ELN publications feature authoritative research, high-quality analysis, diverse viewpoints and practical recommendations to address current foreign, defence, and security policy challenges.
80 years after Hiroshima, ELN Policy and Research Director Oliver Meier warns that while leaders solemnly mark the bombing’s anniversary, their growing complacency toward nuclear weapons and proliferation raises the risk of use. He urges renewed commitment to disarmament as the only way to prevent future nuclear catastrophe.
Faced with a near-term threat to their security, NATO’s European allies can establish a framework for improving the efficiency and effectiveness of their defence acquisition system. ELN network member Tom McKane outlines what elements this should contain.
The integration of AI into nuclear command and control seems all but inevitable. While there are benefits, there are also considerable risks. Experimental wargaming—realistic simulations with controlled variables—offers a powerful tool for investigating how AI could affect nuclear decision-making. Peter Rautenbach suggests three paths forward for how policymakers can use wargaming to generate quality data around AI and nuclear risks.
As the OSCE marks 50 years since the Helsinki Final Act, Paul Fritch argues that participating States and civil society should shift from debating its relevance to rediscovering its legacy. Despite recent crises, its rich experience in arms control, conflict resolution, and democratic governance offers valuable tools for addressing today’s security challenges, should states choose to act through it.
The possible fallout from the recent strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities requires sustainable approaches to nuclear non-proliferation that go beyond ad hoc solutions, writes Almuntaser Albalawi. Any new diplomatic solution should be embedded within a broader, long-term strategy that includes steps toward a regional arms control framework in the Middle East, addressing the underlying drivers of proliferation. The international community should continue supporting initiatives that sustain dialogue and strengthen regional partnerships.
As the eyes of the world look to the US, Ukraine, and the Middle East, attention is distracted from rapidly changing events in the Caucasus. Traditionally Russia’s “backyard”, its full-scale invasion of Ukraine has lessened its influence in the region. Meanwhile, Armenia is in disarray following Azerbaijan’s military offensive in the Nagorno-Karabakh region in 2023, and in Georgia, the Russia-backed government is cracking down on opposition leaders. To understand these fascinating dynamics, ELN Senior Associate Fellow Ilana Bet-El is joined by YGLN member Tinatin Japaridze, Eurasia analyst at the Eurasia Group.
The impact of the Israel-US military strikes against Iran’s nuclear facilities in June will not only be felt in the Middle East. ELN senior network member Tarja Cronberg writes that these strikes also endanger the future of the Non-Proliferation Treaty. The 2026 NPT Review Conference should concentrate on preventing nuclear proliferation in the Middle East and should focus on its commitment to a Middle East WMD-Free Zone before it’s too late.
The recent mineral resources agreement between the US and Ukraine is more than just an isolated bilateral deal – it is part of a broader pattern unfolding across Eurasia as Western powers ramp up efforts to secure alternative sources of strategic raw materials in competition with China and Russia. Nikita Gryazin and Daniel Shapiro write that if the West hopes to offer a viable, sustainable alternative to the China-Russia axis, it must begin acting not as a set of competing actors but as a coordinated front.
Around the political NATO Summit in the Hague last week, with its limited ambition to make Donald Trump happy again, a less visible and much more productive summit occurred, writes ELN Senior Network Member Nicholas Dungan. Concentrating on what Europe needs to do to increase European deterrence, efficiency, and resilience, it produced sound thinking and actionable proposals.