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? 

Russia could hardly carry out its war against Ukraine without China’s techno­logical and economic support. We discussed the impli­ca­tions for Western policy­makers at a joint event with the New Eurasian Strategies Centre (NEST) held at the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. Konstantin Eggert reports.

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.

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.

Russia is waging its full-scale war against Ukraine for four years already, but Germany and Europe are still strug­gling to find the right answers to the threat posed by Moscow. At this year’s panel discussion ‘Russia and the West’, partic­i­pants called for deter­rence and containment – but also for keeping contact with those in Russia who will be needed after the end of the regime.

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.

In the run-up to the Alaska summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, Thomas Enders (President of the Council on Foreign Relations), Marieluise Beck and Ralf Fücks (Center for Liberal Modernity) have issued an appeal to the German government, naming five essen­tials that Europe must now stand for.

In an appeal to the German government and its European partners, numerous public figures from Germany and Europe are calling for a joint effort by European democ­racies to enable Ukraine to success­fully defend itself against Russia’s war of aggression. Any success for Russia’s politics of violence would be a blow to European security. The European democ­ratic project would also be struck at its core.

Despite Chancellor Scholz’ Zeiten­wende, Germany’s actions since the Russian invasion of Ukraine have been dominated by hesitancy. The government often acts only when the situation on the battle­field is dramatic – or waits for decisions from Washington. Berlin seemingly hopes for an eventual ceasefire. But this only raises the threat of an “eternal provi­sional arrangement”, similar to the Cold War-era division of Germany, writes Nico Lange.

While Russia is preparing for a long war, the West remains hesitant and divided. At this year’s conference Russia and the West, partic­i­pants urgently called for a new European policy versus Moscow....

Ukraine and some of her allies have been campaigning to use the frozen 200 billion dollars of Russian Central Bank money held at Euroclear in Belgium for aid to Kyiv,...

Despite the war of annihi­lation against Ukraine, many Western companies are holding out in Russia. Some do not feel affected because their products (food and medicines) are not covered by...

In April 2014, Russia began a covert armed invasion of the Ukrainian Donets Basin. However, many politi­cians, journalists and even some academics still follow the Russian propa­ganda narrative of an alleged “civil war” in eastern Ukraine at the time. An analysis by Julia Kazdobina, Jakob Hedenskog and Andreas Umland.

As Russia‘s full-scale invasion of Ukraine enters its third year, the question about the efficacy of sanctions is more pressing than ever: Have they been effective and what more can be done? Maria Shagina argues that it is best to focus on the Russian energy sector.

Former Lithuanian Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius has been a member of the European Parliament since 2019. As the parliament’s rapporteur on relations with Russia, he is a point man for promoting and...

France’s position towards Russia has been ambivalent for decades, based in part on myths, projec­tions and unreal­istic ambitions. Emmanuel Macron’s policies vis-à-vis Moscow seem to embody this. At the beginning...

Since the start of the Russian war in Ukraine, Russian propa­ganda in the West and in Germany has taken on a different dimension. It is aimed at under­mining Western democracy, stirring up fear and weakening support for Ukraine. An article by Khatia Kikalishvili for GEOpolitics.

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.

For many years, Poland and Germany pursued different policies regarding Russia and Ukraine. While Warsaw advocated harsher sanctions against Moscow and more support for Kyiv, Berlin was tradi­tionally more reluctant. Despite Zeiten­wende, differ­ences linger. Can the two countries synchronize their approach?

With its overar­ching theme “How fragile is the Putin system?” the recent meeting of LibMod’s Expert Network Russia at the Eastern Studies Centre in Warsaw sent a clear message: A fragile Russia...

Vladimir Putin’s brutal attack on Ukraine has changed Germany’s perspective of Russia by highlighting the country’s imperi­alism and Ukraine’s central role as the empire’s crown jewel.

A conver­sation between Kerstin Müller, former Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office, and Iran specialist Kasra Aarabi about 7 October, Iran as a sponsor of terrorist organi­za­tions in the Middle East, cooper­ation with Russia and the special role of the Iranian Revolu­tionary Guards. The EU should classify them as a terrorist organization.

Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and its attempt to destroy Europe’s post-Cold War security order have triggered a series of crises that constitute the conti­nent’s most severe upheavals in more...

Ukraine is fighting for its national survival and for its future as part of a united Europe, the transat­lantic alliance and the Free World. Europe and the United States must help...

Russia is unlikely to disin­te­grate soon, but its current leadership can no longer guarantee stability. The war against Ukraine and the Wagner mutiny have shown that Putin’s regime is both...

In the light of Vladimir Putin’s military failures in Ukraine and discus­sions about Russia’s possible future after Putin, there has been much discussion recently about Russia “disin­te­grating” or “falling apart”...

The failed Wagner rebellion has drasti­cally revealed the weakness of the Putin regime. Supporting Ukraine is now the West’s most effective lever to promote political change in Russia, argue Maria...

Another Russia is possible: On 5/​6 June, repre­sen­ta­tives of the Russian opposition and the EU discussed the perspec­tives of a post-imperial and democ­ratic Russia. LibMod Director Ralf Fücks summa­rizes the four key takeaways.

