Commentaries
For Europe, Iran is more than the nuclear problem
EU diplomacy on Iran is one of its few successes, but it should look beyond the “nuclear issue”, with a special envoy and a delegation in Tehran.
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
Commentaries
Time to counter Russian disinformation
As part of its drive to undo the post-Cold War settlement, Russia has launched a global media campaign to vindicate its actions in Ukraine. It is based on the Kremlin’s […]
Commentaries
Troubleshooting partnerships for troubled times
Fostering strategic partnerships will be a key task of the new EU High Representative. While being realistic about short-term prospects, the value of these partnerships is to be assessed over […]
Commentaries
Remember the revolution: an agenda for EU foreign policy
Sven Biscop argues that the EU’s foreign policy goals are nothing short of revolutionary but that they can only be achieved through pragmatic idealism.
Commentaries
The Age of Cameron: The end of British pragmatism in Europe
Since 2010, Cameron has accumulated tactical and strategic mistakes in the EU field. He picks now quite systematically fights that cannot be justified in his EU partners’ eyes. The UK […]
Development and the India-EU Strategic Partnership: Missing incentives and divergent identities
Although development has featured in the EU-India strategic partnership dialogue, India has little incentive or interest to collaborate with the EU in this area. India’s approach to development and its […]