Blueprints on the border: Germany’s Lithuania deployment may be Europe’s new template
By stationing troops in Lithuania, Germany sets a precedent that other European powers may soon be pressed to emulate
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The plus sides of pragmatism: How the EU can engage with South Korea’s new president
At first glance, South Korea’s next president will be less Western aligned than the last, emphasising pragmatism over value-alignment. To maintain strong ties with Seoul, Europeans will need to reframe their diplomatic approach
Brussels hold’em: European cards against Trumpian coercion
Faced with an aggressive United States, Europe has more leverage than it realises. Across trade, technology, infrastructure, finance and people-to-people relations it has ways of retaliating
17
Juni
Annual Council Meeting 2026
The Annual Council Meeting 2026 will take place on 17-18 June 2026 in Vienna
European Power
Europe Debates | Russia won’t attack NATO
Russia’s hybrid warfare targeting NATO states has intensified since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Attacks on digital and energy infrastructure as well as drone incursions into NATO airspace occur almost daily now and put the alliance on alert about the potential of Russian aggression in the not-too-distant future. Between US president Trump raising…
2
Dez.
European Power
A big, beautiful European strategy for Trumponomics
Since the return of U.S. President Donald Trump to the White House in January, European policymakers have been struggling to sketch a sensible response to Trumponomics – an unpredictable, fast-changing and often baffling mix of U.S. trade, investment and finance policies that have a direct impact on Europe’s interests. In her latest ECFR policy brief, Agathe Demarais…
The future of European air defence
Mark Leonard welcomes Ulrike Franke to unpack the crisis around Europe’s Future Combat Air System
The EU’s enlargement reality check
Jessica Hendrick takes over The Neighbourhood to unpack what the EU’s 2025 Enlargement Package reveals about both Brussels’s expectations and life inside the candidate countries
28
Nov.
Europe’s Last Chance? What we should do about Trump, China, Ukraine and other challenges of a transactional world
Europe today finds itself facing unprecedented global challenges and surrounded by transactional powers. Donald Trump is poised to redefine the global role of the US – revisiting alliances, challenging NATO, and treating security and trade alike as bargaining chips. China is pressing its advantage in technology, infrastructure, and diplomacy, asking Europeans to choose between principles and…
Look what you made us do: How to realise a European-led NATO
America’s gradual retreat from European security under the current Trump administration is reshaping NATO’s centre of gravity. To keep the alliance credible and united, Europeans not only need to spend more—they need to learn to lead
Europe’s democratic strain is a crisis of governance, not borders
Western politicians are increasingly framing migration as a threat to national security and social cohesion. In doing so, they risk undermining the democratic norms they claim to defend
Staatsräson: How Germany’s Israel policy hobbles EU strategy
Germany’s policy towards Israel undermines its commitment to international law and the EU’s capacity to act as a geopolitical actor
Escalate to negotiate: How Europe should respond to Chinese export restrictions
Beijing is turning its rare earth monopoly into a weapon. The EU needs to treat this as the emergency that it is and unleash its anti-coercion shield to bring China to the negotiating table
Publikationen
Harmattan hazards: How coastal west Africa can escape the Sahel’s fate
Benin, Ghana, Ivory Coast and Togo face a double threat—from jihadists creeping south from the Sahel and coup plotters lurking within. As northern borders buckle, the region could slip into instability and away from Europe’s reach
Die Europawahl 2019: Wie Anti-Europäer Europa zerstören wollen und was man dagegen tun kan
Studie zeigt: antieuropäische Parteien gewinnen womöglich ein Drittel der Sitze im Europäischen Parlament, was eine Lähmung der EU zur Folge haben könnte
Kann Europa die Weltordnung retten?
