Marco Marsili | Università Ca' Foscari Venezia (original) (raw)

Videos by Marco Marsili

Lecture given as keynote speaker in the main session of the 13rd edition of the international sci... more Lecture given as keynote speaker in the main session of the 13rd edition of the international scientific media conference "War Media Challenges: Media, Information, Disinformation, Propaganda", University of Bielsko-Biała, Poland, 18 November 2022

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Papers by Marco Marsili

Europea, Jul 29, 2023

The Russian-Ukrainian conflict, which started in 2014 after the annexation of Crimea to the Russi... more The Russian-Ukrainian conflict, which started in 2014 after the annexation of Crimea to the Russian Federation, and re-flamed in February 2022 with the "special military operation" in the Donbas, shows the weaknesses and shortcomings of the European Union: the east-west enlargement, the lack of an autonomous foreign policy, the absence of a European defense and security ownership and the dependence on NATO. This short article aims to shed light on the major problems of the European Union in the context of the Ukrainian crisis.

Boletín de la Academia de Yuste, Jun 26, 2023

Los países ubicados en el hemisferio occidental tienen algo en común —y no es solo la posición ge... more Los países ubicados en el hemisferio occidental tienen algo en común —y no es solo la posición geográfica—. América Latina1 cuenta con una impresionante cadena de golpes de Estado en comparación con la democracia estable de su vecino estadounidense. Los acontecimientos recientes en Brasil después de que Lula jurase su cargo para un tercer mandato como presidente contra el titular Bolsonaro nos recordaron el asalto al Capitolio de EE.UU. el 6 de enero de 2021, que interrumpió una sesión conjunta del Congreso en el proceso de afirmar los resultados de las elecciones presidenciales que expulsaron a Donald Trump de la Casa Blanca. Las protestas electorales en Brasil comenzaron poco después de la conclusión de la segunda vuelta de las elecciones generales el 30 de octubre de 2022, en la que Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva fue elegido presidente y escogió el 8 de enero de 2023, cuando miles de partidarios de la derecha del expresidente Jair Bolsonaro irrumpieron en las tres ramas del gobierno de Brasil en la capital pidiendo la intervención militar. Hay similitudes y diferencias entre el ataque de Brasil en comparación con el ataque del 6 de enero en los Estados Unidos. Tanto Bolsonaro como Trump han impugnado sus derrotas electorales, amplificando teorías de conspiración de fraude electoral sin apoyo. Además, la crisis presidencial venezolana que duró desde 2019 hasta 2023 fue pavimentada por elecciones fraudulentas .

Newsletter of the Academy of Yuste, Jun 26, 2023

There is something in common between the countries located in the Western Hemisphere—and is not j... more There is something in common between the countries located in the Western Hemisphere—and is not just the geographic position. Latin America boasts an impressive string of coups, compared to the stable democracy of its American neighbor. Recent events in Brazil after Lula was sworn in for a third term as president against incumbent Bolsonaro, reminded us of the assault on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, that disrupted a joint session of the Congress in the process of affirming the presidential election results which kicked Donald Trump out of the White House. The election protests in Brazil began shortly after the conclusion of the general election’s second round on October 30, 2022, in which Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was elected president, and picked on January 8, 2023, when thousands of far-right supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro stormed all three branches of Brazil’s government in the capital calling for military intervention. There are similarities and differences between the Brazil attack compared to January 6 attack in the United States. Both Bolsonaro and Trump have contested their electoral defeats, amplifying unsupported conspiracy theories of voter fraud. Also, the Venezuelan presidential crisis which lasted from 2019 to 2023 was paved by fraudulent elections.

Honvédségi Szemle – Hungarian Defence Review, Jan 18, 2003

The term "hybrid" gained widespread use in military and political discourse; it grabbed the headl... more The term "hybrid" gained widespread use in military and political discourse; it grabbed the headlines and eventually reached the general public. We refer to "hybrid warfare" or "hybrid conflict", most likely without fully comprehending the term's meaning and ramifications. The question is whether and when hybrid warfare should be regarded an armed attack that exceeds the threshold of damage and devastation caused by a kinetic action. The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the consistency of the growing doctrine of hybrid warfare with current international (humanitarian) law, beginning with a lexical and logical analysis of the words.

Jadavpur Journal of International Relations, Sep 14, 2022

Arctic security is a main security challenge-a global one, not only a regional one-not only for t... more Arctic security is a main security challenge-a global one, not only a regional one-not only for the Arctic countries, but for the whole international community, first of all Europe. With the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China expanding their role in the area, and the difficulty of finding an undisputed governance on maritime routes and economic exploitation of resources, there is the risk of militarization of the Arctic. After briefly summarizing current and future challenges in the Arctic, this article analyzes the limits due to a deficit of suitable instruments to maintain security in the region, especially in relation to the role of international intergovernmental organizations, and it suggests some remedies to overcome these deficiencies.

IUM Atualidade, Sep 13, 2022

The North Atlantic Security and Defense Strategy (NASDS) project aims to investigate the issues r... more The North Atlantic Security and Defense Strategy (NASDS) project aims to investigate the issues related to the security and defense of maritime space and sea routes from the Arctic Ocean to the North Atlantic, including the control of search and rescue (SAR) areas through unmanned autonomous systems.

The European Union security and counter-terrorism strategy adopted after 11 September 2001 has no... more The European Union security and counter-terrorism strategy adopted after 11 September 2001 has not been effective, instead resulted in the increase of Islamist terrorist incidents. Europe has been hit by a wave of terrorist attacks, which demonstrates the limits of the Security and Defence Policy. The EU short-term strategy, tending only to hit terrorist organisations, has not produced the expected effects: attacks in Europe, rather than decreasing, have increased. Little or nothing has been done to develop a successful preventive strategy. After the early 2000s, there is hardly registered Islamic attack within the EU, due to the change in the Al-Qaeda strategy. The recrudescence recorded after 2014 coincides with the rise of ISIS. The EU shortsighted strategy adopted so far to combat Islamic terrorism has proved ineffective. Attacks within the EU, rather than decreasing, have increased. The high number of terrorist incidents and casualties within the EU demonstrates that terrorism ...

Newsletter of the Yuste’s Academy/Boletín de la Academia de Yuste, May 30, 2022

The Russo-Ukrainian conflict shows the limits and weaknesses of the European Union. More than thi... more The Russo-Ukrainian conflict shows the limits and weaknesses of the European Union. More than this, the conflict reveals the inconsistencies between the EU principles and the policies implemented by the Union. Is not only the self-proclaimed role of the “global actor” that the EU imposed itself, that is questioned, but also the role of advocate of fundamental human rights that the Union claims to defend. Finally, the conflict warns of the risks of a hasty EU accession of Ukraine.

El conflicto ruso-ucraniano muestra los límites y las debilidades de la Unión Europea. Además, el conflicto pone de manifiesto las incoherencias entre los principios de la UE y las políticas aplicadas por la Unión. No es solo el autoproclamado papel del “actor global” que la UE se impuso a sí misma lo que se cuestiona, sino también el papel de defensora de los derechos humanos fundamentales que argumenta defender. Por último, el conflicto advierte de los riesgos de una adhesión apresurada de Ucrania a la UE.

Boletín de la Academia de Yuste, May 30, 2022

El conflicto ruso-ucraniano muestra los límites y las debilidades de la Unión Europea. Además, el... more El conflicto ruso-ucraniano muestra los límites y las debilidades de la Unión Europea. Además, el conflicto pone de manifiesto las incoherencias entre los principios de la UE y las políticas aplicadas por la Unión. No es solo el autoproclamado papel del “actor global” que la UE se impuso a sí misma lo que se cuestiona, sino también el papel de defensora de los derechos humanos fundamentales que argumenta defender. Por último, el conflicto advierte de los riesgos de una adhesión apresurada de Ucrania a la UE.

The Russian Federation in Global Knowledge Warfare, 2021

The collapse of the Soviet Union has been followed by a series of conflicts between the Russian F... more The collapse of the Soviet Union has been followed by a series of conflicts between the Russian Federation and its neighbours. Although some of these conflicts have been fought at the kinetic level, they were justified by Moscow through information warfare activities and supported by influence operations. This chapter, which includes an extensive survey of the literature on the topic, aims to investigate the hybrid warfare strategy carried out by the Russian Federation in its “sphere of influence” over the last three decades—the Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania), Ukraine (Crimea and Donbass, i.e., Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics), Georgia (South Ossetia and Abkhazia) and Moldova (Transnistria)—and to assess the effectiveness of the Russian (dis)information strategy. The essay focuses on the nationalist discourse and the pro-Russia narrative.

This paper aims to trace the origins of the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms i... more This paper aims to trace the origins of the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the European integration process. It is a transcontinental journey that connects the French and the American revolution under the achievements and the principles of the Enlightenment. It is the history of contemporary Europe, from the French Revolution to the tragedy of World War II. In the process of European integration the institutions overlap, and find in the Council of Europe, an institution larger than the European Union, the moment in which these rights are codified. These principles, which are the basis of European values, have been embodied in the European Convention on Human Rights, one of the most advanced instruments on the protection of fundamental human rights.

artciencia.Com, Revista De Arte, Ciência E Comunicação, Oct 6, 2021

The freedom of the press-or the freedom of expression-traces its roots in the enlightenment perio... more The freedom of the press-or the freedom of expression-traces its roots in the enlightenment period. Often presented as the "fourth power"sometimes as "counter-power"-free press is considered a feature of liberal-democracies, and a fundamental human right. This brief paper explores the validity of these definitions and the role of the press in democratic societies characterized by governments constrained by checks and balances. Most of this paper draws on my previously published works.

Journal of Modern Italian Studies, Sep 8, 2021

Diplomacy has played a key role in conflicts since ancient times. Over time, the role of diplomat... more Diplomacy has played a key role in conflicts since ancient times. Over time, the role of diplomatic agents has changed, to take on, gradually, greater importance especially in wartime. This article focuses on the activities of the Italian foreign service in World War II and on the role of diplomats during the civil war that followed the fall of Fascism and the subsequent armistice with the Allies. In this dramatic context, some diplomats confirmed their loyalty to the king, while others joined the new-born Italian Social Republic (R.S.I.), a puppet state ruled by Mussolini under the protection of Nazi Germany. Somewhere, two Italian diplomatic representations coexisted shortly. A page in the history of diplomacy, unknown to wide audience, that this contribution aims to bring to light. The article strives to draw conclusions on the implications and consequences of this ‘diplomatic civil war’ on post-war Italian foreign policy.

Political Reflection, Apr 9, 2021

War and politics are closely interrelated. If it is assumed, as in the case of Clausewitz's famou... more War and politics are closely interrelated. If it is assumed, as in the case of Clausewitz's famous principle, that "war is a mere continuation of policy by other means... is not merely a political act, but also a truly political instrument, a continuation of political commerce, a carrying out of the same by other means" (Von Clausewitz, 1976), then it should be acknowledged that war is a political act. But Foucault inverts Clausewitz's traditional conception of war and says that politics is the continuation of war by other means (Foucault, 2006: 165). Here the emphasis of the discussion on war moves on politics. So, how to limit conflict within the political arena? The question shifts from the concept of armed conflict (i.e., war) to that of political conflict, in which nations confront against each other with alternate means such assanctions, coercive diplomatic efforts, economic warfare, or as prelude to war (Carisch et al., 2017).

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Europea, Jul 29, 2023

Boletín de la Academia de Yuste, Jun 26, 2023

Newsletter of the Academy of Yuste, Jun 26, 2023

Honvédségi Szemle – Hungarian Defence Review, Jan 18, 2003

Jadavpur Journal of International Relations, Sep 14, 2022

IUM Atualidade, Sep 13, 2022

Newsletter of the Yuste’s Academy/Boletín de la Academia de Yuste, May 30, 2022

Boletín de la Academia de Yuste, May 30, 2022

The Russian Federation in Global Knowledge Warfare, 2021

artciencia.Com, Revista De Arte, Ciência E Comunicação, Oct 6, 2021

Journal of Modern Italian Studies, Sep 8, 2021

Political Reflection, Apr 9, 2021

Europea, Jan 22, 2020

Infection disease outbreaks are invariably characterized by myths and rumors, boosted by social m... more Infection disease outbreaks are invariably characterized by myths and rumors, boosted by social media accounts, that media often pick up and circulate. On the grounds of protecting public health in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, some Member States of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe imposed strict rules on the dissemination of "fake news". This paper reviews the outbreak communication principles established by the World Health Organization and checks the compliance of emergency legislation, adopted under the pretext of com-bating misinformation and disinformation, against fundamental human rights.

