Putin Is Creating the Multipolar World He (Thought He) Wanted
Up until the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russia’s and China’s worsening relations with the European Union and the United States meant that the world order was at risk of falling […]
Russia
Through its Focus on Russia, Egmont aims to establish an informal yet structured platform for regular exchanges among Belgian experts on Russia. The initiative addresses the full spectrum of political, economic, military, geopolitical, and societal dynamics in Russia. We convene a select group of experienced practitioners, analysts, and scholars with deep expertise on Russia in a series of closed-door meetings held approximately four times per year. Emphasis is placed on collegial dialogue, intellectual openness, and the rigorous exchange of perspectives. By combining longue durée analysis with real-time assessments, the initiative seeks to enhance policy-relevant reflection and strategic situational awareness for Belgian public institutions, in particular the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The overarching objective is to create a trusted expert circle capable of generating nuanced, multidisciplinary insights into Russia as a strategic actor, while also contributing to a more coherent and informed Belgian and European approach.
Heads: Jan Balliauw and Dr Joris Van Bladel
Publications
Commentaries
For Russia, the Ukraine Front Stretches to the Mediterranean
Russia’s strategic line in the current war on Ukraine doesn’t stop at the Crimea as most maps depict, but goes all the way southwards to the Mediterranean. Maps are more […]
Commentaries
Russia Invades Ukraine: The Dangerous Weakness of a Military Superpower
What is an extra slice of Ukrainian territory to Russia? A war of aggression no longer fits in our European logic, but it does in that of President Putin. He […]
Is Putin Winning, or Is He Trying not to Lose?
Nobody is in doubt, if anybody ever was, that Russia remains a great power. That much the tense stand-off over Ukraine has demonstrated. Whether President Putin’s moves have earned Russia […]
Commentaries
Time for Europe to stand up to Putin
In Eastern Europe, Russian President Vladimir Putin is preparing for war. The European countries should strengthen their deterrence capacity and put an end to their dependence on Russian gas. *****