Ghent Institute for International and European Studies - GIES

Yesterday our Louise Amoris successfully defended her PhD thesis “Living in the split: the agency of Armenia and Georgia in-between Russia and the EU”.

She now has a joint PhD from Ghent University and Sorbonne-Nouvelle. Huge congratulations to our newest doctor!

📢 A new article by our Laura Luciani, co-authored with Maryna Shevtsova, has just been published in the Journal of Gender Studies:

“Sexuality securitized: how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine reconfigures (anti-)LGBTQ politics in Eastern Europe”.

Focusing on Georgia and Ukraine, the article finds that Russia’s full-scale invasion has led to different paths regarding political homophobia and anti-gender movements in each country. It suggests that a major security crisis can result in differential and ambiguous outcomes for (anti-)LGBTQ politics, both across geopolitical locations and within a single national space.

Read the full article here: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09589236.2024.2427198

Glad to announce two new colleagues at GIES!

Thor Geunens joined us as a PhD researcher (FWO-Fellow). He examines the influence of geopolitical threat on the evolution of political parties’ defence preferences. As his project draws on insights and methodologies from International Relations and Comparative Politics, he is also part of GASPAR. Thor holds a BS and MS of Political Science/International Relations, a BA and MA of Philosophy and a MS of Teaching. Before joining Ghent University, he worked as a Blue Book Trainee at the European Commission and as a teacher in Social Sciences and Philosophy.

Simon Rogissart joined us as a PhD researcher (FWO-Fellow). He brings his experience as a policy officer for offshore wind energy at the FPS Economy to his research. Over the coming years, as part of the ETF BE-WISE project, Simon will examine the interests of the Belgian offshore wind energy industry within the context of existing and emerging industrial policy measures in Europe.

Welcome to both!

Time to share a new GIES Honours Paper! In this series, our best students have the chance to transform their Master's theses into publishable articles.

Hayat Kassioui examined whether the EU's rhetoric-reality gap theory regarding Israel-Palestine holds, focusing on the question: "To what extent is there a gap between EU rhetoric and policy in the Israeli-Palestinian issue from October 2023 to June 2024?"

The research addresses gaps in existing literature and the lack of studies on recent violence. Utilising content analysis for rhetoric and case studies for policy, the findings indicate no discrepancy exists. The EU maintains a cautious stance towards Israel, emphasizing humanitarian aid and international law, yet this does not confront the underlying issues of colonialism and apartheid.

Read more at: https://www.ugent.be/ps/politiekewetenschappen/gies/en/research/publications/honours_paper/academic-year-2023-2024/the-eus-rhetoric-reality-gap-towards-israel-palestine

Glad to announce that Ruben De La Cruz joined us as a PhD researcher!

Ruben obtained a Master’s degree in EU-Studies from Ghent University with the highest distinction (summa cm laude). He received the Marthe Versichelen award for his master’s dissertation on the state aid politics of Important Projects of Common European Interest (IPCEI).

Ruben’s research focuses on the political economy of European green industrial policy, approaching the great-power politics of the green transition from a political-economic perspective. He studies how the EU fosters its strategic autonomy by strengthening the industrial production of green technologies.

Time to share a new GIES Honours Paper! In this series, our best students have the chance to transform their Master's theses into publishable articles.

In this study, Seppe Dewulf analyses the positions of four EU Member States — Belgium, Germany, France, and Poland — on deep-sea mining within the International Seabed Authority (ISA) negotiations (2017-2023).

By examining the salience of their involvement, the polarisation of their most recent stances, and the evolution of their positions over time, this study aims to reveal the possible internal dynamics that to this day prevent a cohesive EU strategy on deep-sea mining. The analysis shows that while the countries’ positions haven't converged, their most recent stances are not incompatible, tying their support for seabed mining to conditions on environmental protection and scientific research.

Read more:https://www.ugent.be/ps/politiekewetenschappen/gies/en/research/publications/honours_paper/academic-year-2023-2024/a-deep-sea-dilemma

Time to share a new GIES Honours Paper! In this series, our best students have the chance to transform their Master's theses into publishable articles.

In this study, Aelön Messiaen seeks explanations for the impact of Russian interference on the withdrawal of French military interventions in the Sahel.

The first finding is that there is evidence that Russia exerted influence among militarised locals whose discontent led to a coup, mainly by exploiting existing anti-government sentiment. Next, observations were found that Russia spread an anti-French narrative among the junta through mercenaries (PMSCs) and local pro-Russian civil society organisations. Finally, with the eventual deployment of Russian PMSCs, it was confirmed that the new rulers had fully accepted Moscow's offer.

Read more: https://www.ugent.be/ps/politiekewetenschappen/gies/en/research/publications/honours_paper/academic-year-2023-2024/coin-to-coup-a-french-debacle-in-the-sahel

📢 The GIES Honours Papers are back! 🎉 In this series, our best students have the chance to transform their Master's theses into publishable articles ⚡️

In this paper, Jeroen Thielens examined what the ECB’s perception was on post-pandemic inflation, and how the ECB justified its interest rate hikes 💸

Want to read Jeroen's paper? Read it here ⬇
https://bit.ly/4gsWnOt

📢 The GIES Honours Papers are back! 🎉 In this series, our best students have the chance to transform their Master's theses into publishable articles ⚡️

Next is Hazel Tyssen who looked into the term ‘politicisation of humanitarian aid' in the case of Afghanistan.

Read the full paper here ⬇️
https://bit.ly/3MU0zJE

📣 Lecture of the Viae Caspiae Knowledge Centre / Eureast Platform:

“Oil wealth, space, and inequality in Baku, Azerbaijan”
Dr. Leyla Sayfutdinova from the University of Glasgow.

💭 Azerbaijan’s capital city, Baku, is one of the few oil cities in the world that has been a site of continuous production of oil from the nineteenth century to this day. The speaker will explore the regimes of urban exclusion and inclusion in Baku that have always been centered around oil. 🇦🇿

🕐 29 October 2024, 18:30, Technicum 2, Auditorium G.

👉 Info and registration:

Lecture 'Oil wealth, space, and inequality in Baku, Azerbaijan' Lecture by Dr. Leyla Sayfutdinova, University of Glasgow

📢 The GIES Honours Papers are back! 🎉 In this series, our best students have the chance to transform their Master's theses into publishable articles ⚡️

Antoon Van Lommel's thesis demonstrates how an overly militarized, enemy-centred strategy disrupted civil-military relations in the Sahel region.

Read about it here: https://bit.ly/47qVTo1

📢 The GIES Honours Papers are back! 🎉 In this series, our best students have the chance to transform their Master's theses into publishable articles ⚡️

First up is Wannes Braems, who explored how partisan positions on the Israel/Palestine conflict contributed to polarization between Democrats and Republicans in the US Congress from 2008 to 2023.

Read the full paper here: https://bit.ly/3Tr7w8Q