Diplomatic Pursuits
Overall, European strategy (of the EU, the European Allies in NATO, the Coalition of the Willing) is not proactive enough, hence European diplomacy is often running after the others. It […]
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
The Middle East and Central Asia now bound to the US by the Abrahamic Accords: Is Syria the US’ new backyard?
An overarching geopolitical question crossed my Byzantine mind as I methodically contemplated, across continents, the overlay of maps, with newly concluded treaties on the one hand, and geopolitical moves on […]
Commentaries
Belgium’s Public Confrontation with Hybrid Threats: Lessons from Drone Incursions
On Tuesday 4 November 2025, Belgian Minister of Defence Theo Francken suddenly had to leave the studio of a popular talk show to take an urgent call: another drone incursion […]
Commentaries
Cross-Strait Tensions in 2025: Why Escalation Remains Unlikely
Cross-Strait relations, the complex ties across the Taiwan Strait between the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Taiwan (officially the Republic of China, ROC), have remained tense since Lai Ching-te […]
Books
Reflecting on Belgium’s Strategic Orientations
Opportunities for a Niche-Based Approach in Defense and Foreign Policy Edited by Edouard Xia, Marion Jacques, Julien Godfroid, Tanguy Struye de Swielande International relations are becoming increasingly tense as the global security environment deteriorates. […]
Commentaries
The EU Enlargement Test: Dilemmas of Geopolitics, Conditionality, and Public Concerns
Russia’s full-scale war on Ukraine has changed the European Union’s attitude towards the prospects of enlargement. While in previous years, European leaders remained skeptical about the EU’s absorption capacity and […]