The traditional center has no future

There is a great effort by moderate centrists worldwide to build a viable coalition aimed at breaking through the political and ideological blockade erected by the extremes—whether from the left or the right. The problem is that this centrist front is internally divided. It rejects neoliberal market advocates and instead promotes a mixed economy model with a strong public sector. This is because there is a need to ensure the state’s character of social sensitivity, which many believe is expressed through public welfare provisions. In doing so, their proposals incorporate all the negatives of public bureaucracy that the masses despise. At the same time, they insist on a kind of middle political path, which, however, in the eyes of the public, is responsible for the dysfunctions of the state and the failure to achieve effective governance. As Margaret Thatcher said, the middle of the road is where the dashed line is—and it is precisely the worst place to drive!

Speaking in his book Centrists of the World Unite (Allen Lane, 2026), Adrian Wooldridge calls for a rallying of the considered worn-out liberal forces that have lost whatever dynamism and credibility they once had, both to the right and to the left. The left views their preaching as disguised neoliberalism and holds them responsible for the new social inequalities that have emerged and that give rise to populism. Meanwhile, the right sees them as tolerant of the mass migration of Muslim immigrants into European territories and as deniers of traditional values such as homeland, individualism, and national sovereignty. At the same time, they are viewed by both sides as apologists for the status quo and representatives of the established social and economic elites who are indifferent to the ordinary people who are suffering today.

Basically, the slogan “Centrists of the World Unite” is a call for a global alliance of the political center to preserve the existing liberal international order. By liberalism, Wooldridge essentially means the movement that supports individualism, skepticism and rejection of absolutes, and the control of total and unchecked power. However, this constitutes a red flag not only for the rising left-right populist forces but also for the well-known leftist or neoliberal right-wing movements. Populist leaders determine the political agenda, authoritarian governments continually gain ground, while liberals constitute a shapeless, gelatinous establishment that lacks new ideas and realistic solutions. Without a radical renewal of the original genius of their principles, supporters of the traditional center now lack a future.

(Andreas Andrianopoulos’s book, War in Iran: Europe’s Tragic Failures. Epikentro, 2026) is available in bookstores.