In this brief, Jonathan Lehne and Maiting Zhuang examines the fragility of democratic institutions in Eastern Europe, comparing expert assessments and general population surveys. Experts' concerns have intensified, yet voters in almost all new EU member states and across age groups express growing satisfaction with their democracies. The study reveals a shift where people's perception of democracy is increasingly influenced by election outcomes rather than actual institutional change, even when media freedom or judicial independence is restricted by governments.

In May members of the Center for Statecraft and Strategic Communication travelled to Washington, DC with the students of Applied History 767: World Order & Present Challenges. Designed by Center Director Dr. Rikard Westerberg, this globetrotting course has been offered since 2019 and sees students from the Stockholm School of Economics embark on a deep dive of statecraft, diplomacy and international history.

The Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE) and the Forum for Research on Media and Democracy in Eastern Europe (FROMDEE) invites paper submissions to a one-day conference on “Democratic backsliding and electoral autocracies” with a keynote lecture by Arturas Rozenas (New York University) on 13 October 2023 in Stockholm, Sweden.

On April 19th, 2023, the Center for Statecraft and Strategic Communication hosted a highly engaging event, "StratCom Lunch with Henrik Landerholm - A New Era of National Security." As Sweden's National Security Advisor, Mr. Landerholm provided valuable insights on building a National Security Council in today's complex world.

In this brief SITE researchers, Anna Anisimova and Cecilia Smitt Meyer, present a short overview of some of the most important statistics on Russia’s economic performance no longer publicly available. They also discuss some alternative measures to track the Russian economy which can be used to provide more accurate assessments of the effect of sanctions and thus reduce the impact of Russia’s data warfare.

Mara Bălașa sheds light in Engelsberg Ideas on the complexities of the partnership between Romania and NATO, as well as the potential threats that could impact this alliance.

Att Sverige ensamt skulle ha förmåga och ekonomisk kapacitet att utveckla ännu ett inhemskt producerat stridsflygplan verkar inte realistiskt. Regeringen måste därför ta tillfället i akt att stärka det säkerhetspolitiska samarbetet med partner i Europa och Japan, skriver Patrik Ström, chef European Institute of Japanese Studies, Handelshögskolan i Stockholm.

Klara Strömberg received a diploma for the best essay during the Applied History course in 2021. In the interview, Klara discusses her main findings and the impact the course had on her outlook, and shares her current pursuits in pursuing a master’s degree in economics and international economic policy.

Did you miss the chance to attend the book launch event "Rebuilding Ukraine: Principles and policies" presented by Torbjörn Becker, Beatrice Weder di Mauro and Veronika Movchan on 11 January? Watch the recordings to learn more about their framework for Ukraine’s post-war reconstruction co-written together with leading scholars and experts.

Did you miss the chance to attend the annual SITE 2022 Development Day conference? This policy brief shortly summarizes the presentations and discussions at the SITE Development Day Conference, held on December 6, 2022. The main focus of the conference was how to maintain and organize support for Ukraine in the short and long run, with the current situation in Belarus and the region and the ongoing energy crisis in Europe, also being addressed.