In memory of the Russian human rights lawyer Yuri Schmidt, an annual conference has been held in Berlin since 2017. This year, LibMod founding director Ralf Fücks delivered the keynote speech, in which he warned that author­i­tarian regimes are on the rise and that anti-liberal senti­ments are growing even in democ­racies. He called on human rights defenders to unite across borders.

Hungary’s parlia­mentary elections of 12 April marked a clear end to the 16-year rule of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and his Fidesz party, a period that will be recorded as the first attempt to establish an illiberal, semi-author­i­tarian regime within the European Union. Daniel Hegedüs, Deputy Director at the Institute for European Politics (IEP), analyzes what Péter Magyar’s victory means for Europe.

Nachdem er mehr als ein Jahrzehnt lang keinen ernstzunehmenden Heraus­forderer hatte, sieht sich der ungarische Minis­ter­präsident Viktor Orbán nun in einem äußerst knappen Wahlkampf mit einem Gegner konfron­tiert, der ihn aus dem Amt verdrängen könnte, schreibt Zsuzsanna Szelényi in ihrer Analyse. Sie ist ehemalige ungarische Abgeordnete, Direk­torin des Demokratie­in­stituts der Central European University und Autorin des Buches „Tainted Democracy: Viktor Orbán and the Subversion of Hungary“.

The EU candidate country is facing one of its deepest political crises in recent years. For more than a year, people have been taking to the streets in peaceful protest. At the same time, the Russia-leaning ruling party, Georgian Dream, has been hardening its course: repression against civil society, independent media, and the opposition is visibly intensifying.

At the Munich Security Conference, John Lough spoke with Ralf Fücks about the evolving triangle between China, Russia, and Europe. The conver­sation explores the strategic logic behind the Beijing–Moscow partnership, Europe’s struggle to assert its agency, and Germany’s search for a new economic and security strategy. Can Europe turn a moment of geopo­litical pressure into one of strategic renewal? 

Without visible short-term progress in imple­menting carbon removal capac­ities, Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) risks political failure. Ongoing climate backsliding – the delib­erate weakening and rollback of climate policy – threatens to erode the political foundation for CDR, argues CDR expert Felix Schenuit from the German Institute for Inter­na­tional and Security Affairs (SWP) in his policy paper.

LibMod is delighted to once again be partic­i­pating as a partner in the fourth edition of “Café Kyiv,” organized by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, in 2026. We cordially invite you to four panel discus­sions on February 23, 2026. In addition, LibMod’s Ukraine Program Director, Simon Schlegel, will take part in a further panel discussion on the Book Stage. Café Kyiv combines politics, science, culture, innovation, and networking. The focus will be on the topics of freedom, security, and reconstruction.

Europe remains dependent on US military power to effec­tively deter Russia. But Washington is no longer a reliable partner committed to the defence of its European allies. Former German diplomat Johannes Regen­brecht looks at the ongoing negoti­a­tions and makes recom­men­da­tions how Europe’s untapped economic and military potential can be put into action.

EU accession negoti­a­tions with Ukraine are hitting struc­tural and political limits in times of war—both in Kyiv and in Brussels. Techno­cratic proce­dures and exclu­sively positive EU rhetoric undermine the necessary incen­tives for reform, analyzes Liubov Akulenko and proposes a Germany-led “coalition of the willing” to delib­er­ately advance blocked reforms through confi­dential dialogue.

Russia continues to pose a huge security challenge for Europe. Every year, the Center for Liberal Modernity invites leading experts to discuss the options for policy­makers at its “Russia and the West” conference. Our programme director Maria Sannikova’s analysis sums up the assess­ments of our last conference.

Almost four years after the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, historian Jan Claas Behrends (ZZF/​European University Viadrina) takes a histor­i­cally informed look back—and warns against illusions about quick negotiated solutions. He shows how imperial tradi­tions, violent politics, and the structure of Putin’s regime are shaping the war and why conces­sions to Moscow encourage escalation.

“Warum gelingt es ökolo­gischer Modernisierung nicht, als erstrebenswertes Projekt wahrgenommen zu werden?” fragt Soziologe Philipp Staab in seinem Buch Systemkrise. Und Lukas Daubner und Alexander Schwitteck fragen in ihrer Rezension für das Magazin FUTURZWEI, ob es Staab gelingt, eine gute Antwort darauf zu finden.

