Rethinking Europe’s Security – Key Elements of a New Russia Strategy
International Expert Network Russia
16 October 2025 (Thursday)
Reinhardtstraßenhöfe, (Reinhardtstraße 12–16, 10117 Berlin) & Online
Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has shaken the post-war order in Europe to its very foundations. Now in its fourth year, the full-scale war has exposed significant differences within the EU and NATO, in particular with regard to the outcome of the war and how to deal with Russia. The new Trump administration has at best a transactional relationship with Europe. We can no longer hide behind the US as a guarantor of European security. At the same time, Russia will remain a persistent threat to European peace for the foreseeable future – and even more so if the Kremlin achieves its aims in Ukraine.
The drastic change of the geopolitical environment poses enormous challenges for Europe. First of all, it is important to support Ukraine much more strongly, so that it can successfully defend itself. At the same time, Europe needs to significantly strengthen its defence capacities and security cooperation. In the face of Russia’s neo-imperialism it needs to develop a long-term European security strategy – one that is viable even without US military engagement. The political and military integration of Ukraine must be a core element of this. It should protect Europe against a bellicose Russia and foster political change in Russia instead of fearing it.
Against this background, our 2025 conference will
- Take stock of current developments on Russia’s war against Ukraine and the prospects to end it in a sustainable way;
- Discuss the cornerstones of a consistent European policy towards Russia in the context of a new European security policy;
- Examine the political, economic, and social developments within Russia, providing a nuanced understanding of internal dynamics.
Conference languages are English, German and Russian with simultaneous interpretation throughout.
Please note that Chatham House Rules apply to the conference (but not at the evening event).
This event is held in the framework of the Center for Liberal Modernity’s Expert Network Russia. For more information about the network, click here!
EXPERT CONFERENCE
09:30 — 10:00 Registration, Welcome coffee
10:00 — 10:15 Opening: Ralf Fücks, Center for Liberal Modernityff
10:15 — 11:30 Session One
Strategic Stocktaking: Russia’s War against Ukraine and the Prospects for Ending it: Where are we now and where to Go?
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- Nico Lange, Senior Fellow, Munich Security Conference
- Orysia Lutsevych, Deputy Director, Russia and Eurasia Programme, Head of the Ukraine Forum, Chatham House
- Kristi Raik, Director, International Centre for Defense and Security, Tallinn, Estonia
Commentary: Florian Hahn, Member of the Bundestag, Minister of State at the German Foreign Office
Moderation: Maria Sannikova-Franck, Center for Liberal Modernity
11:30 — 12:00 Coffee Break
12:00 — 13:30 Session Two
Inside Russia, Year Four of the Full-Scale War: Regime, Economy, Society
In cooperation with the New Eurasian Strategies Centre (NEST), London
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- Ella Paneyakh, Senior Research Fellow, Head of Sociology, New Eurasian Strategies Centre
- Janis Kluge, Deputy Head of the Eastern Europe and Eurasia Research Group, German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), Berlin
- Nikolai Petrov, Senior Research Fellow, Head of Analysis of Transformation Processes, New Eurasian Strategies Centre
- Sergey Aleksashenko, Senior Research Fellow, Head of Economics, New Eurasian Strategies Centre
Commentary:
- Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Co-Founder of the Russian Anti-War Committee (tbc)
- Michael Nowak, Head of Division for Russia and Belarus, Federal Foreign Office
Moderation: John Lough, Senior Research Fellow, Head of International Partnership, New Eurasian Strategies Centre
13:30 — 14:30 Lunch Break
14:30 — 16:00 Session Three
A New European Russia Policy & The Future of European Security
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- Fredrik Löjdquist, Director, Stockholm Centre for Eastern European Studies (SCEEUS), Utrikespolitiska institutet (UI), Sweden
- Maria Domańska, Senior Fellow, Russian Department, Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW), Warsaw, Poland
- Maria Snegovaya, Senior Fellow, Europe, Russia and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Adjunct Professor Georgetown University (online)
Commentary:
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- Natalia Pouzyreff, Member of the Assemblée Nationale, Secretary of the National Defence and Armed Forces Committee
- Niklas Wagner, Director for Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Central Asia, German Foreign Office
Moderation: Marieluise Beck, Center for Liberal Modernity
16:00 — 16:15 Closing Remarks and Takeaways
Ralf Fücks, Center for Liberal Modernity
PUBLIC DISCUSSION
19:00 Opening: Ralf Fücks, Center for Liberal Modernity
Rethinking European Security – Key Elements for a new Russia Strategy
- Natalia Pouzyreff, Member of the Assemblée Nationale, Secretary of the National Defence and Armed Forces Committee
- Alda Vanaga, Ambassador of the Republic of Latvia to the Federal Republic of Germany
- Marcin Zaborowski, Defence Fellow, GLOBSEC (online)
Commentary: Dirk Schübel, Head of the Russia Division, European External Action Service
Moderation: Marieluise Beck, Center for Liberal Modernity
21:00 Reception
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