EPIS Blog
A weekly series of opinionated briefs (500–1000 words) discussing current issues in foreign affairs and security policy.
Fragmentation of the Semiconductor Industry and National Sovereignty- Are Chips the new Oil?
When regional industry sustenance arising from forces of national security, clashes with global supply chains, it triggers a chain reaction over a global scale which can impact how firms interact and develop. Recent events following the semiconductor industry is an excellent medium to shed light …
Six Years, Two Governments, and Still No Reproductive Rights for Polish Women
Six years after Poland’s historic abortion protests, women are still fighting for reproductive freedom. From the massive demonstrations of 2020 to the ongoing struggle for safe and legal abortion, this article offers a personal reflection on Polish women’s determination, the consequences of restr…
Lessons from the 2026 German American Conference at Harvard
If there was a single issue that predominated at the conference, it was the ongoing Ukraine War, complete with sundry hybrid operations against NATO members. Though the territorial control along the broad front lines of the Ukraine War remain very similar to 2025, the constant process of innovati…
When the Share Survives but the Investment Suffers: India v RAKIA
RAKIA has secured access to a merits determination, but whether India breached its obligations remains to be decided.
Europe Has a 30-Year-Old Shield for the ICC and Isn’t Using It
The United States has now sanctioned the ICC itself. As judges and civil-society actors face banking restrictions and other everyday consequences, Europe already possesses a legal tool capable of pushing back: the EU Blocking Statute. The question is whether it is willing to use it.
Italian Debt After 2011: A structural debt problem
Italy’s high public debt and sluggish economic growth raise concerns about the country’s economic future. While stronger euro area institutions make a repeat of the 2011 sovereign debt crisis less likely, the risk of prolonged stagnation remains a significant challenge for Italy and the wider Eur…
What’s Really at Stake: Citizens’ Lives or Politicians’ Careers?
On 30 July, approximately 80,000 people crossed from Morocco into Ceuta, a city of 83,000. Two months later, Spain’s parties are still arguing over who is to blame, each choosing its culprit according to political interest rather than the facts. This article examines how a humanitarian crisis bec…
Buying an ICSID Award, Buying the Right to Enforce? Blasket’s Victory Against Spain
Can an ICSID award buyer enforce it in its own name? The Eurus decision exposes divergent US and English interpretations of assignment, treaty language, and access to award enforcement mechanisms.
Scars Without Wounds: Cumulative Mental Harm and the Limits of IHL
One in five people who have lived through war carries a mental health condition, yet no targeting decision is ever asked to account for it. However, the law already requires parties to weigh cumulative mental harm. The rule is not missing, but right in front of our eyes.
Tuvalu and the Continuity of Statehood: The Sovereignty Debate
This brief blog article looks into whether territory is required for a state to be recognized. It looks into the case study of Tuvalu which is making moves towards maintaining its statehood; even after being submerged. The argument is that with natural factors such as climate change, there need t…
The New US Russia Sanctions Regime: Assessing Economic Coercion Under International Law
The 2026 US sanctions regime marks a further development in secondary sanctions, using economic pressure to influence the external choices of third States. This article examines where such measures may sit at the boundary between legitimate economic pressure and unlawful intervention in another S…
Protecting Children Beyond Content: Rethinking Responsibility for Digital Design
Digital environments offer children important opportunities for learning, creativity and social interaction, but their design may also exploit children’s vulnerabilities. This article considers how EU regulation can balance effective protection with children’s autonomy, parental responsibility an…
The Eastern Mediterranean’s New Security Architecture
The Eastern Mediterranean is witnessing the emergence of overlapping security partnerships. This article explores whether these networks strengthen regional resilience or contribute to fragmentation, and what this changing security architecture means for the European Union.
Africa Is No Longer a Chessboard: From Pawn to Player
For years, Africa has been cast as a chessboard, a passive surface on which global powers move their pieces while African states watch from the sidelines. That image no longer holds. The African Union now sits at the G20 table, BRICS+ has expanded to include African states of real weight, and the…
Slow Money, Fast China: Why Europe Cannot Keep Up
The EU disbursed more climate finance than China ever disclosed, and still lost the argument at COP30, because speed, not money, decides who the Global South trusts next.
How Budapest and Bratislava are reviving the Visegrád Four
In June, the four Visegrád prime ministers declared the format revived. A week later the presidency passed to Bratislava – the capital against which Budapest’s central demand is aimed. What returned was a format, not an agreement.
Rearming Europe: Why Some Countries Are Pulling Ahead
Many European countries have a similar understanding of the need for readiness and rearmament, but for some there remains a clear gap between decisions and actions.
Buy Together, Build Together, Defend Alone? The Reality of EU Defence
Despite EU targets for joint defence procrument, only 18% of spennding is collaborative, and three-quarters goes outside the Union.
Unanimity Rule: A Tool for EU Equity or a Recipe for Policy Paralysis?
In light of recent events, the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia has shed light on cracks within EU foreign and security policy, posing decisional and strategic implementation challenges, each of which determines the EU’s long-term goals. One such challenge is the “EU unanimity rule.”
European Space Forum ’26: What role does Europe want to play in space?
The European Space Forum 2026 focused on Europe’s role in the global space sector. Key topics included funding, regulation, access to space and strategic autonomy.