Ralf Fücks war mit einer LibMod-Reiseg­ruppe in der Ukraine. Der folgende Beitrag schildert seine Eindrücke und formuliert politische Schlussfol­gerungen. Der Text erschien zunächst in der Welt am Sonntag.

A year of dialogue: Israelis, Pales­tinians, and regional actors are working together in the Middle East Network to discuss ways out of the war in Gaza, the release of hostages, and a peaceful future. On September 15 and 16, the network success­fully concluded its fifth round of dialogue. Organized by the Center for Liberal Modernity, the exchange builds trust, generates new ideas, and, for the first time, brings together voices from politics, civil society, and academia.

The parlia­mentary elections on September 28 will be historic in Moldova, even if the outcome is still uncertain. Various scenarios are possible: Will Moldova succeed in pushing ahead with EU accession as protection against a perceived threat from Russia? Much depends on how the population reacts to frustration and fears, as Denis Cenusa analyzes for us.

Over the course of its 75-year history, NATO has weathered many storms. At least two previous crises were existential – and in both cases, the US played a key role. The new crisis in the transat­lantic alliance, triggered by President Trump, runs deeper. Europe needs a bold and strong strategy to brave the storm. Gerlinde Niehus, former Deputy Director for Defense and Security Cooper­ation at NATO, analyzes the current situation for us.

“In Europe, people are actually being imprisoned for their opinions,” is the title of Yascha Mounk’s essay. Jeanette Hofmann, political researcher at Berlin’s Freie Univer­sität is specialized in digital­ization and democracy. She disagrees and instead empha­sizes the urgency of finding answers to the dilemma democracy finds itself in: Defending itself without compro­mising its principles. 

In his book “Appeasing Hitler”, British historian Tim Bouverie examines the road to World War II, focusing primarily on the British and, to some extent, French reactions to Nazi Germany. In an interview with our author Till Schmidt, Bouverie reveals the parallels he sees between history and how Putin is being dealt with today.

Das EU-Beitrittsland Moldau steht weiterhin vor großen sicher­heit­spoli­tischen und wirtschaftlichen Heraus­forderungen. Unsere Expertin, Natalia Stercul, APE, analysiert die Hindernisse auf den europäischen Weg Moldaus, sowie die politische Lage nach dem Refer­endum und den Präsi­dentschaftswahlen. Ferner warnt sie vor der zunehmend steigenden Einflussnahme Russlands bei den kommenden Parla­mentswahlen in 2025, denn das Ergebnis der Parla­mentswahlen würde die EU-Integration des Landes maßge­blich mitbestimmen.

Since 28 November, hundreds of thousands of people in Georgia have been demon­strating every day for democracy and closer ties with Europe – and have been beaten and harassed with massive violence in response. Georgia is at a historic turning point: Will it become Russia’s backyard or a member of free Europe?

Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu and his coalition partners are celebrating Donald Trump’s election victory. But the future US president could still cause headaches for the government in Jerusalem, as our columnist Richard C. Schneider writes.

“What peace? Ukraine and Us” — two questions that could not be more funda­mental were the focus of our inter­na­tional conference, the third since the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022: What does the war in Ukraine mean for the West, and what goals must a future peace order fulfill?

Death can be merciless. Our friend and colleague Iryna Solonenko was torn from life. She died after a short, severe illness, against which all the art of medicine could do nothing. We cannot believe it.

Despite the ongoing war Ukraine is deter­mined to rebuild its aviation industry and enable its citizens to travel by air again. On 8 May, the Centre for Liberal Modernity discussed the future of the Ukrainian aviation industry with European and Ukrainian experts. The most urgent needs are: trainings for staff, funds (loans or direct aid) as well as air defence systems and munition. Lukas Daubner summarised the results of the discussion here.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz is putting Germans and all Europeans in danger. His current policy seriously risks defeat in Ukraine, which would embolden Moscow and raise the likelihood of a wider war with Russia in which the missiles could be falling on Cologne rather than Kyiv – An Open Letter to Germany’s Leaders from Inter­na­tional and German Experts.

