peace and security

Although the epicenter of the world’s petro- economy, countries in the Middle East understand the need to diversify away from fossil fuels. To do so, some also bet on nuclear energy. The need to transition is most strongly driven by broader regional priorities to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and grow the economy while also providing jobs for the increasing population of young people. At first glance, nuclear seems an apt tool to help the region meet these dual objectives. However, Middle Eastern countries would be better served by investing resourced pegged to nuclear in the more promising solar and wind industries.

 The neoliberal political elite are uninterested in the needs of a society stricken by a pandemic. Their egotism favours informal structures leading to a creeping "Russification" of the country.

As part of a larger geopolitical region, the Wider Black Sea requires greater commitment from the EU in the areas of security, renewable energy, and connectivity.

The election of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris is an historic opportunity. They both stand for a political commitment to liberal democracy and a societal commitment to unity instead of division. Democracy instead of autocracy, cooperation instead of divisiveness and nationalism: these are also the most important political fault lines for the shaping of the future global order.

Aliyev’s popularity reached its peak during the war; the oppositional leaders stopped their criticism, while Aliyev’s actions were perceived as a just and victorious war. The active support of Turkey during the conflict inevitably led to the re-articulation and dynamic perception of Turkey as the “big brother”.

Recent "developments in Cyprus, coupled with the changing dynamics around Cyprus and across the wider Eastern Mediterranean region are making a federal solution increasingly unattainable."

They talk about that time, about the summer of 1995, when they were children, when they had to pack their toys hastily in order to get themselves into safety from the Serbian troops. The attacks, the fears – the world seemed to stand still for them then. They talk about how it felt at that time when the then so-called UN safe area no longer provided any protection. How it felt when the hopes to get protection from the internationals from the hatred of the advancing Serbs, dissolved into thin air. At that time, when the international community folded in face of the violence overrunning the whole of Bosnia since 1992 and ultimately culminating in Srebrenica. At some point, as reported by one of the survivors, she understood that she did not have a father anymore.  

The old arms control framework between Russia and the West does not work any more. The erosion of central arms control treaties has led to new tensions between NATO and Moscow. A new approach aimed at reducing tensions in Europe must take into account that central geopolitical coordinates have changed, and that new weapon technologies are rendering the old arms control paradigms obsolete.  

The recent escalation of violence in Idlib is also a result of the increasing tensions between Turkey and Russia. The victims are those in Idlib, caught up in a hopeless situation amid a huge spectrum of differing interests.

Close coordination and smooth cooperation between Berlin and Paris is crucial for Europe and its foreign politics, particularly considering rising intricate geopolitical rivalries. Differences in style and approach must not impede cooperation on substance and common interests.