"A NATO Win for Erdogan" by @dimitarbechev.bsky.social. [2/5]

A NATO Win for Erdogan   - Atlas Think Center

NATO’s Ankara Summit is over and, as expected, the winner is Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The Turkish host has a lot to be happy about.  First, the summit put on display his special relationship to Donald Tr...

atlasthink.org

Next week's NATO summit will spotlight Turkey-EU ties and defense cooperation. @dimitarbechev.bsky.social joined our podcast to discuss the stakes and one of the love-hate relationships outlined in his upcoming book, "The Scramble for Europe." Full episode: www.youtube.com/watch?v=8O8i...

Though Orban is gone, Putin can still count on some like-minded individuals in Central and Eastern Europe. However, they will seek to avoid open confrontation with EU institutions over Ukraine and their ties with Moscow, argues @dimitarbechev.bsky.social: carnegieendowment.org/russia-euras...

What Does Central Europe’s Post-Orban Russia Policy Look Like?

Though Orban is gone, Putin can still count on some like-minded individuals in Central and Eastern Europe. However, they will seek to avoid open confrontation with EU institutions over Ukraine and the...

carnegieendowment.org

Can Europe defend itself with Turkish help? atlasthink.org/can-europe-d... by @dimitarbechev.bsky.social

Can Europe defend itself with Turkish help? - Atlas Think Center

For all the efforts of European leaders to paper over frictions with Donald Trump, there has been no shortage of transatlantic drama over the past couple of weeks.  At the start of May, the Pentagon a...

atlasthink.org

Montenegro & Albania are frontrunners for EU enlargement in the Western Balkans, but they can’t just sit back and wait. To meet their 2030 accession ambitions, they must make a strong positive case, argue @dimitarbechev.bsky.social & @ilirianagjoni.bsky.social. carnegieendowment.org/europe/strat...

How to Join the EU in Three Easy Steps

Montenegro and Albania are frontrunners for EU enlargement in the Western Balkans, but they can’t just sit back and wait. To meet their 2030 accession ambitions, they must make a strong positive case.

carnegieendowment.org

📢 Join us for our final event of the term, “Europe after ‘the West’?” featuring @dimitarbechev.bsky.social, @benjudah.bsky.social, @sebastienmaillard.bsky.social, Karen E Smith, and Teona Giuashvili. 🔗 Find out more: www.lse.ac.uk/internationa... #AcademicSky #PoliSky #Europe

everyone I still know who's inside the country tells me russians are pretty depressed. bad news but historically speaking it's good for world literature

What does the no-show at Munich say about Turkey’s foreign policy? atlasthink.org/what-does-th... by @dimitarbechev.bsky.social

What does the no-show at Munich say about Turkey’s foreign policy? - Atlas Think Center

Symbolism matters immensely. The Munich Security Conference (MSC) is a prime example to that effect, and Turkey proves the point.  It thinks of itself as a first-rate political player in Europe.  But ...

atlasthink.org

Europe isn’t as weak in the new geopolitics of power as many would believe. But to leverage its assets and claim a sphere of influence, Brussels must stop undercutting itself, argues @dimitarbechev.bsky.social. carnegieendowment.org/europe/strat...

Global Instability Makes Europe More Attractive, Not Less

Europe isn’t as weak in the new geopolitics of power as many would believe. But to leverage its assets and claim a sphere of influence, Brussels must stop undercutting itself.

carnegieendowment.org

Phenomenal journalism in my own publication here, reported from a Ukrainian border crossing where people fleeing occupied territories can get back into government-held Ukraine www.economist.com/europe/2026/...

At the last open crossing, Ukrainians flee Russia’s annexation

A checkpoint in Belarus provides a path from occupied territories back to Ukraine

economist.com

Europe isn't strong and united enough to be in the top league along with US and China. But it is more consequential than what is commonly believed. In a turbulent world, it is a partner of choice for nearly everyone. My take.

Engelsberg Ideas@engelsbergideas.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Europe: a great power in the making | @dimitarbechev.bsky.social engelsbergideas.com/essays/europ...

What’s Behind the EU-India Lovefest?  by @dimitarbechev.bsky.social atlasthink.org/whats-behind...

What’s Behind the EU-India Lovefest?  - Atlas Think Center

“The paradox about the European Union’s position in the world is that it is both a giant and a dwarf.” Nearly two decades later, this verdict by Kishore Mahbubani still rings true. The Singaporean lum...

atlasthink.org

Swim! Definitely swim! Looking forward to being back in Oxford this Tuesday. Please join us in conversation w/ @dimitarbechev.bsky.social & @Richard Youngs @St Antony's College or just come say hi.

