ELN publications feature authoritative research, high-quality analysis, diverse viewpoints and practical recommendations to address current foreign, defence, and security policy challenges.
Former and serving senior officials, military leaders, and experts from across the Euro-Atlantic region call for support for space security and stability.
In May, States Parties to the NPT will meet for the 11th Review Conference under difficult circumstances. While European support for and leadership in the NPT is more urgent than ever, it could be complicated by diverging priorities among European states. In the first of our commentary series exploring different European perspectives, YGLN member Federica Dall’Arche reflects on Italy’s perspective on the Treaty and its approach to the 2026 Review Conference. She writes that rather than focusing on ambitious normative breakthroughs, priority should be given to preserving the Treaty’s role as a stabilising framework.
As the Greenland episode winds down following President Trump’s announcement of a “framework for a deal,” former U.S. diplomat Paul Fritch argues the saga was never about territorial acquisition, but a stress test of alliance cohesion in a world where Washington no longer treats cooperation and restraint as strategic virtues. The episode has exposed the limits of Europe’s cautious response to an America guided by hard power and transactional logic; he argues European leaders need to better understand what Trump views as weakness, and change their approach accordingly.
The second Trump administration has strained democracy, alliances, and the postwar order. Allies feel abandoned, betrayed, and disrespected, and the US retreat from the Global South has allowed Russian and Chinese influence to grow in its place. Europe confronts a painful reckoning, questioning trust, values, and its future role in an era of accelerating geopolitical change. To break this down, ELN Senior Associate Fellow Ilana Bet-El is joined by Almut Möller, Director for European and Global Affairs at the European Policy Centre (EPC), and former senior Danish diplomat Signe Biering.
Members of the ELN reflect on what European responses to President Trump’s remarks on Greenland tell us about NATO cohesion and Europe’s capacity to act on its own security.
As State Parties prepare for the 2026 Review Conference, Bailey Schiff and Diya Ashtakala write that engaging with emerging technologies, which are already transforming military programmes, as well as verification and civilian nuclear programmes, offers a way to break entrenched debates. Revisiting longstanding challenges regarding non-proliferation and the peaceful uses of nuclear technology through the framework of emerging technologies may be one of the few practical paths to relieve pressure on the NPT by opening space for innovation and debate across the three pillars.
2026 started with President Trump’s astonishing show of force in Venezuela, culminating in the seizure of President Maduro to face drug charges in the US. Whilst Venezuela’s future may be unclear, one thing that is now more than apparent is President Trump’s willingness to use might and ignore norms and laws to advance what he views as America’s foreign policy interests. To understand this better, Rachel Ellehuus, Director General of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), joins ELN Senior Associate Fellow Ilana Bet-El.
On Saturday, 10 January, Finland’s withdrawal from the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention or ‘Ottawa Treaty’, will come into effect. This follows the earlier withdrawals of Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia. Gary Toombs writes that while landmines may seem appealing as cheap, simple tools of defence, in reality, they are militarily outdated, strategically counterproductive, and devastating in humanitarian, economic, and environmental terms. States on the path to leaving the treaty should reconsider, as withdrawal would not strengthen their security but would undermine international law, erode alliances, and cause generational harm.
At the start of the new year, members of the European Leadership Network’s senior and younger-generation leaders’ networks offer their perspectives on their defining issue or policy trend to watch in 2026.