On 28 January 2025, the EUISS and the Robert Schuman Centre at the European University Institute (EUI) announced the results of a large-scale survey of elite perceptions of conflict-related threats to EU interests in 2025.
The survey was conducted in November 2024 by EUI, together with its partners—the European Union Institute for Security Studies (EUISS), the Trans European Policy Studies Association (TEPSA), and the European Initiative for Security Studies (EISS). This represents the first continent-wide assessment of global risk perceptions among European experts.
Among the most pressing concerns identified by nearly 400 respondents is a ceasefire in Ukraine dictated on Russian terms.
High-impact risks include:
- United States isolationism
- Escalating hybrid warfare tactics
- The risk that there will be no durable peace in the wider Middle East.
The survey is inspired by the Preventive Priorities Survey, which the Council on Foreign Relations has been running in the United States for more than a decade.
Hosted by the EUISS, the event gathered EU policy makers, academics and think-tank representatives to discuss the top risks for the EU in 2025, as identified by foreign policy experts. Panellists also compared EU expert priorities with the results of the U.S. based 2025 CFR Preventive Priority Survey.