Following the close naval encounter and near collision of US and Russian ships in the East China Sea last week, the ELN resurfaces its work on the escalatory potential of under-regulated military encounters.
On 27-28 June 2018, the European Leadership Network hosted a roundtable discussion in the UK House of Lords examining the political, security and economic conditions in the Western Balkans and how best to promote stability and democratic reform across the region. The meeting was co-chaired by Lord Browne of Ladyton and ELN member and former Albanian Defence Minister, Fatmir Mediu.
Axel Hellman and Denitsa Raynova look at the state of transatlantic relations and argue that European leaders should not distance themselves from the United States, but coordinate closely where possible while credibly demonstrating that they are willing to take on a greater share of responsibility for regional and international security.
In the current deteriorating security environment there should be no complacency over the health and future of the NPT. The case must be re-made for the security benefits of this vital treaty.
The current Russia-NATO deterrence relationship is unstable, and dangerously so. The authors argue that the interplay between the deterrence postures operated by both Russia and NATO has not been sufficiently appreciated during their development – deterrence cannot be effective if your target does not understand your actions.
In early January 2018, the ELN took a senior non-governmental European delegation to Washington D.C. at a crucial moment in US decision-making over the JCPOA. It has produced a report of the visit which sets out the delegation’s main arguments and reflects on the results.