International Relations

Spain’s Sánchez Looks Like A Realist – But He Is Clinging To False Hope In UN Reform

Recently, I wrote about the modern fad for politicians in the West to proclaim new variants of realist thought, some of which were a sham. But recent weeks have revealed Spain’s PM Pedro Sánchez is operating according to a fundamentally realist perspective on international politics, though he makes no direct reference to realist thinking. In the pages of Le Monde Diplomatique, Sánchez recently appealed to defend multilateralism against the products of “what passes for realis

Charles Cann

May 44 min read

Panda Diplomacy: The Soft Power of Cuddly Leverage

The panda in your Zoo is not a gift. Although they look like harmless, black-and-white fur balls with sleepy eyes, giant pandas are not just lovable zoo attractions; they are among the most influential instruments in China’s diplomatic toolkit. For decades, Beijing has used pandas to reward friendly governments, deepen trade ties, and signal political approval. Just as importantly, it has used them to punish countries that fall out of favour. This strategy has a name: panda d

Eimear Kelly

Apr 284 min read

Reading Today’s New Realisms: The Value of a Rhetorical Brand

In international politics today, the epithet ‘realism’ has become common currency. It carries with it a rhetorical confidence – a name which suggests prophecy of truth amongst alternatives which are deceptions. But as proclaiming a realist position has become something of a fashion nowadays, we must beware the fashion victims; those who don ill-fitting articles because they bear the right label, and wear its most ridiculous accessories without any sense of the motifs and subs

Charles Cann

Apr 64 min read

International Law's Painful Paradox

International law was created to act as a check on unrestrained power, yet in practice is only effective at controlling states who are willing to conform, leaving those states whom international law was intended to control practically untouched by it. Out of the ruins of the Second World War came the concept of enforceable international law, followed by the creation of the United Nations and the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights . International law promise

Gabrielle Apfel

Mar 153 min read

"Shock Therapy": Trumpian Oligarchy and Neoliberal Frailty

19 th Century Methods for 21 st Century Problems Following the abduction of Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, combined with the National Security Strategy (NSS) release in December of 2025, the Trump Era of “Gunboat Diplomacy” consolidated as the world watched on with morose horror. The Trump “Corollary,” as it were, is to represent an abandonment of international good faith and an embracing of the world's brutal dictators, Vladimir Putin and many more across th

Zach Rogers

Mar 145 min read

Secessionism and Regionalism: The Case of South Yemen–and South Arabia?

The prolonged war in Yemen, which has been locked in a stalemate for a decade, has now entered a new stage. The Southern Transitional Council (STC), supported by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a major player in the war in Yemen, was able to successfully penetrate the regions of Hadhramaut and Al Mahra , effectively controlling the official borders of the former People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY) – South Yemen. The STC has been the sole representative of the souther

Naif Al Bidh

Mar 89 min read

A British Gambit in the Scandinavian Defence: UK-Nordic Support for Ukraine

Northern Europe’s security centre of gravity has moved north and east since 2022: the Baltic Sea, the GIUK gap , the Norwegian Sea, and Arctic approaches now define the front edge of deterrence and reinforcement. In this setting, Ukraine should be analysed less as the object of Northern policy and more as the catalyst that is reshaping it. Two overlapping mini-laterals, NB8 and JEF , offer a pragmatic architecture, one optimised for political alignment and signalling, the ot

Danylo Nikiforov

Feb 93 min read