Brief/ A Critical Juncture: EU’s Venezuela Policy Following the War in Ukraine by Anna Ayuso, Tiziano Breda, Elsa Lilja Gunnarsdottir and Marianne Riddervold
EU’s goal in Venezuela has been to promote a negotiated democratic transition, but it has been unable to foster it. The change of the US Venezuela policy under Biden, the shift towards the left in most new Latin American governments, and EU’s need to diversify its energy supplies after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, have provided an opening […]
Paper/ How to Reduce the Impact of Internal Contestation, Regional Fragmentation and Multipolar Competition on EU Foreign and Security Policy by Sarah van Bentum et al.
In this JOINT Paper, Sarah van Bentum (Freie Universität Berlin – FUB), Caterina Bedin (Fondation pour la Recherche Stratégique – FRS), Zachary Paikin (Centre for European Policy Studies – CEPS), Gregor Walter-Drop (FUB), Steven Blockmans (CEPS), Agnès Levallois (FRS) & Tiffany Guendouz (FRS) outline strategies that may help to mitigate the negative impact of internal contestation, […]
Podcast/ Multipolar Competition’s Impact on EU Foreign Policy: Lessons from Ukraine, Iran and the South China Sea
Recent years have witnessed the return of competition between the world’s most powerful states, which is exerting a significant impact on EU foreign and security policy and constraining the EU’s room for manoeuvre as well. The advent of an increasingly multipolar world also raises questions about the reach of the EU’s interests and influence — […]
Paper/ Tackling the Constraints on EU Foreign Policy towards Ukraine: From Strategic Denial to Geopolitical Awakening by Kristi Raik, Steven Blockmans, Assem Dandashly, Gergana Noutcheva, Anna Osypchuk and Anton Suslov
EU-Ukraine relations have been overshadowed by tightening geopolitical competition with Russia ever since 2004. This JOINT Report, by Kristi Raik (International Centre for Defence and Security- ICDS), Steven Blockmans (Centre for European Policy Studies- CEPS), Assem Dandashly, Gergana Noutcheva (Maastricht University), Anna Osypchuk and Anton Suslov (School for Policy Analysis, National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy- […]
Tackling the Constraints on EU Foreign Policy towards Ukraine: From Strategic Denial to Geopolitical Awakening
This report explores the evolution of EU policy towards Ukraine, with major turning points occurring in 2004, 2014 and February 2022 when Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine started. The dominant constraining factor in the case of Ukraine was multipolar (or rather bipolar) competition between the EU and Russia over the European political, economic and security […]
Russia’s War on Ukraine: Two Inconvenient Truths for the EU
Following a spectacular Ukrainian counteroffensive and the retaking of Kherson, the war in Europe’s east has moved into a new phase. The immediate focus is now shifting to the chilling effects of winter – both on the frontline and on Western morale. That said, the EU and its member states are now confronted with two […]
The EU and Ukraine’s Public Opinion: Changing Dynamic
Introduction: The West appreciated Ukraine’s pluralism by default After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Ukrainian society and political establishment chose a different path of transformation than Russia. Ukraine gained its independence peacefully and without internal conflicts thanks to an agreement between the national-democratic opposition and the so called “national-communists”. The West appreciated the facts […]
Framing Public Perception of the Challenges to the EU Foreign Security and Defence Policy. Focus Groups as a Method of Investigation
This report presents the results of twelve focus groups carried out in six European countries (France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland and Spain) and addressing topics of concern for the study of EU foreign security and defence policy. In particular, participants were engaged in discussions on three main topics: (1) the most pressing international challenges and […]
Turkey in the Black Sea: Is a Balancing Act Still Possible?
Turkey has placed efforts towards establishing amicable relations with Russia while being a part of the Western alliance. Just after the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, Turkey’s position in the region and the possible closure of the Bosporus and Dardanelles Straits became one of the main debated issues. According to the 1936 Montreux Convention,[1] which […]
Brief/ Not Yet Time for Diplomacy. Lessons from Italy’s Ill-Conceived Peace Plan for Ukraine by Riccardo Alcaro and Nona Mikhelidze
In this new JOINT Brief, Riccardo Alcaro (JOINT Coordinator) and Nona Mikhelidze (IAI Senior Fellow) analyze Italy’s stillborn peace plan for Ukraine, arguing that it holds a lesson for EU: time is not yet ripe for diplomacy with Russia. Here’s the main findings:1. In its pursuit for a quick end to hostilities, the peace plan anticipated arguments […]
Not Yet Time for Diplomacy. Lessons from Italy’s Ill-Conceived Peace Plan for Ukraine
Few may have noticed, but Italy recently advanced its own diplomatic proposal for a resolution of the war in Ukraine. Rome’s ambitious peace plan[1] received little international recognition, although it was reportedly shared with the Quint – an informal consultation group comprising the United States, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Italy – and formally […]