The EU is proving its enduring appeal and resilience through democratic breakthroughs and strategic gains in its near abroad. In the cacophony of pessimism that often shrouds European Union-related news – tales of division, indecision, or decline – a cascade of underreported victories is quietly reshaping the continent’s geopolitical landscape. The EU, frequently underestimated, is proving its enduring appeal and resilience through democratic breakthroughs and strategic gains in its near abroad.
From Moldova’s defiant pro-EU mandate to the stirrings of reunification in Cyprus, the Union’s soft power is weaving a narrative of hope that deserves amplification. Far from the caricature of a faltering giant, the EU is emerging as a subtle but formidable winner, its gravitational pull undiminished.
In Moldova, the October 2025 parliamentary elections delivered a resounding triumph for pro-EU forces, a beacon of progress against the Kremlin’s relentless machinations. Despite Moscow’s aggressive campaign – allegedly funneling over €15 million through illicit channels to sway voters toward pro-Russian factions – President Maia Sandu’s Party of Action and Solidarity secured a robust 52% of the vote, clinching 58 seats in the 101-seat parliament.
This victory was no small feat in a nation where Russian disinformation and economic coercion loom large. The EU’s steadfast proved pivotal, empowering Moldovans to reject the shadow of Moscow’s influence. Each euro, each diplomatic gesture, and each training program for Moldova’s civil society, though modest in isolation, coalesced into a bulwark against authoritarianism.
The ripple effect is profound: Transnistria, the Russian-backed separatist enclave, is now teetering toward reintegration. With Moscow’s resources stretched thin by the Ukraine conflict, its ability to sustain this malign outpost is waning, paving the way for Moldova’s reunification under the EU’s aegis.
Across the Mediterranean, another milestone unfolded in Northern Cyprus, where the November 2025 election of Tufan Erhürman as president of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) marked a seismic shift. Since Cyprus joined the EU in 2004, its entire territory is legally EU soil, yet the northern third remains under Ankara’s de facto control.
Erhürman’s victory, with 54.3% of the vote, was a de facto referendum on reunification, as Cypriot Turks endorsed his vision of a bizonal, bicommunal confederation over Turkey’s push for a permanent two-state solution. This outcome challenges Ankara’s grip and rekindles hope for a united Cyprus within the EU framework.
It is now clear: Cypriot Turks want to live as EU citizens, not as Erdoğan vassals.
In Georgia, the local elections of October 2025, marred by allegations of rigging, and boycotted by the pro-EU opposition, revealed a nation not yet lost to Russian influence. The ruling Georgian Dream party, increasingly pro-Russian, secured an illusory majority while the streets of Tbilisi and Batumi pulsed with protests, with demonstrators decrying electoral fraud and demanding alignment with Brussels.
These protests signal a government on edge, its legitimacy fraying as Georgia’s youth—70% of whom favor EU integration—push back. The EU’s influence, though tested, remains a lodestar for reform.
Ukraine, meanwhile, stands as a testament to the EU’s magnetic pull. On the frontlines, Kyiv’s forces have held back Russia’s advances, while diplomatically, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has navigated complex talks with global powers, including with an unpredictable U.S. president, with a little help from his EU friends. This dual fight – military and diplomatic – underscores the EU’s role as a beacon for nations resisting authoritarian encroachment.
Let us dispel the tired stereotype of the EU as weak, fragmented, or perpetually on the losing side. These successes – Moldova’s democratic defiance, Transnistria’s tentative reintegration, Cyprus’s reunification hopes, Georgia’s resilient protests, and Ukraine’s steadfast alignment – reveal a Union whose attraction endures. It is not by chance that these are the countries EUalive chose to cover with priority, ever since our launch on 29 April 2025. This is why we chose as name EUalive.
The EU is not merely surviving – it is quietly winning, one democratic victory at a time.