Recent Publications

Return of the Balkans: Challenges to European Integration and U.S. Disengagement
May 31, 2013 — Author: Mr Janusz Bugajski View the Executive SummaryFor the first time in its modern history the entire Balkan Peninsula has the opportunity to co-exist under one security and developmental umbrella combining NATO and the European Union (EU). Unfortunately, European and American leaders have been unable to complete such a unique historic vision,... MORE

The Role of Small States in the Post-Cold War Era: The Case of Belarus
May 1, 2012 — Author: Dr Dmitry Shlapentokh The United States is no longer the only global center of power as it was in the first years of post-Cold War era. Neither are there just two superpowers — the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics — that define the course of global events. The new multipolarity implies the presence of several... MORE

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Op-Ed: Zen and the Art of Social Selfishness
March 4, 2012 — COL Louis H. Jordan, Jr The German word “Gemuetlichkeit” loosely translated means “cozy sociability,” or in our terms, that soft warm place where all is good. The European Union (EU), when formalized after the collapse of the Soviet Bloc, was to be gemuetlichkeit. But today, Germany, as well as many other EU countries, is running out of patience... MORE

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the European Union’s Common Security and Defense Policy: Intersecting Trajectories
July 1, 2011 — Author: Mr Sarwar A Kashmeri NATO used to be the world’s most formidable military alliance. But its original reason for existence, the Soviet Union, disintegrated years ago, and its dreams of being a world cop are withering in the mountains of Afghanistan. Meanwhile, the European Union’s (EU) Common Security & Defense Policy (CSDP) has deployed 27... MORE

The Russian Military and the Georgia War: Lessons and Implications
June 1, 2011 — Author: Dr Ariel Cohen, COL Robert E Hamilton In August 2008, the armed conflict on the territory of Georgia's breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia broke out between Russia and Georgia. The Russian-planned military campaign lasted 5 days until the parties reached a preliminary ceasefire agreement on August 12. The European Union, led by... MORE

Operation EUFOR TCHAD/RCA and the EU’s Common Security and Defense Policy
October 1, 2010 — Author: Mr Bjoern H Seibert Addressing security challenges posed by weak and failed states will require increasingly demanding military interventions, often over a great distance and prolonged periods of time. As a result of several engagements over the last decade, the U.S. military has gained valuable experience in undertaking stability... MORE

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Borders: Technology and Security–Strategic Responses to New Challenges
May 1, 2008 — Author: Dr Douglas V Johnson II The following points were put forth by colloquium participants. The concept of a border as a line on the ground is insufficient for today’s realities. The concept of border security obscures larger issues of control and humane management. The European Union approach to interior border management differs from that of... MORE

The Evolution of U.S.-Turkish Relations in a Transatlantic Context
November 1, 2007 — Author: Dr W Andrew Terrill Key Insights:• Turkish accession to the European Union (EU) remains a central question in determining the future of Turkish relations with Western Europe and the United States. Any support that the United States can give to the acceleration of Turkish accession will be valuable and helpful to these ties.• While... MORE

The Eastern Dimension of America’s New European Allies
October 1, 2007 — Author: Mr Janusz Bugajski Without a realistic prospect for NATO and EU accession, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, and Georgia will become sources of domestic and regional instability and objects of Russia’s neo-imperialist ambitions that will undermine American and European strategic interests. The new members of NATO and the EU have sought to develop... MORE

Can Tony Blair Make a Difference in the Middle East?
August 1, 2007 — Author: Dr W Andrew Terrill Each month a member of the SSI faculty writes an editorial for our monthly newsletter. This is the Op-Ed for the August 2007 newsletter.Read Now MORE

Russia and the European Union: The Sources and Limits of “Special Relationships”
February 1, 2007 — Author: Dr Cynthia A Roberts Russia and the West have avoided renewed confrontation despite many post Cold War crises, but illiberal trends in Russia rule out any prospect of developing a mutual agenda for closer integration. Russian engagement with the leading Euro-Atlantic institutions on a special, but still subordinate, nonmember basis remains... MORE

Getting Ready for a Nuclear-Ready Iran
November 1, 2005 — Authors: Mr Patrick Clawson, Mr Henry D Sokolski As Iran edges closer to acquiring a nuclear bomb and its missiles extend an ever darker diplomatic shadow over the Middle East and Europe, Iran is likely to pose three threats. First, Iran could dramatically up the price of oil by interfering with the free passage of vessels in and through the... MORE