As Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine drags on and battlefield realities continue to evolve, ELN Senior Associate Fellow Ilana Bet-El is joined by Hanna Shelest and Yuliia Shaipova from Ukrainian Prism to examine the growing toll the war is taking on Russia and how Ukraine has continued to innovate in the face of Russian attacks.
ELN Senior Associate Fellow, Sir Adam Thomson, explores how Europe and Russia might navigate security after the war in Ukraine. Before debating end-states or shared rules, both sides should first agree on “process principles” – practical, step-by-step guidelines to manage confrontation, reduce escalation risks, and gradually foster a more stable, long-term coexistence.
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.
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.
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has made drone warfare a defining feature of modern conflict. Yet NATO and EU states continue to rely on interceptor systems that cost orders of magnitude more than the drones they are meant to destroy. Drawing on lessons from Ukraine’s battlefield experience, Gabriella Calder argues that European allies must urgently scale up affordable, interoperable counter-drone technologies, or risk exhausting their arsenals before deterrence can take hold.
Last week, President Trump announced his 28-point plan for peace to end Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. His proposal has attracted much controversy, with opponents alleging that it prioritises Russia’s demands first, American financial interests second, and Ukraine’s sovereignty and security third. To break down what Trump’s plan would mean for Ukraine and the world, ELN Senior Associate Fellow Ilana Bet-El is joined by Dr Hanna Shelest, Director of Security Programmes at the Foreign Policy Council “Ukrainian Prism”, and Iryna Krasnoshtan, Programme Director at the International Centre for Ukrainian Victory.