More than 120 experts from a dozen countries attended the fifth edition of our conference “Russia and the West” on 20 April in Berlin. The partic­i­pants, including prominent Russian opposition figures in exile, discussed future policy towards Moscow and post-Putin scenarios.

The West must consis­tently punish sanction viola­tions, lower the price ceiling for Russian oil and make itself independent of the Russian nuclear industry — Sergiy Petukhov on the effect and future of sanctions against 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...

Russia Policies and Zeiten­wende: The Change We Need

The war in Ukraine is putting the future of Russia more and more in our hands. A decisive victory of Ukraine makes an end to the Putin regime more likely. The West needs to prepare for this moment because it may offer a short oppor­tunity to encourage the country to embark on a more democ­ratic and law-abinding path, writes Maria Domanska.

Putin has turned Russia into a dicta­torship, but the country is by no means destined to be a dark imperi­al­istic power. The Free World needs to support Russia’s next attempt for democ­ratic change instead of snubbing it, writes Vladimir Milov.

Russia’s shocking invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has changed the geopo­litical realities in Europe, spelling the end to Russia’s position as Europe’s most important energy supplier. As a result, today Russia has the dubious distinction of being the most sanctioned nation in the world’s history.

During an Inspiring Round­table last week, we discussed the West’s future Russia policy on the basis of four key countries’ approach — Poland, France, Germany and the US. Some short takeaways:

French policy towards Russia was based on self-serving delusions that led to dangerous failures and exacer­bated Putin’s paranoia. The West needs to overhaul its policies and build a strong security system in Europe and beyond.

What is the economic and ecological future of Russia and what are the climate policy conse­quences of the Russian invasion of Ukraine? We invite you to a public discussion on 15 December 2022 with German and Russian economic, energy and climate experts.

Appeal by more than 70 writers, histo­rians, security experts and scholars on Eastern Europe

Russia’s war against Ukraine has upended not just relations with the West but is testing the inter­na­tional system as a whole. The urgent need for new thinking has prompted the Center of Liberal Modernity to set up its Expert Network Russia, which met in Vilnius under the headline “Rethinking Russia” for the first time on 31 October.

“Rethinking Russia”: On 31 October, we opened our new project “Expert Network Russia” with a conference in Vilnius. Here is a selection of photographs from the event.

The Center for Liberal Moder­nity’s Expert Network Russia kicked off last week with a one-day meeting in Vilnius. In his opening remarks, Ralf Fücks reminded everyone why we need to Rethink Russia.

Do Russian war crimes constitute genocide? What oblig­a­tions does this impose on the inter­na­tional community? Experts from politics, academia and civil society discussed these questions at the inter­na­tional conference “Inter­na­tional Law against Genocide”.

Poland’s complex relationship with Russia is deeply inter­twined with Germany and Ukraine, Janusz Reiter writes.

Germany’s decades-long policy of political partnership with Russia is in tatters — instead of a friendly democ­ratic country it got an aggressive dicta­torship. To avoid future failures, we need strength and resilience, writes Ulrich Speck.

It is time to think about a Russia after Putin. If defeated in Ukraine, condi­tions in the country will also change. Whether for the better or the worse is an open question. Without a departure from the imperial delusion, Russia will remain in the eternal vicious circle of war politics and author­i­tarian rule.

The US tried to integrate Russia with the liberal inter­na­tional order, but Putin destroyed the basis for cooper­ation by disman­teling democracy and seeking domination of his neighbors, writes Dan Fried.

Half a year after the start of the large-scale Russian invasion, the West should continue to support Ukraine with further arms deliveries.

Under Orbán’s pressure, the EU-Commission has removed the Russian Patriarch Kirill from the sanctions list – a fatal under­es­ti­mation of the powerful role of the Russian-Orthodox Church in the war against Ukraine.

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

Marieluise Beck is asked if she changed her mind about German foreign policy after recent arms deliv­eries. She also speaks about mistakes made by previous govern­ments and former Chancellor Schröders...

The Tehran-Moscow axis seems threat­ening, but it was born out of necessity and does not change much for Israel and the Middle East. However, the Russia-Israel relationship has already deteriorated...

In Sri Lanka, demon­strators have taken over the presi­dential palace, partly because the prices of wheat and petrol have risen immea­surably as a result of the war in Ukraine. Russia is...

In Israel, Chinese invest­ments are increas­ingly viewed criti­cally, partly because of China’s relations with Iran. On the other hand, China offers enormous economic oppor­tu­nities, according to Galia Lavi of the...

Chancellor Scholz supports Ukraine only so much that it can defend itself with diffi­culty, but cannot launch a counter­attack. But if Putin is not defeated in Ukraine, there will be no...

Oil and gas revenues continue to fill the Russian war chest. In order to damage the Russian economy severely, a drop in the supply of products for the IT sector would...

On 31 May, we discussed the future of the Russian economy after the war in Ukraine with Dr Vladislav Inozemtsev, Angelina Davydova, Dr Janis Kluge and Michael Harms.

Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine is a turning point for Europe and the whole world. What are its policy impli­ca­tions? Are the sanctions imposed so far suffi­cient to contain the...

So far, the people of Ukraine have borne the burden of the war all alone. For the German precept of “never again”, this is a reality shock, comments Marieluise Beck.

More than 80 scholars, politi­cians, business­people and civil society repre­sen­ta­tives have signed an appeal to the German government to stop oil and gas imports from Russia. Remarkably, the coalition of...

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is reaching a perilous stage. The West needs to step up efforts to make Putin’s war unwinnable. Conces­sions will only prolong his regime and increase Moscow’s appetite...

Military expert Gustav C. Gressel on the war in Ukraine: The outcome will depend in part on whether the West supplies Ukraine with the weapons it needs. It is also...

Based on six criteria of the United Nations Convention against Genocide, Russia is committing genocide in Mariupol, says Inter­na­tional law expert Otto Luchterhandt.

By waging a war against Ukraine, Putin has badly miscal­cu­lated. The Russian leader has become victim of his own propa­gan­distic visions and failed to antic­ipate the Western respo­nse, writes Vladislav Inozemtsev.

How should we deal with a repressive and confronta­tional Russia? Join our annual discussion “Russia and the West” on 24 March, which will be held jointly with the Munich Security Conference...

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

Political scientist Oleksandra Keudel warns of European and global conse­quences in the case of Russian attacks on Ukrainian nuclear power plants.

Two prominent members of the Ukrainian parliament appeal to their colleagues in the German Bundestag to stand by Ukraine in the face of Russian threats of war.

After failing to agree on exclusive spheres of influence in Europe with the Trump admin­is­tration, the Kremlin is challenging Washing­ton’s ability to keep unity among Euro-Atlantic allies and protect European...

As 2021 draws to a close, we look back on this year’s important events. Among them is the Crimea Platform, which was launched in August at Ukraine’s initiative to shore up...

When Angela Merkel took office as German Chancellor in 2005, she was better prepared for the challenges on the EU’s eastern border than any other West European head of government....

A year ago protests began against electoral fraud in Belarus. Dictator Lukashenko responded with a wave of harsh state violence, which led to the country being further isolated and sanctioned internationally....

A commentary by Ralf Fücks on Putin’s latest historical policy manifesto, published by the Kremlin.

An answer to Wladimir Putin’s fine tuned op-ed in the German weekly Die Zeit by Ralf Fücks, Center for Liberal Modernity.

In late March 2021 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky revoked a decree made by runaway president Viktor Yanukovych appointing Oleksandr Tupytsky and Oleksandr Kasminin to the Consti­tu­tional Court. This raised eyebrows in...

Since January 2021 there has been growing military escalation in conflict-affected areas of Donbas. Russia has built up military equipment deployment along the Russian-Ukrainian border, reposi­tioned its army and strengthened...

Only temporarily, says Michael Zürn, Director at the Berlin Social Science Center. 

In Germany, a majority favour closer ties with Russia despite new autho­ri­anism under Putin, military aggression against Ukraine and bombing in Syria. Where does the desire for a special relationship with Russia...

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 asso­ci­a­ted states. The authors from the region (Mikheil Benidze, Volodymyr Yermolenko, Victor Gotisan)...

As part of our project “Eastern Part­ner­ship 2.0” we publish a series of arti­cles about the three EU asso­ci­a­tion states. The authors from the region (Mikheil Benidze, Volodymyr Yermolenko, Victor Gotisan)...

As part of our project “Eastern Part­ner­ship 2.0” we publish a series of arti­cles about the three EU asso­ci­a­tion states. The authors from the region (Mikheil Benidze, Volodymyr Yermolenko, Victor Gotisan)...

Ahead to the Past – The World in the Mind of Putin Эту статью можно читать и на русском

Many EU capitals regard Belarus as an extension of Russia and take little interest in it. EU leaders are also uncom­fortable dealing with its long-time autocratic leader, Alexander Lukashenka. Such...

An Open Letter to the Parlia­mentary Assembly of the Council of Europe: Please don’t deprive yourself of the right to impose sanctions on member states that are violating the statutes...

On this date 74 years ago, the Red Army liberated the Auschwitz-Birkenau exter­mi­nation camp. The 27th of January became the Day of Remem­brance for the Victims of National Socialism. Much has...

On January 17 the Centre for Liberal Modernity held its second inter­na­tional Russia conference. This year’s topic was if Germany’s policy of detente of the 1970s can offer any guidance...

The book discussed below (Why we need peace and freedom with Russia) explicitly presents itself as an appeal for a change in Germany’s policy towards Russia. It brings together authors from...

What will be at stake when Moscow and Beijing begin to share their lessons?

Are Russia’s inter­ven­tions in Georgia, Ukraine and Syria merely a reaction against the expansion of NATO? Facts and arguments concerning a propa­ganda myth.

On March 13 the Center Liberal Modernity held its first inter­na­tional conference on Russia. The event’s main intention was gaining a deeper under­standing of the Putin System and to find out...

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.

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,...