Section: The German Marshall Fund of the United States (USA)
Waking up to Geopolitics: A New Trajectory to Japan-Europe Relations
This report argues that the coming years provide a window of opportunity for Europe and Japan to put their relationship on a new trajectory. While the inhibiting factors for both sides have not vanished, they have certainly receded. While the military dimensions of Beijing’s stance in the East China Sea loom large, driving Japan to further...
Six Recommendations to Strengthen the Ukraine-NATO Partnership
Introduction The year 1997 might not necessarily be engraved in our collective memory as a moment of great historical shift. Some might remember U.S. President Bill Clinton’s second inauguration, or Great Britain handing back Hong Kong to China. But arguably for European geopolitics, 1997 was a year of enormous significance. That was when...
Russia Strikes Back against Europe’s Energy Union
BRUSSELS—Europe is starting to play hardball with Russia on energy — and the Kremlin is fighting back. For years, the European Union was highly dependent on Russia’s natural gas and was unable to exert any influence on its supplier since it is the world’s largest energy importer. This spring, the European Commission launched an EU...
Brexit: Views from Brussels, Berlin, Paris, and Warsaw
Cameron’s EU Strategy Threatened by His Own Party Michael Leigh BRUSSELS—The Conservative Party’s victory in the U.K.’s May 7 general election reflected Prime Minister David Cameron’s record in government, especially the improvement in the economy, his hard-hitting messages, and the disarray of the opposition. A victory by...
Fulfilling NATO’s Missions: The Need for New Structures and Instruments
The Wales Summit has initiated a rebalancing between NATO’s three core missions that brings collective defense back at the top of its priorities. In this article, the author discusses the three key obstacles facing the allies in implementing their vision and fulfilling the three-fold mission set: 1) the credibility gap; 2) the need to...
What if the Arctic Became a New Ukraine?
Alaska is the United States’ 49th state and home to 224 native tribes and ~730,000 U.S. citizens spread out over ~660,000sqm with Canada and Russia as natural neighbors. 3,300 miles away from Washington D.C, Alaska is the U.S. door to the Arctic region and the final frontier in the north for national sovereignty and security. The Arctic...
On energy, Europe looks to Ukraine and beyond
Photo: Huffington Post When the energy ministers of the G7 countries met in Rome last May, the Russian assault on Eastern Ukraine was in full swing. Europe and its allies were focused on energy security, an obvious preoccupation given the importance of Ukraine as a transit country for natural gas supplies to Europe. With that background, the...
ENP overhaul: are DCFTAs still a good idea? Michael Leigh shares his views
The crisis in Ukraine and the instability and violence in the Middle East and North Africa have triggered a re-think of the European Neighbourhood Policy. Sir Michael Leigh, a former Director General for enlargement at the EU Commission, now a senior adviser to the German Marshall Fund, shared his views with Iana Dreyer on the current ENP...
Why energy is front and center in EU-US trade talks
When negotiations between the United States and the European Union began on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) in 2013, a top priority for the Europeans was inclusion of a chapter specifically covering raw materials and energy. Although a separate energy chapter is not the norm in free trade agreements (FTAs), the North...
Putin’s Calculated Charm Offensive
As Russia’s economy reels from sanctions following its annexation of Crimea and intervention in eastern Ukraine, Moscow is doing its best to undermine European Union solidarity against Russian aggression. The President of Cyprus Nicos Anastasiades has claimed that “Cyprus is the most trustworthy voice for Russia within the EU.” But in fact...
