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Europe

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Europe is described here in a geographical sense. It is not limited to the European Union, and includes, for example, the United Kingdom and the Balkans. It remains central to international relations.

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EU flag waving in front of European Parliament building. Brussels, Belgium
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Publications
Date de publication
April 2025

Taking the Pulse: Can Europeans Build Their Independent Extended Nuclear Deterrent?

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Sous-marin à propulsion nucléaire
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Sous-marin à propulsion nucléaire
Credits : Aleksandr Merkushev/Shutterstock
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Confronted with a U.S. disengagement and the Russian threat, Europeans are reconsidering their stance on nuclear deterrence. Given the capabilities of the French and British arsenals, can Europe develop an independent nuclear deterrent?

Korea-EU Direct Investment Links: The Neglected Facet of a Tight Partnership

Date de publication
06 January 2022
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Despite their difference in size, Korea and the EU have developed over time a strong and deep relation through direct investment flows. Germany dominates the relationship, but there remains ample room for the other EU member-states to further develop their relations with Korea.

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Strengthening Sovereignty in the Era of Global Value Chains

Date de publication
14 December 2021
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How to reduce the vulnerabilities induced by these global value chains to be more independent, while taking into account the reality of these productive processes which precisely generate interdependencies?

Paul HERAULT
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European Economic Governance: Past Errors and Future Promises

Date de publication
14 December 2021
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The eurozone crisis marked a real failure of European Union (EU) policy, which led to mediocre economic performance and the erosion of its political legitimacy among the populations of member states.

Vivien SCHMIDT

Trade

Date de publication
13 December 2021
Accroche

Françoise Nicolas contributed the chapter on trade, providing more insights into the opportunities and challenges South Korea and the EU need to address to revive the rules-based multilateral trading system.

Françoise NICOLAS Sohyun Zoe Lee

Foreign Policy: France at a Turning Point?

Date de publication
10 December 2021
Accroche

An exceptional issue of Politique étrangère

Confronted with a world in which the fundamentals are being redefined, France’s foreign policy is under scrutiny. In which geographies should France assert its presence? To which major challenges should France be responding in order to survive in tomorrow’s world? What kind of relationship to that world should France be establishing, as thirty years of Western intervention have ended in catastrophic failure in Afghanistan?

European Defense: Acting in Time

Date de publication
10 December 2021
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This seems like a fitting moment to strengthen European cooperation on defense. 

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Preparing for 2050: From “Foresight” to “Grand Strategy”

Date de publication
10 December 2021
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China and the United States both have a “grand strategy”: Beijing aspires to be the world’s leading power in 2049, while Washington plans to remain primus inter pares.

Martin BRIENS Thomas GOMART
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The Direction of France’s Foreign Policy over the Next Thirty Years

Date de publication
10 December 2021
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A foreign policy points to a united society that manages its relationships with its surroundings while defending its own interests. 

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Philanthropy and Migration in Europe: What Role for Foundations?

Date de publication
29 October 2021
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The 2015 “crisis” accelerated and/or intensified the involvement of foundations (in particular those from the private sector) in the field of migration. The crisis not only created a sense of urgency, but also generated a movement of public empathy that foundations were willing to accompany and amplify. It was also seen as a challenge to Europe and its humanist values, which foundations sought to defend in accordance with their own beliefs in inclusive societies.

Emeric ROGIER
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Strategic Calculation: High-Performance Computing and Quantum Computing in Europe’s Quest for Technological Power

Date de publication
06 October 2021
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Computing power plays a key role in enabling machine learning, for scientific research, and in the military domain. Therefore, the race for computing power has become a key element of the US-China technological competition, and it is also a strategic priority for Europe.

2012, a turning point for Europe in space

Date de publication
09 February 2012
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In 2012, several crucial decisions lie ahead, most notably at the ESA Ministerial Council next fall and regarding the status of space within the next MFF of the EU. These will reveal the degree of political will to pursue an ambitious ESP in times of economic and financial constraint.

The European Power System - Decarbonization and Cost Reduction: Lost in Transmissions?

Date de publication
15 January 2012
Accroche

Europe’s energy policy is commonly defined by three axes of equal importance: security of supplies, competitiveness and sustainable development. The European Commission is mandated to develop the policy tools that allow the implementation of this common policy. Early on, challenges arose from the trade-offs to be made not only between these three pillars but also between a common European policy and national approaches. The European Commission has always had to struggle in attempting to keep a balanced line.

Key Trends in the European Earth Observation Sector

Date de publication
18 December 2011
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An ambitious Earth Observation (EO) policy could bring significant benefits to Europe both regarding the fight against climate change and the competitiveness of its EO industry and service sectors.

Gazprom and the EU: Raiding the Gas Companies

Date de publication
30 September 2011
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It was a matter of time before the Commission competition authorities looked into the business arrangements between Gazprom and its European partners. Some would ask why it took so long. 

Commission Communication of the EU Energy External Policy: Was There an Alternative?

Date de publication
28 September 2011
Accroche

EU is the world’s largest net energy importer and consumer, so why do its Members continue to negotiate individually with the rest of the world rather than as one big market with a big voice?

