News of Open Society’s European demise appears to have been greatly exaggerated as Alexander Soros, the newly anointed heir to the civil society network, affirmed his commitment to the continent and outlined his wish to redouble efforts in Poland and Ukraine in a column with the pro-Atlanticist Politico publication this week.
The brainchild of the Hungarian-born financier George Soros, the Open Society’s NGO network has earned international notoriety for aggressively pushing progressive policies around migration and social policy, and was ejected from Hungary in 2018 for what the Fidesz government described as subversive activities.
Rumours began circulating in August of an internal Open Society’s wish to reorient itself away from Europe, with leaked documents describing a desire by the group’s top brass to begin radically scaling back its European operations beginning next year in order to focus more on Asia and the Global South.
In his op-ed for Politico, Soros Jr. dismissed entirely the idea that Open Society is considering leaving Europe and instead outlined his wish to focus more on Eastern Europe and Western Balkans, citing the relative economic and political rise of Poland in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
In broad terms, in Europe we are witnessing a shift to the east. The war in Ukraine will have untold consequences, while the rise of Poland as a leading economy will eventually make it a net contributor to the EU. The future of accountable, democratic, government in Europe is now being determined not just in Paris and Berlin but also in Warsaw, Kyiv and Prague.
The Soros network’s fixation on Poland comes amid the country’s ongoing election campaign in which the ruling conservative administration—in the form of Law and Justice (PiS)—is defending itself from an onslaught of meddling by Brussels, which is fervently supporting the liberal opposition led by former European Council President Donald Tusk.
The Soros op-ed also confirmed Open Society’s wish to play a part in the EU accession process of the Western Balkans (Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Albania) as well as the EU membership bids of Ukraine and Moldova which have been accelerated following the outbreak of war in Ukraine.
An insider’s report regarding plans to integrate Ukraine into the EU revealed that liberal European leaders wish to prevent a repeat of Hungarian and Polish rule of law disputes by ensuring progressive governments in new EU member states as the bloc prepares to expand further east.
By all accounts, the Open Society Foundation is undergoing a major transition as George Soros’s youngest son Alexander took up the reins of the philanthropic group and articulated his wish to target next year’s American and European elections.
