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Younger Generation Leaders Network on Euro-Atlantic Security (YGLN): Developing a new generation of leaders

The YGLN is composed of 150 members in their early careers who are rising stars and specialists in security policy, economics, journalism, law and civil society. Formed in 2014, the YGLN was created to bridge the divide between Russia and the West and establish a much-needed platform for understanding and dialogue.

YGLN Annual Gathering 2023

From the 26th-29th of June 2023, YGLN met in Vienna for their annual gathering. Over the course of the week, YGLN members met with various international organisations and diplomatic missions, fostered insightful discussions, and were able to network and collaborate with one another.

Latest ELN publications by YGLN members

Commentary

The Women Leaders podcast: As missiles fly

One year since Hamas’ invasion of southern Israel, Israel’s consequent offensive in Gaza, and Hezbollah’s initial rocket campaign in northern Israel, it appears as if the violence in the Middle East is only getting worse. In this unique episode, Women Leaders is building a bridge: Fania Oz-Salzberger, Professor of History at Haifa University and renowned public intellectual, and Roula from Beirut — for security reasons, we cannot release her real name — join ELN Senior Associate Fellow Ilana Bet-El for an in-depth discussion of Israeli and Lebanese politics, the involvement of women in decision-making, and the hope of one day seeing a new Middle East.

4 October 2024 | Ilana Bet-El and Florence Ferrando
Commentary

The Women Leaders podcast: Grinding horror

Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine is in its third year, with no end in sight. The Russian offensive in the East of Ukraine grinds on, consuming a mass of men and material on both sides while its conquest proceeds in tiny paces. To get a deep insight into what is happening on the ground, ELN Senior Associate Fellow Ilana Bet-El is joined by Lisa Yaskow, Member of the Ukrainian Rada (parliament) and Head of the Ukrainian delegation to the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly. In a frank and revealing conversation, Lisa reflects on the war from its start, the daily reality in Ukraine, and the shortcomings of the international community.

20 September 2024 | Ilana Bet-El and Florence Ferrando
Commentary

Nuclear posture and cyber threats: Why deterrence by punishment is not credible – and what to do about it

The United Kingdom’s latest nuclear doctrine suggests that severe cyber-attacks on their national or critical infrastructure could provoke a nuclear response. Despite this, cyber-attacks against the UK have surged over the past decade. Eva-Nour Repussard, YGLN member and Policy Fellow at BASIC, writes that instead of deterrence by punishment, the UK should seek to increase its resilience to cyber-attacks and focus on a strategy of deterrence by denial regarding cyber threats.

19 September 2024 | Eva-Nour Repussard
Commentary

The Women Leaders podcast: Events unabated

The Women Leaders podcast, hosted by ELN Senior Associate Fellow Ilana Bet-EL, is back after the summer break! In “Events unabated” Ilana is joined by Jodi Rudoren, Editor in Chief of the Forward and former New York Times Bureau Chief in Jerusalem. They discuss the rapidly changing realities of US politics and the changing gender roles within them, the prospects of both presidential candidates’ policies on the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, and the appalling lack of women in the negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians — and elsewhere too.

6 September 2024 | Ilana Bet-El and Florence Ferrando
Commentary

The NPT needs a common understanding of “nuclear threats”: Questions and tasks for the 11th NPT Review Cycle

YGLN members Maren Vieluf and Ananya Agustin Malhotra argue that NPT states need to start talking about whether or not “defensive” and “offensive” nuclear threats can be distinguished. If NPT states can find agreement on this matter, it could bridge the gap between states condemning any and all nuclear threats under any circumstances and those states that stand firmly behind “defensive” nuclear threats and allow for further progress to be made in the 11th NPT Review Cycle.

15 February 2024 | Maren Vieluf and Ananya Agustin Malhotra

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YGLN Team