Strategic Trends 2016

At the invitation of the Permanent Mission of Switzerland to NATO, publishers and authors of “Strategic Trends 2016” presented their publication at NATO headquarters in Brussels on 21 March 2016. Key aspects were the increased salience of nuclear weapons, Asian power politics in times of a more assertive China and the renationalization of defense cooperation in Europe. While the audience agreed on the relevance of the presented topics, NATO representatives specifically highlighted that difficult decisions remain regarding nuclear weapons. The next day, on the morning of 22 March 2016, publishers and authors presented their conclusions during a breakfast organized by Carnegie Europe. Once more, European defense cooperation was the main focus of the discussion. Other topics covered include the refugee policy of the European Union – and the question of whether it contains ethical contradictions – as well as European Energy politics in times of low oil and gas prices.