My latest with Svante Cornell on the potential of Central Asia-Nordic cooperation.

Chinese influence in the #CentralAsia region will significantly increase and will be especially important in the coming years. buff.ly/pQE7A3i

How is the Nordic experience of regional cooperation relevant to the distant Central Asia?

Read more on this intriguing topic here: buff.ly/EprDyZv

Den som hoppas på fred i Ukraina vid fredagens möte i Alaska mellan Trump och Putin hoppas för mycket – Ryssland har gång på gång genom åren talat om fred och svarat med kulor.

@dagensnyheter.bsky.social @sceeus-ui.bsky.social @uisweden.bsky.social @nordicukraine.bsky.social @sveukr.bsky.social

After a country is taken over by illiberal rule, it's not easy to bring the pendulum back to liberalism.

Read FREE:

muse.jhu.edu/pub/1/a...

Thanks @FPRI for publishing my look at some of the Chinese investment and deals for projects in Central Asia since 2023. www.fpri.org/article/2025...

Capitalism isn't a threat to democracy on its own. The real threat is state capture of business.

Read "Can Capitalism Save Democracy?" by Semuhi Sinanoglu, Lucan Way, and Steven Levitsky:

muse.jhu.edu/pub/1/a...

The Nordic region and the Central Asian region have more in common and more to learn from each other than meets the eye. The case for why the Nordic countries should engage Central Asia.

nationalinterest.org/blog/silk-ro...

Our @pannierb.bsky.social makes the case for Uzbekistan's military budget rise signaling its potential as a Central Asian power timesca.com/uzbekistans-... #Uzbekistan #CentralAsia #MilitaryBudget #UzbekDefense #MilitaryStrategy #CentralAsianSecurity #PolicyAnalysis

Amid talks of a new European security architecture, European countries no longer have the luxury of ignoring Türkiye.
Re-upping this piece from a year ago, in which I argued that it is a strong EU interest to strengthen security cooperation with Ankara.

Fresh off-the-press: I had the honor of contributing a chapter on Kazakhstan for the 2025 Atlas Freedom and Prosperity Around the World, the @atlanticcouncil.bsky.social's flagship publication: www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-res...

Caucasus and Central Asia - different worlds? Not anymore. As trade routes are redrawn and diplomatic alliances diversified, the Caspian Sea is becoming a unifier rather than divider of the regions. The EU should develop a comprehensive strategy that recognizes this evolving geopolitical landscape.

If you’re unsure why 🇹🇷🇪🇺 EU-Türkiye relations are important?

🔟-point-list 👇

————————

1️⃣ Germany’s 🇩🇪🇪🇺 economy (& by extension Europe) depends on 🇹🇷 Türkiye, and vice versa.

German 🇩🇪🇪🇺 supply-chains (not only trade) largely depend on China 🇨🇳, Poland 🇵🇱🇪🇺 and Türkiye

. . . Continued

Will Donald Trump divide and rule a Europe that is too weak to stand on its own feet?
My take in @foreignpolicy.com
foreignpolicy.com/2025/01/30/e...

I argue a bit similarly regarding the EU in this new piece www.cacianalyst.org/publications...

"The shifting geopolitical landscape presents the U.S. with a unique opportunity to adopt a more proactive foreign policy toward Central Asia," writes Uzbekistan's former ambassador to the US Javlon Vakhabov for @thediplomat.com

thediplomat.com/2025/01/rene...

Caucasus and Central Asia - different worlds? Not anymore. As trade routes are redrawn and diplomatic alliances diversified, the Caspian Sea is becoming a unifier rather than divider of the regions. The EU should develop a comprehensive strategy that recognizes this evolving geopolitical landscape.

🆕 Read CACI's new Feature Article: "The Convergence of the South Caucasus and Central Asia: an Opportunity for a New EU partnership" by Johan Engvall (@jengvall.bsky.social).

🔗 Link here: https://buff.ly/40O6ibS

In the South Caucasus and Central Asia, the desire to forge closer ties with the EU has increased following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

@jengvall.bsky.social, #SCEEUS, in NEE

@konflikt-sicher.bsky.social @ecpr.bsky.social @fpri.bsky.social @euwatch.live @caucasussurvey.bsky.social

Ten years of insufficient support for Ukraine, coupled with many states' continued trade with Russia, have led Kyiv to shift from a defensive to an offensive stance.

My today's @kyivindependent.com article based on a #SCEEUS commentary.

@nordicukraine.bsky.social @konflikt-sicher.bsky.social

The Ukrainian foray into Russian state territory deconstructs the image – inside Russia and around the world – of a seemingly static frontline, stable force constellation, and predictable course of the conflict.

@nordicukraine.bsky.social @dgoberlin.bsky.social @konflikt-sicher.bsky.social

A Russian victory over Ukraine would have grave implications not only for the post-Soviet region, but far beyond it. Conversely, a Ukrainian success in its defense against Russia will have stabilizing and innovating effects far beyond Eastern Europe.

The Jerusalem Strategic Tribune

Anniversary of #Belarus2020 mass protests

Check out our special issue

“The Dynamics of Mass Mobilization in Belarus”
by @gwendolynsasse.bsky.social & me
How can & should we analyze mass mobilization and its outcomes in authoritarian states as social scientists? www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

Kyiv has not only changed the military narrative on the ground but also tries to change the narrative on negotiations—from a “land for peace” deal to a “land for land” deal.

My today's piece in @foreignpolicy.com

@konflikt-sicher.bsky.social @dgoberlin.bsky.social @nordicukraine.bsky.social