Laura PARMIGIANI

Space Weather and NEOs in the European Space Policy

Date de publication
10 August 2011
Accroche

Although often overshadowed by a focus on security concerns, Space weather and NEOs are important elements of Europe’s SSA program.

The Use of Space for Maritime Security in Europe

Date de publication
30 June 2011
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The EU is currently developing a Maritime Security Strategy. Space should be integrated in that effort, given its potential for maritime surveillance.

The EU internal market - a stake or a tool in European-Russian gas relations. The case of new member states gas policy

Date de publication
15 June 2011
Accroche

Since 2010 we have observed a new quality in EU energy policy. It is related to the European Commission’s more or less direct engagement in the bilateral gas relations of a part of the new member states - Poland, Bulgaria and Lithuania - with Russia.

Agata LOSKOT-STRACHOTA William C. RAMSAY

Protecting Nuclear Installations: The difference between industrial safety and national security

Date de publication
27 May 2011
Accroche

There is a gritty public debate going on in Europe about what threats should be considered in conducting stress tests on existing nuclear power plants or in establishing safety criteria for new build nuclear power. 

Integration or Imitation? EU Policy towards its Eastern Neighbours

Date de publication
04 May 2011
Accroche

However, these considerations extend beyond current events and the EU calendar. There are aspects of the central question, namely: Is the EU capable of exporting its own model of governance? This question is currently more focused on the local than the global potential of the European Union. Can it continue the process of „making Europe wider‟?

Katarzyna PELCZYNSKA-NALECZ

Support independent French research

Ifri, a foundation recognized as being of public utility, relies largely on private donors – companies and individuals – to guarantee its sustainability and intellectual independence. Through their funding, donors help maintain the Institute's position among the world's leading think tanks. By benefiting from an internationally recognized network and expertise, donors refine their understanding of geopolitical risk and its consequences on global politics and the economy. In 2024, Ifri will support more than 70 French and foreign companies and organizations.

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Related centers and programs
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The Pariser Platz (Paris Square) on the east side of the Brandenburg Gate at Berlin, Germany
The Study Committee on Franco-German Relations (Cerfa)
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The Study Committee on Franco-German Relations (Cerfa) was created in 1954 by an inter-governmental agreement between the Federal Republic of Germany and France, in order to raise awareness of Germany in France and analyze Franco-German relations, including in their European and international dimensions. In its conferences and seminars, which bring together experts, political leaders, senior decision-makers and representatives of civil society from both countries, Cerfa develops the Franco-German debate and stimulates political proposals. It regularly publishes studies through two collections: Cerfa notes and studies as well as Franco-German visions.

 

Cerfa maintains close relations with the network of German foundations and think tanks. In addition to its research and debate activities, Cerfa promotes the emergence of a new Franco-German generation through original cooperation programs. This is how in 2021-2022, Cerfa led a program on multilateralism with the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Paris. This program is aimed at young professionals from both countries interested in the issues of multilateralism in the context of their activities. It covered a wide range of themes relating to multilateralism, such as international trade, health, human rights and migration, non-proliferation and disarmament. Previously, Cerfa had participated in the Franco-German future dialogue, co-led with the DGAP from 2007 to 2020, and supported by the Robert Bosch Foundation and the Daniel Vernet group (formerly the Franco-German Reflection Group) which was founded in 2014 upon the initiative of the Genshagen Foundation.

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France, Austria Flags, European Union
Austro-French Centre for Rapprochement in Europe (ÖFZ)
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The Austro-French Centre for Rapprochement in Europe (ÖFZ/CFA) is a Franco-Austrian intergovernmental organization, initiated in 1976 by Prime Minister Jacques Chirac and Federal Chancellor Bruno Kreisky, in order to develop economic relations between Western and Eastern Europe, contributing to the creation of a Europe of peace.


After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the ÖFZ/CFA refocused its action on the problems following the enlargement of the European Union, and integrated the following countries in its field of activities : Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, the Baltic countries, Romania and Bulgaria. ÖFZ/CFA's vocation, as a space for reflection and exchange, is in fact reinforced by the need to support the new member countries of the Union in their integration process. Since 2004, the ÖFZ/CFA has also turned towards the Union's new neighbors, in particular towards the countries of the Western Balkans, which perceive their future from a European perspective.


The ÖFZ/CFA strives to place all of its exchanges in a global perspective concerning the future of our continent. Today it centers its activities around three directions: the Franco-Austrian bilateral dialogue, the future of the European Union, the future recomposition of the continent.

Reports of all events organized by the ÖFZ/CFA are available on its website (http://oefz.at). The ÖFZ/CFA's budget is provided by the French and Austrian foreign ministries. Depending on the themes addressed, the ÖFZ/CFA calls on European public and private institutions to help finance its meetings. The CFA's orientations benefit from the recommendations of an Orientation Council, approved by a Board of Directors, which elects from among its members a president and a secretary general.

Page image credits
EU flag waving in front of European Parliament building. Brussels, Belgium
symbiot/Shutterstock