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Europe

Farewell Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Welcome Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
Commentary, 16 June 2020
Malcolm Chalmers
The UK government has decided to merge the Department for International Development with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. RUSI’s Deputy Director-General analyses what this means for the UK’s future diplomacy and aid policies.
Tags: Global Strategy and Commitments, UK, Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding, UK Defence, Europe
Spare Me Your Cyber-Age Technobabble
RUSI Defence Systems, 5 June 2020
Jack Watling
If Defence is to appropriately weight cyber operations then there are some dangerous myths about the practicalities of cyber warfare that need to be confronted.
Tags: Cyber, Military Sciences, UK, Technology, UK Defence, Europe
Book Review: The Russian Understanding of War: Blurring the Lines Between War and Peace
RUSI Journal, 1 June 2020
Andrew Monaghan
Andrew Monaghan reviews The Russian Understanding of War: Blurring the Lines Between War and Peace, by Oscar Jonsson.
Tags: Russia, Defence Policy, Europe
Book Review: Secret Alliances: Special Operations and Intelligence in Norway 1940-1945
RUSI Journal, 1 June 2020
Gill Bennett
Gill Bennett reviews Secret Alliances: Special Operations and Intelligence in Norway 1940-1945, by Tony Insall.
Tags: UK, History, Europe
Book Review: Europe, Small Navies and Maritime Security: Balancing Traditional Roles and Emergent Threats in the 21st Century
RUSI Journal, 1 June 2020
Mathieu Boulègue
Mathieu Boulègue reviews Europe, Small Navies and Maritime Security: Balancing Traditional Roles and Emergent Threats in the 21st Century, edited by Robert McCabe, Deborah Sanders and Ian Speller.
Tags: Maritime Forces, Europe
Towards the ‘Third Revolution in Military Affairs’: The Russian Military’s Use of AI-Enabled Cyber Warfare
RUSI Journal, 28 May 2020
Rod Thornton and Marina Miron
Russia is expecting artificial intelligence to have strategic consequences in cyberspace.
Tags: Cyber, Russia, Defence Policy, Technology, EuropePages

The British Public Still Believes in NATO – Even if Most Cannot Say What It Does
Commentary, 3 December 2019Joel Rogers de Waal
New YouGov/RUSI polling portrays a kind of ignorant faith in NATO but also significant doubts that UK defence capability is fit for modern purpose.
NATO, UK, Defence Policy, International Institutions, National Security, UK Defence, Europe
Britain, Estonia and the Wider North
Commentary, 27 November 2019Caroline Kennedy-Pipe and Duncan Depledge
The UK is at the forefront of NATO’s efforts to secure its Baltic members. We argue Britain requires an expansive strategy that covers not just the High North, as has been touted since 2018, but incorporates a vision of a Wider North. That means viewing the security of the Baltic states in tandem with that of our Nordic allies.
NATO, Global Security Issues, Europe
Securing the Integrity of the EU’s Financial System is Overdue – Why is Progress so Slow?
Commentary, 26 November 2019Tom Keatinge
Like the proverbial frog in boiling water, the EU knows something is wrong; it just can’t decide what to do.
Centre for Financial Crime and Security Studies, European Union, Organised Crime, Europe
A New Direction for EU Sanctions: The New Commission and the Use of Sanctions
Commentary, 21 November 2019Emil Dall
As the new EU Commission takes office, responsibility for the EU’s sanctions portfolio appears to have moved between commissioners. The move is part of a focus on stricter sanctions enforcement within the EU, but could also lay the groundwork for redefining the role and impact of EU sanctions.
Centre for Financial Crime and Security Studies, United States, European Union, Europe
NATO vs Russia at 70
Commentary, 6 November 2019Peter Roberts
The competition between NATO and Russia is not going the Alliance’s way. Russia has encircled Europe and divided the Alliance. How odd then that NATO is in such a self-congratulatory mood on its 70th anniversary.
Military Sciences, Security and Defence in Northern Europe Research Programme, NATO, North America, Russia, Global Security Issues, EuropePages

