Search on Ifri.org

About Ifri

Frequent searches

Suggestions

Security - Defense

Description

As a result of global strategic competition, security and defense issues are marked by the return of major wars and nuclear deterrence, the transformation of terrorism and the race for military technologies.

Related Subjects

Image Taxonomie
 A soldier looking at a map on a laptop.
See all
Publications
Press
Logo
taipei-times-new.jpg

France to spell out nuclear plan

08 February 2020
Accroche

A researcher said that ‘the balance is shifting, including in countries such as Germany’ on the role of nuclear weapons in Europe’s strategic ambitions. 

France, the EU’s sole nuclear power since Britain’s exit from the bloc, was to unveil how it intends to use its atomic arsenal as a deterrent. French President Emmanuel Macron, in an address to military officers graduating in Paris yesterday, was expected to recommit to upgrading France’s capacity, at a time when NATO allies, who would ordinarily look to the US in a nuclear standoff, worry about Washington’s retreat from the multilateral stage.

Logo
rfi.png
Image principale médiatique

France to spell out post-Brexit nuclear weapons strategy

07 February 2020
Accroche

France, the European Union's sole nuclear power since Britain's exit from the bloc, will unveil Friday how it intends to use its atomic arsenal as a deterrent in an increasingly unstable world.

Image principale médiatique

The Indo-Pacific: a View from France and Australia

19 March 2019
Accroche

An interview with Michael Fullilove, Executive Director of the Lowy Institute, by Jean-Dominique Merchet, Defense and Diplomatic Correspondent, L'Opinion.

Logo
real_clear_world.png
Image principale médiatique

Jihadist Prisoners: The Fear of Recidivism

12 July 2018
Accroche

On July 16, Djamel Beghal is expected to be released from the Rennes-Vezin prison in the west of France. Beghal is a well-known figure in the European jihadist sphere. Born in Algeria in 1965, he settled in France in 1987. Ten years later, he moved to the United Kingdom with his French wife and their children. In November 2000, the family left for Afghanistan, a country then governed by the Taliban.

Logo
baev_pavel_nb.jpg

Missiles of March: A political means of last resort for Putin

07 March 2018
Accroche

President Vladimir Putin’s extra-heavy emphasis on new strategic missile systems in his March 1 address to parliament was quite unexpected and rather out of character. 

Where is the U.S. nuclear arsenal headed?

18 October 2017
Accroche

An interview with Jon WOLFSTHAL, nonresident scholar, Nuclear Policy Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Image principale médiatique

Menace islamiste, loi martiale, ... que se passe-t-il aux Philippines?

24 May 2017
Accroche

Philippines' President wants to limit islamist groups' capacity after several attacks in the South of the country.

Logo
the_diplomat.png

What Does China's 'New Asian Security Concept' Mean for the US?

21 January 2017
Accroche

A closer look at China’s vision for remaking Asian security, and what the United States can do about it. In October, China hosted the seventh Xiangshan Forum in Beijing, during which Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin outlined a framework for a regional security architecture to meet the emerging challenges and opportunities of the 21st century. 

Logo
thediplomat_logo.png
Image principale médiatique

At the 2016 Xiangshan Forum, China Outlines a Vision for Regional Security Governance

15 October 2016
Accroche

Beijing has a plan for a new regional security architecture, and it’s not based around alliances.

France wants to feel safe – whatever it takes. But what if it takes too much?

28 July 2016
Accroche

Opinion column published in "The Globe and Mail"

Image principale

La fourmilière du général : le commandement opérationnel face aux enjeux de haute intensité

Date de publication
27 June 2019
Accroche

Operational command structures have always been able to adapt to the strategic context. However, they now face a new challenge: high intensity threats. 

Image principale

The Future of Urban Warfare in the Age of Megacities

Date de publication
21 March 2019
Accroche

Urbanization is a relentless trend, and as cities grow and expand, armed conflict and violence are urbanizing as well. 

Image principale

The Franco-German Tandem: Bridging the Gap on Nuclear Issues

Date de publication
28 January 2019
Accroche

The Franco-German couple has long been charac­terized by divergent trajectories on nuclear matters, and antagonist historical decisions still frame the current relationship.

Image principale

Les armées françaises face aux menaces anti-aériennes de nouvelle génération

Date de publication
20 December 2018
Accroche

Although it had never entirely disappeared, the surface-to-air threat was mitigated for three decades by Western air superiority. It now benefits from a modernization and dissemination momentum that will increasingly hinder expeditionary forces’ freedom of action. 

Image principale

The Erosion of Strategic Stability and the Future of Arms Control in Europe

Date de publication
09 November 2018
Accroche

The instruments of cooperative security created during and since the Cold War to foster mutual confidence and reduce the risks of war, inadvertent escalation, and arms races, in and around Europe, have come under increasing strain.

Image principale

The Gulf Monarchies' Armed Forces at the Crossroads

Date de publication
04 May 2018
Accroche

Something is happening with the military forces of the Arab monarchies in the Gulf.

