European Defence Industry Lobbying in Brussels.

A recent article by Politico shed light on how defence lobbyists are increasingly concentrating their efforts on EU officials and policy-makers (Wheaton & Bayer, 2023). While lobbying activities have traditionally interested Member States, defence and security integration at the European level has progressively drawn the attention of both European and American defence companies (Wheaton & Bayer, 2023).

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Russia Has Formally Withdrawn from the CFE Treaty: What Now?

The Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) has been one of the cornerstones of European security for the last thirty years. Negotiated during the twilight years of the Cold War, and signed on 19 November 1990, it was a landmark security treaty. The CFE entered into force on 13 July 1992 and aimed to limit the number of conventional arms—battle tanks, armoured combat vehicles, artillery, combat aircraft and attack helicopters—of State Parties (Art 4(1) CFE, 1990). The Treaty was particularly important as it addressed the core dilemmas of the security context of the time; although the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, the context was very much dominated by bloc tensions between the Warsaw Pact states and NATO (Witkowsky et al., 2010). At the time it entered into force, it “adapted to the changes that followed the fall of the Berlin Wall and contributed predictability and transparency in military forces as Europe was transforming throughout the 1990s” (Witkowsky et al., 2010).

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Defending International Law in Sudan.

Since gaining independence in 1956 from Britain and Egypt, Sudan has seen multiple revolutions and civil wars. Many violations of international law took place during these conflicts. It is worth examining the measures which the International Criminal Court (ICC) took to hold individuals accountable during the Bashir era of Sudan’s recent history. During this era, Sudan was the location of extreme violations of international law, including genocide and crimes against humanity (ICC).

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Joint naval and aerial exercises in the Indo-Pacific and new regional alignments in 2023.

On October 22, the Republic of Korea (ROK) and the United States (US) navies completed the anti-submarine exercise called ‘Silent Shark’ in the waters of Guam. Since 2007, Silent Shark has been conducted biennially. The live-training exercise involved the nuclear-powered fast attack submarine USS Topeka (SSN-754) and the diesel-electric submarine ROKS Jung Ji (SS-073), along with maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft from the US Navy’s Squadron 8 and the ROK’s Navy Squadron 611.

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Terrorist Attack in Belgium in 2023: National Security, Resilience and the Role of the Army

Belgium has been a target of terrorist attacks in recent years. The country faced its largest terrorist attack in 2016 at Brussels Airport in Zaventem and at the Maelbeek/Maalbeek metro station. This incident prompted Belgium to revise its national security strategy, focusing on addressing threats related to terrorism and extremism.

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