COMUNICACIÓN

International relations theorists, historians, political scientists, politicians and academics are taking part in the third Campus Yuste summer course, entitled “The New World Order and the Atlantic Axis”, which was inaugurated today at the Monastery of San Jerónimo de Yuste as part of the Campus Yuste training programme, within the framework of the 26th edition of the University of Extremadura’s International Summer/Autumn Courses. (16/07/2025)

Francisco Rodríguez Jiménez, professor at the University of Extremadura and co-director of the course, explained during the opening session that the hybrid and heterogeneous nature of the course reflects the major challenges currently facing the world, in which “it is not only States that influence international affairs, but also companies and trilateral bodies”.

According to the course co-director, Donald Trump has returned to the White House because “he has come to address the social discontent expressed by the American middle class for more than twenty years”, a factor that cannot be overlooked in this process of international reconfiguration.

To conclude, Rodríguez stated that the current dichotomy between ideological and affective polarisation is “undermining the world’s democracies” because it pits political party competition against the drive to emotionally sway citizens, “which places democratic societies across the globe in a tight corner”. In his view, this atmosphere is being fuelled by major tech companies that fail to curb disinformation and the informational terrorism circulating through their platforms.

The rector of the University of Extremadura, Pedro Fernández, meanwhile warned that the lack of political, economic and social stability, along with insufficient international cooperation caused by the unilateral, exclusionary and protectionist decisions of the United States, China and Russia, represents “the seed of the current wars, conflicts and disputes that threaten world peace, the consequences of which include poverty, discrimination and the neglect of the poorest and most marginalised countries”.

Fernández highlighted the crucial role the Atlantic axis must play in addressing the challenges we face, so as not to see competitiveness, international standing or our way of life diminished. He explained that although the war in Ukraine has reinvigorated NATO and helped strengthen Western cooperation, “it has also exposed the Atlantic axis’s weaknesses in areas such as energy, technology, and the pursuit of consensus”.

Yuste Foundation also offers the option to follow the courses online. To do so, participants must register via the following form: https://forms.gle/iJuoxzgy9SVAxVsv9

A certificate of attendance and achievement will be issued by Yuste Foundation. Full details of the course are available at: https://www.fundacionyuste.org/en/the-new-world-order-and-the-atlantic-axis/

The Campus Yuste course is organised with the support of the Regional Government of Extremadura, the Valhondo Foundation, Patrimonio Nacional, Mafresa, the EU-LAC Foundation, the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB), the Catholic University of Puerto Rico, the Provincial Council of Cáceres, and the Provincial Council of Badajoz.