La crisi finanziaria scoppiata nell’autunno 2008 ha sancito il successo di coloro che ne sono sta... more La crisi finanziaria scoppiata nell’autunno 2008 ha sancito il successo di coloro che ne sono stati gli artefici. In Italia e Grecia sono andati al potere tecnocrati e banchieri, gli stessi che, fino al giorno prima, hanno lavorato per le istituzioni responsabili del crollo dell’economia. Ai vertici dei governi europei, delle istituzioni internazionali, dell’Unione europea (un «super Leviatano»), siedono i referenti delle banche e della finanza, nelle mani dei quali una classe politica incapace e inadeguata ha affidato le speranze di ripresa. Essi continuano a perseguire le politiche di impoverimento di 720 milioni di europei, con l’unico scòpo di trasformare il Vecchio Continente in un immenso lager di schiavi moderni: tagli, flessibilità, liberalizzazioni, privatizzazioni, queste le «ricette» per raggiungere falsi obiettivi: la riduzione del deficit ed il pareggio di bilancio (tecnicamente impossibile). Con la «privatizzazione» (svendita) delle ultime società pubbliche completeranno il disegno, raggiungendo l’obiettivo di distruzione degli Stati e della privazione dei più elementari diritti di cittadinanza. Sono politici, banchieri, economisti, editori, controllano i media, e attraverso essi ci tranquillizzano. Non possiamo illuderci che, coloro che hanno appiccato l’incendio, si trasformino improvvisamente in pompieri. Guardando i dati, viene spontaneo domandarsi come sia possibile che in soli tre anni dall’autunno 2008, il debito pubblico di alcuni Stati (Italia, Spagna, Portogallo, Irlanda) sia sensibilmente peggiorato. La risposta è semplice: la colpa è delle misure anti-crisi legate alle operazioni di sostegno al sistema bancario. Con i soldi dati alle banche a interessi irrisori (1.200 miliardi in Europa, e altrettanti negli Usa), queste non fanno altro che rifinanziare le loro obbligazioni o acquistare a loro volta il debito degli Stati, che è divenuto nel frattempo più oneroso da sostenere perchè è aumentato, e il rating è peggiorato. Le banche, quindi, chiedono interessi più alti agli Stati, e la voragine del debito pubblico aumenta in una spirale infinita. In tutto questo giro, chi ci guadagna, ancora una volta, sono proprio le banche. Ma come siamo arrivati fino a qui? Quali sono i sottili meccanismi che hanno privato gli Stati della loro sovranità? L’Ue, la Bce, l’euro, il Trattato di Lisbona, Basilea II, il Fmi, le agenzie di rating, sono tutti strumenti nelle mani della finanza, che ha piazzato i suoi uomini al vertice delle istituzioni nazionali e sovranazionali. Il potere, scippato da tecnocrati e banchieri, con la complicità di politici incapaci e corrotti, deve tornare nelle mani del popolo sovrano.

Collana: Entropie n. 117, Dec 2011

In diverse nazioni – in testa gli Stati Uniti – le rivelazioni di WikiLeaks hanno tolto il sonno ... more In diverse nazioni – in testa gli Stati Uniti – le rivelazioni di WikiLeaks hanno tolto il sonno ai responsabili dell’intelligence e generato un acceso dibattito sul conflitto tra libera informazione e ragione di Stato. L’Italia ha proseguito nella sua infelice eccezione: la ricezione dei cablogrammi sul nostro Paese ha scatenato la solita opposizione tra berlusconiani e antiberlusconiani, facendo sì che tutto, ancora una volta, ruotasse intorno al grande one man show. Eppure l’antologia di WikiLeaks che viene qui presentata solleva un’unica tragica domanda: com’è stata possibile l’egemonia totale di un uomo così tanto potente in Italia, quanto grottesco, kitsch e impresentabile in qualsiasi altra parte del mondo? Si possono certo scomodare le lucide profezie di Guy Debord sulla “società dello spettacolo” o la surreale congiunzione di re e giullare dell’Ubu Roi di Alfred Jarry. Ma lo spaccato italiano che emerge da questi cablogrammi ci parla anche delle connivenze di numerosissimi cortigiani, figure di primo e di secondo piano che hanno agito per i loro interessi, protetti dal grande spettacolo del loro Capo.

Marco Marsili, giornalista, politologo e docente di giornalismo presso l’Università degli Studi dell’Insubria a Varese, spiega la storia di WikiLeaks e del suo leader Julian Assange, e guida il lettore attraverso la comprensione dei dispacci inviati a Washington dall’ambasciatore a Roma Mel Sembler (2001-2005) e dal suo successore Ronald Spogli (2005 - 2009). Ne Il Clown. Il meglio di Wikileaks sull'anomalia italiana (Mimesis Entropie, Milano, 2011, 10 euro) Berlusconi viene definito un leader “incapace, vanitoso e inefficace come moderno leader europeo”, intento a spendere le sue energie in feste notturne, le quali non gli permetterebbero di riposarsi abbastanza.

Critiche per una politica estera inefficace e ondivaga, basata sui rapporti personali di Berlusconi, anche con dittatori come Gheddafi o il leader bielorusso Lukashenko. Il rapporto tra Silvio Berlusconi e Vladimir Putin è oggetto di una attenta osservazione da parte dei diplomatici statunitensi. La loro relazione viene giudicata di natura confidenziale, anche a causa dello scambio di “regali generosi”, e foriera di redditizi contratti energetici tra Eni e il colosso russo dell’energia Gazprom. La descrizione data di Berlusconi è che “sembra essere il portavoce di Putin in Europa”. Gli Usa cercano, tuttavia, di avvantaggiare le forniture di aziende americane in vista della realizzazione del nuovo programma nucleare varato da Berlusconi (poi abbandonato in seguito al referendum) e spingono per l’inclusione delle strutture marittime italiane nel progetto Megaporti.

Forti critiche anche per l’abolizione dell’Alto commissario anticorruzione, decisa dal Cavaliere nel 2008, appena tornato a Palazzo Chigi, e sulla vicenda Alitalia: “Ha inventato una legge ad personam per ottenere un risultato politico. È una lezione per chi vuole investire in Italia”. Per mantenere le promesse fatte in campagna elettorale, di mantenere il vettore (che stava per essere acquistato dalla cordata Air France-Klm) in mani italiane, Berlusconi ne ha favorito la cessione a Cai. “La nuova linea area avrà un monopolio di fatto delle rotte interne italiane e i debiti e i passivi dell’Alitalia passeranno ora a una bad company avviata alla liquidazione ma tuttora di proprietà del governo” scrive l’Ambasciata Usa a Roma. Spogli ricorda come, nonostante il ministro dell’Interno Maroni si fosse detto contrario al salvataggio, “Berlusconi ha utilizzato le sue conoscenze personali e politiche per convincere un gruppo di imprenditori a impegnarsi nel ‘salvataggio’ della compagnia aerea e nel mantenere la compagnia di bandiera italiana”, favorendo la creazione di un gruppo di 16 investitori (definiti “compari” del premier) che hanno seguito il piano d’acquisto elaborato da Intesa Sanpaolo. Per venire in aiuto della cordata di amici, che hanno consentito al premier di fare bella figura, mantenendo la promessa fatta in campagna elettorale, il governo ha modificato la legge fallimentare, in modo da consentire alla società di essere divisa in due, con i passivi e i debiti per un miliardo di euro che restano nella “bad company” di responsabilità del governo italiano. Sul Carroccio un dispaccio relativo ad un colloquio tra il ministro Roberto Calderoli, il segretario della Lega Lombarda, Giancarlo Giorgetti, e il console generale di Milano, svela i piani del movimento per “diventare forza egemone nel Nord”, le speranze dello stesso Giorgetti di poter “alla fine succedere a Bossi come capo del partito”.

Parte della corrispondenza riguarda l’allora ministro della Difesa Ignazio La Russa, che non esita a mostrarsi più che accondiscendente nei confronti dell’alleato statunitense. “Si è descritto letteralmente come filoamericano” si legge in un dispaccio. “Ha fatto riferimento al suo coinvolgimento nell’ala giovanile del Movimento sociale italiano come esempio dei suoi sentimenti filoamericani. Ha detto che il movimento era diviso in due campi: uno filopalestinese e l’altro filoamericano (e filoisraeliano). Si è definito esponente di vertice del secondo”. La sua proposta di aprire per 30 giorni le basi per l’addestramento dei giovani, viene bollata dall’ambasciatore come odorante “un po’ di fascismo”.

I dispacci diffusi da WikiLeaks dimostrano inequivocabilmente la mancanza di autonomia politica del governo Berlusconi in politica estera, e l’asservimento del premier, interessato solo alle sue vicende processuali e alla sua immagine, alla volontà dei governanti stranieri, a discapito dell’interesse nazionale. Ne esce un’immagine di un esecutivo incapace ed inefficiente, mosso solo da interessi personali, sia di natura politica che economica o giudiziaria.

Xsmall, Dec 2012

Dopo il fortunato successo di "Gli uomini che sfigati, le donne che stronze", Manuel M. torna con... more Dopo il fortunato successo di "Gli uomini che sfigati, le donne che stronze", Manuel M. torna con le sue analisi al vetriolo sui rapporti tra i due sessi. In "Donne che legano uomini" l’autore mette a nudo lo spaccato femminile fatto di apparenza legata alla moda, alla chirurgia estetica, agli psicofarmaci. Come nel precedente pamphlet, anche qui la donna esce devastata, non tanto dagli interventi di chirurgia estetica, ma per i non-valori che rincorre: soldi, ancora soldi e solamente soldi. L’obiettivo è un imprenditore-milionario che assicuri il mantenimento e la capacità di fare shopping a livelli elevati (le mitiche borse Birkin e Kelly di Hermès - straordinari nascondigli per lo Xanax - le scarpe di Laboutin o Jimmy Choo, e così via). Un viaggio attraverso la trasvalutazione di valori dove etica, cultura, affetti, amore, famiglia, vengono sacrificati spietatamente sull’altare della disponibilità economica, scambiata per benessere, come strumento di affermazione sociale.

Xsmall, Nov 2011

I rapporti tra uomini e donne visti da un punto di vista politicamente scorrettissimo. Un pamphle... more I rapporti tra uomini e donne visti da un punto di vista politicamente scorrettissimo. Un pamphlet graffiante che le donne odieranno, ma nel quale non potranno non riconoscersi. Perchè gli uomini sono dei perdenti, e le donne comandano il “gioco”. Un excursus che, partendo dalla creazione e dalla cacciata dal Paradiso terrestre nella Genesi, arriva fino alle chat erotiche e Facebook, raccontando gli stereotipi dei comportamenti femminili. Come, perchè e quando una donna tradirà, prima o poi, il suo uomo, e le bugie che gli racconterà. Un manuale pratico che ogni uomo dovrebbe leggere, e ogni donna dovrebbe evitare (sconsigliato alle femministe). Il libro che avresti voluto aver scritto, ma che non oseresti mai regalare al tuo partner. Manuel M. è lo pseudonimo di un noto giornalista e scrittore che ha trasposto in questo libretto anni di analisi sociologica su uomini e donne, e la propria esperienza con l’altro sesso. Il pamphlet è un riuscitissimo tentativo di catarsi interiore, offerto a quanti condividono, con l’autore, un’analisi impietosa dei rapporti tra uomini e donne.

Il nuovo giornalista sarà sempre di più un content producer: dovrà essere in grado di intercettar... more Il nuovo giornalista sarà sempre di più un content producer: dovrà essere in grado di intercettare l’informazione, di analizzarla, valutarla, e ridiffonderla, possibilmente in diversi formati. È questo l’identikit del professionista nell’era digitale disegnato da Marco Marsili nel libro “La rivoluzione dell'informazione digitale in Rete. Come Internet sta cambiando il modo di fare giornalismo” (Odoya, Bologna, 2009; prefazione Gianpiero Gamaleri, postfazione Massimo Esposti).

Selezionare nella marea di informazione del web sta diventando il vero valore aggiunto della professione. Trovare news davvero utili e favorirne la diffusione è una delle sfide più difficili per chi vuole esercitare questa professione in un momento storico di grandi cambiamenti: le barriere di accesso, tanto per cominciare, sono sempre più basse e chiunque può fare informazione attraverso il suo blog o caricare un servizio video. La crisi attuale di molte imprese editoriali e la dilagante sfiducia dei lettori verso la stampa sono altri segnali evidenti di un settore al bivio.

È vero che la rivoluzione digitale apre nuovi scenari molto interessanti: la lenta erosione del potere di una casta, lo spirito di collaborazione e condivisione delle notizie, la partecipazione dei lettori e il boom del citizen journalism, gli straordinari sviluppi delle tecnologie di connessione (si parla già di web 3.0!) e il sempre più facile accesso ai servizi. Non ultimo la prospettiva di nuove figure professionali. Ma la rete pone anche delle
problematiche di non facile soluzione: quanto è neutrale il web? Chi controlla l’accesso? Chi garantisce la sicurezza? Come combattere il digital divide?

Problematiche che Marco Marsili, docente di Teorie e tecniche del linguaggio giornalistico presso l’Università degli Studi dell’Insubria,
direttore responsabile de "La Voce d’Italia" (uno dei più importanti quotidiani indipendente on line), prospetta già nelle prime pagine di introduzione, per poi affrontare in ogni capitolo tutti i diversi aspetti del giornalismo di oggi. Giornalismo inteso come processo, come lavoro e come industria. Ne esce un vero manuale non solo per chi fa questa professione o vi aspira, ma utile per coloro che vogliono capire di più dell’ecosistema delle telecomunicazioni, dei modelli di produzione e fruizione delle news, dei rapporti tra politica e informazione, degli interessi nascosti, delle distorsioni degli aiuti statali, delle problematiche aperte e delle false ideologie che circolano nell’era del web 2.0.