In ihrem Policy Brief zeigen Mark Leonard und Anthony Dworkin Möglichkeiten auf, wie Europa auf die aktuellen Bedrohungen reagieren sollte
Wie Europa den Kampf um die normative Ordnung mit Russland gewinnt: Ein EU-Russland Power Audit
Die neue ECFR-Studie zeigt den Einfluss Russlands auf die 28 EU-Mitgliedstaaten und wie Europa damit umgehen sollte
Die neuen Konfliktlinien im Nahen Osten
Neue ECFR-Studie veranschaulicht die Konfliktdynamik im Nahen und Mittleren Ost
Die Zukunft der palästinensischen Politik: Abbas und darüber hinaus
Das interaktive Webprojekt „Mapping Palestine Politics“ des European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) präsentiert die verschiedenen Organisationen und Akteur
ECFR-Studie: Deutsche Jugendliche sind überraschend konservativ und ohne Vision für Europa
Dieser Bericht soll zeigen, wie junge deutsche Menschen zum europäischen Gedanken stehen
Frankreichs Führung in der europäischen Nahostpolitik
Neue Studie untersucht Frankreichs Außenpolitik im Nahen Osten und Nordafrika: Frankreich ist Vormacht in Nordafrika, Offensivmacht in der Golf-Region, und eine bewegliche Macht in Syrien und…
Der Charme falscher Versprechungen – Ein EU-Türkei Power Audit
Neue ECFR Studie zeigt die Wahrnehmung der Türkei in den 28 EU-Staaten
Europäische Sicherheit und Verteidigung nach Brexit
In der Außen- und Verteidigungspolitik sind pragmatische Lösungen nach dem Brexit erforderlich
Artikel
Look what you made us do: How to realise a European-led NATO
America’s gradual retreat from European security under the current Trump administration is reshaping NATO’s centre of gravity. To keep the alliance credible and united, Europeans not only need to spend more—they need to learn to lead
Europe’s democratic strain is a crisis of governance, not borders
Western politicians are increasingly framing migration as a threat to national security and social cohesion. In doing so, they risk undermining the democratic norms they claim to defend
Staatsräson: How Germany’s Israel policy hobbles EU strategy
Germany’s policy towards Israel undermines its commitment to international law and the EU’s capacity to act as a geopolitical actor
Escalate to negotiate: How Europe should respond to Chinese export restrictions
Beijing is turning its rare earth monopoly into a weapon. The EU needs to treat this as the emergency that it is and unleash its anti-coercion shield to bring China to the negotiating table
Carbon copy: How Europe can narrow the economic intelligence gap with China
China is scooping up supply chain information as part of its trade restrictions. Europe lags behind in economic intelligence, but there is a way to start closing this gap with a low-cost, low-bureaucracy, high-impact step
Flaunting mischief: Three aims of Russia’s airspace incursions
Russia’s recent incursions into NATO airspace are the biggest escalation with the alliance since the cold war. With it, Putin likely hopes to achieve three main goals
J.D. Vance’s foreign policy: When restraint meets culture war
J.D. Vance is shaping up to be America’s most influential vice president since Dick Cheney—but that’s where the similarities between them end
What went wrong in Europe’s trade gamble with Trump
The EU’s burgeoning deal with the Trump administration seems to escape the harshest US tariff threats. But there is a sense that the bloc has fumbled its hand, despite holding decent cards. The EU needs to examine what went wrong and how it can better secure its future interests against great powers
Lethal weapon: Why Europe can’t afford to blink on China’s rare earth blackmail
China’s export restrictions are bringing European factories to the verge of shutting down. Yielding to Chinese pressure today will only invite more sophisticated threats tomorrow; only a united and assertive EU response can stop the cycle of coercion and protect Europe’s industrial core
Blueprints on the border: Germany’s Lithuania deployment may be Europe’s new template
By stationing troops in Lithuania, Germany sets a precedent that other European powers may soon be pressed to emulate
Podcasts
The future of European air defence
Mark Leonard welcomes Ulrike Franke to unpack the crisis around Europe’s Future Combat Air System
The EU’s enlargement reality check
Jessica Hendrick takes over The Neighbourhood to unpack what the EU’s 2025 Enlargement Package reveals about both Brussels’s expectations and life inside the candidate countries
Tariff tensions: Avoiding an EU-US trade war
Mark Leonard welcomes Tobias Gehrke to unpack the escalating EU-US trade war and Europe’s next moves
A new chapter in German politics
Mark Leonard welcomes Jeremy Cliffe and Jana Puglierin to discuss the inauguration of the new German government, led by Chancellor Friedrich Merz
What’s next for Berlin?
Mark Leonard welcomes Jana Puglierin to unpack what Friedrich Merz’s rise to the chancellorship means for German politics—and for Europe
What comes next: European discord or European leadership?
The final episode of Searching for Deutschland—a special crossover with the World in 30 Minutes—sees experts from Berlin, London, Paris and Warsaw break down the…
Germany’s election results: Continuity or turning point?
On the morning after Germany’s election, Searching for Deutschland hosts Jeremy Cliffe and Jana Puglierin were joined for a live webinar by ECFR colleagues Timo Lochocki and…
Ukraine and the US-Russia talks: Deterrence or disarray?
In Searching for Deutschland’s last pre-election episode, hosts Jeremy Cliffe and Jana Puglierin review the Munich Security Conference, the US-Russia talks on Ukraine, and what the new era…
Defence and the Zeitenwende: Glass half-empty or half-full?
Ahead of the Munich Security Conference, hosts Jeremy Cliffe and Jana Puglierin talk German defence and the future of the country’s armed forces. They review the first…
Euroscepticism in Germany: Normalisation or radicalisation?
