News at SITE

On June 18, 2025, the Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE), supported by the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, hosted a high-level public seminar exploring the evolving landscape of international sanctions on Russia. This seminar also marked the official launch of SITE’s new Sanctions Web Portal—an open-access platform offering data, analysis, and resources for policymakers, journalists, and researchers. The full recording is now available on SITE’s YouTube channel.

As Ukraine continues to defend itself and rebuild from war, one idea is gaining traction: seize Russia’s frozen assets to help foot the bill. This policy brief, by Anders Olofsgård, Deputy Director of SITE, explores legal and economic arguments that support the case for turning these resources into a long-term support fund for Ukraine’s recovery.

A new digital portal launched today provides a comprehensive, research-driven overview of the effect of international sanctions imposed on Russia following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Designed to help policymakers, researchers, journalists, and the public navigate the complexities of economic sanctions and their consequences, the portal offers a data-rich, systematic examination of one of the most significant tools in modern geopolitics.

Artificial intelligence is no longer a distant dream in the energy sector—it’s already reshaping how power is generated, distributed, and consumed. This new policy brief, published by the Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE) offers insights from SITE Energy Talk 2025 on how AI is helping countries like Ukraine, Sweden, and those in the Baltics build more flexible, efficient, and resilient energy systems.

On May 13, Torbjörn Becker, Director of the Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE), presented SITE’s latest report on the Russian economy to the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) in Brussels. The meeting brought together EU Finance and Economy Ministers to address the Union’s internal economic and financial priorities, while also making space to consider the broader implications of Russia’s ongoing aggression against Ukraine. This discussion comes at a particularly timely moment, coinciding with the EU’s preparations for its 17th sanctions package, which is expected to be formally adopted by the Council on May 20.

Russia’s attempt to fight back against international sanctions is steering its economy toward more government control and less competition. This new policy brief analysis, by Anna Anisimova from the Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE), reveals how measures meant to protect the economy are instead tightening state grip on industries, stifling growth, and threatening fiscal stability.