Good neighbours – the end of the affair?
The EU’s relationship with several neighbouring countries has shifted from harmony to tension. But might the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) have served to make security political bonds stronger? A new book edited by NUPI senior researcher Pernille Rieker looks into this question.
NATO summit in July: How will NATO cope?
What are the threats for NATO today? How will the NATO summit in Warsaw cope with the new security landscape?
Military non-alignment, political solidarity, and a retreat to territorial defence: how to understand the Swedish NATO-debate
The EU, Russia and the potential for dialogue – Different readings of the crisis in Ukraine
Recent developments in European security have shown the growing need for a better understanding of the security dynamics on the European continent. This article presents an analysis of differing Russian and European perceptions of European security in general, and concerning the crisis in Ukraine in particular. As much of the literature on these issues has been normatively driven, we aim to provide an impartial presentation and analysis of the dominant Russian and EU discourses. This we see as essential for investigating the potential for constructive dialogue between Russia and the EU. If simplistic assumptions about the motivations and intentions of other actors take hold in the public debate and policy analyses, the main actors may be drawn into a logic that is ultimately dangerous or counterproductive. With this article we offer a modest contribution towards discouraging such a development in Russia–EU relations. After presenting an analysis of the differing EU and Russian perceptions, we discuss the potential for dialogue between such different worldviews, and reflect on potential implications for European security. As the article shows, there are tendencies of a certain adjustment in the Union’s approach that may make a partial rapprochement between the two sides more likely.
Kvinner i diplomati og internasjonal politikk
(Available in Norwegian only): Hvor er kvinnene? Dette spørsmålet har vært et av utgangspunktene for flere tiår med kvinnestudier i humaniora og samfunnsfag, etter hvert kjønnsstudier, der det slående ofte har vist seg at kvinnene har vært til stede hele tiden, det har bare ikke vært noen (menn) som har brydd seg om å lete etter dem. Innenfor diplomatistudier er de bøkene som vurderes her blant de første som reiser spørsmålet på systematisk vis. I denne bokanmeldelsen tar Halvard Leira for seg Glenda Sluga og Carolyn James' "Women, Diplomacy and International Politics since 1500".
Advancing Reconciliation Diplomacy: Sri Lankan Perspective
How does Sri Lanka work to advance reconciliation after the civil war that ended in 2009?
Expectations for the Warsaw Summit: Conventional and nuclear responses to Russian belligerence
This paper describes two aspects of the changed security environment. First, it discusses NATO’s response to the new threats on its eastern and southern borders. The Alliance took a number of modest steps at the Wales Summit in september 2014 to deal with those, but were they enough? Will it announce a more robust response at the Warsaw Summit this summer? Second, what is the role for NATO nuclear policy in strategic deterrence? Why is this topic back in discussion after years of benign neglect within the Alliance? Given its sensitivity, this subject is unlikely to be discussed at the next summit—but perhaps it should be. This paper addresses some of the key elements of deterrence strategy in an alliance that has not had to think about the subject for more than two decades.