European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2016
The sixth ECFR Foreign Policy Scorecard highlights the EU’s diminishing ability to influence its neighbours, and the neighbourhood’s growing impact on the EU
Experts & Staff
Fredrik Wesslau
ECFR Alumni · Director of the Wider Europe Programme
Areas of expertise
European foreign policy, conflict and crisis management, state-building, counter-piracy, South Caucasus, and Western Balkans
Languages
Swedish, English, French
Biography
Fredrik Wesslau used to be Director of the Wider Europe Programme and Senior Policy Fellow at ECFR until 2018.
View from Stockholm: Sweden’s own sexual harassment case
In parallel to Cologne, Sweden's own sexual harassment scandal threatens to benefit the Sweden Democrats
Life in the “Grey Zones”
Locked in a shadowy life between war and peace, “grey zones” now litter the map of Eastern Europe
Life in the grey zones: Reports from Europe’s breakaway regions
Locked in a shadowy life between war and peace, “grey zones” now litter the map of Eastern Europe
Why is Russia still turning up the heat on Turkey?
Escalation continues over downing of SU-24 with Erdogan and Putin putting personal prestige on the line
Ten talking points from the new ENP
The new Neighbourhood Policy is more transactional than transformative, abandoning the idealism of 2004's policy
Refugee road to nowhere: the Western Balkans
The refugee crisis is placing a huge strain on the countries of the Western Balkans – the EU cannot afford for them to break
The discreet charm of Vladimir Putin
Putin’s offer to assist fight against IS seems too good to be true – that’s because it is
EU should bring the Western Balkans into the refugee relocation scheme
The Western Balkans are becoming a de facto holding centre for refugees – they should be included in the relocation scheme
Publications
So far from god, so close to Russia: Belarus and the Zapad military exercise
Renewed Minsk-Moscow cooperation in the ‘Zapad’ war games should not see the door to Belarus closed
The great unravelling: four doomsday scenarios for Europe’s Russia policy
There is no room for complacency in Europe’s stance towards Russia and Ukraine
Russia 2030: A story of great power dreams and small victorious wars
The future of Europe’s relations with Russia looks bleak as the Kremlin pursues an increasingly aggressive foreign policy
Return to instability: How migration and great power politics threaten the Western Balkans
EU’s weakness is prompting a new scramble for power for the Balkans with Russia, Turkey and other actors
European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2016
The sixth ECFR Foreign Policy Scorecard highlights the EU’s diminishing ability to influence its neighbours, and the neighbourhood’s growing impact on the EU
Articles
A tribunal like no other: Prosecuting Russia’s crime of aggression in Ukraine
A special tribunal for the crime of aggression could help secure justice for Ukrainians harmed by Russia’s invasion. Such a court would have three major implications
Spain’s Kosovo-Catalonia conundrum
Madrid is inadvertently equating Catalonia and Kosovo and, by doing so, revealing itself to be unable to distinguish between legitimate aspirations for self-rule and destabilizing separatism
What to do about Turkey?
Suspending Turkey’s EU accession process would be a strategic mistake of historic proportions
Putin’s peacekeepers: Beware of Russians bearing gifts
The West should engage with Russia's peacekeeping proposal – but skeptically and with clear conditions
MacMeltdown: Understanding the political crisis in Macedonia
The ongoing crisis in Macedonia could become destabilizing for the region unless the EU takes more decisive action
The Populist-Putin-Trump insurgency against liberal Europe
The new axis between Trump’s America, Putin’s Russia, and European populists represents a toxic mix for the liberal order in Europe.
Putin’s friends in Europe
The upsurge of populism in Europe has provided Russia with an ample supply of sympathetic political parties across the continent
View from Stockholm: Not the time for frailty
Given Russia’s multiple moves to up the ante in recent weeks, Stockholm sees no reason for the EU to change direction
View from Stockholm: Brexit and the future of Europe
Sweden has much to lose from a hard divorce
Russia sanctions and magical thinking
Sanctions are clearly not an end in themselves. They are a tool and as such should be responsive to ensure maximum leverage. But this flexibility should not come at the cost of credibility.
Specials
Russia in the grey zones
What role does Russia play in the breakaway regions of Eastern Europe?
Life in the grey zones: Reports from Europe’s breakaway regions
Locked in a shadowy life between war and peace, “grey zones” now litter the map of Eastern Europe
Podcasts
Moscou et les extrême-droites européennes, une quête mutuelle de légitimité ?
Podcast du Black Coffee Morning “Moscou et les extrême-droites européennes, une quête mutuelle de légitimité” du 14/11/2017 avec Anton Shekhovstov, auteur du récemment…
New chaos in the Balkans: what role left for the EU?
Mark Leonard talks with the director of ECFR's office in Sofia, Vessela Tcherneva and the director of ECFR's Wider Europe programme, Fredrik Wesslau about the…
ECFR Clips: EU-Russia Relations in the Donald Trump Era
Donald Trump's presidency will be the end of global politics as we know it. Fredrik Wesslau, Director of ECFR's Wider Europe Programme and senior policy…
ECFR’s World in 30 Minutes: Ukraine’s 25th anniversary of independence
ECFR’s director Mark Leonard speaks with experts Andrew Wilson, Fredrik Wesslau and Gustav Gressel, about rising tensions between Russia and Ukraine in the Donbass, the Minsk agreement,…
Russia – future imperfect?
How will Russia and Europe’s eastern neighbours look 14 years from now? What key trends will play out in Russia and Eastern Europe? What sort…
ECFR’s World in 30 Minutes: The geopolitics of the Eurovision Song Contest
ECFR’s director Mark Leonard speaks with Nicola Clase, Swedish Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Fredrik Wesslau, Director of ECFR’s Wider Europe programme, and Vessela Tcherneva,…
From sanctions to cooperation: what kind of relations with Russia ?
Conférence du jeudi 7 avril sur les relations entre l'Union européenne et la Russie. Avec: – Sylvie Kauffmann, directrice éditoriale Le Monde –…
ECFR’s World in 30 Minutes: Scorecard 2016
ECFR's director Mark Leonard speaks to diplomat Robert Cooper and ECFR policy fellows Susi Dennison, Almut Moeller, Kadri Liik, and Fredrik Wesslau, about ECFR's…
ECFR’s Scorecard 2016 Special – Wider Europe
Fredrik Wesslau, Director of ECFR's Wider Europe programme, explains why the EU received a B- for its policies on the Wider Europe region
In the media
Frederik Wesslau interviewed on Kosovo's 10 year anniversary
Frederik Wesslau writes about Spain's non-recognition of Kosovo's independence in relation to the Catalan separatism case
Fredrik Wesslau and Andrew Wilson's ECFR report on the Russian Zapad military exercise is quoted.
Summary of the ECFR report by Gustav Gressel and Fredrik Wesslau titled 'The great unravelling: four doomsday scenarios for Europe’s Russia policy'
Fredrik Wesslau is quoted on the impact of recent Kosovar election results on the country's relationship with the EU