To mark International Press Freedom Day on May 3, GLOBSEC hears from Alsu Kurmasheva a press freedom advocate and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty journalist who was detained for 288 days by Russian authorities. Alsu reacts to some 2025 GLOBSEC Trends data and shares her experience on her wrongful imprisonment in Russia, the state of press freedom today, how societies can stand up for journalists under attack, and why staying vigilant in 2025 — and beyond — is more critical than ever. 

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The Transatlantic relationship is going through a serious crisis since President Donald Trump returned to the Oval Office. In the discussion, Sir Richard Shirreff warned of NATO’s weakening as the U.S. shifts away from its security commitments. He urged Europe and Canada to increase defense spending, adapt NATO structures, and support Ukraine to counter Russia. He emphasized Europe must take charge of its security while maintaining diplomatic ties with the U.S.

The countdown is on to building an American “Irone Dome”, or is it? With the Pentagon given 60 days to assess this Presidential executive order, Tomáš Nagy, Senior Fellow for Nuclear, Space, and Missile Defense talks with Policy Fellow Roger Hiton to gauge if this a vision or merely a dream.  From strategic feasibility to the cost-benefit as well as adversarial reaction, Tomáš explains why there is merit to the idea and the future pitfalls to its implementation.

"May you live in interesting times," the saying goes. With an abundance of international developments, Professor Stephen M. Walt of the Harvard Kennedy School of Government shares his expertise with Policy Fellow Roger Hiton on the mega changes and forces shaping the global future including the intensifying struggle between the Yalta and Helsinki worldviews, if hegemons are still possible, how alliances are being reconceptualize and if the current trend of asymmetric warfare needs to be addressed with escalation to deter future aggression.

This week, GLOBSEC’s Centre for Global Europe brings you the latest insights on the preparations and priorities of the upcoming Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU. Senior Fellow Vladislava Gubalova talks with Kinga Brudzinska, Senior Analyst at Polityka Insight in Warsaw to set the stage for the next six months.  With Hungary finishing their EU Presidency, why hasn’t there been better cooperation between the two CEE countries? With seven key priorities, how is the theme of security being applied through multiple domains ranging from information to health? On the domestic political front, how will the Polish government balance the EU Presidency against the backdrop of Presidential elections taking place at the same time?

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On this week’s episode, GLOBSEC’s Economy and Business Programme is launching their podcast series titled Achieving Competitiveness. Hosted by Katarína Strauszová, this week’s episode features Ján Mykhalchyk Hradický, GLOBSEC External Fellow, as they dive into a pressing question: why is modernizing Europe’s electricity grid key to achieving a successful green transition and boosting economic competitiveness?

This discussion highlights the newly launched GLOBSEC Grid Transition Index, which evaluates and ranks the state of electricity grids in 35 European countries, focusing on their preparedness to support the green transition. With 29 indicators and over 3.5 million data points, the Index fills a critical gap in understanding the state of Europe’s electricity grids.

As this is the first edition of the Index, we’re eager to hear your thoughts! Whether you’re a researcher, energy expert, or simply passionate about grid modernization, we’d love your feedback to help us make future editions even better. Reach out to us at [email protected].

GLOBSEC’s Center for Global Europe is joined by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Taiwan, François Wu who argues why the world should welcome the rise of Taiwan on the global stage, how his nation continues to advance innovation and spread investment across CEE, as well as the shared lessons learned between Taipei and Kyiv on rallying democracies and best utilizing technological innovation on the battlefield.

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On this week’s episode, GLOBSEC’s Centre for Democracy & Resilience fellow Patrik Szicherle welcomes back Dr. David Schultz of Hamline University to debrief the 2024 American presidential elections and what has transpired since. Dr Schultz shares his assessment of why the Democrats suffered such a dramatic loss, what they need to do next, and what to make of some of President-elect Trump’s recent cabinet nominations. They conclude by reviewing Europe’s future security options and if the continent has what it takes to stand on its own to defend itself and strategic interests.

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With North Korean (NK) troops preparing on Russia’s front line with Ukraine, this week’s pod hears from LTG (Ret) Arto Räty member of the GLOBSEC Future Security and Defence Council

who speaks with Policy Fellow Roger Hilton to break down the broad ranging policy challenges associated with this new conflict phase, while offering his take on why the current number of deployed NK troops is not transformative, if the CRANKs are poised to be a credible military alliance threat in the future, and why western policy makers should favor faster delivers instead of setting new red lines to make an impact for Ukraine.

The full Instagram Live can be seen here: https://bitly.cx/vXWb

This week, GLOBSEC’s Center for Global Europe brings you a special recording from 2024 GLOBSEC Tatra Summit. Roger Hilton speaks with Ukrainian MP Olha Vasylevska-Smahliuk to ger her take on the latest news developments, the biggest problems facing Ukraine’s reconstruction process, how the country is supporting industrial and commercial activity despite 800 plus days of war, as well as the forgotten issue of civilian prisoners held by Russia. 

This episode is co-funded by the EU. Views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the EU. Neither the EU nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them. 

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