'Unprecedented' security operation promised for Paris Olympic Games
The organisers of the Paris Olympics have promised an "unprecedented" security operation in the city ahead of the official start of the games later this week, and indeed the signs are everywhere in the heart of the French capital.
Paris Olympics may face security contractor shortage
PARIS — Three months before an Olympics that presents unprecedented security challenges at a globally tense time, French officials are facing a potential shortfall of qualified private contractors to help protect the Games.
The World Through the Lens of Ukraine
This issue of Politique étrangère looks at three conflicts currently unfolding around the world.
The French Approach to Female Violent Extremist Offenders
How are women jihadists prosecuted and sentenced in different European countries? What happens when they are incarcerated? What reintegration programs are in place for women formerly detained for terrorism-related offenses?
Understanding the Role of Women in Nigeria’s Non-State Armed Groups and Security Architecture
Since 1999, when Nigeria returned to civilian government after successive military regimes, it has continued to face enormous challenges to its legitimacy and monopoly of the use of force.
Israel-Hamas War Exposes Divisions in France
In a polarized France, President Emmanuel Macron must navigate the conflict in a way that doesn’t further inflame the public or advantage his political rivals.
The national DDR policy for Boko Haram ex-combatants in the Extreme North of Cameroon. Issues, challenges and limits
Surprised and harassed by Boko Haram’s atrocities from mid-2013, the Cameroonian authorities initially responded with strong military and judicial responses that helped to contain the threat and regain control of the situation.
European Union: A Geopolitical Illusion?
The European Union (EU) is holding firm in the face of the war in Ukraine—perhaps better than expected. But what long-term effects will the war have on European institutions and policies? The institutions will need to be changed to cope with the forthcoming expansions. The EU has certainly made progress toward common industrial and technological policies. But will this dynamic do away with a conception of strategic autonomy, encompassing both diplomacy and strategy? The European Union, which will undoubtedly be a key mover of future changes for the continent, remains largely uncertain in terms of its future configurations.
Türkiye’s Stifled Ambitions
As its elections have unfolded this spring, Türkiye has again shown itself to be symptomatic of the times. Across the world, numerous political regimes oscillate between democratic forms of government and an authoritarian concentration of power; impressive periods of growth give way to inflation and recession; and international deregulation gives rise to widespread diplomacy in an effort to juggle a myriad of shifting political loyalties. Faced with the war in Ukraine, Ankara is playing a strong hand by enlarging its areas of presence and intervention. Türkiye is more important to its partners than ever, independent of its eventual domestic trajectory.
Western discourse predicted the advent of Chinese dominance in the very short term, but events have taken a rather different turn. The drivers that enabled the unprecedented growth of recent decades seem to have run out of steam. Moreover, the outcome of Beijing’s economic strategies is still uncertain, in a context shaped primarily by U.S. policies. China’s influence in the future will be considerable, but the direction its rebound will take remains unclear.
For Europeans, the events in Ukraine and the thorny issue of the Sino-American rivalry cannot paper over the other security problems we face: On what common vision of our history and future will we build the Europe of tomorrow? Has drug trafficking already changed the nature of our societies? Can we afford to turn away from instances of destabilization in Africa, from the Horn to the Sahel?
Radicalization prevention and judicial response to terrorism
An interview with Marc Hecker, Ifri's Director of Research and Communications.
The French Approach to Female Violent Extremist Offenders
How are women jihadists prosecuted and sentenced in different European countries? What happens when they are incarcerated? What reintegration programs are in place for women formerly detained for terrorism-related offenses?
Moving Towards the End of 20 Years of War on Terror?
Twenty years after 9/11, the assessment of the “War on Terror” is mixed: heavy financial and human costs, weakening of Al-Qaeda central and the Islamic State in the Levant, but creation of affiliates in different locations, fatigue of endless wars, etc.
The Shifting Foundations of Political Islam in Algeria
Understanding Algeria’s various Islamist communities—including militant groups, moderate factions, and grassroots movements—offers a window into the country’s uncertain sociopolitical future.
