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Can national and regional dialogue supported by external actors spark change toward security sector governance and reform (SSG/R)? Can outside actors effectively support national reform constituencies in advocating for SSG/R? This paper argues that under the right conditions, informal dialogue…

The term “closing space” has become a widely embraced trope to describe contemporary challenges in the struggle for human rights. It suggests that the human rights movement confronts a global and varied, but overall very serious pushback as governments limit opportunities for civic engagement and…

Europe, with its zealous regulators at both national and EU level, has proven to be a difficult terrain for U.S. tech companies. This trend will continue when the European Union‘s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) comes into effect in May. The GDPR, among other provisions aimed at improved…

Für den ungarischen Ministerpräsidenten Viktor Orbán ist die Marschroute klar: die Vertiefung seines Projekts eines „illiberalen Staates“ im Herzen der EU. Er kündigte Mitte März an, nach den Wahlen „moralische, politische und auch juristische Genugtuung“ an seinen Gegnern zu nehmen. Diese…

In ihrer Regierungserklärung Ende März sagte Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel, der aktuelle Skandal um Facebook und die Datenanalysefirma Cambridge Analytica sei nur eine Facette der größeren Aufgabe, ein „gerechtes, den Menschen in den Mittelpunkt stellendes System der Teilhabe an der Souveränität der…

Die Welt: What does Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s decisive victory mean for Hungary? Thorsten Benner: For Orbán, the direction for the coming four years is crystal clear: deepening his project of an “illiberal state” at the heart of the European Union (EU). In a speech from March 15 that…

SZ: Mr. Benner, what are the implications of the upcoming election in Hungary for the EU? Thorsten Benner: Sunday will decide whether Viktor Orbán will be able to continue his project of building what he calls an “illiberal state” in the heart of Europe, where the rule of law and other key norms of…

Summary of Key Points China is interested in a stable — but pliant and fragmented —EU and the large and integrated European single market that underpins it. Properly managed, the CCP leadership has concluded, parts of Europe can be a useful conduit to further its interests. China wants to dilute the…

Europe’s initial enthusiasm about the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is tempering. BRI is undermining the EU’s internal cohesion, has the potential to impact European security, and is creating stiff competition for European companies on trade, investments, and market access in Europe and Asia.…

Is he up to it? Can he stand up to Putin or Erdogan without flinching? Tackle reforms in Europe? Manage an increasing number of crises? With ever-growing expectations for German foreign policy, experts and journalists alike have a lot of questions about the new German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas.…

In 2017, the German government adopted the ‘Guidelines on Preventing Crises, Resolving Conflicts, Building Peace’ to make its crisis engagement more political, strategic and coherent. Germany’s civilian stabilization efforts in Iraq, as well as the Federal Armed Forces’ deployment in the country –…