Ogni capitolo presenta in genere qualche elemento storico che rende più completa la lettura del presente e meno azzardata – anzi, sempre circostanziata e molto argomentata - di qualche ipotesi di sviluppo futuro. Si comincia dalla stampa: un focus sul panorama editoriale italiano e internazionale, il passaggio dalla carta al web, lo stato di salute dei giornali (non certamente buono), i rapporti tra informazione e politica. La chiarezza sulle dinamiche di potere presenti dietro i giornali non serve a innescare una sterile polemica, piuttosto aiuta a capire perché una
testata fa determinate scelte e non altre, e quali sono le conseguenze di avere in Italia solo editori il cui core business non è mai l’impresa editoriale: costruzioni, motori, moda, tutto ma non i giornali.

L’approccio è lo stesso anche per gli altri capitoli sulla pubblicità on line, le reti dell’informazione e del sapere (documentatissima la sezione dedicata alla banda larga), il giornalismo on line in tutte le sue articolazioni (tecnogiornalismo, tv su web, cellulari, peer to peer, video, social network…), la proprietà intellettuale e la privacy fino al funzionamento dei motori di ricerca. Tanti i nodi che via via emergono, a partire dalla crisi della stampa, la mancanza di indipendenza e pluralismo, la partita del digitale terrestre, il freno del monopolio allo sviluppo delle infrastrutture per la connessione veloce a Internet, il problema del rispetto della privacy da parte delle piattaforme di behavoural targeting.

Pagina dopo pagina il lettore si sente così più accorto e consapevole delle straordinarie opportunità che la rete offre per fare informazione ma anche dei suoi problemi, delle questioni chiave che bisognerebbe affrontare per realizzare un sistema editoriale più solido, capace di produrre informazione di qualità. “Collaborazione, organizzazione e innovazione costituiscono i presupposti irrinunciabili sui quali deve essere fondata
qualsiasi iniziativa che voglia avere una qualche possibilità di successo”, dice in sintesi l’autore. Come agire in questa direzione, però, non è di così semplice evidenza.

Proprio di fronte a un quadro così completo sembra ancora più difficile rispondere a quelle domande iniziali poste dall'autore: come sta cambiando il giornalismo con la rete? Chi sopravviverà a questa rivoluzione digitale? E soprattutto quali forme sta assumendo il giornalismo in un mondo di contenuti gratuiti dove il problema è disporre di un budget sufficiente a garantire la ricerca di fonti attendibili, l’accuratezza dei contenuti, il giusto compenso del collaboratore, la sopravvivenza di una testata?

Certamente Marsili offre “una messe rilevante di dati e di chiavi interpretative”, spiega Gamaleri nella prefazione, aiutandoci a formare “le griglie mentali che ci consentono di cogliere il cambiamento”, perché la più grande sfida per l’uomo è sempre stata quella di “padroneggiare la trasformazione che egli stesso ha messo in movimento”.

Emilio Fede che chiede a Lele Mora una tangente in cambio dell’intercessione per un prestito mili... more Emilio Fede che chiede a Lele Mora una tangente in cambio dell’intercessione per un prestito milionario da parte di Berlusconi per salvarlo dal fallimento. E’ solo uno dei numerosi episodi svelati dalle intercettazioni del «Rubygate», che svelano i retroscena della vita privata del Premier. Il direttore del Tg4 è, insieme a Mora e alla consigliera regionale del Pdl, Nicole Minetti, uno dei grandi reclutatori delle starlette che sgomitano per passare la notte con il «vecchio» ad Arcore, sperando di uscirne la mattina con una busta piena di soldi. Ne esce un quadro degradante, con le ragazze che «bombardano» di telefonate il Cavaliere e fanno a gara per infilarsi nel suo letto per «dormire con lui per poter prendergli qualcosa al mattino» e «far cassa». E’ il ritratto di un Berlusconi grottesco, solo, circondato da ruffiani ed escort, gente pronta a tutto pur di sfruttare la sua solitudine.

In "Gheddafi: le mia verità", il raìs illustra la sua dottrina politica e sociale. Si tratta di u... more In "Gheddafi: le mia verità", il raìs illustra la sua dottrina politica e sociale. Si tratta di un testo ideologico, pensato per masse incolte, in larga parte ispirato alla tradizione socialista, che attinge a piene mani dal pensiero filosofico e politico degli ultimi 2.500 anni, adattando teorie elaborate dai maggiori pensatori del passato. Il Colonnello espone la Terza teoria universale, che vorrebbe essere alternativa al capitalismo, ma anche al socialismo, esattamente come il fascismo nel Novecento. L’obiettivo è la costruzione di uno Stato totalitario, nel quale la nazione viene ad essere identificata indirettamente con il legame di sangue del clan o del gruppo gentilizio allargato che fa riferimento alla famiglia del leader della Jamahiriya. Il raìs affronta il problema della democrazia e del potere del popolo, attaccando l’istituto del parlamentarismo ed il sistema dei partiti. Gheddafi si sforza di dimostrare l’inutilità di tutti gli istituti tipici della rappresentanza democratica, compreso il referendum e la Costituzione, per giungere all’assunto di uno Stato senza diritto, nel quale l’unica fonte della legge è la sharia. Il leader libico propugna un sistema di democrazia diretta su imitazione dei Soviet, nel quale il popolo è l’unico titolare del potere politico. L’uomo forte di Tripoli nega spazio a qualsiasi forma di iniziativa privata: i mezzi di informazione, così come le organizzazioni e le attività sportive, e tutta l’economia, devono essere demandati alla gestione statale. Aberrante la posizione sulla donna, che viene considerata alla stregua di un mammifero destinato alla riproduzione, negando ad essa il diritto al lavoro. In "Gheddafi: le mia verità" è condensata la summa theologica in salsa maghrebina del raìs di Tripoli, con il commento inedito del prof. Marco Marsili.

Collana: Filosofie n. 133, Nov 2011

Il volume ripercorre la genesi e l’evoluzione delle libertà di manifestazione del pensiero negli ... more Il volume ripercorre la genesi e l’evoluzione delle libertà di manifestazione del pensiero negli ordinamenti politici, a partire del V secolo a.C., analizzando, nel contesto storico, gli aspetti filosofici e giuridici di quello che è divenuto oggi un diritto fondamentale riconosciuto a livello internazionale. L’opera analizza, quindi, il connubio indissolubile tra libertà di stampa e costituzionalismo ed limiti alla libertà di manifestazione del pensiero, in particolare in relazione all’istituto della privacy. L’evoluzione millenaria del pensiero filosofico, politico e del diritto, a partire dalla pòlis greca, ha portato a considerare il diritto a manifestare liberamente il pensiero con la parola, con lo scritto e con ogni altro mezzo di comunicazione (art. 21 Cost. italiana), tra i diritti naturali (e per questo fondamentali). Non si tratta di un diritto riconosciuto ai soli cittadini di uno Stato, ma a tutti gli uomini. La libertà di manifestazione del pensiero è riconosciuta da tutte le moderne Costituzioni adottate degli Stati democratici, sancita dalla Dichiarazione universale dei diritti dell’uomo dell’Onu del 1948 e tutelata dalla Convenzione europea per la salvaguardia dei diritti dell’uomo e delle libertà fondamentali del 1950 e dal Patto internazionale di New York sui diritti civili e politici del 1966. L’affermazione di questo diritto è frutto di un percorso durato duemila e cinquecento anni, a partire dalla Grecia del V secolo a.C. (contrapposizione nomos e physis), passando per la Rivoluzione francese ed il periodo napoleonico, che hanno segnato la conquista definitiva della libertà di opinione, divenuta nel frattempo libertà di stampa.

Xsmall, Dec 2012

Come il più bello e il più radioso degli angeli sia stato stato trasformato, nel Medioevo, in un ... more Come il più bello e il più radioso degli angeli sia stato stato trasformato, nel Medioevo, in un orribile mostro verde, con ali di pipistrello, orecchie lunghe, naso rincagnato nell’apertura enorme della bocca zannuta, corpo di uomo con artigli, coda, piedi forcuti e corna caprine sulla testa pelosa. Un dissacrante dialogo imbevuto di citazioni, tra il diavolo e una donna da lui sedotta, dimostra attraverso un millenario excursus teologico, filosofico, letterario e iconografico, l’inconsistenza del potere di Satana. In questo divertente pamphlet, nel quale Lucifero dimostra l’infondatezza delle infamanti accuse che gli vengono rivolte da duemila anni, l’autore svela la falsità delle stesse, usando le medesime argomentazioni addotte a sostegno di queste. "A letto con il diavolo" riabilita la figura del Demonio, utilizzato dalla Chiesa cattolica come strumento di coercizione dei fedeli. Edizione originale con l'"Inno a Satana" di Giosuè Carducci

Ci sono alcune zone «grigie» della burocrazia statale che spesso sfuggono al controllo degli appa... more Ci sono alcune zone «grigie» della burocrazia statale che spesso sfuggono al controllo degli apparati istituzionali preposti alla loro vigilanza. Le forze di polizia hanno il monopolio della coercizione legittima all’interno del territorio statale, pur avendo l’obbligo di sottostare alla legge. Il problema è cosa succede quando organi di polizia si arrogano l’autorità di trasgredire le leggi alle quali dovrebbero sottostare. Quelle leggi che dovrebbero far rispettare per garantire la sicurezza dei cittadini, compito primario dello Stato. Si tratta di un confine sottile, spesso superato in nome della «sicurezza» di quegli stessi cittadini, i cui diritti vengono calpestati, talvolta fino alla morte di coloro che andrebbero difesi. Nell’attesa che tra le forze dell’ordine si faccia strada la cultura della trasparenza e della legalità, legata a quello di responsabilità, e coniugata con un corretto rapporto con i cittadini, attraverso i media, sarebbe compito del Governo squarciare il velo di omertà sui casi di violenze perpetrate da appartenenti a questi «corpi franchi». Invece, assistiamo ad episodi di connivenza tra istituzioni, anche al massimo livello di Governo. Questo atteggiamento mina profondamente alla base in rapporto di fiducia tra i cittadini e i loro rappresentanti elettivi, collocando le forze dell’ordine tra le istituzioni protette dal Governo, ed autorizzate implicitamente da questo a prevaricare i diritti dei cittadini che dovrebbero tutelare. Nell’analizzare le storie prese in considerazione per questo volume (dal G8 di Genova nel 2001 agli omicidi di Sandro Sandri e Stefano Cucchi) sono emerse due tendenze comunicative. La prima, riguarda quella delle forze dell’ordine, orientata a far finta di niente, a non ricercare responsabilità, a coprire, anche mentendo. La seconda è l’unico strumento a disposizione dei familiari delle vittime: la Rete. Solo dopo l’apertura di un blog da parte di Patrizia Moretti, i media e la magistratura si sono interessati al caso di Federico Aldrovandi, così come solo dopo che Ilaria Cucchi ha pubblicato su Indymedia le foto del corpo martoriato del fratello Stefano, il Parlamento, il Ministero della Giustizia e la magistratura, spinti dall’indignazione dell’opinione pubblica, si sono mossi alla ricerca della verità. Così, anche Ornella Gemini, madre di Niki Aprile Gatti, ha affidato ad un blog il suo urlo di dolore per l’improvvisa morte del figlio, avvenuta in circostanze misteriose dopo uno strano arresto. Grazie alla blogosfera Patrizia, Ornella e Ilaria sono riuscite a trovare una cassa di risonanza per le loro storie, e a sensibilizzare i media. Anche l’aggessione e l’arresto di Stefano Gugliotta sarebbero passati sotto silenzio, se un videocellulare non avesse incastrato i poliziotti colpevoli dell’abuso ai danni del giovane romano. Ognuno di noi è un media, e come tale può contribuire a fare informazione, denunciando abusi, nella speranza che, un giorno, anche le forze dell’ordine comincino a comunicare correttamente, ristabilendo il rapporto fiduciario con i media ed i cittadini che li pagano.

“Rivoluzionario professionista” convertito all’Islam, Carlos ha dedicato la sua vita combattendo ... more “Rivoluzionario professionista” convertito all’Islam, Carlos ha dedicato la sua vita combattendo “per la liberazione del mondo dallo sfruttamento imperialista e della Palestina dall’occupazione sionista”. Le armi gli “sono state imposte dalle circostanze, determinate dalla violenza stessa del nemico”, e il “terrorismo” è una fatalità imposta “dal rapporto di forze cui nessun resistente, musulmano o meno, può sfuggire, poiché è di fronte a un nemico potentissimo, senza freni né limiti in arroganza e ambizione di conquista”. Il terrorismo “è l’arma dei poveri”, “un’arma di prima scelta per ristabilire una parvenza di equilibrio contro la sproporzione dei mezzi di informazione, il cui monopolio assoluto è del nemico”, ovvero degli americani. In questo libro autobiografico commentato da Marco Marsili, Ilič Ramírez Sánchez ricostruisce le tappe della carriera che ne ha fatto il terrorista più famoso e ricercato nel mondo, dai primi attentati degli anni ‘70, all’amicizia con Osama Bin Laden, Saddam Hussein e Mùammar Gheddafi, fino all’arresto avvenuto in Sudan nel ’94. Carlos svela la verità sugli attentati dell’11 settembre, e spiega, con una lucida analisi, la strategia statunitense della “guerra preventiva”, motivata dalla necessità di mantenere il controllo sul prezzo del petrolio, scambiato sui mercati internazionali in dollari. Una feroce critica ai media occidentali, al capitalismo, al consumismo, all’Onu, e alla sinistra occidentale, accusata di essersi adagiata “sugli allori della borghesia convertendosi al liberalismo californiano”.