Beyond national styles. Towards a connected history of Cold War counterinsurgency
This book is a major new study of the extent to which national mentalities, or 'ways of war', are responsible for 'national styles' of insurgency and counterinsurgency
France vs. Jihadism: The Republic in a New Age of Terror
This paper assesses the current state of the jihadist threat to France, as well as the French authorities’ security response. With the upcoming presidential election, 2017 will be a decisive year for the country. Terrorism will be at the heart of the campaign and ISIS will most likely try to strike again.
Africa and the ICC Going Forward
October 2016 presented a grim test for the fourteen-year-old International Criminal Court (ICC) as three Sub-Saharan African countries, Burundi, South Africa and Gambia announced their decision to opt out of the international judicial body.
The Middle East that Awaits a New US Administration
Along with a history marked by intervention from external powers, the Middle East is now confronting conflicts which combine political, ethnic and religious dimensions. The United States can not withdraw its “leadership” in the area. Aside from the Syrian question, the next American administration will have to redefine the network of partnerships and alliances in the region and grapple with a multitude of problems, none of which have simple solutions.
Hybrid Warfare in the Strategic Spectrum: an Historical Assessment
"Hybrid Warfare" is a fashionable concept, but in order fo it to be really relevant, it has to be visualized within the whole strategic spectrum.
Obama at West Point
President Obama presented the case for his foreign policy last week – again. He addressed the cadet corps at West Point in what was billed as a comprehensive strategic statement for the balance of his tenure in office, and for America's future. Obama's speech came just over a week after John Kerry issued his own call for America to take a large and active role in the world — urging Americans not to "allow a hangover from the excessive interventionism of the last decade to lead now to an excess of isolationism in this decade." It set the pitch and tone for the President's address. [1]
Persistence and Evolutions of the Rentier State Model in Gulf Countries
A general economic model of understanding Middle Eastern states was elaborated by political scientists around the 1980’s, based on the concept of rent as a factor of wealth around which the economic model as much as the governance of energy-rich countries was re-organized. The particular case of GCC’s countries as rentier state has been at the cornerstone of this concept since they own the most important share of energy resources in the world.
'Unprecedented' security operation promised for Paris Olympic Games
The organisers of the Paris Olympics have promised an "unprecedented" security operation in the city ahead of the official start of the games later this week, and indeed the signs are everywhere in the heart of the French capital.
Paris Olympics may face security contractor shortage
PARIS — Three months before an Olympics that presents unprecedented security challenges at a globally tense time, French officials are facing a potential shortfall of qualified private contractors to help protect the Games.
Israel-Hamas War Exposes Divisions in France
In a polarized France, President Emmanuel Macron must navigate the conflict in a way that doesn’t further inflame the public or advantage his political rivals.
Paris attacks: Survivors hope for justice as France's biggest criminal trial in history begins
"Still now I have the images of the corpses next to my feet": Olivier Laplaud and his wife were in the Bataclan enjoying themselves amongst a crowd of 1,500 people when everything changed in an instant.
Why France is losing its 'Great Game' in western Africa
The British used to call it "the Great Game" — the military and political jockeying of great powers in the late 19th century in Afghanistan, India and the areas around southern Russia. France, too, has played its "Great Game" in western Africa for 150 years. Now it's losing. Islamist extremists are winning.
France hopes deporting more alleged radicals will bring security
France has repatriated more than half the people it defined as radical Islamists living in the country without a residence permit since 2018. Now it wants to extend the penalty and deport even more.
Army colonel sworn in as Mali president as tensions with Paris grow
Assimi Goïta vows to uphold republican regime and democracy in Mali.
France Halts Joint Military Operations with Mali Over Coup
PARIS - France said Thursday it would suspend joint military operations with Malian forces after the West African country's second coup in nine months, adding to international pressure for the military junta to return civilians to positions of power.
Jihadist Prisoners: The Fear of Recidivism
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.
Menace islamiste, loi martiale, ... que se passe-t-il aux Philippines?
Philippines' President wants to limit islamist groups' capacity after several attacks in the South of the country.
Radicalization prevention and judicial response to terrorism
An interview with Marc Hecker, Ifri's Director of Research and Communications.
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.