Wer den Krieg gegen die Hamas nur als eine Art Endkampf zwischen Israel und den Islamisten in Gaza ansieht, verkennt die neuen geopoli­tischen Realitäten. Der Westen sollte auf eine neue Achse von Mächten vorbereitet sein. Eine Analyse von Richard C. Schneider. 

In December 2024, the EU made a geopo­litical decision and granted Georgia EU candidate status. In his policy brief, Sergi Kapanadze analyses what leverage the EU has to promote EU integration in Georgia and what signif­i­cance the upcoming parlia­mentary elections have in this regard.

Ukraine’s new law “On Amending Certain Laws of Ukraine with Regard to the Recon­struction and Green Trans­for­mation of the Energy System of Ukraine” opens up many oppor­tu­nities for the expansion of decen­tralised energy gener­ation and contributes to greater energy security. In his policy paper, Ukrainian energy law expert Oleksandr Vizir describes what this means for munic­i­pal­ities and what regulatory changes are needed to realise this potential.

How have relations between Ukraine and the EU developed one and a half years after Ukraine was granted the EU candidate country status? What are the prospects for 2024? A policy paper by Miriam Kosmehl, Iryna Solonenko, Susan Stewart, Liubov Akulenko, Piotr Buras and Snizhana Diachenko.

In view of the threat of aggression from violent powers and attacks on inter­na­tional law, to what extent should the war against Ukraine be seen as a “turning point” for Europe? And what conclu­sions must European policy­makers draw? After a contri­bution from Timothy Garton Ash, the panel of Olha Stefan­ishyna, Robin Wagener, Karolina Wigura and Andrius Kubilius explored these questions.

The second panel was made up of four members of the Bundestag, Thomas Hacker, Anton Hofreiter, Tilmann Kuban, and Christian Petry, and the Ukrainian Ambas­sador Oleksii Makeiev. They discussed the EU accession of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova. In December 2023, the EU Member States will decide what steps these three countries must take in order to join the EU.

“Are we doing enough for Ukraine to win?” was the question addressed by the panel with Justyna Gotkowska, Christian Mölling, Maryna Vorotniuk, Alex Vidman and Nico Lange. The partic­i­pants agreed that the West’s support is not enough and discussed what needs to be done specif­i­cally to support Ukraine.

How can those respon­sible for war crimes and crimes under inter­na­tional law be held accountable? Christoph Heusgen, Tania Freiin von Uslar-Gleichen, Anton Korynevych and Frank Hoffmeister discussed questions of inter­na­tional criminal law.

Olaksandra Azarkhina, Maria Repko, Torsten Wöllert, Ulrike Hopp-Nishanka, Artem Nekrasov and Rebecca Harms discussed how Ukrainian society is preparing for the next winter, what support Ukraine needs and whether a green trans­for­mation is possible despite the war.

On the panel, Georg Milbradt, Olga Skrypnyk, Jean P. Froehly, Tetyana Gavrysh and Oksana Myronko discussed the challenges and oppor­tu­nities that Ukraine is facing now and will face after the war.

What impact is the Russian war of annihi­lation having on neigh­bouring countries? And what expec­ta­tions does civil society in Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia have of the EU? Leonid Litra, Ivane Chkhik­vadze, Natalia Stercul and Dirk Schübel discussed these issues.

What conclu­sions can be drawn with regard to European security policy and the security order? Pavlo Klimkin, Agnieszka Brugger, Ulrich Speck and Roderich Kiesewetter agreed that the European security order is in a deep crisis.

Arkady Mil-Man was Israeli ambas­sador to Russia and now heads the Russia program at think tank Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) in Tel Aviv. In an interview with Till Schmidt, Mil-Man explains the role Russia played in Hamas’s attack on Israel and the relationship between the Russian and Iranian regimes.

Many Western observers seem to assume that the Polish opposi­tion’s victory in the parlia­mentary elections will mean a return to the pre-populist era before the PiS came to power. In their minds, Donald Tusk will quickly reverse eight years of right-wing policies, realign Warsaw with its Western partners, and bring Poland back into the happy fold of the European family.Five reasons why these expec­ta­tions are overblown. 

