LIIA Newsletter, April – July 2016: new publications, recent and upcoming events, and more
Even during the vacation season, the LIIA continues to provide cutting-edge analysis. This newsletter highlights our most important accomplishments during April to July: the recent and upcoming conferences and publications, new articles and other activities of our researchers.
Highlights: the Latvian Institute of International Affairs with kind support of our long-time partner Friedrich Ebert Stiftung has acquired a modernized webpage, still located at the very same address – http://liia.lv. Among many other valuable features, the updated version of the website provides for easier access from all devices and more of our popular photo galleries.
Expertise for the UK: the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland published a contribution of the Latvian Institute of International Affairs on UK-Russia relations. Full text is available here.
- UPCOMING EVENTS (SAVE THE DATE)
August 25, 15:00-17:00, Astor Riga Hotel (Zigfrīda Annas Meierovica bulvāris 10) – LIIA will open a new book on the EU’s economic presence and Europeanisation in the Eastern Partnership countries and hold an experts’ panel discussion. The book will provide theoretical and practical insights on the Europeanisation transformations taking place in the Eastern Partnership countries and how the economic ties between the EU and the partners affects these transformations. The book will consist of a collection of articles written by a group of international and local scholars and the subject matters considered will include the adaptability and challenges of EU’s external governance in a tense geopolitical environment, the effectiveness of the Association Agreements and Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Areas, analysis of specific country situations and a comparison of the partners’ potential for a consistent Europeanisation.
September 14, 11:00, Hotel Bergs (Elizabetes iela 83/85) – presentation of the Riga Dialogues Afterthoughts, a collection of articles published as a result of the “Riga Dialogue 2016: Building Bridges for Euro – Atlantic Security”. It will include contributions on security challenges faced by the Euroatlantic community and possible ways forward.
For more information on these and other events, please follow www.liia.lv, our Twitter & Facebook.
- RECENT PUBLICATIONS
The publication, which has been created in cooperation with the Ministry of Defence of Latvia, in three chapters analyses the development of NATO-Russia relations from the nineties to nowadays. Special focus is on NATO-Russia Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security, which is very significant for the positioning of the armed forces of NATO allies in the territory of Latvia. Taking into account that Russia in the nearest future will remain militarily the strongest country that neighbours the territory of the North Atlantic Alliance, it is vital to understand the importance of right dialogue and approach to mutual relations. Even though there have been calls to cancel the Founding Act, the research concludes that it is both undesirable and unlikely. The Act will continue its existence, despite its outdated nature and Russia’s reluctance to comply with its guidelines. From the perspective of Latvia, it is vital that the document does not hinder the deployment of battalion sized combat groups in its territory. The authors of the publication predict gradual restoration of the dialogue between NATO and Russia, basing their arguments on the cyclic nature of the development of relations and as well the contemporary dynamics of Russia-NATO relations. The publication also tries to predict the potential questions in the development of NATO-Russia relations in the future – stopping the new arms race, reducing the probability of the incidents of escalation, cooperation in the promotion of stability in the Post-Soviet space and the fight against terrorism.
This is a book about building bridges and strengthening the partnership between Latvia and the United States. The publication Latvia and the United States: Revisiting the Strategic Partnership in a Transforming Environment continues the tradition of a thorough and regular re-assessment of bilateral engagement between the two nations. The publication starts with an analysis of relations in a wider historical and regional context and further deals with security and defence matters and cooperation; economic cooperation; as well as trajectories of people-to-people diplomacy and the important role of Latvian diaspora in the United States. A team of prominent Latvian and US experts contribute their assessment of the last several years in Latvian-US relations and present recommendations for the future.
This book is published by the Latvian Institute of International Affairs in cooperation with SJSC Latvian Railway, the Embassy of the Republic of Latvia to the United States of America and SIA Pata AB, the European Crabbing Association, and the American Latvian Association.
- RECENT ANALYSIS AND OPINIONS ON THE LIIA WEBPAGE
Researcher Māris Andžāns has been interviewed by the Institute of European Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences on A Baltic view of the China-EU relations and 16+1 (link).
Associate fellow Viljar Veebel has provided his analysis on the Brexit process (link), by highlighting the reasons of the failure of the “Remain” campaign and giving future predictions.
