Europe
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.
Related Subjects
The Future of Europe’s Strategic Deterrence is (also) at Sea
A cursory look at both France and the UK suggests that the future of European nuclear deterrence is at sea.
A Green-Blue Alliance in Motion: Pacific Island Countries and Europe Fighting Climate Change
The Pacific Islands Countries (PICs) were the first to ratify the Paris climate agreement in 2015. Indeed, for them, climate change has had very concrete implications for years. Islanders have seen the sea level rising, endangering the very existence of atolls. They have also experienced increasingly violent cyclones and other natural disasters, and must deal with multiple impacts of a changing climate on their everyday lives
Redefining the Netherlands' Energy Future : Societal Implications of the Nearing End of Dutch Natural Gas
For decades, the large Groningen gas field has been a central pillar of the Dutch welfare state. The availability of gas was so self-evident that many generations still identify with the slogan “Nederland gasland” (“The Netherlands, a gas country”). The nearing end of Dutch gas now requires a mentality shift.
War in Ukraine: A New World?
Beyond the tactical sphere, the conflict in Ukraine has already had numerous repercussions, and its conclusion will provoke many more in the global system. In this special issue, Politique étrangère explores some potential outcomes.
Fishing for Chips: Assessing the EU Chips Act
China, the United States, and the European Union (EU) are currently developing strategies for semiconductors aimed at financing R&D and the installation of new factories on their territories, in particular through subsidies. The EU Chips Act, announced in February 2022, represents a real break in Europe's industrial policy.
Support and conflict: transatlantic agricultural trade since 1945
Agriculture is an area of strategic importance, where relations between the United States and the European Union (EU) vary from solidarity to competition.
Ukraine: Between Two Peaces?
We have reentered the world of war. In its first special report, Politique étrangère offers a range of in-depth analyses of the military and political dynamics at work in a Europe that has just woken up from its dream of enduring peace. The direct confrontation between Ukraine and Russia has pitted two military and defense systems against each other, whose asymmetrical logics, strengths, and weaknesses we are discovering as the conflict unfolds.
Rapprochement in Times of Crisis: War in Ukraine and the EU-Japan Partnership
The war in Ukraine has shaken the foundations of European security and of the global rules-based order. In many ways, Russia’s aggression has been a wake-up call for the EU, adding a sense of urgency to its ongoing transformation to becoming a stronger geopolitical actor, materialised by the recent publication of its Strategic Compass – its first-ever white paper for security and defence.
What Role Should Southern Europe Play After the Pandemic and the War in Ukraine? Towards a Shared Agenda for EU Reform
Relations between southern European member states have often been marked by a loose cooperation or, worse, by logics of competition. Precisely when regional groupings within the European Union are increasingly shaping the agenda, these dynamics have hindered the capacity of France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain to pursue shared interests and objectives, while acting as a force for good for the European integration project. Recent events such as the post-pandemic recovery or the war in Ukraine show that, when cooperation occurs, positive results can be achieved.
Arctic: Toward the End of the Exception? Strategic, Nuclear and Maritime Issues in the Region
Through multiple international initiatives, including the creation of the Arctic Council at the end of the Cold War in 1996, the Arctic appears to be one of the last areas of peaceful cooperation in the world. This “Arctic exception” is also devoid of any serious territorial dispute between the neighboring countries, some of which are nevertheless great powers: Russia, the United States, Canada, but also Sweden, Norway, Denmark (via Greenland), Iceland and Finland.
Dependence in Europe's Relations with China: Weighing Perceptions and Reality
The idea that Europe has grown dependent on China is now a common refrain, but just how is this notion understood in capitals across the continent?
Recasting Relations with the Neighbours - Prospects for the Eastern Partnership
The New US Administration: Likely Major Foreign Policy Initiatives
This debate was organized in cooperation with the US Mission to the EU.
Report written by Christian Schülke, Junior Research Fellow, Ifri Brussels
The Eastern Dimension of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP)
Report written by Christian Schülke, Junior Research Fellow, Ifri Brussels
Energy Transit: Experience and Perspectives
Report written by Christian Schülke, Junior Research Fellow, Ifri Brussels.
EU Communications after the Irish "No"
Report written by Pierre Bouygues, intern at Ifri Brussels.
The Fifth Enlargement of the EU, Five Years On: The Case of Poland and the Czech Republic
The French Presidency of the EU and Current European Issues: A German Perspective
Report written by Christian Schülke, Junior Research Fellow and Pierre Bouygues, Intern, Ifri Brussels.
Perspectives on European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) after the Lisbon Treaty
Report written by Séverine Neervoort, Intern, Ifri Brussels.
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.
Related centers and programs
The Study Committee on Franco-German Relations (Cerfa)
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.
Austro-French Centre for Rapprochement in Europe (ÖFZ)
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.