“Poland was Ukraine’s staunchest ally. Why is it now turning into a bitter rival? War fatigue has set in – and nation­alist populists are stoking cross-border enmity in a brutal campaign for re-election.” An Op-Ed for The Guardian from Karolina Wigura und Jaroslaw Kuisz.

Our major inter­na­tional conference “Ukraine and Us” in the Repre­sen­tation of the State of Hesse in Berlin generated a great deal of interest. More than 30 invited experts discussed the question “What does Russian aggression mean for Europe” in 7 panels in front of an audience of more than 160 people.

Israel and Iran: Iranian-Israeli author Meir Javendafar in an interview with Till Schmidt about the mutual perception of the two countries, the current situation of protests and Russia’s influence on the nuclear agreement.

In an Op-Ed for spiegel.de, Ralf Fücks and Marieluise Beck present 10 propo­si­tions about what is at stake in Russia’s war against Ukraine and what needs to be done.

After granting Moldova EU candidate status, the EU now expects serious reforms — especially in the areas of de-oligarchization and anti-corruption. In a policy brief, Moldovan expert Denis Cenusa evaluates Moldova’s progress in meeting these requirements.

Blowing up of the Kachowka Dam repre­sents a crime against humanity. The people in the flooded areas are literally faced with nothing — and yet want to keep fighting. Marieluise Beck was in Kherson with Ukrainian aid organizations.

Der russische Kernen­ergiemo­nop­olist Rosatom scheint von Sanktionen verschont zu bleiben – trotz seiner Rolle bei der Besetzung des Kernkraftwerks Sapor­ischschja und der faktischen Erpressung Europas. Wie die Lage in Sapor­ischschja und anderen AKWs in der Ukraine ist, welche Sanktionen gegen Rosatom verhängt werden sollten und wie sich der Westen von der russischen Atomin­dustrie unabhängig machen kann – darüber disku­tierten bei LibMod am 27. April Anton Hofreiter, Victoria Voitsitska und Rebecca Harms. 

Welcome to the regis­tration page for our conference Russia & the West „Lessons Learned? Western Policy versus Russia“.

During an online discussion, Polish expert Maria Domanska and Russian opposition leader Vladimir Milov presented their policy papers about future scenarios for Russia. Here is what they had to say.

What future for Russia should we strive for? Our authors Vladimir Milov and Maria Domanska strongly argue that the West must not fear a collapse of the regime. Positive change in...

PUBLIC CALL Demon­stration and rally on the anniversary of the Russian invasion

Our new project “Expert Network Russia” kicked on October 31 with an inaugural meeting in Vilnius. Network members will gather in the Lithuanian Seimas to discuss how the West should deal with an increas­ingly total­i­tarian and neo-imperial Russia.

In our discussion series, we take a look at some key countries: What is going on in France, the USA, Poland and Hungary, in Israel and the European Union? How can the devel­op­ments in these countries be explained? What is trans­ferable to Germany, what is different here and why? And what paths can be found out of the multiple crises?

Since the protests in August 2020, the illegit­imate leadership of the Republic of Belarus sees itself at war against the “collective West”, but it is waging the battle against its...

The war in Ukraine will throw Russia into an economic crisis, which it will try to combat through fossil fuels reversing the started green transition

We are living in times of rapid change: climate change, digital­ization, the COVID-19 pandemic, the looming systemic compe­tition with China, global migration, and the realignment of global­ization are changing our...

We must stop funding Putin’s war with our energy imports

Finally: Here are the Insights and Highlights of our Inter­na­tional Conference “Rethinking Liber­alism, Renewing Democracy”!

When? June 23rd, 10am — 5.30pm (CEST) Where? Digital via Zoom and analogous in Berlin if possible (regis­tration required) The world is changing rapidly. Digital­ization, the conversion towards a climate neutral economy, the corona...

Lukas Daubner argues that the liberal forces of all stripes should once again take a positive view of the future.

The Roadmap „Towards Climate-Neutral Aviation“ by Ralf Fücks (Zentrum Libe­rale Moderne), Mat­thias von Randow (Chief Exe­cu­tive of the BDL) and Volker Thum (Chief Exe­cu­tive of the BDLI) sum­ma­ri­zes the results...

