The European Council on Foreign Relations

ECFR podcasts

2013-05-24T10:06:25+00:00

ECFR reports: Julien Barnes-Dacey on Syria's conflict

ECFR reports: Yan Xuetong & Mark Leonard on China's rise

ECFR español: Sergio Cebrián sobre comuniación europea

ECFR agenda: the Italian 'Sleeping Beauty'

ECFR Deutsch: Thomas König erklärt die Nord Korea Krise

ECFR italiano: Aniseh Bassiri Tabrizi sull' Iran

De-escalating the Syria conflict

2013-05-24T09:30:50+00:00

A rare moment of opportunity has emerged to renew diplomatic efforts to resolve the Syria conflict. The priority now must be de-escalating the level of violence and the reducing the threat of regional spill-over

Europe can keep the two-state solution on track

2013-05-10T08:11:14+00:00

As the prospects of a two-state outcome on Israel/Palestine fade, Europeans need to apply tougher love to both parties before it is too late.

UK Independence Party renews culture wars

2013-05-10T07:39:26+00:00

UKIP is just a small part of a broader phenomenon spreading across the developed world that resembles a political backlash against globalization and interdependence. But how should mainstream parties respond?

Time for a strategic pause in EU - Russia relations?

2013-05-08T08:47:32+00:00

The time has come for the EU to rethink its relationship with its biggest neighbour. Instead of talking about strategic relations with Moscow, the EU should consider a strategic pause.

A sandcastle in the sun: Putin’s first year back in power

2013-05-05T08:56:58+00:00

Vladimir Putin may still be the most popular politician in Russia, but his system of government is showing certain signs of weakness one year after returning to power.

Think again: European decline

2013-04-29T10:20:32+00:00

Although it may seem that Europe is down and out as it struggles with multiple crises, things are in fact far, far better than they appear on the surface.

The remarkable rise of continental Euroscepticism

2013-04-25T10:30:58+00:00

A new ECFR analysis shows that trust in the EU has plummeted across the continent. Both southern debtors and northern creditors feel like they are victims.

Serbia, Kosovo and the benefits of normalisation

2013-04-24T08:24:06+00:00

The EU-brokered deal between Serbia and Kosovo settles the most acute dispute in the Balkans and is likely to have an impact on the wider region. Yet it may be too early to declare victory in the Balkans.

Revolt of the technocrats

2013-04-18T17:25:28+00:00

Does the launch of a new Eurosceptic party in Germany suggest there is fertile ground for a real alternative ahead of elections later this year, despite Merkel's refusal to countenance change?

Do we need a European Margaret Thatcher?

2013-04-17T14:28:44+00:00

British public opinion is polarised over the legacy of Margaret Thatcher. But whether she was right or wrong she recognised the need for fundamental change in Britain in the 1970s - and that is something that Europe could learn from now.

For a European Republic

2013-04-11T22:51:43+00:00

Whether political leaders or citizens, the pragmatics have failed to build a prosperous and wholly democratic EU. The system we live in neither provides for nor admits any legitimate representation for the citizens of Europe. Now it’s the turn of the dreamers. Today, they are the true realists.

Serious straits: why trouble looms in the Gulf

2013-04-10T10:48:57+00:00

An understanding of the importance of the Gulf States is vital for explaining how the wider Middle East functions, thanks to their wealth, their energy resources, their geostrategic position, and their straddling of many of the MENA region's major faultlines.

Putting an end to the EU autopilot on Georgia

2013-04-08T09:20:15+00:00

The outcome of last October's parliamentary elections has sent Georgia on a bumpy road of political transition. The EU can help by stepping up its engagement and gain a more impartial foothold in the country.

Europe’s misgovernment

2013-04-05T11:05:17+00:00

The Cypriot crisis has made it brutally clear just how bad misgovernment with the EU - and the eurozone - really is. The only way to fix this is for genuine banking, fiscal, and economic union within the eurozone, backed by legitimate political instruments.

Lebanon: Locked into escalation?

2013-03-26T10:27:53+00:00

The collapse of Lebanon’s government has thrust the country into a deepening political crisis. The war in Syria and recent actions by Hezbollah also suggest that internal conflict may return to Lebanon.

Nice Speech, Mr. President

2013-03-22T14:50:26+00:00

Obama said all the right things in Jerusalem, but what next? The visit has offered nothing new on the programmatic side, no plan for going forward.

Obama’s visit to Israel: Embrace the victory of politics over substance

2013-03-20T08:08:34+00:00

If Obama begins to grasp the tribal, fluid and divided nature of Israeli politics and how to impact Israeli voters and their leaders, then this visit might be worth something after all.

Bulgaria’s anger, the real source

2013-03-15T09:47:23+00:00

An escalating crisis in Bulgaria marked by street-protests across the country forced the government's resignation. But the instant wisdom that financial austerity caused it is misleading.

The EU’s relationship with Ukraine: fling or partnership?

2013-03-14T14:17:49+00:00

Brussels and Kyiv have been at loggerheads for over a year and the recent EU-Ukraine summit has not broken the deadlock. Will the fling between the EU and Ukraine that is now a decade old end bitterly or will it finally mature into a real partnership?

Europe has lost its citizens

2013-03-13T16:44:04+00:00

The latest Eurobarometer figures are showing clearly what the election results have been hinting at: hit by the crisis, Europeans have lost their confidence in the EU. After having saved the euro, we must rescue the legitimacy of the EU.

Meet China’s hardline new president

2013-03-12T15:19:04+00:00

Xi Jinping, China's new head of state, is not a reformer but a hardline party loyalist. His first months in de facto power do not point towards a new liberal era in China and his rhetoric evokes a China of the past.

What is Europe’s role in Asia-Pacific?

2013-03-11T12:10:34+00:00

Europe does not have an automatic seat at the table in Asia Pacific and must therefore work harder to secure its own interests. However, on issues of trade and economics, the EU is clearly showing that it has a strategy that it is implementing.

Europe’s foreign policy: Resilience meets mediocrity

2013-03-05T10:12:23+00:00

Europe’s image and soft power continues to fade around the world but Europe's foreign policy did not unravel in 2012. The EU managed to preserve the essence of its acquis diplomatique.

The Europeanization of America

2013-02-26T12:04:34+00:00

The two giant economies - Europe and the US - are no longer as different as they once were. Austerity and the prospect of decline have brought them back together.

Dialogue of the deaf

2013-02-21T16:18:54+00:00

As the European Union and Ukraine prepare for their delayed summit in Brussels on Feb. 25, many are wondering why the two sides are meeting at all. Nobody expects any decisive breakthrough, even though this is the highest level meeting between the two entities, taking place on a yearly basis.

The State of the Union and the end of persuasion

2013-02-15T10:03:23+00:00

With his State of the Union address, President Obama combined the two most powerful tactics of modern politics – big speeches and big data – to spur political action. Are we witnessing a reinvention of representative democracy?

North Korea’s nuclear test: a trigger for regional conflict?

2013-02-13T15:26:13+00:00

What is the rationale behind North Korea's third nuclear test - and what exactly does it mean for the security of the wider region and the interests of China, the US, Russia and Europe?

Does size matter? Small states and EU foreign policy

2013-02-12T09:57:07+00:00

The efforts of smaller states in 2012 give reason to hope that over time, the power that lies in the EU’s diversity could be unlocked and used to make the EU's foreign policy more effective.

EU troops can still help in Mali

2013-02-05T10:10:11+00:00

A ‘plug-and-play' approach to peacekeeping lacks the glamour of a full-scale military intervention but it could be a cheaper and a more strategic approach for the EU to deal with the situation in Mali.