany's past has an answer.
Germany learned the hard way: a democracy that treats anti-democrats and democrats as equivalent players invites its own burial. Weimar’s procedural purity became self-destruction. 1/x
bsky.app/profile/wild...
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
Monday's meeting of Starmer, Macron and Merz could turn out to be even more important because of the US national security strategy. They need to decide whether to say in public what they are thinking in private: that the threat is no longer just Putin, it's also Trump
December 6, 2025 at 7:33 PM
Monday's meeting of Starmer, Macron and Merz could turn out to be even more important because of the US national security strategy. They need to decide whether to say in public what they are thinking in private: that the threat is no longer just Putin, it's also Trump
Why does liberals struggle to deal with MAGA politics? Indeed why do liberals fear politics?
One answer: the tradition was born from Europe’s religious bloodletting. If metaphysical disagreement leads to slaughter, you build institutions that don’t require agreement on ends—only procedures. 1/x
One answer: the tradition was born from Europe’s religious bloodletting. If metaphysical disagreement leads to slaughter, you build institutions that don’t require agreement on ends—only procedures. 1/x
December 7, 2025 at 8:59 AM
Why does liberals struggle to deal with MAGA politics? Indeed why do liberals fear politics?
One answer: the tradition was born from Europe’s religious bloodletting. If metaphysical disagreement leads to slaughter, you build institutions that don’t require agreement on ends—only procedures. 1/x
One answer: the tradition was born from Europe’s religious bloodletting. If metaphysical disagreement leads to slaughter, you build institutions that don’t require agreement on ends—only procedures. 1/x
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
In a new @wsj.com op-ed, Ryan Berg argues that the buildup in the Caribbean has passed a point of no return and discusses ways in which the Trump administration can establish the United States' credibility.
Read more: www.wsj.com/opinion/how-...
Read more: www.wsj.com/opinion/how-...
December 6, 2025 at 6:00 PM
In a new @wsj.com op-ed, Ryan Berg argues that the buildup in the Caribbean has passed a point of no return and discusses ways in which the Trump administration can establish the United States' credibility.
Read more: www.wsj.com/opinion/how-...
Read more: www.wsj.com/opinion/how-...
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
Something has changed. A side of America that most Europeans never encountered face to face is now in charge. Europe had a decade of warnings and the first Trump Administration to prepare for this. We chose not to.
To meet this moment and secure our future, we must also change.
To meet this moment and secure our future, we must also change.
December 6, 2025 at 5:49 PM
Something has changed. A side of America that most Europeans never encountered face to face is now in charge. Europe had a decade of warnings and the first Trump Administration to prepare for this. We chose not to.
To meet this moment and secure our future, we must also change.
To meet this moment and secure our future, we must also change.
“This is, quite straightforwardly, a program for regime change in Europe, aimed at turning it into an illiberal polity. Accomplishing this transformation would involve undermining existing liberal governments in cahoots with Europe’s own far right,”
Trump's new National Security Strategy: what if groypers cosplayed George Kennan?
www.programmablemutter.com/p/america-ha...
www.programmablemutter.com/p/america-ha...
America has identified its greatest enemy: Western Europe
Trump's new National Security Strategy: what if groypers cosplayed George Kennan?
www.programmablemutter.com
December 6, 2025 at 12:11 PM
“This is, quite straightforwardly, a program for regime change in Europe, aimed at turning it into an illiberal polity. Accomplishing this transformation would involve undermining existing liberal governments in cahoots with Europe’s own far right,”
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
So technology has changed the world. European member states can decide the current half baked EU is not worth it. In fact its counter productive. And they would be right.
But they should be aware that they are not returning to a world of 1890. 25/x
But they should be aware that they are not returning to a world of 1890. 25/x
December 5, 2025 at 3:07 PM
So technology has changed the world. European member states can decide the current half baked EU is not worth it. In fact its counter productive. And they would be right.
But they should be aware that they are not returning to a world of 1890. 25/x
But they should be aware that they are not returning to a world of 1890. 25/x
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
Don't let anyone tell you that the Commission's DSA enforcement against X is about speech or censorship.
That would, indeed, be interesting. But this is just the EU enforcing some normal, boring laws that would get bipartisan support in the U.S. (I bet similar bills *have* had that support.) 1/
That would, indeed, be interesting. But this is just the EU enforcing some normal, boring laws that would get bipartisan support in the U.S. (I bet similar bills *have* had that support.) 1/
December 5, 2025 at 2:58 PM
Don't let anyone tell you that the Commission's DSA enforcement against X is about speech or censorship.
