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A collaborative blog that delivers a critical look at global and domestic affairs.
After Riga: How Can Europe Promote a More Peaceful Neighbourhood?
But a few weeks after the Riga Summit of EU and Eastern Partnership members quietly assembled and published its tentatively worded declaration, it is worth examining what Europe must really do to produce a peaceful neighbourhood. Reticence is understandable—diplomacy over Ukraine is ongoing, and has been demonstrably sensitive to ill-judged pronouncements. Accordingly, this post will not call for an escalation […]
Posted in: Matt Finucane's Work
Ukraine after Debaltseve: Appraisal and Prognosis
February 25, 2015
by Matt Finucane
With news of another “planned and organised” retreat, this time from the strategic hotspot of Debaltseve, it’s time for a reappraisal of the conflict raging in Eastern Ukraine. What follows is a summary of events, a survey of the relevant actors’ interests, activities, and likely courses of action, and a suitably damning prognosis for where this […]
Posted in: Matt Finucane's Work
The Unruleable Country: Why Can Nobody Govern Libya?
The Libyan uprising ousted Muammar Gaddafi. A government was put in place in the capital and it looked like democracy had arrived for good. Instead what followed was a breakdown of order and descent into civil war. Now after months of conflict the European Union hailed an agreement on Friday between rival factions to form […]
Posted in: Mike Drummond's Work
6,000 Miles or 1 Click? ISIS Aren’t as Far Away as You Think
Washington hasn’t quite figured out the Islamic State (ISIS) yet. The Obama administration’s favourite approach, hands-free intervention using fighter jets and training Iraqi and Kurdish forces, isn’t working. The naïve belief that ISIS (or most enemies for that matter) can be defeated without boots on the ground stems from their belief that ISIS are too far […]
Posted in: Mike Drummond's Work
Dealing with ISIS: Drones are No More Use Here
US foreign policy is in disarray. This isn’t really news – Obama has yet to put together a consistent international strategy – but the situation with the Islamic State (commonly referred to as ISIS) is especially uncertain. “The Islamic State’s success wouldn’t just turn the Middle East into a region with failed states; it would […]
Posted in: Mike Drummond's Work
Peace in Ukraine: Weighing Russia’s Latest Trophy
September 21, 2014
by Matt Finucane
Ukraine’s recent signing of the EU Association Agreement had all the hallmarks of a great political triumph—from President Petro Poroshenko’s “Slava Ukrayini!” (Glory to Ukraine) on Twitter, to the bouts of anthem-singing in Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, every impression that Ukraine had finally prevailed in its year-long political crisis was given. In reality, however, […]
Posted in: Matt Finucane's Work
The End of Iraq: How The West Still Pays for 2003
July 20, 2014
by Matt Finucane
The seemingly unstoppable march of ISIS/ISIL (now the Islamic State) through much of Iraq and some of Syria has quickly rekindled the vociferous debate surrounding the invasion of 2003. While today’s crisis is the product of many factors, the war in Iraq and its subsequent management not only predestined this conflict, but foreclosed any potential […]
Posted in: Matt Finucane's Work
Ukraine and the ‘New Cold War’: The Return of Neutralism
June 4, 2014
by Matt Finucane
Whether the Crimean crisis heralds a new era of international relations (or not), it has clearly been a pivotal moment in Russia’s relationship with the West. The world over balances of power are shifting, and though the United States remains unrivalled in sheer power, close to the borders of rising China and the increasingly-assertive Russia […]
Posted in: Matt Finucane's Work
Guest Post: China and the Crimea Conundrum
March 12, 2014
by Matt Finucane
With the EU-US alliance’s imposition of heavy sanctions on Russia over its de facto annexation of Crimea, the world is now looking to Russia’s perceived long-term strategic ally China to deliver a breakthrough in the diplomatic deadlock that has emerged between Putin and the West. While many analysts were expecting China to side with Russia on account […]
Posted in: Guest Writers
A Field of Views 
June 23, 2015
by Matt Finucane
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