This Brief highlights the importance of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) as a political actor in its own right. However, China also has an effective system of civilian control over the armed forces, which works because they are thoroughly politicised.
As elections approach in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Rwanda, the entire Great Lakes region is bracing itself for a potential of a spike in conflict. This Brief assesses the situation in the DRC, where President Kabila is seeking to control the army, stifle opposition and civil society, and break free of donor pressure. What lessons can be drawn from the situation there?
This Alert examines the effects of the country’s Political Isolation Law (PIL). Although part of a necessary process of political transition, does this ‘deqaddafication law’ go too far?
Four years after the toppling of Qaddafi, Libya is perilously close to economic collapse. Growing political factionalism and the prevalence of security vacuums have facilitated the proliferation of armed militia groups, while the destruction of the country’s oil infrastructure poses a serious risk to any chance of future economic prosperity.
Nicu Popescu gave his views on the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.
New Eastern Europe
The EUISS Report 'Arab futures: three scenarios for 2025' was mentioned in the Moroccan outlet.
Medias24
On the 23-24 February 2015, the EUISS and the European Commission DG International Cooperation and Development (DG DEVCO) organised the international conference on cyber capacity building in Brussels.
On 16 February, the EUISS hosted a workshop to explore the increasing importance of the Arctic.
This report, the outcome of a series of meetings of the Arab Foresight Group, an initiative undertaken by the EUISS, presents three alternative scenarios for the Arab world in 2025. These take into account those ‘megatrends’ which are unlikely to change, and outline three different ways in which policymakers can respond to the crises that currently beset the Middle East and North Africa.
The decline in military cooperation with Ukraine, defects in the Russian defence industry and a contracting economy have blown Moscow's rearmament plans off course. With a reallocation of resources no longer feasible, the Kremlin now risks compounding its economic problems and deepening its isolation.