Two key factors can be identified as having shaped the EU’s positioning within the broader international engagement in Afghanistan. Following the terrorist attacks of 9/11 and the first ever invocation of Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, European engagement in Afghanistan was characterise...
With Covid-19-related travel restrictions curtailed or lifted in most African countries, the issue of population movement and migratory flows – both within Africa and towards other regions, including the Middle East and Europe – has returned to the forefront of policy debates in the continent. T...
As Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine enters its eighth month, this brief explores the impact of the war on the countries of the eastern neighbourhood, where it has had significant economic, demographic and geopolitical repercussions....
Over the past two decades, China has become a major trading partner, lender and provider of foreign direct investment (FDI) to many Latin American countries. China’s multi-faceted presence in Latin America, driven by its need to secure supplies of raw materials to fuel its economic development a...
Distinct rationales apply to sanctions depending on the circumstances in which they are imposed. In armed conflicts, sanctions often attempt to curtail sources of weapons funding fuelling the war, while in a context of democratic regression they normally try to compel key elites to withdraw supp...
In the months since their seizure of Kabul in August 2021, the Taliban’s resumption of power has frequently been cast as a historic inevitability. In a bid to move beyond the implicit assumptions that underpin such an assessment, this Brief identifies seven critical uncertainties upon which Afgh...
Hybrid threats in Africa have become a security concern for the EU. CSDP missions in the continent are increasingly the target of hybrid operations. Perpetrators of hybrid activities are state (e.g., Russia, China, Turkey) and non-state actors (e.g., Salafi-jihadist groups and private military c...
Although Belarus previously resisted pressure to deepen military cooperation with Russia, after the crackdown on the protests that followed the 2020 presidential election Alexander Lukashenka has displayed less reluctance to engage in closer cooperation, indicating his growing dependence on Mosc...
A confluence of external and internal factors triggered the energy crisis that engulfed Europe in 2021. The crisis, which has led to a surge in energy prices and market turmoil, continues to be a major source of concern. The balance between the security, affordability and sustainability dimensio...
The Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated poverty levels in Africa, with the number of people living in extreme poverty in sub-Saharan Africa projected to increase from 449 million (pre-Covid) to 478 million by 2022. The crisis also induced the continent’s first economic recession in 25 years. Globally,...