Image principale

La guerre nucléaire limitée : un renouveau stratégique américain

Date de publication
21 November 2017
Accroche

Over the past few years, a debate on possible scenarios of limited nuclear weapons use has surfaced again in the United States. Russian nuclear saber-rattling since 2014 and the growing tensions in the Korean peninsula have led Washington to reassess its own ability to deter, or respond to, such a limited use of nuclear weapons.

Image principale

The Future of British Defense Policy

Date de publication
20 July 2017
Accroche

As the prospect of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union raises increasing challenges to its international position, as well as major divisions at home, the future of British defense policy seems more uncertain than ever. 

Image principale

North Korea's Nuclear Posture: an Evolving Challenge for U.S. Deterrence

Date de publication
27 March 2017
Accroche

A more capable, nuclear-armed, North Korea will pose very substantial challenges to the U.S. deterrence posture. 

Image principale

The NPT and the Origins of NATO’s Nuclear Sharing Arrangements

Date de publication
07 February 2017
Accroche

Russia has recently accused the United States and NATO Allies of violating the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) by arguing that NATO's nuclear sharing arrangements are not permitted under the Treaty.

Logo
elpais.png

La prueba nuclear norcoreana refuerza el papel de EE UU en Asia

09 January 2016
Accroche

Corea del Norte ha tratado esta semana de aumentar la presión para ser reconocida como una potencia nuclear con la prueba del pasado miércoles en la que aseguraba que empleó una bomba de hidrógeno. Y ha introducido un nuevo elemento en el gran juego de alianzas estratégicas y comerciales que Estados Unidos y China disputan en el siglo XXI en Asia, un tablero de ajedrez que representa el 38,8% del PIB mundial. La prueba nuclear ha dejado en evidencia la falta de control de Pekín sobre Pyongyang y ha reforzado el papel de Washington como garante de la seguridad en la región.

Jihad in Syria and in Iraq: a Сhallenge for France

23 January 2015
Accroche

One week after the terrorist attacks in Paris, the police killed two jihadists in Belgium. Officials said that the two men were coming back from Syria and were on the brink of targeting Brussels. The capital of Belgium was already targeted a few months ago: in May 2014, Mehdi Nemmouche – a French citizen who had trained in Syria – killed 4 persons in Brussels’ Jewish museum.

Support independent French research

Ifri, a foundation recognized as being of public utility, relies largely on private donors – companies and individuals – to guarantee its sustainability and intellectual independence. Through their funding, donors help maintain the Institute's position among the world's leading think tanks. By benefiting from an internationally recognized network and expertise, donors refine their understanding of geopolitical risk and its consequences on global politics and the economy. In 2024, Ifri will support more than 70 French and foreign companies and organizations.

Ramses Conference, 2024
Related centers and programs
Image principale
T-72B3 battle tank, NATO
European & Transatlantic Security
Accroche centre

The European & Transatlantic Security Program aims to contribute to the strategic debate by developing analyses around three main axes: European defense and the security architecture of the European continent, institutional and strategic links between the Treaty Organization of North Atlantic (NATO) and the European Union (EU), as well as the evolution of the transatlantic relationship.

Image principale
Legionnaires patrolling during the sentinel operation in Paris
Internal Security
Accroche centre

The distinction between internal and external threats is often exaggerated, as the borders are so porous. Conflicts taking place thousands of kilometers from France can have tragic resonances on national territory. Radicalization, terrorism and even organized crime have an international dimension that cannot be ignored.

Image principale
Nuclear ballistic missile submarine, in transit on the surface
Deterrence and Proliferation
Accroche centre

The conflicts in Europe, Asia and the Middle East demonstrate a return of nuclear power to the balance of power. Arsenals are being modernized and expanded, while arms control is collapsing. This research program aims to analyze these phenomena.

Image principale
Group of kamkazza combat drones against the background of sky and clouds, top view, 3d rendering. Concept: war in Ukraine, drone attack.
Observatory on Future Conflicts
Accroche centre

The Observatory of Future Conflicts is a research program carried out by the French Institute of International Relations and the Foundation for Strategic Research on behalf of the three army headquarters aimed at studying developments in tensions and armaments at the horizon 2040 in a transversal perspective, taking into account the issues of each army.

Image principale
 A soldier watching a sunset on an armored infantry fighting vehicle
Security Studies Center
Accroche centre

Heir to a tradition dating back to the founding of Ifri, the Security Studies Center provides public and private decision-makers as well as the general public with the keys to understanding power relations and contemporary modes of conflict as well as those to come. Through its positioning at the juncture of politics and operations, the credibility of its civil-military team and the wide distribution of its publications in French and English, the Center for Security Studies constitutes in the French landscape of think tanks a unique center of research and influence on the national and international defense debate.

Image principale
French soldiers during an exercise in the forest
Defense Research Unit
Accroche centre

The Defense Research Unit is a program that aims at stimulating the strategic debate by dealing with subjects at the junction of the “technico-operational” and the “political-strategic”. A unique structure in France, it brings together civilian researchers and “military fellows” from each of the three armies to produce work on defense policies, the capability and strategic adaptation of armies, and foresight on tomorrow's conflicts.

Page image credits
A soldier looking at a map on a laptop
(c) Shutterstock