Debate Re-Thinking the EU’s Contentious Role in Central Asia’s Borderlands 2021 has been a restless year for Central Asia – from Sadyr Japarov’s rise to the presidency in Kyrgyzstan to interethnic tensions in Kazakhstan and low-level violence in Tajikistan’s ⋙
migrants The Symbolic Wall: Notes from the Field In this piece, criminologist Ellen Van Damme, who is doing research on female migration from Honduras to the United States (USA), at the Center for the Study of International Migration ⋙
Interviews 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 ⋙
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 ⋙
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 ⋙