A New Debt Burden for Spain’s Defence Planning
RUSI Journal, 18 December 2019Guillem Colom-Piella
Large debt payments threaten the future capabilities of the Spanish armed forces.
RUSI Journal, Defence Management, Defence Policy, Europe
International Cyber Security Capacity Building Conference: Lancaster House, London, 6 September 2019
Other Publications, 18 December 2019Sneha Dawda and James Sullivan
An event note on the 2019 International Cyber Security Capacity Building Conference.
Cyber, Other Publications, UK, Technology, Europe
Book Review: Russian Nuclear Orthodoxy: Religion, Politics and Strategy
RUSI Journal, 18 December 2019Andrew Monaghan
Andrew Monaghan reviews Russian Nuclear Orthodoxy: Religion, Politics and Strategy, by Dmitry Adamsky.
RUSI Journal, Russia, Defence Policy, Proliferation and Nuclear Policy, Europe
Who is a ‘Veteran’? Understanding Definitions of the Term Among the British Public: A Research Note
RUSI Journal, 18 December 2019Rachael Gribble, Simon Wessely, Susan Klein, David A Alexander, Christopher Dandeker and Nicola T Fear
The Ministry of Defence’s idea of 'veteran' is far broader than the British public’s.
RUSI Journal, UK, Military Personnel, Europe
1989–2019: How the End of the Cold War Shaped Today’s World: An Interview with Kristina Spohr
RUSI Journal, 18 December 2019Emma De Angelis with Kristina Spohr
The Journal’s Editor, Emma De Angelis, interviews Kristina Spohr, author of Post Wall, Post Square: Rebuilding the World After 1989, on how the current era was forged after the Cold War.
China, RUSI Journal, Germany, History, Europe, PacificPages

"“The problem with the French approach is not so much omitting religion. What is more problematic is the enforced secularism,” says Raffaello Pantucci, director of International Security Studies at the Royal United Services Institute, a think tank on defense and security issues based in London. “Most people radicalize for a variety of personal reasons, with religion or extremist ideas providing a useful frame for them to articulate their unhappiness through. For some, religion is a solace which helps. To instead push a line which aggressively pushes religion to one side can have a counterproductive effect,” Pantucci adds. "
France combats extremism with secularism — and a hotline
In The News, 8 July 2019 Tags: International Security Studies, France, Europe
"Russia and China have often competing, but occasionally overlapping political, economic and security interests in countries across the world. These interests can converge in places, such as the Arctic, or diverge, as in their growing competition on the arms market, and as they compete for global recognition as powerful political players. Central Asia is often overlooked as a theatre in which Russian and Chinese interests come together, and where the five republics are caught between the influences of these two large powers. "
The battle for hearts and minds in Central Asia: Russia vs. China
In The News, 26 June 2019 Tags: China, International Security Studies, Russia, Europe, Pacific
"From Ukraine to the US, Russia’s risky policies may be a sign of the security services’ sway over the president"
The west thinks Putin is Russia's spymaster. But are the spies controlling him?
In The News, 20 June 2019 Tags: Russia, Europe
"On the eve of Britain’s exit from the European Union, the country is redefining its international approach. The United Kingdom has already taken action by becoming involved in new economic commitments, new trade agreements in Commonwealth countries but also from a diplomatic point of view in West Africa. While development aid remains a focal point of its intervention in Africa, it risks being undermined by the Brexit and its economic consequences. However, the United Kingdom is now gaining more freedom in its projects."
The UK’s policy towards Africa post-Brexit
In The News, 24 May 2019 Tags: RUSI International, Brexit, UK, Europe, Africa
"“Russia wishes to be considered a key power in international affairs and in many ways Russia has achieved this,” said Emily Ferris, Research Fellow at the London-based Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies. However, she said “Russia’s strategy of sowing discord and encouraging divisions is likely to continue to drive up tensions with the West.”"
U.S., Russia Commit to Repairing Ties, but Frictions Remain
In The News, 14 May 2019 Tags: Military Sciences, Russia, Europe
Diversity in the UK's Intelligence Agencies
Financing Right-Wing Extremism and Terrorism
New UK Government Initiative to Support High-Risk, High-Reward Military Science Needs Refinement