Commentaries
Don’t Join the NATO Summit Without Knowing Who You Are
“The most loyal allies of the United States”. For decades, that is what most European political and military leaders understood Europe’s role on the world stage to be. In my […]
Europe in the World
In a world that is largely driven by competition and rivalry (and partnership, yet) between great powers, understanding the Grand Strategy of each of these powers is crucial. So is developing a Grand Strategy for the EU itself. An EU that acts as one, as one pole of the multipolar world on a par with the other powers, is the only way to safeguard the way of life that the Member States of the EU have chosen, based on democracy, the free market, and equality.
Power cannot be divided: a global player must have political, economic, as well as military power. To that end, the Europe in the World Programme analyses the diplomacy and defence of the US, China, and Russia, and of the EU, NATO, and their members. We also focus on geoeconomics, researching Open Strategic Autonomy and the Global Gateway as key EU instruments, as well as the geoeconomic approaches of the other powers.
Defence policy is our third main axis of research, with a particular focus on European defence and its interaction with NATO, but also on nuclear deterrence and the deterrence of hybrid threats. Throughout all three research axis, we devote special attention to the role of Belgium, including notably the development of its own National Security Strategy and diplomatic and military capabilities.
Publications
External publications
The Disorderly Advent of the Tripolar Nuclear Order
Former Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy, Dr. Vipin Narang, stated on August 1, 2024, that the United States is facing a “multiple nuclear challenger problem” with Russia […]
External publications
Leaving the Free-Rider Club: Lessons from Belgium
While tensions over unequal burden sharing within NATO are nearly as old as the alliance itself, so-called free-riders have never come under fire as harshly as they have since Donald Trump’s […]
Commentaries
Realigning Belgium’s Geostrategic Focus with its New Defence Capabilities
During the coming months and years, new defence capabilities will be arriving in Belgium. For example, the first F-35A fighter jets and MQ-9B unmanned aerial vehicles are expected to land […]
Financial Influence Operations in the Hybrid Threats Spectrum
This paper examines the Hybrid Threats posed by perfectly legal and legitimate financial markets operations to national security through a variety of legal routes including acquisitions of intellectual property (IPs), […]
Commentaries
Bargaining Chips: The Gilded Tech Triangle of Riyadh, Silicon Valley and Mar-a-Lago
Donald Trump is visibly in his element when surrounded by gilded palaces, ornate fountains, and absolute monarchs. His bond with the Gulf States—particularly Saudi Arabia—goes beyond mere aesthetic affinity or […]