La storia della P2 e dei suoi affiliati si intreccia con quella dei servizi deviati, dello stragi... more La storia della P2 e dei suoi affiliati si intreccia con quella dei servizi deviati, dello stragismo di stato (frutto della strategia della tensione e della contrapposizione Est-Ovest), delle Br e del rapimento Moro; riguarda i rapporti tra imprenditori, politica, mafia, massoneria e Vaticano, passando dal «piano Solo» al golpe Borghese, dal crack del Banco ambrosiano alla morte di Calvi e Sindona, dalla banda della Magliana all’Opus Dei, da Tangentopoli al dossier Mitrokhin; eventi successivi ma legati ai personaggi della loggia segreta. Storie di un’Italia oscura che si intrecciano, e che, spesso, intersecano la strada di Silvio Berlusconi e dei suoi sodali. Questo libro non vuole essere l’ennesima pubblicazione sulla storia della P2 e dei suoi iscritti, ma si propone di svelare come i membri della loggia segreta, che il Maestro Venerabile Licio Gelli chiamava «l’Istituzione», siano sopravvissuti allo scandalo degli anni ’80, e abbiano trovato lavoro, aiuto e protezione all’ombra dell’impero di Berlusconi, che si fece strada come imprenditore, prima come costruttore, poi come editore, poi come politico, finendo per occuparsi infine pressochè di tutto, partendo proprio dal periodo di massima espansione della loggia di Licio Gelli. Dopo le prime saltuarie esperienze lavorative giovanili come cantante e intrattenitore sulle navi da crociera insieme all’amico Fedele Confalonieri, e come venditore porta a porta di scope elettriche insieme all’amico Guido Possa, Berlusconi iniziò l’attività di agente immobiliare, per poi mettersi in proprio grazie ad anonimi ed ingenti capitali provenienti da misteriose finanziarie e fiduciarie svizzere legate all’Opus Dei e al Vaticano. L’attività di costruttore del Cavaliere, tuttavia, incontra non poche difficoltà, finchè non entra nel nel giro della P2 di Calvi e Sindona, che riciclano il denaro di Cosa nostra attraverso la Banca Rasini di Milano, il cui direttore generale è il padre del futuro premier. In questo giro vorticoso di denaro si intrecciano le vicende dello Ior di Paul Marcinkus ed il fallimento del Banco ambrosiano, coinvolti attraverso partecipazioni in fiduciarie off-shore alla costituzione della prima società di Berlusconi, l’Immobiliare San Martino, amministrata dal fiancheggiatore della mafia Marcello Dell’Utri, e costituita allo scopo di gestire la villa di Arcore acquistata tramite Cesare Previti. Antiche amicizie legate da affari comuni e segreti inconfessabili, come la corruzione del giudice del lodo Mondadori. Dopo la bufera politica successiva al ritrovamento delle liste di Castiglion Fibocchi, si ebbe una sorta di temporanea epurazione degli aderenti alla loggia, in realtà agevolata dal ridotto desiderio degli interessati di restare sotto i riflettori, e molti piduisti, come il capogruppo dei deputati del Pdl, Fabrizio Cicchitto, si eclissarono dalle cariche più in vista, o si fecero da parte per poi ripresentarsi qualche tempo dopo. Nonostante lo scioglimento, decretato dalla Legge 25 gennaio 1982, n. 17, la P2 è ancora attiva. Lo sono, perlomeno, molti dei suoi componenti. I piduisti che ricoprivano incarichi pubblici sono scomparsi per qualche tempo, per riaffacciarsi alla ribalta in coincidenza con la discesa in campo di Berlusconi, e la fondazione di Forza Italia. Nel frattempo, sono stati tenuti a galla da una vera e propria rete di solidarietà, che ricorda molto Odessa, l’organizzazione segreta nata dopo la fine della seconda guerra mondiale per proteggere i nazisti. Qualcuno ha trovato lavoro in Mediaset (il direttore di Canale 5, Massimo Donelli, Maurizio Costanzo, Roberto Gervaso, il medico di Gelli Fabrizio Tifone Trecca, o il produttore Angelo Rizzoli, la cui moglie è parlamentare del Pdl), altri per Mondadori (Paolo Mosca); altri ancora occupano posti statali o parastatali di nomina politica. Non tutti gli ex piduisti, ovviamente, occupano posti di rilievo, ma hanno comunque risalito la china, aiutati dai «fratelli» più fortunati. I magistrati della Procura di Roma che indagano sull’intreccio tra politica, mafia, affari e magistrati, che vede coinvolti esponenti politici di primo piano della maggioranza e del governo - tra i quali il coordinatore del Pdl Denis Verdini, il senatore Marcello Dell’Utri e il sottosegretario alla Giustizia Giacomo Caliendo - ha ribattezzato il fenomeno «Nuova P2». Sono passati oltre trent’anni dall’ingresso di Berlusconi nella P2, e, nonostante i tentativi del presidente del Consiglio di prendere le distanze, anche mentendo sulla sua affiliazione, è evidente che il legame con i «fratelli» è restato fortissimo. Il Cavaliere ha riportato gli ex piduisti nelle istituzioni che contano e nel suo vasto impero mediatico. A tal fine, basta ricordare ciò che Tina Anselmi, ex presidente della Commissione parlamentare d’inchiesta sulla P2, dichiarò nel 1898, quando, con un blitz, Berlusconi si impossessò del gruppo Mondadori-L’Espresso, estromettendo De Benedetti dalla gestione: «Gli uomini di Gelli hanno rimesso in piedi la struttura, il loro potere, hanno ristabilito una loro presenza in aree così significative che ora il problema riemerge». Dalle colonne di Repubblica, Eugenio Scalfari profetizzò «Se l’operazione andrà in porto, vedremo a capo del più grande gruppo multimediale un membro della Loggia P2 […]. Oggi un membro di quell’associazione segreta, sciolta per legge perché ritenuta sovversiva contro lo Stato, sta per assidersi al vertice della Mondadori, dopo aver monopolizzato tutte le reti televisive private esistenti […]. Se sta nascendo un regime col volto di Silvio Berlusconi, questo regime e quel volto avranno nei prossimi mesi la nostra attenzione». Parole profetiche, quelle di Scalfari: nel maggio 2006 l’avvocato-amico di Berlusconi, Cesare Previti, deputato azzurro dal 1996, e già ministro della Difesa, è stato condannato a sei anni per aver corrotto il giudice Vittorio Metta nella vicenda della guerra di Segrate, finendo in galera, e a seguito di questa sentenza nell’ottobre 2009 la Fininvest è stata condannata a risarcire la Cir di De Benedetti con 750 milioni di euro. L’ex presidente della Camera Luciano Violante, da presidente della Commissione parlamentare antimafia disse: «La P2 è stata sciolta da una legge, ma può essere sopravvissuto il suo sistema di relazioni politiche, finanziarie e criminali […] Quanto al dottor Berlusconi, il suo interventismo attuale è sintomo della reazione di una parte del vecchio regime che, avendo accumulato ricchezza e potere negli anni Ottanta, pretende di continuare a condizionare la vita politica anche negli anni Novanta». Questo «sistema di relazioni politiche, finanziarie e criminali» è particolarmente evidente all’ombra della Madonnina, dove il potere berlusconiano è nato e si è sviluppato, giungendo a toccare ogni ambito politico, finanziario, economico e sociale. E’ nel capoluogo lombardo, dove Luigi Berlusconi dirigeva la Banca Rasini (legata a Cosa nostra, come Calvi, Sindona e Dell’Utri), che finanziò i primi affari del figlio, che il premier affonda le sue radici, proprio lì dove Mani pulite creò le condizioni per la discesa in campo del Cavaliere col grembiulino. Le vicende giudiziarie dell’estate 2010, che hanno visto coinvolti esponenti altolocati del Pdl, confermano che questo fil rouge non si è mai spezzato. La triade Dell’Utri-Verdini-Carboni, con l’aggiunta di altri personaggi di secondo piano, conferma la vitalità di rapporti di antica data, e di una forma mentis che rivive, trent’anni dopo, nella P3, reincarnazione della P2 di Gelli sopravvissuta e mantenuta all’ombra del potere berlusconiano. «Berlusconi non ha alcun legame con la P3, è la testa della P3». Così il leader dell'Idv, Antonio Di Pietro, rispondendo il 12 settembre ai giornalisti alla festa del "Fatto Quotidiano" a Marina di Pietrasanta che gli chiedevano degli eventuali rapporti tra il presidente del Consiglio, e quella che lui stesso definisce «piovra politica». «Abbiamo sempre ragionato sui coinvolgimenti delle varie parti di questa piovra politica - continua Di Pietro - ma a capo di essa c'è proprio lui». A conferma della sopravvivenza della P2 è arrivata l’inchiesta sulla P4, «un vero e proprio “sistema parallelo” e surrettizio gestito sia da soggetti formalmente estranei alle istituzioni pubbliche e alla pubblica amministrazione sia, invece, da soggetti espressione delle istituzioni dello Stato» che vede al centro dell’indagine Luigi Bisignani, ex piduista considerato tra i più influenti nei palazzi romani, legato da un rapporto di lunga data al sottosegretario Gianni Letta, «autorità delegata» del presidente del Consiglio Berlusconi ai servizi di informazione e sicurezza. Una nuova indagine che ha origini antiche.

PhD programme in History, Studies of Security and Defence, Oct 16, 2019

The role of terrorism in political discourse changed dramatically over the last fifty years, movi... more The role of terrorism in political discourse changed dramatically over the last fifty years, moving from ambiguity to the forefront of public policy and security concern. After the 9/11 attacks, terrorism has earned the news headlines, and has become a global security priority. Governments and the international community have enhanced measures to counter international and transnational terrorism, although there is no universally accepted definition of the term. The lack of an undisputed and legally binding definition of terrorism leaves significant room for free interpretation by policymakers. Governments are given what is essentially a carte blanche to develop programs and counter-terrorism initiatives that may lead, or have already led, to the development of policy that infringes on fundamental human rights.

This thesis investigates the connection between terrorism and fundamental human rights. The question that guided this dissertation is the potential consequence of arbitrary and politically-driven definitions of terrorism over counter-terrorism policy and fundamental human rights. The thesis moves from a historical framing of the concept of terrorism that changes with time. There are many definitions of the term, and there is no common definition with legal value. The current debate on terrorism is linked almost exclusively with non-state actors, which implies that state and terrorism have no linkage, even if there are evidences of these ties.

The thesis scrutinizes the instrumentalization of terrorism, starting from an analysis of the concept based on three pillars: historical, theoretical-conceptual and legal (in the light of international law and human rights law). Then an empirical analysis based on these tools through the use of political and legal mechanisms to obtain a political output was conducted. To answer the starting question, the research moved from a historical-documentary analysis, then took into consideration the literature, and focused on how the states use the justification of the fight against international terrorism to restrict fundamental human rights.

After the theoretical-conceptual and legal analysis, the research focuses on the legal aspects of the War on Terror and security policies. Large part of the empyrical research is dedicated to scrutinize the case of Turkey after the 2016 coup d'état attempt, to review some rulings of the European Courts, and to examine some prominent 'terrorist' organizations.

While this topic presents a serious challenge, it does open much room for possible explorations of new fields of research without necessitating a fixed point of departure – or arrival. The thesis ends suggesting some future research directions.

Genesi ed evoluzione della libertà di pensiero negli ordinamenti politici

L’art. 16 della Dichiarazione dei diritti dell’uomo e del cittadino del 26 agosto 1789 afferma: «... more L’art. 16 della Dichiarazione dei diritti dell’uomo e del cittadino del 26 agosto 1789 afferma: «Una società, nella quale la garanzia dei diritti non sia assicurata e la separazione dei poteri fissata, non ha una Costituzione». Non per questo la Rivoluzione francese riuscì a garantirli, essendo priva di un organismo, indipendente dalle maggioranze temporanee e provvisorie, che potesse impedire abusi e oppressione da parte di tali maggioranze. Secondo i giacobini, che seguivano le teorie illuministiche di Jean-Jacques Rousseau sulla «volontà generale», essa non poteva che manifestarsi attraverso l’Assemblea nazionale, intesa come corpo rappresentativo dell’intera cittadinanza.

I princìpi della Rivoluzione francese continuarono a diffondersi con Napoleone, seppure il condottiero corso sia stato autore di una svolta autoritaria, e la Restaurazione non riuscì ad impedirne la rivendicazione popolare, fino alla concessione di costituzioni ottriate ed al definitivo avvento delle democrazie parlamentari, che pongono la libertà di espressione tra i diritti fondamentali che lo stato ha l’obbligo di garantire.

Risalendo il fiume della storia ritroviamo sempre una contrapposizione tra diritto e forza o tra legge positiva (nomos) e legge della natura (physis), ma constatiamo che entrambe le prospettive e le pratiche del diritto sono efficaci, se è vero che gli esseri umani non hanno sino ad ora abbandonato né l’una né l’altra prospettiva argomentativa sull’origine e sul fondamento della legge. Ma da dove viene il diritto?

