Commentaries
European Defence: The Full Package
As EU Member States are increasing defence spending and strengthening their armed forces, the role of the EU institutions is to push for those efforts to be coordinated, so that […]
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
Refining the EU’s Geoeconomic Approach to Trade Policy
The great powers are adapting their policies to a new geoeconomic context. When looking at the EU’s strongest external policy tool, trade policy, one could ask if the EU is […]
Commentaries
Biden’s National Security Strategy: Three Important Truths for Europe
Academics love analysing documents – indeed, we often over-analyse them. For a security analyst, a National Security Strategy is the summum of all documents. *****
The War against Ukraine and European Defence: When will we square the circle?
After the end of the Cold War, Europe’s harvesting of the peace dividend was fed by wrong assumptions and led to a persistent underinvestment in defence. Today, problems are three-fold: […]
Books
Diplomatic Skills. The basics
Diplomacy aims to make the world a somewhat better place. And for that to happen, we need thoughtful people, which most diplomats happen to be. But thought alone does not […]
Commentaries
The EU and Ukraine: Strategy and Morality
The EU has surprised everybody, not least itself, with its strong response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Yet as the war grinds on, and Russia acts ever more brutally, moral […]