This is a very good point. The November 2025 US National Security Strategy never mentions the Arctic at all. The idea that it's a genuine security priority for the Trump administration is not credible.

The art of the deal

I'll be on BBC World Service 's The Weekend for the next three hours, commenting on world affairs. It's also my 51st birthday. www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w...

BBC World Service - Weekend, 17/01/2026 GMT

A review of the week with the latest news.

bbc.co.uk

To honour brave Iranian protesters, I will be sharing Persian words that we commonly use in Balkan languages. Sindzhir (chain) - from the Farsi zanjīr زنجير (through the Turkish zincir) Break those sindzhirs!

He didn't have Pashinyan's number ....

Darth Putin@darthputinkgb.bsky.social · 7mo ago

Maduro forgot that if you're an ally of Russia, 1 of 2 things will happen: 1. Russia will attack you 2. Russia will do nothing when someone else does

Isn't it renamed back to Stalingrad?!

WarTranslated (Dmitri)@wartranslated.bsky.social · 7mo ago

Ukrainian drones hit Volgograd overnight, sparking a fire near the Lukoil refinery.

The pleasures of X: I tweeted that every time I come to Spain I'm reminded that Europe is a success. But "Europe" and "success" inevitably triggers bots, algorithms and the like to push the opposite line. Which then boosts the original post's visibility. x.com/DimitarBeche...

Dimitar Bechev on X: "Every time I come to Spain I'm reminded of what a success story Europe is. https://t.co/tSB9NI1hlz" / X

Every time I come to Spain I'm reminded of what a success story Europe is. https://t.co/tSB9NI1hlz

x.com

We have a first in a long time Russian industrial output is declining. After industrial output in October 2025 jumped due to one time factors to 3,1% in November 2025 there was a 0,7% decline compared to November 2024.

On the photo - the Kairos, an oim tanker from Russia's shadow fleet hit by an Ukrainian drone. Turks dragged it into Bulgarian waters.

Dimitar Bechev@dimitarbechev.bsky.social · 8mo ago

Ahtopol (Agathoupolis), Bulgaria. Photo by Borislav Kamilov

Ahtopol (Agathoupolis), Bulgaria. Photo by Borislav Kamilov

From @“gmfus.bsky.social : Hungary’s 2026 Elections: The Stakes and Challenges. Information, insights, analysis. Worth watching every second, but key food-for-thought for me: youtu.be/swZ36J4g4KA?...

Hungary’s 2026 Elections Stakes and Challenges

YouTube video by The German Marshall Fund of the United States

youtu.be

Voice of the Kremlin, Dimitriev means.

We just published a paper on Europe-China by @jankaoertel.bsky.social www.sant.ox.ac.uk/wp-content/u...

Europe in a Changing World@dahrendorfoxford.bsky.social · 9mo ago

How should Europe respond to China’s bid for global leadership? In our new paper, Dr Janka Oertel explores two paths: deeper integration into China’s economic orbit, or a turn toward strategic competition. Learn more www.sant.ox.ac.uk/wp-content/u... Supported by @stiftungmercator.bsky.social

Just read another book which boils down the discussion of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine to "oh God, why are Americans so Russophobic!?" Won't name names but some people in academia are beyond redemption.

Streets have been renamed, Ukrainian monuments removed, and murals painted over. Bellingcat investigates how apartment blocks in the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol have been demolished to make way for a new Russian suburban utopia… www.bellingcat.com/uncategorize...

Building on Ruins: The Russification of Mariupol, One Apartment Block at a Time - bellingcat

Bellingcat has identified 23 multi-storey housing complexes being built in occupied Mariupol and advertised for sale to Russian citizens.

bellingcat.com

🔔BiEPAG member @dimitarbechev.bsky.social for @carnegieeurope.bsky.social "The #WesternBalkans are on the path to become a net contributor to EU security, but much more needs to be done. The 3 NATO members - Albania, North Macedonia, and Montenegro - should lead the way. tinyurl.com/29cd6fj7

How the Western Balkans Can Contribute to European Defense

The Western Balkans’ defense industry offers Europe a chance to strengthen its security. But to become net contributors, governments across the region must modernize their militaries, attract investme...

carnegieendowment.org