È possibile tentare di giustificare i diritti umani a partire da Dio, dalla Natura, dallo stato, persino dalla Storia o dalle consuetudini. Forse una più modesta argomentazione potrebbe individuare nei diritti costituzionalmente garantiti e protetti un rimedio, uno strumento di difesa nei confronti di abusi che si sono storicamente realizzati. Nulla di sacro o naturale, dunque, bensì una debole, ma imprescindibile, forma di difesa, la quale andrà a sua volta difesa contro i tentativi di utilizzarla per fini contrari a quelli per cui è stata codificata (come le più recenti dichiarazioni dei diritti non mancano di constatare).

1989-1994: dal crollo del Muro di Berlino al bipolarismo 'made in Italy'

Sono passati 15 anni dal crollo del muro di Berlino, l’evento che ha sancito la fine di un’epoca,... more Sono passati 15 anni dal crollo del muro di Berlino, l’evento che ha sancito la fine di un’epoca, e della suddivisione del Mondo in due sfere d’influenza. Con la dissoluzione dell’Unione Sovietica e dei regimi comunisti dell’Europa dell’Est si aprono nuovi ed inediti scenari geopolitici. Le cause strutturali di quel collasso improvviso, risiedono nel confronto insostenibile con le democrazie occidentali, e sono da ricercarsi nelle origini stesse della natura di quei regimi.

Lo scioglimento del Pcus e la mutata situazione, hanno costretto il Pci a cambiare ragione sociale, trasformandosi in Pds, e coltivando la speranza che, dopo oltre 40 anni, in Italia fosse finalmente possibile un governo senza la Dc. Ma il crollo travolge tutti, spazzando via, con l’ausilio dei giudici del pool di «Mani pulite», i partiti di governo, e favorendo la crescita di movimenti di protesta, estranei al sistema, come la Lega di Umberto Bossi, che diviene il secondo partito al Nord, e conquista anche l’ex roccaforte socialista di Milano.

In questo contesto entra il vigore il trattato di Maastricht, probabilmente l’agente esogeno che è servito per implementare politiche economiche rigorose, volte al contenimento della spesa pubblica e del deficit, nonchè alla riduzione dell’inflazione.
A proposito degli avvenimenti di questo periodo si è parlato di fine della «Prima Repubblica». In realtà, non è avvenuto un mutamento della forma sostanziale dello Stato, tale da poterlo considerare rifondato, come avvenne con la Quinta Repubblica francese del 1958. Molti protagonisti di questo periodo sono allegramente transitati nella nuova era grazie all’aiuto di nuove formazioni politiche (in primis Forza Italia, che ha dato rifugio a numerosissimi orfani del pentapartito), altri, come Silvio Berlusconi, hanno approfittato del vuoto lasciato dalla scomparsa dei partiti tradizionali per fare il loro ingresso in politica, investendo risorse personali accumulate in attività extrapolitiche. Mutatis mutandis, è bastato cambiare il formato dei partiti per ripresentarsi agli elettori e garantirsi il mantenimento dello status quo.

Si potrebbe concludere che, mentre la «Prima Repubblica» non è mai definitivamente terminata, essendo mantenuta in vita ad opera degli stessi esponenti politici che erano in attività già prima del 1990, e grazie alle pratiche che la contraddistiguevano, la «Seconda Repubblica» non è mai nata. Più semplicemente, l’Italia vive da 15 anni in un regime «transitorio».

A nulla sono valse le istanze di rinnovamento che giungevano dai cittadini, e che trovavano riscontro nelle dichiarazioni del Presidente della Repubblica Francesco Cossiga, o nel movimento referendario di Mario Segni.

La crisi del sistema politico italiano ha anch’esso origini lontane, e per meglio comprendere la situazione attuale e la storia recente, occorre partire dal suo passato prossimo.

Come ha giustamente scritto Lucio Caracciolo nel suo Terra Incognita. Le radici geopolitiche della crisi italiana, la letteratura scientifica su questo periodo è ancora scarsa, e, tuttavia, parrebbe opportuno indagare sulle conseguenze che quegli avvenimenti straordinari hanno avuto, non solo su scala planetaria, ma, più modestamente, nel panorama italiano.

This work addresses gender dimension and other diversity aspects in warfare, including gender bia... more This work addresses gender dimension and other diversity aspects in warfare, including gender bias in data collection, to go beyond mainstream approaches in policymaking and to infuse gender awareness into conceptual models in international security affairs, according to the elements of a gender-responsive approach to arms control identified by the UN Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR). Gender perspective, based on the resource pack developed by the International Gender Champions (ICG) Disarmament Impact Group helps to shed light on the direct and reverberating impacts of warfare on women, men, girls and boys, such as the likelihood of being targeted by and the long-lasting biological and physiological impacts. focusing on analyzing sex and gender specific effects of emerging and disruptive technologies (EDTs). The 2020 European Commission experts’ report Gendered innovations 2. How inclusive analysis contributes to research and innovation: policy review warns that human bias is amplified by technology, inter alia in the applications of machine learning, artificial intelligence, robotics, facial recognition. Data sources on which this review relies include: UNIDIR, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Control Arms, Small Arms Survey, MOSAIC Module, Reaching Critical Will, European Institute for Gender Equality. The study aims to enhance the ability of the international community to redress gender inequality in warfare and to mitigate gender impact in armed conflict.

About 45 years after the 1979 revolution which overthrew the last Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, th... more About 45 years after the 1979 revolution which overthrew the last Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the Islamic Republic of Iran became a regional power, thanks to four decades of social, economic, diplomatic, and military advancements. But not all of these successes are clear-cut. Many of Iran’s achievements created new challenges or even led to political and diplomatic failures. Some episodes isolated Iran and made dialogue with the West difficult: the takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran in 1979, the military and financial support to Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon (Hezbollah), the adversarial relationship with Saudi Arabia, the anti-American, anti-Israeli, and anti-Semitic posture, and the controversial nuclear program, have alienated the sympathy of Western powers. The Islamic Republic has survived, despite sustained acute enmity from the US and Israel, a decade-long war against Iraq (1980-1988), and four decades of various forms of economic sanctions but, so far, was not able to come up with a governing model that reconciles the vision of a religious state with democracy. One of the last contemporary theocracies, along with Saudi Arabia and the Vatican, Iran should strive to introduce reforms, which are strongly demanded by the people: ease censorship, progress with human rights and respect for gender equality, restrict state intervention in the economy and pass electoral reforms. The harsh crack-down by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on anti-government protests which have broken out since 2017 demanding reforms or the end to the Islamic Republic have raised public outrage. After the U.S. withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action in 2018, and the civil unrest against the government associated with the death of Mahsa Amini while in the custody of the Guidance Patrol, Iran's image has further deteriorated. After 20 years, Iran is still perceived as President George W. Bush characterized it, jointly with North Korea and Iraq, in his State of the Union address of January 29, 2002: ‘an axis of evil, arming to threaten the peace of the world’. Economic sanctions, such as the embargo against crude oil, have injured the Iranian economy which suffers from double-digit unemployment and high inflation. Iran country would enormously benefit from their removal and the openness to the global market, in compliance with Art. 12 of the Constitution which sets the regime's goals: ‘A fair economy based on Islamic criteria to create welfare and eliminate poverty and deprivation in the areas of nutrition, housing, employment, health and insurance’. Is the Tehran leadership able to get the country out of this long-term situation and bring it into a new era of prosperity? This work aims to analyze the current situation in Iran and the opportunities for the country to find the right place within the international society.

Hybrid warfare is among the most trending topics. Hybrid threats arise in digital, cybernetic, an... more Hybrid warfare is among the most trending topics. Hybrid threats arise in digital, cybernetic, and virtual environments and materialize in the real world. Although vague, hybrid activities include cyberwarfare, information warfare, and the emerging and evolving concept of cognitive warfare which appears from their intersection. These wordings gained popular attention in the context of the Russo-Ukrainian conflict and now are among the hot topics. While there is a lot of attention, there is also a lot of confusion about what exactly these locutions mean and what the implications are in branding them as “warfare”. Indeed, all such concepts are fluid, nebulous, and lack an undisputed legal definition. This work aims to clarify the legal meaning and to shed light on the characteristics – differences, similarities and overlaps – of these terms in the context of hybrid warfare and show the faulty reasoning upon which misunderstandings are based. The paper ends-up with a glimpse into the future, closing with a reflection on multi-domain operations facilitated by advancing virtual and augmented reality and a fully integrated human-computer interaction in the metaverse.

Legal definitions of hate speech vary from country to country and is matter of both civil law and... more Legal definitions of hate speech vary from country to country and is matter of both civil law and criminal law (hate crime). It is generally intended as a public speech that expresses hate or encourages violence towards a person or group based on something such as race, skin, colour, national origin, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, disability, religion, or sexual orientation. Nazi Germany is an instructive example of how far the hateful and extremist speech can go. The hate speech towards Jews – which comes from far away, at least from the Middle Ages – has never subsided, and is fueled by the confrontation with the Palestinians and the Arabs. On the other hand, over the last decade jihadist terrorism has triggered a wave of islamophobia in Europe, the biggest one after clash between Christians and Muslims in Middle Ages. Alongside situations that have grabbed the headlines and the attention of the world public opinion, there are "regional" issues of no less importance. The hate speech supports the ethnic cleansing – genocide for some – of the Muslim minorities in Myanmar (Rohingya), in Xinjiang, China (Uyghurs, a Turkic-speaking ethnic group, and other ethnic and religious minorities), and of Darfuri during the conflict in Western Sudan (2003-ongoing). In neighbouring India, the Hindu nationalists spread hate speech and incite violence against the Muslim community and other minorities. There are historical precedents, of which the Holocaust is the best known, showing that hate speech can be a precursor to atrocity crimes on a wider scale, including genocide, from Rwanda (1994, against the Tutsi) to Bosnia (1995, more than 7,000 Bosnian Muslim killed by Bosnian Serb forces in Srebrenica, Bosnia-Herzegovina) to Cambodia (1975-1979, in which approximately 1.7 million people, 21% of the country's population, were killed by the Communist group known as the Khmer Rouge). The present Russian question generates two-way hatred with Ukraine and the West, fueled by deep faking propaganda and cognitive warfare. This paper aims to shed light on the state-driven hate speech which is going on in some countries.

Alongside non-international and international conflicts, a third category of armed conflict is em... more Alongside non-international and international conflicts, a third category of armed conflict is emerging: hybrid, asymmetric, and transnational conflicts which involve state and non-state actors such as insurgents or terrorist organisations. Unconventional conflicts are among the trend topics of defence and security, and they pose a threat to the stability of international order. States and international organisations, such as the UN and NATO, face difficulty using the tools currently available. International law, in particular International Humanitarian Law and the law of war (Geneva and Hague conventions), is good as long as it deals with conventional conflict, or with civil war within a single country, but it shows its limits when faced with hybrid conflict, e.g.: the Russo-Ukrainian conflict (not officially termed as an armed conflict, but as a “special military operation”); the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict; electromagnetic and cyber conflicts; cognitive and information warfare; terrorism, etc. This paper aims to investigate whether new rules are required to deal with situations of unconventional and hybrid conflict, or if current rules are still valid and can be used/adapted.

IUM Actuality, Aug 2022

Iconic films such as Star Wars (1977) and Starship Troopers (1997) picture conflicts fought in ou... more Iconic films such as Star Wars (1977) and Starship Troopers (1997) picture conflicts fought in outer space. UFO (1970) tells the story of a high-tech military organization established to defend Earth from space attack. Space: 1999 (1975) and Star Trek (1966) are about travelling in deep spacewhere no man has "bodly" gone before and imagine a technology that does not exist. Sometimes science fiction, inspired by science possibilities that one day can come true, simply imagines the future. Military applications of space technology, and considerations on space as a future theater of war when they would become technologically possible, were outlined in the Introduction to Outer Space, a pamphlet edited by the White House in 1958.

To avoid the militarization of space and celestial bodies, and to guarantee their exploration and use for peaceful purposes to all countries, in 1967 the US, the U.K. and the Soviet Union opened for signature the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, which has become customary international law (White, 2000). The Outer Space Treatyforbids from placing in Earth orbit weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons, or otherwise stationing them in outer space, but does not prohibit the placement of conventional weapons, and thus some highly destructive attack strategies such as kinetic bombardment are still potentially allowable (Bourbonniere & Lee, 2007).

Since 1984, the Conference on Disarmament (CD), a body established by the UN General, has considered proposals, including draft treaties, aimed at preventing the placement of weapons in outer space. In 1998 Russia and China proposed a Treaty on Prevention of the Placement of Weapons in Outer Space and of the Threat or Use of Force Against Outer Space Objects (PPWT). An amended text drafted in 2014 was rejected by the US because it failed to address a series of relevant issues: it did not provide a definition of "outer space" neither of what constitutes a "weapon in outer space", and it did not ban terrestrially-based ASAT systems launched from the ground (CD, 2014; UNGA GA/DIS/3591; Plath, 2018).

The US refused to negotiate a Proposed Prevention of an Arms Race in Space (PAROS) treaty as an international legally binding instrument in the CD, as Washington gathers that it simply mirrored the PPWT, including its failures. Therefore, the US voted against the Russian's No First Placement of Weapons in Outer Space (NFP) resolution (UNGA, A/C.1/72/L.53). So far, the international community failed to reach a solution to prevent an arms race in outer space. Space war is no more a science-fiction scenario; it’s an emerging reality.

