Security Praxis

A matter of context: power, conflict and climate change. A conversation with Tor Benjaminsen

From the security crisis in the Sahel to the migration flows in the Mediterranean, from past and present civil wars to wildfires and flooding in Europe, a specter is haunting policy-makers: the spectre of climate change. International organisation and states have now decided to take this issue seriously and are proposing and implementing big projects (from mega-project to various forms of cooperation) to confront this existential threat. As repeated by practically all the leaders at the last COP26, climate change is not just an ecological problem but is a threat to the very existence ⋙

Interviews, climate change, IPCC, Sahel, conflict, jihadists

Research Highlights

New article on JISB: Drug Smuggling and the Stability of Fragile States. The Diverging Trajectories of Mali and Niger

What is the impact of smuggling on political ordering and stability in fragile states? The article I’ve ⋙

Workshop: Perspectives on Governance by Non-State Armed Actors

Workshop on 24 May 2021, 8:45 - 19:15 CEST (i.e. UTC+2), Scuola Normale Superiore ⋙

May-September 2021 Workshop Series Transnational Governance Cohorts: Debating Transnational Governance

The Scuola Normale Superiore and Scuola Sant'Anna are happy to announce a series of online workshops debating transnational ⋙

warbling security

Afghanistan

China in Afghanistan: risks, interests and regional politics

After nearly 20 years the United States and NATO withdrew their troops from Afghanistan at the end of August, abandoning their Afghan allies at the mercy of the Taliban, who ⋙

Afghanistan

Betrayal in Kabul. Staccato reactions to Western self-regard

Failure, debacle, fiasco. These are the most frequently used terms in the English language mediascape to assess the US and NATO performance following the Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan. ⋙

Afghanistan

Taliban rule in Kabul: authoritarianism on the rise, democracies on the defensive

A world of mediation, alliances and ideological amalgamation, the resurgent Islamic emirate aims to gain legitimacy in the international system The Taliban are more careful today than twenty years ago ⋙

Liberalism

Is the Liberal International Order coming to an end? Uncovering how populists cooperate internationally

A seemingly never-ending stream of observers claim that the populist emphasis on nationalism, identity and popular sovereignty undermines international collaboration and contributes to the crisis of the so-called Liberal International ⋙

nuclear weapons

The New START and the geopolitical (dis)equilibrium: what role for the EU?

Nuclear weapons are perceived as an old story, especially after the end of the Cold War. The issue is still alive and still controlled by the United States and Russia. ⋙

Gaza

The urbicide of the Gaza Strip

The war in the Gaza Strip did not end on 21 May 2021, just as it did not begin 12 days earlier. In a sort of contemporary reinterpretation of many ⋙

Covid-19

Waiting for the next pandemic: Strengthening our preparedness and response capacity through human security

The global spread of Covid-19 has already taken the lives of millions of people in the world. Unfortunately, this may well not be a once-in-a-century event. Several interrelating factors – among ⋙

Turkey

The deep crisis of the Turkish mafia-State

Last month the notorious mobster Sedat Peker started posting incriminatory videos on Turkish media. Staring at the camera, Mr Peker discloses some alleged secrets and crimes of the so-called Turkey’ ⋙

terrorism

Lessons from 9/11: the politicization of espionage and the collapse of the US intelligence

President Biden recently announced the withdrawal of the 2,500 US troops in Afghanistan, to be completed by 11 September, ending America’s longest war on the 20th anniversary of ⋙

European Union

Pivoting Stabilisation in the Sahel: competing visions and implementation checkpoints

EU Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell has recently announced greater transparency from (and better conditionality with) Sahelian leaders following a visit to the region in April. This follows intentions for ⋙

Covid-19

The Double Tragedy: Circular Migration in India During Pandemic Times

Noise, shoving and chaotic people flows are nothing new in Delhi (India) where more than 16.5 million people are settled to date. Yet on 28 March 2020 something surprising ⋙

Jerusalem

The space of the conflict in Jerusalem. That is, distinguishing the wood from the trees

In the last few days, several media have accounted in detail for the Sheikh Jarrah events (the risk of forced eviction of several Palestinian Jerusalemites from their homes), which have ⋙