Read more about the article Disinformation and EU: The Role of Narrative in Hybrid Warfare within the European Union
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Disinformation and EU: The Role of Narrative in Hybrid Warfare within the European Union

The days of winning battles and wars solely on the battlefield are long gone. Warring parties are gaining a significant advantage in the realm of information warfare. The information domain can bring significant advantages or cause a significant harm to one side, with no regard to the actual happening on the battlefield. As the conflicts become more complex, there is a bigger need to win the war not only on the field but also in the people’s ‘heads and minds’. The main aim of this article is to analyse Russian and Chinese influence operations and provide a comprehensive overview of the EU’s institutional response to disinformation and narrative campaigns. The first part of this paper introduces the conceptual framework for understanding narratives and disinformation in the light of hybrid warfare. Secondly, it discusses the various ways in which state actors, notably Russia and China, are influencing the EU with their own narratives and disinformation campaigns. Finally, the paper analyses the EU’s policies and responses to these information attacks, while critically examining the structures and mechanisms EU is implementing to tackle this issue.

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25 September 2024
Read more about the article Democracy in Question: Georgia’s Foreign Agents Law
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Democracy in Question: Georgia’s Foreign Agents Law

The adoption of the “foreign agents” law in Georgia has become a critical issue, reflecting broader struggles over democratic governance, the autonomy of civil society and geopolitical direction in the post-Soviet region. Georgia is a parliamentary unitary republic in which the President, the Government, the Parliament, and the judiciary share powers reserved to the national government. In March 2023, two parallel bills have been submitted to the Parliament, namely “Transparency of Foreign Influence’’ and “Registration of Foreign Agents”. These two bills were withdrawn from the Georgian Parliament following protests in response to the legislative process. On 3 April 2024, the leader of the ruling Georgian Dream party, Mamuka Mdinaradze, announced the reintroduction of the Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence to the Parliament. The law requires non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and media companies that receive more than 20% of their funding from foreign sources to register as “organisations serving the interests of a foreign power”. Founded in 2012 by billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, the Georgian Dream Party, was formed as an alternative to the Georgian National Movement. Georgian Dream quickly gained widespread support and won the parliamentary elections that year, representing a major shift in the country’s political landscape.

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21 August 2024
Read more about the article Navigating Uncharted Waters: Russia’s Potential Exit from the Convention on the Law of the Sea
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Navigating Uncharted Waters: Russia’s Potential Exit from the Convention on the Law of the Sea

In the light of Russia’s recent comments regarding their possible withdrawal from the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the international community must re-think the integrity of the current maritime order, assess the present challenges and examine different perspectives for the governance of the seas. Following decades of negotiations, in 1982, the United Nations adopted UNCLOS, the Convention that sets the modern standards and encapsulates the principles of international maritime law. As one of the most widely ratified international treaties, UNCLOS has enjoyed decades of being unchallenged, yet the current unsteady political landscape — with big countries such as China and Russia claiming to be unsatisfied with the Convention — puts UNCLOS in a precarious position regarding compliance and observance of international maritime norms. After a brief overview of the Convention and the evolution of Russia as a member of UNCLOS, the paper will analyse the relevant legal framework of the Law of Sea, focusing on Russia’s bid for the Arctic and its process with the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS). Finally, the paper will examine Russia’s latest threat to withdraw from the Convention, addressing legal and geopolitical implications, including how rather than following a different ‘maritime strategy’, these threats might reflect a strategic narrative aimed at promoting a multipolar world order.

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13 August 2024
Read more about the article The Baltic States’ Military Support to Ukraine
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The Baltic States’ Military Support to Ukraine

On February 24, 2022, when the Russian Federation launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Baltic States - Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia - were among the first to respond to the request for military and humanitarian assistance. According to the Ukraine Support Tracker, between January 24, 2022, and January 15, 2023, they were among the largest providers of military aid to Ukraine relative to their GDP – Estonia - 1.469%, Latvia - 1.128%, and Lithuania - 1.145% (Trebesch et al., 2023). One of the most important motivating factors could be the common historical past connecting the countries: the states were all part of the Soviet Union, and later, they secured their independence (Simpson, 2023). Therefore, the population of these countries, understanding the price of freedom, strives to support Ukraine on the way to its victory comprehensively. The historical experience of the Baltic States, which were under occupation until the collapse of the USSR, and the ongoing war in Ukraine have significantly influenced the perception of their security and the possible threat from Russia today. For instance, understanding the security challenges connected with the war in Ukraine, in 2023, the Latvian government adopted a law on compulsory military service, which had been abolished in 2006. This law restores mandatory military service for men and voluntary military service for women from January 1, 2024 (Fremer, 2023). Moreover, in 2024, the Baltic States and Poland called on the EU to build a defence line on the border with Russia and Belarus to prevent possible military and hybrid threats (Brzozowski, 2024).

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3 August 2024
Read more about the article Strengthening the Defence Sector through Circular Economy Initiatives
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Strengthening the Defence Sector through Circular Economy Initiatives

Circular economy principles are already widely adopted in the civil sector, however, the defence sector lags behind, facing several challenges that hinder its uptake. Western countries are increasing defence expenditures despite financial constraints, resulting in a steady rise in carbon emissions from military processes. Circular economy practices, which are not yet widespread in this sector, present an attractive long-term solution to both these concerns. In a turbulent security landscape, amid an environmental crisis, a shift from the ‘take-make-waste’ (Knight, 2023) approach to a circular economy model is crucial as it offers the sector economic resilience, autonomy, operational efficiency and civil-military synergies in times of instability, strengthening the sector overall. As the European Defence Agency argues, ‘strengthening Europe's security capabilities is a challenge that requires strategic planning and an efficient use of resources’ (Katainen, 2016). The Incubation Forum for Circular Economy in European Defence (IF CEED), established by the European Defence Agency in 2021, plays a crucial role in applying the circularity principles of the EU Green Deal to the European defence sector (European Defence Agency, 2023). The goal of the IF CEED is to apply principles and policies from the civilian sector to the defence sector, under the premise that a European circular economy can only be achieved through the participation of all sectors (European Defence Agency, n.d.). This paper starts with the definition of circular economy. It then analyses the current state of military expenditure and carbon emissions. Finally, it presents three project ideas of the IF CEED - Circular Data, Additive Manufacturing and Circular Materials for Textiles (European Defence Agency, n.d.) and the value they bring to the European defence sector.

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5 July 2024