The Russia-Ukraine conflict erupted in February 2022 after the Kremlin recognized the independenc... more The Russia-Ukraine conflict erupted in February 2022 after the Kremlin recognized the independence of the breakaway popular republics of Donetsk and Luhansk. In the aftermath of the recognition of the sovereignty of these entities, the Russian armed forces invaded Ukraine under the justification of the demilitarization and denazification of the neighboring country, as well as to bring to trial those who perpetrated numerous bloody crimes against civilians in the Donbass, including against Russian citizens. Soon after, the international community and the mainstream media began a worldwide campaign against the Russian military action, sympathizing with the government of Kiev.

Although Russia is well-known for its information capabilities—whether propaganda, disinformation, or counter-information—the Kremlin appears to have overestimated its ability to wage effective information operations or underestimated the impact of Western brainwashing on public opinion. In addition, the Ukrainian leadership has effectively managed to counter the grounds on which the Russian government has supported its "special military operation." Ukrainian President Zelensky gained the trust, sympathy, and solidarity of Western leaders, the media, and public opinion, presenting his country as the victim of an unjustified aggression. On the other hand, Russian President Putin, excluded from the public debate due to the European Union ban on Russian media, was perceived by the same audience as a gangster. Is this the whole truth, or is there something more beyond the mainstream narrative? This paper aims to offer a factual analysis and a different perspective from the mainstream narrative supported and spread by Western governments and biased media outlets.

Doctoral Seminar Carlos V European Award – Antonio Tajani: "The European Union and the Principle of Solidarity" (Carlos V European Award 2019 - Antonio Tajani), 2021

In an era of increasing economic interdependence China is playing a growing role in the global ec... more In an era of increasing economic interdependence China is playing a growing role in the global economy, including in Europe, which presents both opportunities and challenges. This paper aims to analyze the different dimensions of an increasingly assertive Chinese presence in Europe from economics to politics and geo-strategy.

The essay will address the China’s Belt and Road initiative (BRI), the ‘Made in China 2025’ plan, the China 17+1 initiative and Trade disputes between China and Europe. It will also look at questions of technology competition and critical infrastructure investment.

China's leaders announced in October 2017 that they want to assume a global leadership role. The long-term strategic competition with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is one of the major global economic, military and political challenges. Maritime policies play an important role in support of that strategy of making China a global leader. Today, Beijing is seeking to project sophisticated power globally, particularly in areas with heavy BRI activity – the plan for greater connectivity for China across both land and sea through a new Silk Road.

The 21st Century Maritime Silk Road affects Europe in five main areas: maritime trade, shipbuilding, emerging growth niches in the blue economy, the global presence of the Chinese navy, and the competition for international influence. It has been calculated that the Maritime Silk Road creates more competition than cooperation opportunities in Europe-China relations.

The sea lanes of communication from China to Europe through the Malacca-Suez route are among the busiest in the world – where European interests are more immediate and bigger than on the nascent "Ice Silk Road": China-Europe maritime trade is three times larger than trade by air freight and Eurasian railways, while the last alternative – the Northern Route through the Arctic Ocean, that China dubs the "Ice Silk Road" – is only just starting to develop.

In January 2018, the PRC published its first Arctic strategy that promoted a "Polar Silk Road" and claimed to be a "Near-Arctic State", yet the shortest distance between China and the Arctic is 900 miles. Russia announced plans to connect the Northern Sea Route with China’s Maritime Silk Road – part of the BRI strategy – which would develop a new shipping channel from Asia to northern Europe, and the two counties are cooperating in developing hydrocarbon resources in the Arctic. Meanwhile, China is already developing shipping lanes in the Arctic Ocean.

There are warnings about the Arctic Ocean to be transformed into 'a new South China Sea', militarized and with territorial claims. The Pentagon warned that China could use its civilian research presence in the Arctic to strengthen its military presence – including deployment of submarines to the region as a deterrent against nuclear attack.

This paper aims also to investigate the impact of the Chinese maritime geo-strategy over the European security.

Arctic security is a main security challenge – a global one, not only a regional one – not only for the Arctic countries, but for the whole international community, first of all the European. With Russia and China expanding their role in the area, and the difficulty of finding an undisputed governance on maritime routes and economic exploitation of resources, there is the risk of militarization of the Arctic. After briefly summarizing current and future challenges in the Arctic, this paper analyzes the limits due to a deficit of suitable instruments to maintain security in the region, especially in relation to the role of international intergovernmental organizations, and it suggests some remedies to overcome these deficiencies.

The Arctic region has become an arena for power and for competition, and Arctic nations must adapt to this new future. Offshore resources are the subject of renewed competition: Arctic region holds the greatest concentration of the world’s undiscovered oil and gas, uranium, gold, diamonds, rare earth minerals – phosphate, bauxite, iron ore, copper, and nickel – and, last but not least, fish. Arctic resources should be included in the common domain; they should be considered common goods – international or global public goods.

Nowadays, environmental and economic issues are broadly considered to be threats to security and stability. Therefore, the protection of these resources is a security issue, which involves the use of force, or military means. This is an issue that concerns the traditional domains of operations – land, sea, and air. The maritime domain – i.e. the Arctic Ocean – is predominant, due to the allocation of resources, and the operating environment. Sea routes are the ‘liquid’ highways along which goods travel across the world, and therefore play a strategic economic role – a global one.

13rd Annual Conference of the International Society of Military Sciences (ISMS2021), Royal Military College of Canada, Kingston, Ontario, 11-14 October 2021 (Session Session 2E (Working Group 1 - War Studies and Working Group 9 - Military Education) Understanding and Teaching Hybrid Warfare), Oct 13, 2021

The nature of conflict has changed dramatically over the last few decades. Hybrid warfare — also ... more The nature of conflict has changed dramatically over the last few decades. Hybrid warfare — also known as grey zone conflict or low-intensity conflict — is a reality and political and military leaders must be ready to confront and deter it. Hybrid warfare is the effort to achieve strategic objectives without using significant force. There is no common definition of the term and therefore it is correspondingly ambiguous. It is an amorphous definition for an amorphous strategy. While it is a blend of traditional and irregular tactics, hybrid warfare makes overt and covert use of a wide range of tools: military and civilian, conventional and unconventional. However, the term is so broad that it includes a set of tactics, techniques, technologies and methods. Hybrid warfare is an umbrella concept that can include, inter alia, information and disinformation operations, deception, troop movements, cyberattacks, sabotage and other non-military tactics or a combination of all these means. It can also include actual force. Hybrid warfare can be considered a form of comprehensive warfare, a strategy, not merely a set of tactics and techniques. This array of military activities may fall under the broad definition of hybrid warfare, that is not new, but is boosted by technological advance. Furthermore, hybrid warfare is low risk, low cost and provides an adversary the opportunity to cloud, throwing doubt on who is responsible for these "gray zone" actions. Hybrid warfare operations, for which it is difficult to attribute responsibility and which are not specifically regulated by international law, fall below the threshold of armed conflict and are convenient to be used to destabilize a government or to try to legitimize (unlawful) actions. Covert operations and support to proxies, such as independentists and secessionists, are facilitated by the nature of hybrid warfare. Hybrid warfare blurs the lines between peace and war and is therefore questioned whether it should be considered below the threshold of armed conflict. Some hybrid warfare operations are convenient because are located in a twilight zone between peace and war and below the threshold of war and therefore they should not trigger a conventional/kinetic military response. Nevertheless, at the 2014 NATO Summit in Wales, the allies recognized that international law applies in cyberspace and that the impact of cyberattacks could be as harmful as a conventional attack. As a result, cyberdefense was recognized as part of NATO’s core task of collective defense. At the Warsaw Summit in 2016, the allies took further action to recognize cyberspace as a domain of operations just like the "classic" domains of air, land and sea. At the NATO summit held in Brussels in 2021, the allies reaffirmed that a cyber attack could trigger Article 5 of the Atlantic Charter: "an attack on one is an attack on all". This doctrinal position is of no small importance. The question is whether hybrid warfare should be considered an armed attack or use of force that, under treaty and customary international law, could trigger a military response or whether it falls below the threshold of damage and destruction resulting from a kinetic attack. This work addresses aims to shed light on the constistency of the emerging doctrine on hybrid warfare with current international (humanitarian) lawand its possible application.

3.º Encontro de Investigação e Desenvolvimento em Ciências Militares (ECM2021), 2021

Reportedly, in the long-lasting Nagorno-Karabakh conflict there were serious violations of intern... more Reportedly, in the long-lasting Nagorno-Karabakh conflict there were serious violations of international law and international humanitarian law; all parties involved accused each other of war crimes. So far, for such alleged violations, no legal remedy was possible under the current international legal framework. This work analyzes the problem of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in the light of current international (humanitarian) law.

Hybrid warfare — also known as grey zone conflict or low-intensity conflict — is a reality and po... more Hybrid warfare — also known as grey zone conflict or low-intensity conflict — is a reality and political and military leaders must be ready to confront and deter it. There is no common definition of the term and therefore it is correspondingly ambiguous. It is an amorphous definition for an amorphous strategy. While it is a blend of traditional and irregular tactics, hybrid warfare makes overt and covert use of a wide range of tools: military and civilian, conventional and unconventional. Hybrid warfare is an umbrella concept, a form of comprehensive warfare, a strategy, that includes a buquet of tactics, techniques, technologies and methods. Hybrid warfare operations, for which it is difficult to attribute responsibility and which are not specifically regulated by international law, fall below the threshold of armed conflict. Hybrid warfare blurs the lines between peace and war and is therefore questioned whether it should be considered below the threshold of armed conflict. Some hybrid warfare operations are convenient because are located in a twilight zone between peace and war and below the threshold of war and therefore they should not trigger a conventional/kinetic military response. Nevertheless, at the 2014 NATO Summit in Wales, the allies recognized that international law applies in cyberspace and that the impact of cyberattacks could be as harmful as a conventional attack. As a result, cyberdefense was recognized as part of NATO’s core task of collective defense. At the Warsaw Summit in 2016, the allies took further action to recognize cyberspace as a domain of operations just like the "classic" domains of air, land and sea. At the NATO summit held in Brussels in 2021, the allies reaffirmed that a cyber attack could trigger Article 5 of the Atlantic Charter: "an attack on one is an attack on all". This doctrinal position is of no small importance. The question is whether hybrid warfare should be considered an armed attack or use of force that, under treaty and customary international law, could trigger a military response or whether it falls below the threshold of damage and destruction resulting from a kinetic attack. This paper aims to shed light on the consistency of the emerging doctrine on hybrid warfare with current international (humanitarian) law and its possible application.

European Consortium for Political Research General Conference 2021 (ECPR General Conference 2021), Sep 2, 2021

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict involves a set of questions and interests that make it hard to be s... more The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict involves a set of questions and interests that make it hard to be solved within the framework of current international law. Reportedly, in this long-lasting conflict there were serious violations of international law and international humanitarian law; all parties involved accused each other of war crimes and eventually resorted to the European Court of Human Rights. So far, for such alleged violations, no legal remedy was possible under the current international legal framework, just as there are many issues still on the table relating to the Armenian question. The Law of Nations is – or should be – the set of rules for the international community. Customary and treaty law are the legal means aimed to resolve and prevent disputes between states; they should serve to overcome the law of the jungle. This paper is aimed to scrutinize the legal conundrum of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict by investigating it within the overall context of the Armenian question.

15th Conference of the European Sociological Association 2021 (ESA Conference 2021), Sep 1, 2021

This study aims to shed light on the right to information and the freedom of the media in the con... more This study aims to shed light on the right to information and the freedom of the media in the context of the COVID-19 outbreak. Infection disease outbreaks are invariably characterized by myths and rumors, boosted by social media accounts, that media often pick up and circulate. Under the justification to avoid panic and confusion, and to combat “fake news” during the COVID-19 pandemic, some governments took emergency measures that curtail the freedom of information. The lack of a legal definition of the term “fake news” leaves room for arbitrary and broad interpretations.

Decrees issued during the state of emergency – including the practice of detaining journalists for their work and the abuse of pre-trial detention and Internet censorship – sound like measures adopted to restrict the freedom of expression and the freedom of the media, and to shout down dissenting voices. Any kind of pressure against journalists has an immediate consequence, not only on them but also on the public’s right to be informed. Media play a key role in providing important information to the public, and a pluralistic and vibrant media landscape is indispensable to any democratic society. Access to information and a free working environment are therefore essential and need to be ensured at all times, even under state of emergency. Authorities cannot invoke the state of emergency or national security as a motivation to suspend or limit fundamental human rights. The fight against COVID-19 can be a pretext for restricting civil liberties.

26th International Political Science Association World Congress (26th IPSA WC2021), Jul 13, 2021

In 2014 a violent conflict inflamed Crimea, an autonomous republic within Ukraine, resulting in t... more In 2014 a violent conflict inflamed Crimea, an autonomous republic within Ukraine, resulting in the destabilization ofregional security. The clash between the government of Kiev and the insurgents led to the annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol by the Russian Federation. This paper traces origins and causes of the conflict and tackles the issue of the right to self-determination and independence, then the question of the recognition of a new state entity, and finally the dissolution by incorporation into another state. Through a comparative analysis of some precedents, this article aims to investigate whether the annexation may be regarded as legal or not under international positive and customary law, what are the remedies available, and the likely outcome of the dispute, ending with some recommendations aimed at a settlement of the crisis.

