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Much has been said about how Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine has reshaped politics in Europe and beyond. Yet, for the societies of the Baltic Sea region, these shifts are more than safety narratives and political statements. They make fear and apprehension that is felt almost all day. Thus, with Finland and Sweden now members of NATO, which is the strongest defence alliance the West has created, the region finds itself at the centre of a major rebalancing. This fresh dynamic has seen the states around the Baltic Sea appear as a fresh nexus in Europe’s defence and security. Their proximity to the Ukrainian frontlines, combined with a deep knowing of the Russian threat, gives their voices greater weight in shaping NATO and EU responses. This besides explains why these states have been investing in military capabilities, civilian resilience, and regional cooperation more than another European states. erstwhile located at a peripheral frontier, they are now a strategical core.
This issue of New east Europe explores these changes taking place, from fresh defence strategies and alliances, to civilian preparedness and social resilience. We open it with an interview with Andrius Kubilius, erstwhile Lithuanian prime minister and now EU Commissioner for Defence, who outlines the increasing strategical relevance of the Baltic states in shaping Europe’s consequence to the threats facing the continent. National perspectives offer further nuances. Thus, Sweden and Finland’s accession to NATO is analysed by Minna Ålander and Eric Adamson, while Nino Chanadiri reports on the experience of Ukrainian refugees in Estonia. Eóin McNamara investigates Estonia’s defence and Nasta Zakharevich asks whether Latvia is truly ready for war.
Beyond the Baltic Sea, this issue explores another key developments in the wider region, including the South Caucasus, where Georgia is seeing a dramatic slip towards authoritarianism, while Armenia is pinning its hope on stronger cooperation with the European Union. It besides focuses on Hungary where fresh and amazing political dynamics seem to be underway.
CONTENTS
Rebalancing the Baltic Sea region
If the EU wants peace, it needs to prepare for war An interview with Andrius Kubilius
Nordic-Baltic full defence. Easier said than done Minna Ålander and Eric Adamson
Estonia’s road to comprehensive security Eoin Micheál Mcnamara
Is Latvia ready for war? Nasta Zakharevich
Latvia’s way to becoming Europe’s drone powerhouse Maciej Makulski
Breaking ranks or building resilience? The function of women in the Latvian and Estonian armed forces
Sigita Struberga
With a view to the Baltic Sea
Piotr Leszczyński
Expert Survey: Changing context in the Nordic-Baltic Sea region
Putin’s gift to NATO. The emergence of the “New Nordic Shield” Inga Samoškaitė
Never before have we been so safe as today Elizabete Vizgunova-Vikmane
Denmark. A tiny nation rethinking its security Miłosz J. Cordes
A Baltic triangle Aleksandra Kuczyńska-Zonik
A German position on safety and stableness in the Baltic Sea Thomas Michael Linsenmaier
Interviews
Political leaders are becoming their own satire A conversation with Armando Iannucci
Essays and analysis
Inside Viktor Orbán’s worst political crisis yet
Samu Czabán
Authoritarian sandbox. Belarus as a investigating ground for 21st century repression
Leanid Marozau
Belarus after the war
Pavlo Rad
Why the Black Sea is vital to Ukraine Jakub Łoginow
Balancing values and interests. NATO’s constrained engagement in the South Caucasus Nino Lezhava
Georgian Dream’s war with reality Tinatin Lolomadze
Armenia’s pivot to the EU Leonie Nienhaus
Europe’s complex relation with Azerbaijan JP O’Malley
Between law and loyalty. Milorad Dodik and the challenge to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s statehood
Samir Comaga
The Russian ontology
David Hallbeck
Stories and ideas
A weekly dose of disinformation Novaya Vkladka
The fight for a letter How Ukraine is removing Russia’s imperial legacy
Olena Makarenko
Dancing with the dictator. How Belarusian propaganda took over TikTok Kseniya Tarasevich
Thirty years after the Srebrenica genocide, Bosnia and Herzegovina remains a land suspended between memory and oblivion Tatjana Đorđević and Joshua Evangelista
Art, culture and society
Belarusian literature Wandering through a swamp
Vera Beika
History and memory
The Vatican and the east Bloc. What the Vatican archives can uncover about Cold War Europe Katarzyna Nowak