Research

The next US president should forget the League of Democracies file thumbnail

The next US president should forget the League of Democracies

David Hannay
01 August 2008
Expectations of a transatlantic honeymoon after the US presidential election are absurdly high. Most Europeans are enjoying the giddy delights of Obamamania, while also thinking that John McCain would do a lot better than the despised George W Bush.
Should Europeans care about Doha?

Should Europeans care about Doha?

Katinka Barysch
30 July 2008
Are the Doha trade talks finally dead? Following the failure of the latest ministerial meeting in Geneva on July 29th, there will be little appetite for another big push to resolve disputes over farm subsidies and manufacturing tariffs.
The EU will want more from Serbia than arrests

The EU will want more from Serbia than arrests

Tomas Valasek
25 July 2008
On July 21st 2008, Serbian security agents hauled Radovan Karadzic off a bus in Belgrade and took him into custody. The long-wanted wartime leader of the Bosnian Serbs now awaits extradition to the International War Crimes Tribunal (ICTY) in The Hague, where he stands accused of crimes against humanity for his role in the 1992-95 Bosnia war.
Ukraine needs new politicians

Ukraine needs new politicians

22 July 2008
Ukraine is heading for an economic crash. At least that was the message I picked up in the Crimean resort of Yalta earlier this month, at the 'Yalta European Strategy' conference.
The latest Euro-Med jamboree

The latest Euro-Med jamboree

Clara Marina O'Donnell
16 July 2008
On July 13th 2008, President Sarkozy, surrounded by 42 EU and Mediterranean leaders, launched his pet project, the Union for the Mediterranean. The Paris summit was a success.
The CER guide to the French presidency

The CER guide to the French presidency

Charles Grant, Clara Marina O'Donnell, Hugo Brady, Katinka Barysch, Philip Whyte, Simon Tilford, Tomas Valasek
04 July 2008
France's EU presidency was always going to be ambitious, with wideranging plans for climate change, immigration and defence. Now, however, France will have to focus on resolving the legal and institutional mess created by the Irish No to the EU's Lisbon treaty. President Nicolas Sarkozy will struggle to save the...
Russia and the multipolar myth

Russia and the multipolar myth

Bobo Lo
04 July 2008
I attended a curious conference the other week in Moscow. It was a posh event with a stellar cast and the grand, even pompous, title of ‘Forging common futures in a multipolar world’.
Can the EU thaw frozen conflicts

Can the EU thaw frozen conflicts

Tomas Valasek
30 June 2008
The Czech government floated proposals in May that would see the EU take a more active role in solving frozen conflicts in eastern Europe. The Czechs hold the EU’s rotating presidency next year, so their wish may become reality.
Tough choices to avoid euro-paralysis

Tough choices to avoid euro-paralysis

19 June 2008
The Irish did the wrong thing for the right reasons in their referendum on the Lisbon treaty. Voters rejected an international treaty, the benefits of which did not seem to merit a change to the country's constitution.
Humanising China

Humanising China

Bobo Lo
05 June 2008
An extraordinary thing happened to China the other week. Not the Sichuan earthquake, even though that was an enormous, catastrophic event. Nor even the phenomenal popular response to this tragedy.
Will the Irish guillotine Lisbon?

Will the Irish guillotine Lisbon?

Hugo Brady
04 June 2008
On 12 June 2008 Ireland will hold the EU's only referendum on the Lisbon Treaty. With the campaign entering its decisive phase, polls indicate that the vote could be dramatically close with turnout determining the result.
Towards better days in EU-US relations

Towards better days in EU-US relations

Tomas Valasek
02 June 2008
As the field of candidates in the US presidential election dwindles, the future of US foreign policy is becoming clearer. The changes, as seen from Europe, will be mostly for the better.
Four pillars for an EU-India partnership

Four pillars for an EU-India partnership

02 June 2008
Until recently, neither the EU nor India took their relationship very seriously. That is starting to change, thanks to burgeoning economic ties.
Europe can afford to curb greenhouse gases file thumbnail

Europe can afford to curb greenhouse gases

Simon Tilford
02 June 2008
In March 2007 the EU pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 20 per cent by 2020, from 1990 levels. But as EU governments and the Commission work on the policies needed to achieve this goal, opposition is mounting, particularly towards the Commission’s proposals for reforming the EU’s emissions trading scheme (ETS).
Willing and able? EU defence in 2020

Willing and able? EU defence in 2020

Daniel Keohane, Tomas Valasek
02 June 2008
Demand for military forces is growing. And the Europeans increasingly turn to the EU when in need of troops for peacekeeping or for delivering humanitarian aid. But will the EU be able to keep up with the demand?
What Arab countries think of democracy

What Arab countries think of democracy

Clara Marina O'Donnell
21 May 2008
Earlier this month, the Arab Reform Initiative (ARI) presented its first report on the state of democratic reform in the Arab world. ARI is a consortium of a dozen leading Arab research institutes which try to promote peaceful democratic reform across the Middle East (CER and a few other non-Arab think-tanks are associated with the initiative).
France, NATO and European defence

France, NATO and European defence

Tomas Valasek
12 May 2008
France and the UK are close to an agreement that would dramatically improve relations EU and NATO. The two institutions currently make poor partners. Besides Franco-disagreements, Turkish squabbles with the EU also impede EU-NATO co-operation.