The independent resource on global security

Essays

From ‘fragility’ to ‘complexity’: reframing development in difficult places

It is time for the international community to move beyond the word 'fragility' when describing how development works in difficult places.

Africa, emerging economies and the changing development landscape

The development landscape in Africa has drastically changed with the emergence of new trade partners from the Global South, including Brazil, China, India and Turkey.

Peace operations in a multipolar world: a surprising consensus

Preliminary results from an ongoing SIPRI research project suggest that consensus remains possible in the future peace operations landscape, even with influence shifting from established to emerging powers.

Returning to a basic level of trust in relations between Russia and the West

While the threat of nuclear war during the cold war era was all too real, in one sense the world is worse off now: even the notion of rebuilding trust on the basis of international commitments is seen as idealistic and unrealistic.

Nuclear power and the European Energy Security Strategy

Momentum is building for a new, common approach to energy within the European Union (EU) that balances the need for competitive pricing against security of supply and the need to reduce carbon emissions.

Building peace in Mali: the case for ‘track III’ interventions

Achieving sustained peace in Mali depends on 'track III' interventions: initiatives carried out by civil society organizations and other non-state actors to support the emergence of a conducive environment for the settling of conflicts.

Lessons from the post-cold war transformation of East Central Europe’s arms industry

Arms production was the backbone of the Soviet-type command economy systems in East Central Europe (ECE), but with the collapse of the Eastern bloc, arms makers faced a drastic disruption in their economic, political and social environment.

Future challenges in the monitoring of international arms transfers

Western governments and defence companies are adapting to the effects of the 2008 economic crisis by devising new strategies to increase international arms sales.

Deciphering China’s latest defence budget figures

On 4 March the Chinese Government presented its 2014 budget to the National People's Congress (NPC), but it does not accurately represent the total amount spent by China on its military.

The role of safeguards in a nuclear weapon-free zone in the Middle East

Safeguards measures play a vital role in international efforts to monitor technologies related to reprocessing and enrichment of nuclear materials.