Podcast: Giving Chinese tech giants access to Europe - what are the consequences?
Are we ready for the implications of giving Chinese tech giant access to European markets?
Plugging the capability-expectations gap: towards effective, comprehensive and conflict-sensitive EU crisis response?
Since the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty in 2009, the European Union (EU) has spent considerable time and energy on defining and refining its comprehensive approach to external conflicts. The knock-on effects of new and protracted crises, from the war in Ukraine to the multi-faceted armed conflicts in the Sahel and the wider Middle East, have made the improvement of external crisis-response capacities a top priority. But has the EU has managed to plug the capability–expectations gap, and develop an effective, comprehensive and conflict sensitive crisis-response capability? Drawing on institutional theory and an approach developed by March and Olsen, this article analyses whether the EU has the administrative capacities needed in order to be an effective actor in this area and implement a policy in line with the established goals and objectives identified in its comprehensive approach.
Competency through Cooperation: Advancing knowledge on Georgia's strategic path (GEOPATH)
GEOPATH is a collaborative research project which aims to build competency in the Georgian research sector as well as producing new insights into the crucial question of Georgia's future strategi...
Russian Governance of the North Caucasus: Dilemmas of force and inclusion
While Vladimir Putin’s Russia struggles to strike a balance between security and freedom within the Russian polity, nowhere is the problem as acute as in the eastern parts of the North Caucasus. This chapter reviews Russia’s approach to the republics in that region since Putin came to power, and asks what the potential for mobilisation against Russian rule in the North Caucasus amounts to. The current decrease in violence in the region is often taken as a sign of ‘success’ in curbing the insurgency. I argue that the heavy focus on repression and exclusion in Russian policies may well backfire and create conditions for a new mobilisation against Russian dominance.
European countries differ in how they talk critical issues with China
This is the conclusion in a new report addressing political values in Europe-China relations. Hans Jørgen Gåsemyr (NUPI and UiB) has written the chapter on Norway.
Norden i verden
(Only in Norwegian). Hver for seg er de nordiske landene relativt små, men sammen er de på størrelse med en stormakt. Og med en verdenspolitikk i endring er samarbeidet mellom disse statene enda viktigere enn på lenge.
Islamic Insurgents in the MENA Region. Global Threat or Regional Menace?
This working paper analyses a broad range of Islamic insurgents, spanning from the Sahel and North Africa to the Middle East, examining the threat that these groups represent on a regional and global scale. We assess their local, regional and global strategies and evaluate the extent to which they make use of Jihadist discourse to further local/regional aims, or whether they are more truly devoted to a global struggle, operationally as well as in discourse and rhetoric. We make use of several analytical dimensions and factors in a way that allows us to develop a threat assessment that seeks to disentangle the local, the regional and the global levels. In doing so, our aim is also to develop a methodological framework that may be used for analytical updates and future research in this region and elsewhere.
Stormaktsinteresser og sikkerhetspolitiske utviklingstrekk i Arktis. Mulige implikasjoner for Norge
(Available in Norwegian only): Arktis blir i økende grad trukket inn i de generelle politiske utviklingstrekkene globalt. Ser vi endringene i stormaktenes intensjoner, kapabiliteter og adferd under ett, avtegner det seg et tydelig bilde: regionen prioriteres høyere av så godt som samtlige aktører, den forventes å bli viktigere i økonomisk sammenheng, og den militære betydningen av regionen er økende. Denne policy brief-en ser på implikasjoner for norsk sikkerhetspolitikk i Arktis og gir noen anbefalinger til norske myndigheter.
The Civilian Casualty Tracking Analysis and Response Cell in the African Union Mission in Somalia: an emerging best practice for AU peace support o...
The Civilian Casualty Tracking Analysis and Response Cell (CCTARC) tracks harm to civilians caused by the African Union Mission in Somalia’s (AMISOM) operations including death, injury, Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (SEA) and damage to property including livestock. The cell faces three main types of challenges: • Structural: the sectoral composition of AMISOM hinders effective exchange of information. • Operational: there is no fund to pay amends to victims. • Political: in the midst of competing strategic pressures, the CCTARC has not been adequately prioritised by the mission, African Union Commission, Troop Contributing Countries, and donors.
Chinese and Nordic Priorities in the SDG 2030 Agenda
NUPI and CMI researchers meet in Bergen to discuss their ongoing work on Chinese and Nordic efforts towards the Sustainable Development Agenda. Erik Solheim, former leader of UN Environment, will comment and share insights from his vast development-related experiences.