Ilana Bet-El is a strategic adviser, writer and historian. A former UN official and senior adviser on the Balkans, she has worked extensively with both governments and clients in the private sector on geostrategic and policy issues related to security, defence and energy in the EU, Russia, Turkey and broader Europe, the Middle East and the Trans-Atlantic community. With a background in the media and academia, she has published widely, including a weekly column on EU defence and security. She holds a PhD in history from UCL, is a member of the WIIS (Women In International Security) Senior Advisory Board in Brussels, and a Visiting Fellow at King’s College London Department of War Studies.
Ilana Bet-El
Senior Associate Fellow
Content by Ilana Bet-El
Commentary
The Women Leader’s Podcast: Winds of change in Turkey? Decrypting the recent local elections
Ilana Bet-El, Senior Associate Fellow at the ELN, speaks with Zeynep Atikkan, a renowned Turkish journalist, on the ramifications of the opposition CHP party’s victory against President Erdogan’s AKP in Turkey’s recent local elections. Together, they dissect the state of Turkish politics, covering the economy, the Kurdish issue, the role of women in Turkish society, evolving political dynamics, and more.
Commentary
The Women Leader’s Podcast: Democracy in peril? Navigating India and Democracies with Dr. Radha Kumar
Ilana Bet-El, Senior Associate Fellow at the ELN, speaks with Dr. Radha Kumar, renowned Indian policy analyst, public intellectual, and writer specialising in ethnic conflicts and peace processes, in an exploration of India’s democratic crossroads. From inter-ethnic tensions to political power plays and media freedom, the flowing conversation explains much about the sub-continent and the state of democracies far beyond.
Commentary
The Women Leaders podcast: Back and big – Geopolitics with Rose Gottemoeller, an IWD special
Introducing Women Leaders, the podcast that discusses world complexities with women experts! Our host llana Bet-El welcomes one or two women experts for an informal conversation to explain, analyse, discuss and highlight events of the day by an array of wonderfully qualified women from all around the world.