Foreign policy & defence
Transatlantic relations after Afghanistan and AUKUS
30 September 2021
America’s relations with its European allies have survived worse crises than the row over whose submarines Australia will buy, or even the Afghanistan debacle. The US should not be complacent, however.
You can leave Afghanistan, but will Afghanistan leave you?
19 August 2021
The Taliban’s victory is a disaster for Western policy, but it is not the end of the story. The West must now work hard to mitigate the fallout.
The Moscow coup(s) of 1991: Who won and why does it still matter?
17 August 2021
Thirty years after the coup that triggered the Soviet Union’s collapse, Russia is ruled by the heirs of the plotters, not their democratic opponents. Why?
Europe can't ignore Libya
02 August 2021
Libya has a new unity government, but the country could easily slip back into conflict. In order to avoid this happening, Europeans should increase their stabilisation efforts.
From partners to rivals? The future of EU-Turkey relations
23 June 2021
EU-Turkey tensions have cooled since last summer. Relations are unlikely to improve as long as Ankara's domestic and foreign policies continue to cause friction with many member-states.
President Biden went to Europe, and all we got was …?
10 June 2021
Biden is America’s most Atlanticist president since Bill Clinton. Europe and the US will not see eye-to-eye on everything, but they should not waste this chance to strengthen their partnership.
Ending Europe's inertia on Israel and Palestine
03 June 2021
After 11 days of violence, Israel and Hamas have begun a ceasefire. But as long as Israel denies Palestinian rights and permanently occupies Palestinian territory, violence will reoccur.
EU foreign, security and defence policy co-operation with neighbours: Mapping diversity
10 May 2021
The EU and its neighbours co-operate in foreign policy in different ways. It would benefit by working more closely with its partners.
Can the UK be secure if Europe is not? The UK's (un)integrated review
28 April 2021
Having identified the Euro-Atlantic area as its home region and Russia as the most acute threat there, the British government must not ignore the EU’s role as a security partner.
The Sahel: Europe's forever war?
31 March 2021
Europe's involvement in the Sahel has not only failed to prevent a rapid escalation in the region's conflict, but risks becoming counter-productive. Europe should remodel its approach to prioritise good governance and accountability.
Bulletin issue 137 - April/May 2021
29 March 2021
- Why Europe should spend big like Biden, Christian Odendahl, John Springford
- Post-Brexit data transfers are not a done deal, Sam Lowe, Camino Mortera-Martinez
- Can Europe stabilise the Sahel?, Katherine Pye
Can Europe stabilise the Sahel?
29 March 2021
Costly European efforts to quell violence in the Sahel have failed. Europe must place more stringent conditions on the funding going to those governments responsible for perpetuating unrest in the region.
Why Europe should spend big like Biden
29 March 2021
The scale of Biden’s spending plans means the US economy will recover much faster than Europe’s. Yet in many ways it is the European economy that is in greater need of stimulus.
Containing NATO's Mediterranean crisis
08 March 2021
NATO’s southern neighbourhood in the Middle East and North Africa has become a hotbed of instability, and Turkey’s unilateral actions have fuelled tensions that are undermining the alliance’s cohesion.
Bulletin issue 136 - February/March 2021
01 February 2021
- Transatlantic relations for the Biden era and beyond, Ian Bond
- Preparing for a CDU-Green coalition in Berlin, Sophia Besch, Christian Odendahl
- Foreign policy co-operation: Brexit's missing link, Luigi Scazzieri
Transatlantic relations for the Biden era and beyond
01 February 2021
Most European leaders responded to Joe Biden’s election victory on November 3rd with undisguised enthusiasm.
Foreign policy co-operation: Brexit's missing link
01 February 2021
The UK-EU Trade and Co-operation Agreement does not include foreign policy. The UK and its European partners will continue working together bilaterally and in small groups.
Ditchley conference report: COVID-19, the global economy and the return of power politics
22 January 2021
At the CER's Ditchley economics conference, participants discussed the global role of the EU in the aftermath of the pandemic, with faltering trade and investment and growing strategic competition between the US and China.
A new transatlantic consensus on Iran
19 January 2021
A new Iran nuclear crisis is brewing. Europeans should seize the opportunity to re-establish a common position with the US and try to revive the 2015 nuclear agreement that Donald Trump abandoned.
Deadly coronavirus, domineering China and divided America: What the new geopolitics means for Europe
17 December 2020
Trump's presidency and COVID-19 have destabilised geopolitics, creating problems for the US and the EU, while strengthening China.