The still-incomplete web of allies and institutions that the EU has woven in the Balkans in the last 30 years is not only strong but also valuable to its geopolitical struggle against Russia
To counter the Kremlin’s information campaign in Russia, European policymakers need to account for individual and group psychology
Support for Ukraine is both morally correct and in the best interests of the EU. Europeans should use this moment of unity to address several long-term challenges linked to the conflict.
The shock of the Ukraine war, rising national defence budgets, and a European Commission in the driving seat could finally bring about true European defence integration and consolidation
Ukraine’s Western partners now recognise that it can defeat Russia. Yet they need to provide the guarantees of long-term support that will make this a reality.
The Turkish president is unlikely to veto Nordic membership of NATO – but Turkey’s bigger strategic worry is of a NATO-Russia conflict arising out of the war in Ukraine
A new compact could allow Ukraine, Balkans states and others to move closer to the EU and drive reform more powerfully than the current rigid rules
Russia sees two types of sovereignty in its civilisational space. Full Westphalian sovereignty – which it believes it has and Ukraine does not. This means that defending Ukraine means defending its sovereignty in full.
Europeans should urgently increase Frontex assistance to Moldova, enhance intelligence cooperation, and consider positioning NATO units based in Romania closer to the country’s border
The US may have dominated Western efforts to defend Ukraine, but future American leaders will expect Europeans to take up most of the burden of dealing with Russia