LIIA intern Gadim Valiyev focused on the politics of the South Caucasus, by shedding light on the region’s perspective on the Iranian nuclear deal (link).
- RECENT EVENTS (+ PHOTOS & VIDEOS)
July 2, Foreign Policy Debate in the Conversation Festival "Lampa"
The Latvian Institute of International Affairs held a foreign policy debate, titled “Foreign Policy Championship: Students versus Politicians” in the conversation festival "Lampa", which took place in Cēsis on July 1-2. At the event, aimed at fostering informal discussion on international issues, two teams of students and politicians tested their knowledge in the contemporary issues of international politics, as well as in the history of Latvia’s foreign policy.
June 16, “From Wales to Warsaw: NATO – Back to the Origins?”
In the public discussion organized by the Latvian Institute of International Affairs and supported by NATO, Konrad Adenauer Stiftung and Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Riga, experts from Latvia, Poland, Germany, Russia and other countries discussed the role of NATO in the changing geopolitical environment in the light of the upcoming Warsaw summit. Among the speakers was Tacan Ildem (NATO Assistant Secretary General for Public Diplomacy). You can watch the entire event on YouTube: opening remarks, 1st panel, and 2nd panel, and see photos here.
June 15, “Latvia and the United States: Revisiting a Strategic Partnership in a Transforming Environment”, McCain Institute, Washington, DC
On June 16, the new book "Latvia and the United States: Revisiting a Strategic Partnership in a Transforming Environment" was presented at the McCain Institute in Washington, DC. Representatives of the leading DC think tanks, American Latvian community, and several other opinion-makers had a frank and constructive discussion with Andrejs Pildegovičs (State Secretary of the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs) and Diāna Potjomkina (Researcher from the Latvian Institute of International Affairs). See photos here.
May 26, “Latvia and the United States: Building Bridges across a Changing Landscape”
The event dedicated to the presentation of the new LIIA publication “Latvia and the United States: Revisiting a Strategic Partnership in a Transforming Environment” included addresses by Valdis Zatlers (Former President of the Republic of Latvia), Andrejs Pildegovičs (State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia) and Edvīns Bērziņš (Chairman of the Board and President of the Latvian Railroad). The discussion included two panels – Latvia-US security and defence cooperation and economic cooperation; you can watch the video on YouTube and see the photos here.
May 25, “Nordic-Baltic Cooperation. A Region in Transition”
In the event, which was dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the Nordic – Baltic cooperation and organized in cooperation with The Nordic Council of Minister’s Office in Latvia, experts Veiko Spolītis, Didzis Kļaviņš, Johan Strang, Ilvija Bruģe and H.E. Olli Kantanen (Ambassador of Finland to Latvia) discussed challenges and opportunities of the Nordic-Baltic cooperation and a possible future roadmap. See photos here.
May 17, “Riga Dialogue 2016: Building Bridges for Euro – Atlantic Security”
Latvian Institute of International Affairs organized annual off-the-record high level expert roundtable, which gathered top experts and policy-makers from the EU, US, Russia and other countries, including Edgars Rinkēvičs, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Latvia. The central themes of the dialogue included prospective developments of NATO amidst the current challenges and crises; Europe’s response to global security threats; the future of the West-Russia relationship; and the responses to the challenges posed by escalation propaganda and hybrid warfare.
The public event "Russia and West: towards a common Euro-Atlantic Security?” (see photos) took place on the same day at the “Altum” hall.
The project was supported by FES, Nuclear Threat Initiative, German Marshal Fund’s Black Sea Trust for Regional Cooperation, and European Leadership Network, and was organized in cooperation with the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
April 29, Public discussion on Foreign Affairs with Members of the Saeima (Latvian Parliament)
As part of the Latvian Foreign and Security Policy Yearbook 2016 and Latvian Foreign Policy Centenary Project, the LIIA organized a regional event in Jelgava, which was dedicated to Latvia’s foreign policy achievements in the last 25 years and discussed the country’s contemporary challenges and opportunities in the realm of global international affairs.
