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Briefs

Raising awareness of both existing and emerging foreign and security policy challenges facing the European Union, EUISS Briefs provide key information in a concise, focused format.

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  • 03April 2019
    Preventing the re-emergence of chemical weapons
    By
    This Brief explores the ways the international community has responded to the new developments to preserve and strengthen the norm against CW use. It first offers a short historical overview of chemical warfare, followed by a review of resurgent use of toxic agents. It next introduces the CWC. A discussion of the challenges the new-found utility of such agents pose to the convention concludes the Brief.
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    25March 2019
    Can peace become affordable?
    By
    How can SSR assistance lead to effective and sustainable reforms, and ultimately contribute to reduce fragility, conflict and violence? This Brief seeks to answer these questions by analysing the introduction and implementation of the security sector public expenditure review (PER), a public sector governance instrument that assesses the efficiency and financial sustainability of governments’ security and defence allocations, including SSR programmes.
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    25January 2019
    The benefit of hindsight: what we got wrong – and why
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    This Brief examines how reflecting on past predictions and assessing how accurate – or not – they proved to be helps to improve foresight capacities. It also shows that mistakes in foresight are not necessarily negative, as long as they are examined to evaluate the reasons why they came about.
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    21December 2018
    Along the Road – China in the Arctic
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    The third in the EUISS connectivity series, this Brief focuses on China’s Polar Silk Road project, which officially incorporates the Arctic Ocean into Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, and examines what it reveals about China’s broader geopolitical ambitions in the region.

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    30November 2018
    Strategic autonomy: towards ‘European sovereignty’ in defence?

    Strategic autonomy. Two familiar words that are yet again in vogue in Europe but which cause confusion and, in some quarters, even alarm. This Brief compares the range of defence initiatives that have been developed by the EU since 2016 against three different conceptual visions of strategic autonomy: autonomy as responsibility, autonomy as hedging and autonomy as emancipation.

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    19November 2018
    Putin’s fourth term – The twilight begins?
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    Russia’s political system appears strong and durable at first glance. However, on closer inspection, several factors are gradually undercutting Putin's standing, a process which, in turn, is likely to have future knock-on effects for Russia’s entire political edifice. What vulnerabilities does President Putin face in his fourth term in office? What are the drivers behind them? And how might these play out in the future? 

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    08November 2018
    Artificial Intelligence – What implications for EU security and defence?

    This Brief seeks to advance the discussion about AI and security and defence within an EU context, and also to offer policymakers a few analytical pointers that may be useful when dealing with defence and AI.

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    02October 2018
    The Civilian CSDP Compact – A success story for the EU’s crisis management Cinderella?

    The civilian dimension of the EU’s CSDP has traditionally played a Cinderella-like role in the EU crisis management system. And like the original fairy tale, it seems that civilian CSDP will need three essential elements to succeed: (1) a renewed and credible strategic framework – the ‘ball gown’; (2) adequate operational capabilities – the ‘pumpkin carriage’; and (3) a solid commitment by relevant stakeholders – the ‘Prince Charming’.

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    12September 2018
    Paper beats rock: GCC geo-economics

    Few international actors blur the lines between politics and business to the point of making them indistinguishable as some Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states do. This Brief looks at their distinct political and economic models, which allow the GCC states to deploy economic levers in support of their geopolitical aims in unparalleled ways.

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    31July 2018
    Along the road – Gwadar and China’s power projection
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    Gwadar port is a flagship project of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). The construction of the port near the Gulf of Hormuz gives China access to the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean. This Brief argues that the geostrategic dimension of the project far outweighs its economic potential, and that this will likely affect the regional balance of power. 

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