Why China Cannot Escape the Economics of Self-Sufficiency

China’s aim for greater self-reliance is becoming increasingly credible. Beijing’s new five-year plan doubles down on technological self-reliance just as rapid advances in strategic industries, from batteries to AI, are making that goal look...

EU-Belarus: No Need to Wait for Political Rapprochement to Start Mutually Beneficial Cooperation

Yauheni Preiherman, Director, Minsk Dialogue Council on International Relations As global geopolitical competition grows and instability proliferates, pragmatic cooperation with neighbours becomes a strategic imperative, not a matter of a normative choice. These circumstances...

The Critical Raw Materials Act: the EU’s ecological and digital transitions and the fight for the preservation of the Portuguese Transmontane way of life 

Ana Cardoso [PhD candidate & Master’s in European Union Law at the School of Law of University of Minho. FCT research scholarship holder – 2025.06747.BD. DOI: https://doi.org/10.54499/2025.06747.BD.] I. The Critical Raw Materials Act (“CRMA”) aims...

Why the October Summit Must Make Enlargement More Credible and Economically Meaningful

This article is co-authored with Frauke Seebass, Member, Balkans in Europe Policy Advisory Group (BiEPAG). The EU has a strategic opportunity to bring the Western Balkans closer to the Single Market. But it risks...

Game over for consumer ownership expectations? Consumer rights in the digital age

Angélica Lomba (master's student in European Union Law at the School of Law of University of Minho and Legal Intern specialising in Digital Law, with a particular focus on the GDPR and the AI...

European Peace Facility (EPF) – The Next Stage of Europe’s Security Adaptation

The September 2026 update of the European Peace Facility (EPF), which supports defence and security in the EU and partner countries, reflects a broader transformation of Europe’s approach to security. The Facility is becoming...