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Commentary

Evolving but not disappearing: Neutrality after the Cold War

The decline of neutrality in world politics has been proclaimed several times over the past century, most recently with Finland and Sweden’s decision to join NATO. Pascal Lottaz, co-editor of a new book assessing global developments in neutralism in the “Post-Cold War” period, writes that neutrality policies are still a staple of international politics and that a new international consensus on what neutrality means could help deescalate the current crisis in Europe.

15 November 2022 | Dr Pascal Lottaz
Euro-Atlantic SecurityAsia-Pacific RegionEuropeRussia-West RelationsUkraineUnited Nations
Commentary

The 60th anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis: What lessons does the crisis teach for today?

If there is one parallel between the Cuban Missile Crisis and the war in Ukraine, Marion Messmer writes, it’s that decision-making is influenced by myths, enemy images, and beliefs. The fog of war makes miscommunication, misperception, and miscalculation that much more likely, in turn increasing the risk that further escalation might take place. Whether the war in Ukraine will be able to provide a similar motivation for arms control efforts as the Cuban Missile Crisis did will depend on how exactly it will end.

28 October 2022 | Marion Messmer
Global SecurityNuclear SecurityNuclear WeaponsRisk ReductionRussia-West RelationsUkraine
Commentary

Zero Missiles: building on the precedent that helps Ukraine today

Thanks to the INF Treaty, Russian forces attacking Ukraine have not been able to use ground-to-ground ballistic and cruise missiles of ranges from 500-5,500 km, which could have devastated centres in Western Ukraine. Dan Plesch writes that the process that produced the INF Treaty provides important guidance for a renaissance in disarmament in the present century and calls on civil society to seek a global zero on missiles.

21 October 2022 | Dan Plesch
Global SecurityArms ControlINFMissilesUkraine
Commentary

What kind of Cold War do you want?

Although it may now be hard to escape a cold war, especially between Russia and the West, countries can still make real choices that affect the course of the confrontation, writes ELN Director Sir Adam Thomson. Here he suggests four axes along which all states involved should be considering their positioning as they pursue their clashing desired outcomes.

7 October 2022 | Adam Thomson
Euro-Atlantic SecurityChinaRussiaRussia-West RelationsUkraineUnited States