The Helsinki Final Act of 1975, that concluded the first Conference on Security and Cooperation i... more The Helsinki Final Act of 1975, that concluded the first Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, reaffirmed the fundamental principle of renouncing the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state. Through this agreement, the Soviet Union gained the implicit recognition of the ‘sphere of influence’ that was determined in Eastern Europe after the end of World War II. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, a series of conflicts arose between the Russian Federation and its neighbors, some of which are members of the European Union or participate in the European Neighbourhood Policy. Some of these conflicts were fought at the kinetic level, some otherthrough the resort to hybrid warfare, a blend of traditional and irregular tactics that makes overt and covert use of a wide range of tools: military and civilian, conventional and unconventional, including information and influence operations. This paper aims to investigate the hybrid warfare strategy carried out by the Russian Federation in the confrontation with the European Union to regain dominance in its contested neighbourhood: the Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania), Ukraine (Crimea and Donbass, i.e. Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics), Georgia (South Ossetia and Abkhazia) and Moldova (Transnistria).

Thinking the European Security and Defense Identity , May 6, 2021

Threats from Africa undermine the security of Europe. The European Union and NATO have 22 member ... more Threats from Africa undermine the security of Europe. The European Union and NATO have 22 member countries in common, namely most of EU member states. The fundamental role of the Atlantic Alliance is to safeguard the freedom and security of its member countries by political and military means. Since the fall of the Berlin Wall, non-state actors and hybrid threats emerged as the major challenges to international security. NATO is evolving in response to new strategic reality, and terrorism and weak states are among the most pressing challenges the Alliance faces. NATO is playing an increasingly important role in crisis management and peacekeeping. Since the African Union was established in 2001 as the successor to the Organization of African Unity, it faces difficulties in achieving the African ownership in peace and security. The chronic lack of funding and of appropriate military resources, makes the African Union depending on external aid – NATO provides military support, while the EU provides money. NATO cooperates with the AU since 2005, and all NATO-AU activities are coordinated with the EU. The NATO-EU partnership is complementar and mutual, and is based on common values and strategic interests, and should be strengthened to secure the European southern border, and to guarantee security in the Mediterranean region. Therefore, stronger and permanent NATO-EU partnership in Africa would be desirable. This brief paper investigates the ties between these three organizations, and suggests some recommendations to improve the 'trilateral' relationship to ensure security to their member states.

The World Will Never be the Same! But, What New International Realities Will We Face?, Apr 28, 2021

Space is governed by bilateral treaties that belong to the Cold War era. The withdrawal by the Tr... more Space is governed by bilateral treaties that belong to the Cold War era. The withdrawal by the Trump Administration from two major treaties such as the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces and Open Skies , blaming Russia for the decision, jeopardizes the space neutrality. U.S. President Biden took the decision to seek a five-year extension of New START, until Feb. 5, 2026, and Russia agreed. Nevertheless, the unilateral withdrawal from the Outer Space Treaty by one of the major space powers is likely.

Space control is essential, given the heavy reliance on space systems and the rapidly increasing proliferation of missile technology and counterspace systems. Emerging disruptive technologies are game-changing and will determine the conflicts and the geopolitical scenario of next decades. Hypersonic weapons are changing the character of war, will play a huge role in the global power balance by undermining core pillars of geopolitics such as geography and technological power.

Like a time machine, global defense and security concerns take us back to the time of the Strategic Defense Initiative - known as "Star Wars Program" - the satellites and space-based missile system established by the U.S. on the eve of the end of the Cold War, intended to protect the country from attack by Soviet ballistic strategic nuclear weapons. This missile shield programme was designed to render nuclear weapons obsolete, but it appears to have failed. Space has been elevated by the U.S. and NATO to warfighting domain and has already been militarized by Russia and raising China. So far, the international community failed to reach a solution to prevent an arms race in outer space. Space war is no more a science-fiction scenario; it’s an emerging reality.

This presentation aims to shed light on the hazard of an outer space which is not governed by any rules and tackles the challenges coming from the militarization of this operational domain. The question is how to avoid a star war in Outer Space and to prevent a conflict on Earth from the above?

Ciência 2023, Jul 5, 2023

Over the last two decades, the concepts of defence and security have overlapped to the point wher... more Over the last two decades, the concepts of defence and security have overlapped to the point where the former is merged with the latter. Since jihadist terrorism broke out at the dawn of the millennium, governments have been forced to review the classic paradigm according to which the military is employed in overseas operations—or the defence of the homeland from external enemies—and police and law enforcement agencies are tasked with internal security. In such a context, the military has taken on an increasing role in national security matters, although security itself is an umbrella concept under development that currently includes such cross-cutting topics as terrorism, cyber threats, health, food, energy, the economy, poverty, climate change, information technology, social security, job security, just to mention a few. The inclination to replace the idea of defence with security has contributed to the expansion of the idea of security itself. This way, defence activities abroad, such as military assistance to Ukraine in the context of the ongoing conflict with Russia, are presented to the public as "security" operations.

Well-established and reputable dictionaries such as Merriam-Webster, Britannica, Collins, Oxford, Cambridge, Longman, and Macmillan provide similar definitions of the term "security": safety; safety from attack, harm, or damage; freedom from danger or threat; freedom from fear or anxiety; being safe and free from worry; being protected or safe from harm. Security is the protection from, or resilience against, the potential harm caused by others by restricting one's freedom to act.

In addition to these definitions, some of which are more focused on the person and his concerns and fears, there is a more comprehensive idea that incorporates the term “defence”. The definitions given by several dictionaries in this respect are pertinent. Therefore, according to the Cambridge Dictionary, security is the "protection of a person, building, organization, or country against threats such as crime or attacks by foreign countries". A similar definition is provided by the Oxford Dictionary: "the safety of a state or organization against criminal activity such as terrorism, theft, or espionage". On the same line, Longman says: "things that are done to keep a person, building, or country safe from danger or crime". These definitions show how the nature of the concept of security is changing, incorporating that of defence into much broader domains than the military realm.

The term "defence", is given as a synonym of "security" by the majority of these dictionaries (Merriam-Webster, Cambridge, Oxford, Collins), even though Britannica and Macmillan continue to be anchored to the dichotomy of defence/external and security/internal, respectively, by providing the words "national security" and "internal security", is evidence of this trend.

The evolving concept of security must be scrutinised, with special attention paid to the notion of human security, boosted by UN General Assembly resolution 66/290 and the NATO Strategic Concept 2022, and currently under investigation by the Exploratory Team of the NATO Science and Technology Organization.

Encontro Ciência 2022 (Ciência 2022), May 16, 2022

The term "hybrid" gained widespread use in military and political discourse; it grabbed the headl... more The term "hybrid" gained widespread use in military and political discourse; it grabbed the headlines and eventually reached the general public. We refer to "hybrid warfare" or "hybrid conflict", most likely without fully comprehending the term's meaning and ramifications. The question is whether and when hybrid warfare should be regarded an armed attackthat exceeds the threshold of damage and devastation caused by a kinetic action. The purpose of this article is to provide light on the consistency of the growing doctrine of hybrid warfare with current international (humanitarian) law, beginning with a lexical and logical analysis of the words.

Science & You 2021, Nov 16, 2021

Infection disease outbreaks are invariably characterized by myths and rumors, boosted by social m... more Infection disease outbreaks are invariably characterized by myths and rumors, boosted by social media accounts, that media often pick up and circulate. On the grounds of protecting public health in the context of the covid-19 pandemic, some Member States of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe imposed strict rules on the dissemination of “fake news”. This paper reviews the outbreak communication principles established by the World Health Organization and checks the compliance of emergency legislation, adopted under the pretext of combating misinformation and disinformation, against fundamental human rights.

Encontro Ciência 2021, Jun 28, 2021

Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming one of the most important technologies of our time (OSCE... more Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming one of the most important technologies of our time (OSCE, 2019) and is one of the most important economic and social developments in history, characterized as the lynchpin of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Schwab, 2017). Military applications of AI are pushing forward the capacity for warfare and will transform its nature. Military robots that incorporate AI will play a greater role in the future (Cummings, 2017). A future battle might be ‘algorithms vs. algorithms’, with the best algorithm victorious. The European Union (EU) is also taking action on AI.

XI Portuguese Congress of Sociology (thematic section 'Security, Defense and Armed Forces'), Mar 29, 2021

This poster addresses the employment of the Armed Forces in homeland security tasks. Unconvention... more This poster addresses the employment of the Armed Forces in homeland security tasks. Unconventional conflicts – hybrid, asymmetric, and transnational conflicts which involve state and non-state actors such as insurgents or terrorist organizations – are among the trend topics of defense and security. Since jihadist terrorism broke out in in Europe, security has become a main concern, occupying the front pages of newspapers and the agendas of governments. Therefore, the debate on the employment of the Armed Forces in homeland security tasks became central.

The primary responsibility for protecting life and property and maintaining law and order in the civilian community is vested in police forces; supplementary responsibility is vested by statute in specific agencies other than the Ministry of Defense. Military forces may be used to support law enforcement agencies. In emergency situations, the Parliament may authorize the use of the military as a police force on home soil.

Police departments are much larger in major metropolitan areas and much smaller than the average in rural areas, but in catastrophic attacks that affect large areas in several states simultaneously, there will not be enough police officers to do what has to be done. Since lateral reinforcement is not feasible when all adjacent areas are involved, the only source of augmentation for local departments will be from the Armed Forces.

Subsidiary operations of the Amy in support to civil authorities – e.g. military aid in the event of a catastrophe – are one of the ordinary duties of the Army, whose main mission is to ensure security and defense of the territory. Although the readiness of use for the defense of the territory is reduced, the maintenance and development of this important primary mission is to guard the long-term, in anticipation of events imponderables in the military and security policy.

In Western liberal-democracies the executive power is limited in the use of the military in domestic security operations because of legal norms. Police is in charge of internal security, with the Army acting as ‘reinforcing force’ only in conjunction with the first. Subsidiary operations of the Army in the field of homeland security have increased over the past few years and in many countries is currently underway a political debate to evaluate the allocation of the Army direct powers in policing. It is a political decision, which must take into account both the changing environment in which the Armed Forces operate and the threat of international terrorism manifested in disruptive manner at the beginning of the new millennium. Legislative and cultural obstacles should be overcome to achieve this goal.

Encontro Ciência 2020 (National Science Summit 2020), Oct 2, 2020

History of International Relations at a Glance: 1) Westphalian Sovereignty Result of: Thirty Ye... more History of International Relations at a Glance:

Westphalian Sovereignty

Result of: Thirty Year’s War (1618-1648) Catholic states v. Protestant states in western and central Europe

Based on: Peace of Westphalia (Treaties of Osnabruck and Munster).

Concert of Europe (Vienna System)

Result of: Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815).
Based on: Congress of Vienna (1815).

Versailles-Washington System

Result of: World War I (1914-1918).
Based on: Peace Treaty of Versailles (1919) and Washington Naval Conference (1921-1922).

Yalta-Potsdam World Order

Result of: World War II (1939-1945).
Based on: Yalta Conference (February 1945) and Potsdam Conference (July-August 1945).

Modern System of International Relations

Result of: Cold War’s end and dissolution of USSR and Warsaw Pact (1991).

II Encontro Anual da Investigação & Desenvolvimento em Ciências Militares (EAI&DCM 2019), Nov 27, 2019

The recognition by the US and NATO of ‘new’ domains of operations, namely the cyber and (outer-)s... more The recognition by the US and NATO of ‘new’ domains of operations, namely the cyber and (outer-)space, plus the information and the electromagnetic spectrum (EMS), makes the traditional partition of physical domains of land, air, maritime obsolete (Marsili, 2019a). While classic domains are generally well understood conceptually, to the extent that joint doctrine does not feel the need to define them, the new domains are much more difficult to conceptualize and bound within a constructive definition (Donnelly & Farley, 2019, p. 9).

Since the cyber has been recognized by NATO as a domain of operations (July 2016), and the Alliance has approved the first-ever space policy (June 2019) – a step towards the acknowledgment of space as a warfighting domain, as President Trump has officially characterized it (August 2019) – the doctrine has speeded the integration of all domains (Marsili, 2019a).

The concept of cross-domain operations is not new, but multi-domain has increased in popularity over the past decade as military services, those of the US, inter alia, have sought to codify their approach to warfare beyond the traditional confines of land, sea, and air (Marsili, 2019; Reilly, 2019, p. 16). What they are committed to are converging military capabilities across the joint force with continuous integration across multiple domains (Marsili, 2019a; Townsend, 2019, p. 29).

The discussion about ‘Multi-Domain Operations’ (MDO), i.e. how operations are conducted in time and space with synchronization of the other domains, has been stimulated since new domains such as the cyber and space have emerged next to the traditional domains of air, land and sea — emerging and disruptive technologies have further complicated the operational environment (OE).

We then moved quickly from a concept of cross-domain to multi-domain (Marsili, 2019), without the time to define any of the new domains — neither of the classic domains. Rather, the doctrine does not provide us with any definition of the basic term ‘domain’, and this further complicates the scenario. Before coming to a definition of ‘Multi-Domain Operations’, it is necessary to define, not only the correlation between domains, but also the same non-traditional domains (Marsili, 2019).