That would, indeed, be interesting. But this is just the EU enforcing some normal, boring laws that would get bipartisan support in the U.S. (I bet similar bills *have* had that support.) 1/
That would, indeed, be interesting. But this is just the EU enforcing some normal, boring laws that would get bipartisan support in the U.S. (I bet similar bills *have* had that support.) 1/
You may ask yourself, why should European states, that include Bismarck's fearsome Germany fear the anyone, including the US? Why is Europe's economies falling behind?
This is a story of when *technology* makes the benefits of scale matter more. 1/x
This is a story of when *technology* makes the benefits of scale matter more. 1/x
A few thoughts on the new US national security strategy that was released today.
🧵
www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u...
🧵
www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u...
December 5, 2025 at 3:07 PM
You may ask yourself, why should European states, that include Bismarck's fearsome Germany fear the anyone, including the US? Why is Europe's economies falling behind?
This is a story of when *technology* makes the benefits of scale matter more. 1/x
This is a story of when *technology* makes the benefits of scale matter more. 1/x
The problem of Europe is NOT too much regulation. As the Draghi report points out, in some instances there is too much, in others too little.
**The main problem is that it can’t act like a state.** It needs to integrate or split. It now has the worst of both worlds.
**The main problem is that it can’t act like a state.** It needs to integrate or split. It now has the worst of both worlds.
Pages 25 to 27 are most relevant here and should be read in their entirety
December 5, 2025 at 1:18 PM
The problem of Europe is NOT too much regulation. As the Draghi report points out, in some instances there is too much, in others too little.
**The main problem is that it can’t act like a state.** It needs to integrate or split. It now has the worst of both worlds.
**The main problem is that it can’t act like a state.** It needs to integrate or split. It now has the worst of both worlds.
The USA 🇺🇸 no longer wants to intervene to spread liberal democracy all over the world.
It does however want to intervene in Europe to spread its peculiar brand of reactionary MAGA-libertarianism.
It does however want to intervene in Europe to spread its peculiar brand of reactionary MAGA-libertarianism.
What about Europe? It is mentioned quite a bit, with one primary focus: European identity and the alleged elites and minority governments that restrict core liberties and democratic processes. This is extremely close to JD Vance’s Munich speech.
December 5, 2025 at 1:15 PM
The USA 🇺🇸 no longer wants to intervene to spread liberal democracy all over the world.
It does however want to intervene in Europe to spread its peculiar brand of reactionary MAGA-libertarianism.
It does however want to intervene in Europe to spread its peculiar brand of reactionary MAGA-libertarianism.
Universalist liberalism is dead to the US. That’s partly a good thing.
But first:
This is really a strategy which prioritises. They also say so openly, and definitely have a point on this 👇
This is really a strategy which prioritises. They also say so openly, and definitely have a point on this 👇
December 5, 2025 at 1:07 PM
Universalist liberalism is dead to the US. That’s partly a good thing.
🍿
Hold on to your hats - the EU Commission has fined Elon Musk's X €120 million for breaches of its digital services act, including:
- Deceptive design of X's ‘blue checkmark'
- Lack of transparency of X's ads repository
- Failure to provide researchers access to public data
- Deceptive design of X's ‘blue checkmark'
- Lack of transparency of X's ads repository
- Failure to provide researchers access to public data
December 5, 2025 at 12:40 PM
🍿
Reposted by Wessel van Rensburg
The headline, the main takeaway from a European viewpoint is this:
The transatlantic relationship as we know it is over. Yes, we kinda knew this. But this is now official US White House policy. Not a sppech, not a statement. The West as it used to be no longer exists.
The transatlantic relationship as we know it is over. Yes, we kinda knew this. But this is now official US White House policy. Not a sppech, not a statement. The West as it used to be no longer exists.
December 5, 2025 at 9:49 AM
The headline, the main takeaway from a European viewpoint is this:
The transatlantic relationship as we know it is over. Yes, we kinda knew this. But this is now official US White House policy. Not a sppech, not a statement. The West as it used to be no longer exists.
The transatlantic relationship as we know it is over. Yes, we kinda knew this. But this is now official US White House policy. Not a sppech, not a statement. The West as it used to be no longer exists.