Foreign policy & defence
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.
European strategic autonomy and a new transatlantic bargain
11 December 2020
The distinction between a European path and a transatlantic path in European defence is misguided. Europeans should focus on improving their capabilities and developing a common strategic outlook.
Europe needs a strong Africa, but will it work to achieve one?
03 December 2020
The massive problems created by COVID-19 in Africa offer Europe a chance to promote a new partnership. But upgrading the relationship will require the EU to confront both illicit financial flows and a looming debt crisis.
Can Biden mend Trump's foreign policy mess?
30 November 2020
Donald Trump’s foreign policy failures far outweigh his successes. America’s allies may have exaggerated expectations of what Joe Biden can do to put things back on an even keel.
Turkey rising?
30 November 2020
Turkey’s foreign policy has become increasingly militarised and assertive, driven by a mix of ambition, security concerns and domestic politics. However, despite its recent successes, Ankara is at risk of overreaching.
Bulletin issue 135 - December 2020/January 2021
30 November 2020
- Can Biden mend Trump's foreign policy mess?, Ian Bond
- Navigating accidental illegality, Sam Lowe
- Turkey rising?, Luigi Scazzieri
Post-Brexit foreign, security and defence co-operation: We don't want to talk about it
26 November 2020
The UK is wrong to reject an institutional foreign policy relationship with the EU, but the EU should improve its ineffective external security co-operation with third countries, including the UK.
President Biden: Don't expect miracles, Europe
13 November 2020
Transatlantic relations will improve under Biden, but Europe will not be his number one priority. Europeans must strengthen their capacity to protect their own interests.
Americans choose their president: Europe must live with the consequences
02 November 2020
The US election could spell the end of the transatlantic partnership or give it a new lease of life. But even if Biden prevails, Europeans should not use his victory as an excuse to hit the snooze button.
What would a Biden presidency mean for US-EU trade relations?
28 October 2020
Joe Biden in the White House would remove the threat of a US-EU trade war from the table, and open up new areas for co-operation.
Bulletin issue 134 - October/November 2020
30 September 2020
- A trade deal would give the City of London breathing space, John Springford
- Will the coronavirus pandemic deliver a coup de grâce to Schengen?, Camino Mortera-Martinez
- Can the EU's Strategic Compass steer European defence?, Luigi Scazzieri