April 1, High-level International Conference on the EU Global Strategy and Central Asia
The Latvian Institute of International Affairs in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia, the European Union Institute for Security Studies (EUISS) and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung organized a high-level international conference “EU Global Strategy and Central Asia: Vision and Instruments”. With a view towards the new EU Global Strategy, the role of the EU in Central Asia was discussed in three panels – from the point of view of the EU, Central Asia and other countries. The speakers included Edgars Rinkēvičs (the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Latvia), Roman Vassilenko (Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan), and Peter Burian (EU Special Representative for Central Asia). Photos are available here.
- OTHER ACTIVITIES OF OUR RESEARCHERS
Director Andris Sprūds represented the Latvian Institute of International Affairs in the Warsaw Summit Experts’ Forum “NATO In Defense of Peace: 2016 and Beyond”, which took place from July 7-9 in Warsaw, Poland on the margins of the NATO Summit. The event was organized by the Polish Institute of International Affairs (PISM) and Globsec, in partnership with the Atlantic Council, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and the German Marshall Fund of the United States.
Deputy Director Kārlis Bukovskis participated in the Reflection Forum “The Western Balkans in the European Union: New Perspectives on Integration”, which took place on May 30 and 31 in Paris and was organized by IFRI, CIFE and OFZ CFA.
He also took part in the TEPSA pre-presidency conference on June 2-3 in Bratislava and wrote an article, entitled “A Glimpse of Today’s History: Technology, Reactionary Politics and Europeanization” (link), which has been published in the second issue of the Baltic Rim Economies review.
Ilvija Bruģe moderated the expert round-table “Challenging Times for the Republic of Moldova”, which took place on April 5 and was organised by the Representation of the European Commission in Latvia in cooperation with the Embassy of Romania to Lithuania and Latvia.
Aldis Austers represented the LIIA at the conference on the occasion of the Prague European Summit on June 6-8. The Prague European Summit has been conceived as a platform for a regular high-level strategic debate on the future of the European Union and this year's conference was devoted to the current state of the European integration process.
He also wrote article, entitled “Brexit as Viewed from Latvia: Is There a Silver Lining to the Brexit Craziness?” (link), which has been published on the webpage of Instytut Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej.
Māris Andžāns represented the LIIA in the following conferences:
1) Presentation in the panel “Reinforcing NATO’s Deterrence in the BSR: Guidelines for the Future” in the International conference dedicated to NATO Warsaw Summit and 20th anniversary of Lithuanian Atlantic Treaty Association establishment “Militarization of Kaliningrad and its Impact on Baltic Sea Region (BSR) Security Development” in Vilnius, June 9, 2016.
2) Presentation in the panel “Regional Perspectives on Current Threats, Vulnerabilities and Resilience” in the Expert Discussion “Baltic States and Poland Track 2 Deterrence and Strategic Stability Dialogue” in Washington, DC, May 17-18, 2016.
3) Presentation in the seminar “China’s “One Belt and One Road” Initiative and “16+1” Cooperation Initiative” in Shanghai, April 16, 2016.
4) Presentation in the session “Seeking Value Added: What Items for EU-NATO Cooperative Agenda?” in the expert seminar “The EU and NATO in a More Contested World: Enabling a Genuine Strategic Partnership” in Warsaw, April 6, 2016.
He also contributed article “Patching the Shield: The Baltic States on the Road towards Practical NATO Guarantees” (link) for the Polish Quarterly of International Affairs, and article “Die Furcht der Balten: Die Sorgen der Esten, Letten und Litauer” (link) for Rotary Magazin.
Diāna Potjomkina in June concluded her research on the sources of expertise in foreign policy she undertook at the George Mason University in the Washington, DC area as a Fulbright Visiting Student Researcher.
Una Aleksandra Bērziņa-Čerenkova represented the Latvian Institute of International Affairs in the session “Cultural and People to People Exchange” in the EU-China Think Tank Conference, which took place in Beijing on April 6-7, 2016.
Eoin Micheál Mcnamara contributed article "Brexit: Hidden Implications for Baltic Security" (link) for the publication Estonian World.
He also published a chapter "Promoting stability in the Middle East? The American alliance with Saudi Arabia after the “Rebalance"” (link) in the Finnish Institute of International Affairs report After Rebalance.
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Published 18 July 2016