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International Centre for Defence and Security Accessibility

Breakfast Session under the Chatham House Rule

Between Bridges and Bargains: Europe and the New Eurasian Corridors

May 16, 08:30-09:45
Room: Shanghai

Russia’s war in Ukraine has accelerated the search for alternative corridors linking Europe and Asia. A potential peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan—if it holds—will be historic, opening the door to economic opportunities across the regions. However, Moscow’s ambitions to remain the indispensable broker, China’s creeping influence, and spillovers from the Iran war threaten to undermine progress. We have been here before: a conviction that economic integration would, over time, produce political liberalisation shaped a generation of European policy. Europe’s strategic dilemma is thus not whether to engage—but how. How do we pursue connectivity, invest in infrastructure, and promote regional stability without repeating yesterday’s mistakes?

Speakers

Leila Alieva

Associate of Russian and East European Studies at Oxford University School for Global and Area Studies

Anahide Pilibossian

Vice President of Strategy and Development at the Applied Policy Research Institute of Armenia

Alan Riley
Alan Riley

Visiting Professor at the College of Europe

Ilke Toygür

Director of the Global Policy Center and Professor at IE University

Tom Tugendhat

Member of the UK Parliament

Moderator

Jana Kobzová

Co-director of the European Security Programme at the European Council on Foreign Relations

08:30 Through the Back Door: Russia Between Isolation and Globalisation
10:00 Not One Centimetre: Europe’s Defence Strategy