Essays

essays

The power of the citizen-soldier

Britain has a long history of reservists defending the country in times of crisis. Reviving this tradition is among the most effective ways to secure Europe from Russian aggression..

Gary Sheffield December 12, 2025

essays

The world of the Odyssey

Homer's great epic is, above all, a palimpsest of the Hellenic art of living well.

Paul Cartledge December 11, 2025

essays

A new Syria struggles to be born

A year after the fall of the Assad regime, Syria's new government confronts domestic challenges and geopolitical hazards.

Shiraz Maher December 10, 2025

essays

Moscow’s war bloggers and the grammar of dissent

The future of authoritarian information control depends on the cultivation of its critics.

Ksenia Rundin December 9, 2025

essays

When the Mormons had a military

Joseph Smith commanded men in morality, history and religion, drawing thousands of followers to his church, but a lack of strategic insight doomed the Mormon militias that fought f..

Katherine Bayford December 9, 2025

essays

The Canningite tradition

As the world returns to 19th-century multipolarity, George Canning’s approach to British foreign policy offers timeless lessons. Great powers must protect the interests of small na..

David Cowan December 5, 2025

essays

Germany’s new old nuclear dilemma

When it comes to nuclear weapons, the concerns that West Germany's first chancellor wrestled with during the Cold War have not disappeared – they have simply re-emerged in new form..

Marina E. Henke December 4, 2025

essays

How Europe can harness its economic power

Squeezed between the mercantilist policies of the United States and China, Europe's governments must confront the economic paradox that threatens to undermine the foundations of th..

Michael Pettis and Enrico Fardella December 3, 2025

essays

The Schmittian inheritance

What makes Carl Schmitt uncannily relevant today is not his theory of international spheres of influence but his sinister, compelling critique of parliamentary democracy.

Daniel Johnson December 1, 2025