On 12 February 2025, the post-Cold War era ended, says Ilana Bet-El, as President Trump and President Putin agreed to negotiate without Ukraine or the EU. Subsequent US actions, including cutting defence aid and demanding Ukraine relinquish resources, have left Europe reeling. ELN Senior Associate Fellow Ilana Bet-El explores the fallout with Ukrainian civil society leaders Olena Tregub and Inna Pidluska.
The fall of the Assad government was a serious blow to Moscow’s image in the MENA region and on the international stage. It was a reality check for those who believed the Kremlin’s support could be the key to political survival. However, Nikolay Kozhanov argues that Assad’s fall is unlikely to be a turning point in Russia’s presence in the broader Middle East. He notes that Russia has worked to diversify its relationships across the region since the mid-2010s, especially looking to strengthen ties in the Gulf.
Nikolay Kozhanov is a Research Associate Professor at the Gulf Studies Centre (GSC) of Qatar University. He is also a Non-Resident Scholar at the Economics and Energy Program of the Middle East Institute (Washington DC, the US) and a Consulting Fellow at the Russia and Eurasia Programme of...
The Western Balkans, shaped by conflict and shifting alliances, remain geopolitically significant in a fast-changing world. A survey conducted by the International Republican Institute (IRI) highlights the fragmented nature of public opinion across the region. While some states lean West, others align more with Russia and China. ELN Visiting Fellow, Dr Leon Hartwell, writes that anti-Western propaganda is deepening these divisions, further complicating EU and NATO integration. He emphasises the need for a more strategic and coordinated Western approach in response.
Former and serving senior officials, military leaders, and experts from across the Euro-Atlantic region put forward three urgent steps for nuclear-armed states to take to build on the essential principle that a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought.
In 2024, the European Leadership Network (ELN) delivered an intergenerational networking programme designed to support emerging leaders in the fields of security, foreign policy, and existential risk. The programme brought together 25 participants from across the New European Voices on Existential Risks (NEVER) Network and the Younger Generation Leadership Network (YGLN).