This week, hosts Jeremy Cliffe and Jana Puglierin discuss German election campaign frontrunner Friedrich Merz’s bid to win Bundestag votes on migration with support from…
Events
17
Juni
Annual Council Meeting 2026
The Annual Council Meeting 2026 will take place on 17-18 June 2026 in Vienna
European Power
Europe Debates | Russia won’t attack NATO
Russia’s hybrid warfare targeting NATO states has intensified since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Attacks on digital and energy infrastructure as well as drone incursions into NATO airspace occur almost daily now and put the alliance on alert about the potential of Russian aggression in the not-too-distant future. Between US president Trump raising…
2
Dez.
European Power
A big, beautiful European strategy for Trumponomics
Since the return of U.S. President Donald Trump to the White House in January, European policymakers have been struggling to sketch a sensible response to Trumponomics – an unpredictable, fast-changing and often baffling mix of U.S. trade, investment and finance policies that have a direct impact on Europe’s interests. In her latest ECFR policy brief, Agathe Demarais…
28
Nov.
Europe’s Last Chance? What we should do about Trump, China, Ukraine and other challenges of a transactional world
Europe today finds itself facing unprecedented global challenges and surrounded by transactional powers. Donald Trump is poised to redefine the global role of the US – revisiting alliances, challenging NATO, and treating security and trade alike as bargaining chips. China is pressing its advantage in technology, infrastructure, and diplomacy, asking Europeans to choose between principles and…
6
Mai
European Power
Europa auf sich gestellt? Sicherheits- und Verteidigungspolitik in Umbruchszeiten
Die europäische Sicherheitspolitik befindet sich in einem fundamentalen Wandel. Die transatlantische Partnerschaft, einst Eckpfeiler europäischer Sicherheit, gerät durch eine veränderte US-amerikanische Außenpolitik zunehmend unter Druck. Gleichzeitig stellen Russland und China zunehmend eine Bedrohung für Europas Sicherheit und Wirtschaftsmodell dar. Diese Entwicklungen zwingen Europa zur dringenden Auseinandersetzung mit seiner eigenen Rolle und der Fähigkeit zur Verteidigung…
21
Mai
European Power
China im Fokus – Partner, Rivale, Bedrohung?
Die Beziehungen zur Volksrepublik China prägen maßgeblich die Außenpolitik der EU. Trotz strategischer Kooperationsansätze und Chinas Rolle als wichtigster Handelspartner der EU bestehen erhebliche Ungleichgewichte und politische Spannungen. Während die EU Chinas größter Absatzmarkt ist, führt das Handelsverhältnis zu einem deutlichen Defizit auf europäischer Seite. Zudem belasten Differenzen in Fragen von Demokratie, Rechtsstaatlichkeit und Menschenrechten…
4
Juni
European Power
Das Imperium schlägt zurück? Russlands Großmachtansprüche und mitteleuropäische Bedrohungswahrnehmungen
Der Zerfall der Sowjetunion im Jahr 1991 nährte die Hoffnung auf eine friedlichere europäische Ordnung. Doch diese Hoffnung erwies sich als trügerisch. Unter Wladimir Putin erlebt Russlands Großmachtanspruch eine gefährliche Renaissance, genährt von dem Wunsch, eine Einflusssphäre in Russlands Nachbarschaft wiederherzustellen. Die vom Kreml propagierte Idee einer „russischen Welt“, die russischsprachige Bevölkerungen im Ausland sowie…
11
Juni
European Power
Die USA am Scheideweg: Zwischen globaler Führung und nationaler Abschottung
Die transatlantischen Beziehungen, lange Zeit ein stabiles Fundament gemeinsamer Werte und Sicherheit, sind ins Wanken geraten. Spätestens seit der Münchner Sicherheitskonferenz zeigt sich: Das Bild von Freundschaft und Schulterschluss zwischen den USA und Europa bröckelt. Die Rhetorik aus Washington, die Europa teils als ideologischen Gegner betrachtet, und protektionistische Maßnahmen wie Sonderzölle belasten das Verhältnis spürbar
European Power
ECFR election insights: Will Germany lead or lag in Europe’s next foreign policy chapter?
Germany’s election results are in—now what? Join the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) for a timely post-election analysis in the early morning after results are in. What does the outcome mean for Germany’s role on the European and global stage? Will the new government take a leadership role in shaping Europe’s foreign policy, or will…
23
Jan.
Africa
Strategic reset: Re-designing EU-Africa partnerships on critical minerals
The EU has set on a course of diversification from its main provider of critical minerals and several of its manufactured products, China. To secure access, enhance European industrial resilience, and advance the green transition, the EU has signed strategic partnerships with resource-rich African countries, namely Namibia, the DRC, Zambia, and Rwanda, along with a…
Pressespiegel
Giorgos Verdi über Möglichkeiten für die EU, wirtschaftlich und politisch unabhängiger von den USA zu werden