Liberal democracy has come under pressure from various quarters: from the outside by author­i­tarian regimes, from within by populist movements and parties. In this dossier, we want to combine ideas of a new liberalism.

Wednesday October 14. 7 pm‑8.30 pm – via Zoom

Current infor­mation on confer­ences, expert talks, panel discus­sions, readings and lectures.

Lessons learned from Covid-19: Ralf Fuecks discusses with Anthony Giddens

Panel and online dis­cus­sion with Marie­luise Beck, Vla­di­mir Kara-Murza und Michael McFaul on 9 Sep­tem­ber 2020, 7 pm CET

As part of our project “Eastern Part­ner­ship 2.0” we publish a series of arti­cles about the three EU asso­ci­a­tion states (Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova). Three authors from the region (Paata Gaprindashvili, Mariam...

As part of our project “Eastern Part­ner­ship 2.0” we publish a series of arti­cles about the three EU asso­ci­a­tion states (Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova). Three authors from the region (Paata Gaprindashvili, Mariam...

As part of our project “Eastern Part­ner­ship 2.0” we publish a series of arti­cles about the three EU asso­ci­a­tion states (Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova). Three authors from the region (Paata Gaprindashvili, Mariam...

Ukraine is under­going profound trans­for­mation. One click will take you to the website www.ukraineverstehen.de, where you will find infor­mation, analyses and reports on the latest devel­op­ments in the country. With a dedicated...

The Russian Government is trying to get access to the internet – perhaps the most important refuge for freedom of speech. Cyber­space is increas­ingly restricted through state censorship: state pressure...

This aim of LibMod’s “Liberal Democracy and Its Adver­saries” project is to examine the “long lines” of antiliberal thought and discuss its relevance for the debate of today. The project’s...

An interview with Dr. Ulana Suprun, former acting minister of Health of Ukraine (2016–2019) on the government’s response to COVID-19, including an erratic commu­ni­cation strategy, a lack of trans­parency and corruption...

Der belarusian President leaves it to orthodox priests und the KGB to fight the epidemic. The people are getting more and more upset because the government can no longer hide...

Eco-innova­­tions, economic oppor­tu­nities and social partic­i­pation in times of climate change are the subjects of this book, edited by Ralf Fücks and Thomas Köhler, in which widely acclaimed authors discuss...

For decades, Sinol­o­gists who were largely blind to China’s expansive power politics have dominated Germany’s political advice circles, culti­vating an image of China that our author calls “Late Orien­talism”. Shaped...

With the annex­ation of Crimea and the undeclared war in Eastern Ukraine, the Russian leadership gravely violates the principles of the European peace order. In response, the Parlia­mentary Assembly of...

The elections on April 8, 2018 gave Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party another two-thirds majority in parliament. Attila Juhasz explains why this does not imply a broad support for the concept of ‘illib­erale democracy’. The hungarian...

The anti-liberal revolt ist not limited to the US and Europe. Tendencies towards an ‘illiberal democracy’ and ethnic nation­alism can be observed in Israel as well. The Israeli author Dahlia...

A Russian agent who switched sides is attacked with a military-grade nerve agent in a provincial English town. Prime Minister May holds Moscow respon­sible for the attack. Are we back in the...

What the decision for another „Grand Coalition” led by Chancellor Merkel implies for Germany, EU and the Transat­lantic Alliance.

During the election campaign, appealing to people’s anger and demonizing the opponents is the most common strategy. Political programs hardly matter. The political landscape is highly fragmented. In election polls,...

Recapit­u­lation of a faltering peace process: the second Minsk Agreement of February 2015, intended to put an end to the war in eastern Ukraine and to set a political process in motion,...

The five AfD Members of the Bundestag from Saxony are among the most radical in the party’s (Alter­native for Germany) parlia­mentary group. At a party event near Pirna, the party base...

The rapid devel­opment of wind and solar energy alone will not put an end to climate change. Green­house gas emissions continue to rise around the world. Even Germany has not...

What’s the Center for Liberal Modernity is about.