Media Interventions

Donald Trump's announcement of the withdrawal of US troops is forcing Berlin to confront the long-standing taboo on its own defense, explains Paul Maurice, a specialist in Franco-German relations at the Study Committee on Franco-German Relations (Cerfa) at French Institute of International Relations.

Just as Europe frets over fresh Trump tariffs, a US troop drawdown announced for Germany and the message it sends to a hostile Russia, how about not one but two summits in former Soviet state Armenia. Before a first-ever gathering of EU leaders in Yerevan on Tuesday comes the European Political Community: a talk shop with regional players which also include Ukraine and NATO heavyweights like the UK, Norway and an outside guest who shares superpower proximity problems.

Paris sees risks for its industry and the continent’s sovereignty in Berlin’s rapid defence build-up. Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s defence spending push has raised concerns about locking in procurement choices and giving German industry an advantage over its neighbours.

Against an international backdrop marked by the war in Ukraine, Russia’s emergence as a lasting threat to Europe, and an uncertain U.S. commitment to the Old Continent, questions about the future of the transatlantic relationship are mounting.

Plenary session of the 2026 World Policy Conference dedicated to analyzing the continuities and discontinuities of American policy under the presidency of Donald Trump.

Panel from the World Policy Conference 2026, organized by Thierry de Montbrial and Ifri, from April 24 to 26, 2026.

Conversation with Nabil Fahmy, designated Secretary General of the Arab League, chaired by Thierry de Montbrial, Founder and Executive Chairman of Ifri and the World Policy Conference.

In an exceptional debate with Thierry de Montbrial, Anwar Gargash, Diplomatic Advisor to the President of the United Arab Emirates shares his perspective on the ongoing war with Iran in the Middle East.

Israel and Lebanon agreed to direct negotiations following talks in Washington on Tuesday.

Since the invasion of Ukraine by Russia in 2022, Norway has become the European Union’s leading supplier of gas. This position could be further strengthened given the ongoing war in the Middle East.

French German relations have been very close for decades as key partners in driving forward European integration within the EU. Can the current leaders President Emmanuel Macron and Chancellor Friedrich Merz reforge the relationship and build a Europe fit for the challenges of our times and the future? This documentary follows the two men across Europe and the world and observes their common goals as well as their differences.

This episode discusses the future of transatlantic relations and the evolution of security policy on both sides of the Atlantic. It examines France’s strategic stance and the implications of potential leadership change. It also looks at the dynamics of U.S. domestic politics – the role of political parties and civil society in curbing Donald Trump’s power, and the significance of the midterm elections. It considers what these processes mean for Europe, especially in the context of Article 5. Joining Marta Prochwicz-Jazowska, Deputy Head of the ECFR Warsaw office, in the discussion will be Thomas Gomart, director of the French Institute of International Relations, and Amanda Sloat, professor at the School of Politics, Economics, and Global Affairs at IE University.

As French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Japan this week for his first visit to the country since 2023, international attention was largely centered on the ongoing Middle East conflict.

Emmanuel Macron touched down in Tokyo on Tuesday with a packed agenda and a receptive audience in a Japanese government anxious about a choked oil route and looking for support amid its diplomatic falling-out with Beijing.

Replay of the conference at Ifri, March 18, 2026
Can EU-India technological cooperation reshape global strategic balances? This conference brought together European and Indian leaders to discuss opportunities and challenges in AI, semiconductors, and digital innovation. Watch the full debate.

To defend allies from Iran, the continent’s powers have mounted a rare show of force. But those efforts have diverted limited resources from other hot spots. Despite refusing to join the attacks on Iran, Europe’s leaders have responded to the widening war in the Middle East by sending warships, fighter jets and air-defense systems to protect bases and allies in the region.

Dimitri Minic, Scientific Director of the Observatory on Russia, Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Central Asia and a Research Fellow at Ifri’s Russia/Eurasia Center, argues in an interview with Le Monde that “Ukraine should not be buried too quickly,” even if the current balance of power favors Russia.

Welcomed at the French Institute of International Relations (Ifri), Chris Wright outlined his vision of American energy policy built around two core axes: the human reality of energy access, and a data-driven approach. For the Secretary, energy is the foundation of prosperity, health, and longer life expectancy on a global scale. His doctrine rests on an ambition of American "energy dominance" — not merely independence, but the capacity to produce at scale in order to lower domestic costs, reindustrialize the country, and support U.S. allies.

Multiple European countries are publicly backing talks on a homegrown nuclear deterrent to complement American atomic weapons following an erosion of trust in a Donald Trump-led U.S.

Can Europe man the ramparts on its own? As the US war secretary snubbed a NATO defence ministers' meeting in Brussels, EU leaders converged on the 16th-century Alden Biesen castle in Belgium's Limburg province to answer former Italian prime minister Mario Draghi's call for a "big bazooka" approach to reform and competitiveness.