The battlefield has become undefined, and virtually unlimited (Marsili, 2019b, p. 191). The high-tech evolution of warfare – artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), lethal and non-lethal unmanned systems, lethal autonomous weapon systems (LAWS), quantum computing and big data, to name a few – imposes the need to operate across all domains (Marsili, 2019). Not yet defined the basic term ‘domain’, as well as the new domains added to the traditional ones, we are asking what’s after joint. It is like making a double somersault pike with screwing immediately after learning leapfrogging.

While the doctrine can define more or less easily these concepts, the question of their legal definition it has yet to be addressed and fixed (Marsili, 2019ab). It is no small matter, as it comes to adapting the doctrine to current public international law, or to modify the latter to fit the first — in this case, the problem would be very difficult to solve.Positive and customary international law – multilateral and bilateral treaties, the law of war, international humanitarian law (IHL) – are put to the test in this challenge (Marsili, 2018).

Given the complexity of modern warfare, the field of hybrid and asymmetric conflicts expands dramatically, and it should be limited by setting a threshold (Väljataga, 2018; Marsili, 2019a). Rules are necessary to impose legal limits on the use of lethal force, to avoid an escalation, and to protect civilians (Marsili, 2019a; 2019b). Moreover, while the space domain involves only the states, given the necessary capabilities, other domains – e.g., the cyber, the information, and the EMS –are accessible also to non-state entities, such as insurgents and terrorist groups, and this poses further ethical and legal questions that should be timely addressed by the international community (Marsili, 2019a; 2019b).

New concepts of operation, fuelled by technological advances, have facilitated interconnectivity across different domains of warfare (Marsili 2019; Canovas, 2019, p. 47). It’s not only the capacity to integrate and operate in all domains simultaneously to get the greatest advantage possible against adversaries. The two camps – the western one of the US-led NATO, and that of the adversaries, firstly China and Russia – seek to derive mutual benefit from the absence of standards and legally binding norms.

The North Atlantic Alliance is also focused on developments in the field of automation, in the integration of AI and the design of unmanned vehicles capable of operating in multiple domains, and in technological convergence, i.e. the integration of multiple research fields in the identification of the solution to a technological challenge (Marsili, 2019). Therefore, domain integration is an exceptionally tricky issue that poses challenges on several layers: technological, legal, political, military, operational, strategic, tactical (Marsili, 2019).

The purpose of this contribution is not to address the strategic and/or tactical implications of these concepts to the battlespace, which this paper does not provide any, rather than turning on a light on the risks posed by the lack of standard definitions (Marsili, 2019ab).

This also calls into question the traditional division between civil and military, that is between combatants and non-combatants, and the consequent application of international law (Marsili, 2018; 2019a; 2019b). Therefore, it’s not only a holistic view of the OE, that should be explored, but also the ethical and legal implications should be taken into account (Marsili, 2018; 2019a; 2019b).

Political and military leaders are mainly focuses on the development of strategic and tactical concepts, and they neglect the importance of a binding legal framework — this leaves hands free. The liaison between political and operational levels in decision-making process requires that the norms be well defined, also to ensure accountability (Marsili, 2019a). This paper aims to raise questions that could be useful to policymakers and military leaders to open up political space to get deals done.

Encontro Ciência 2019 (National Science Summit 2019), the Science and Technology Summit in Portugal, 2019

European Foreign and Security Policy The EU represents one in a series of efforts to integrate E... more European Foreign and Security Policy

The EU represents one in a series of efforts to integrate Europe since World War II, and to achieve, inter alia, diplomatic stability and military security. In 1957 the Treaty of Rome established the European Economic Community (EEC), that was renamed European Communities (EC) by the Maastricht Treaty in 1993. A series of further international treaties and treaty revisions based largely on this model led eventually to the creation of the EU.

In the early 1970s the European Political Cooperation (EPC; renamed the Common Foreign and Security Policy by the Maastricht Treaty), consisting of regular meetings of the foreign ministers of each country, was established to coordinate foreign policy.

As part of the second pillar of the Maastricht Treaty, members undertook to define and implement common foreign and security policies. Members agreed that, where possible, they would adopt common defense policies, which would be implemented through the Western European Union (WEU), a security organization that included many EU members.

The WEU, that run from 1955 until 2011, was made up of 10countries, and operated as a forum for the coordination of matters of European security and defense. The WEU became the primary defense institution of the EU in the 1990s, though it gave up that role in 2001. The assembly of the WEU consisted of the delegates of the member countries to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). The Council of Europe (CoE) is an older and wider circle of nations than the 28-member European Union —it includes, for example, Russia and Turkey among its member states.

The WEU contributed to the creation of the NATO and worked in cooperation with the Atlantic Alliance. NATO and the EU currently have 22 member countries in common. Relations between NATO and the EU were institutionalized in 2001, building on steps taken during the 1990s to promote greater European responsibility in defense matters. The 2002 NATO-EU Declaration on a European Security and DefencePolicy (ESDP) set out the political principles underlying the relationship and reaffirmed EU assured access to NATO’s planning capabilities for the EU’s own military operations.

Finally, in 2007 the Lisbon Treaty consolidatedforeign policy representation for the EU. Since the LisbonTreaty entered into force in 2009, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy is the chiefcoordinatorand representative of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP), and ex officio a Vice-President of the European Commission.

Presenting the European Security Strategy adopted in December 2003, then Secretary-General of the Council of the EU/High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, Javier Solana, stated: “Europe has never been so prosperous, so secure nor so free. The violence of the first half of the 20th Century has given way to a period of peace and stability unprecedented in European history”. No statement was more wrong.

All EU member states are at the same time participating States of the Organizationfor Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the world's largest security-oriented intergovernmental organization, established in 1973 as the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE), and renamed OSCE in 1995. Since the beginning, the EC, and, since 1993, the EU have played a vital role in the work of the OSCE. Over the years, the scope of co-operation between the OSCE and the EU has both broadened and deepened, following development of the CFSP, and the launch of the first EU crisis management operations under the European Security and DefencePolicy (CSDP), the EU course of action in the fields of defense and crisis management, and a main component of the CFSP.

Through the European NeighbourhoodPolicy (ENP), that applies to Algeria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Egypt, Georgia, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Moldova, Morocco, Palestine, Syria, Tunisia and Ukraine, the EU aims to strengthen the prosperity, stability and security of all. The ENP includes ten Mediterranean countries, six post-Soviet states, and Western Balkan countries.

European Border Conflicts Timeline

Regional conflicts that occurred at the doors of the EU since the end of WorldWar II:

Israeli–Palestinian conflict (1948-present)
Cyprus conflict(1974-present)
Post-Soviet conflicts— Georgia, Armenia, and Russia (1990-present)
Post-Soviet ‘FrozenConflicts’— Transnistria (Moldova), Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), Abkhazia (Georgia), South Ossethia( Georgia) (1991-present)
Yugoslav Wars— Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Kosovo(1991-2001)
Chechen Wars (1994-1996; 1999-2000)
Kosovo War (1998-1999)
NATO bombing of Yugoslavia(1999)
Turkey’s authoritarian turn (2002-present)
War in Ingushetia (2007-2015)
Independence of Kosovo (2008)
Russian-GeorgianWar (2008)
Insurgency in the North Caucasus (2009-2017)
Arab Springs (2010-2012)
Libyan Civil War (2011-present)
Syria Civil War (2011-present)
Egyptian coup d'état (2013)
Donbass Conflict in East Ukraine (2014-present)
Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation (2014)
The EU: a Global or a Vain and Weak-Willed Actor?

Alongside non-international and international conflicts, a third category of armed conflict is emerging: hybrid, asymmetric, and transnational conflicts which involve state and non-state actors such as insurgents and terrorists. Unconventional conflicts are among the trend topics of defense and security, and they pose a threat to the stability of international order. Hybrid conflicts, involving state and non-state actors, characterize the post ColdWar era. These conflicts challenge the ability of international organizations to address them, and so far the EU was unable to settle them.

Afterthe breakup of Yugoslavia(1990-1992) NATO started a military campaign in Kosovo and bombed Yugoslavia(1999). The independence of Kosovo is not recognized by all EU members: to date, 23 of the 28 member states recognize the authority of Pristina.13Spain, Slovakia, Cyprus, Romania, and Greece do not recognize Kosovo's independence, and, as a result, the EU itself refers only to ‘Kosovo’.

In 1992 The OSCE established the Minsk Group to settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Since 2014, the Trilateral Contact Group on Ukraine (Ukraine, the Russian Federation, and the OSCE) is seeking he peaceful settlement of the situation in eastern Ukraine (i.e.,the Donbass).

Conclusions

Since it was created by the Maastricht Treaty in 1993, the EU is facing difficulties in addressing and settle crisis. So far, the EU proved unable to solve alone the conflicts that have arisen at its doors, with the long time running Israeli–Palestinian and Cyprus issue still unfixed.

Other international organizations –i.e., NATO and OSCE–intervened to resolve some of these conflicts. Despite the overlap of some of these organizations, that share theirs members with the EU, the Union is not able to achieve an ownership in the field of peace, stability and security at its borders, and and his claim to be a global actor proves weak-willed.

It would be useful to investigate the reasons for this incapacity: lack of a real and exclusive autonomy in matters of foreign policy; lack of a European army; subjection to US-led NATO; national interest of EU member states.

Encontro Anual da Investigação & Desenvolvimento em Ciências Militares 2018 (EAI&DCM 2018): "Investigação em Ciências Militares: Atualidade e perspetivas futuras", Dec 12, 2018

The issue is how current international law applies or can be adapted to these conflicts. There are some questions to be fixed. First, we should find whether new rules are required to deal with situations of hybrid conflict, or if current rules are still valid and can be used/adapted. Secondly, we should determine whether IHL applies in transnational armed conflict against non-state groups, and if their members cease to be targetable during a pause in their active involvement, and whether there can be a non-international armed conflict which has no finite territorial boundaries with a non-state armed group operating transnationally. Lastly, we should assess whether attacks carried out by a transnational organisations and its affiliates meet the criteria of qualifying as a state of armed conflict under IHL.

Encontro Ciência 2017 (National Science Summit 2017), the Science and Technology Summit in Portugal, Jul 3, 2017

Europe has been hit by a wave of terrorist attacks, which demonstrates the limits of the Security and Defence Policy. The EU short-term strategy, tending only to hit terrorist organisations, has not produced the expected effects: attacks in Europe, rather than decreasing, have increased. Little or nothing has been done to develop a successful preventive strategy.

After the early 2000s, there is hardly registered Islamic attack within the EU, due to the change in the Al-Qaeda strategy. The recrudescence recorded after 2014 coincides with the rise of ISIS.

Book of Abstracts from 5th Erasmus Gender Seminar 2023, Jun 29, 2023

Abstract Book of the of I. International Congress on Iranian Studies,, Jun 21, 2023

Abstracts of speeches of the International Scientific Conference “Communication. Disinformation. Propaganda. Information Warfare Ecosystem”, May 23, 2023

Book of Abstracts of the XXII Portuguese Congress of Sociology,, Apr 4, 2023

Book of Abstracts of the conference on Freedom of Expression, Hate Speech, and Religious Freedom: A Human Rights Perspective, Jan 29, 2022

Proceedings of the Parallel Sessions of Science&You 2021, Sep 1, 2022

Infection disease outbreaks are invariably characterized by myths and rumors, boosted by social m... more Infection disease outbreaks are invariably characterized by myths and rumors, boosted by social media accounts, that media often pick up and circulate. On the grounds of protecting public health in the context of the covid-19 pandemic, some Member States of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe imposed strict rules on the dissemination of “fake news”. This paper reviews the outbreak communication principles established by the World Health Organization and checks the compliance of emergency legislation, adopted under the pretext of combating misinformation and disinformation, against fundamental human rights.

IUM Actuality, Aug 24, 2022

Iconic films such as Star Wars (1977) and Starship Troopers (1997) picture conflicts fought in ou... more Iconic films such as Star Wars (1977) and Starship Troopers (1997) picture conflicts fought in outer space. UFO (1970) tells the story of a high-tech military organization established to defend Earth from space attack. Space: 1999 (1975) and Star Trek (1966) are about travelling in deep space where no man has "bodly" gone before and imagine a technology that does not exist. Sometimes science fiction, inspired by science possibilities that one day can come true, simply imagines the future. Military applications of space technology, and considerations on space as a future theater of war when they would become technologically possible, were outlined in the Introduction to Outer Space, a pamphlet edited by the White House in 1958.

To avoid the militarization of space and celestial bodies, and to guarantee their exploration and use for peaceful purposes to all countries, in 1967 the US, the U.K. and the Soviet Union opened for signature the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, which has become customary international law (White, 2000). The Outer Space Treaty forbids from placing in Earth orbit weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons, or otherwise stationing them in outer space, but does not prohibit the placement of conventional weapons, and thus some highly destructive attack strategies such as kinetic bombardment are still potentially allowable (Bourbonniere & Lee, 2007).

Conference Programme and Abstract Book of the 9th International Conference on Eurasian Politics and Society (IEPAS2022), Jul 8, 2022

This book contains the abstracts accepted for presentation, after a peer-review process, at the i... more This book contains the abstracts accepted for presentation, after a peer-review process, at the international conference North Atlantic Security and Defense Strategy (NASDS 2022), held on May 19-20, 2022 at the Military University Institute, Lisbon. The conference was organized by the Center for Research and Development of the Military University Institute/General Staff of the Armed Forces (Portugal) in cooperation with the Institute of International and European Law of Reykjavík University (Iceland), and the Centre for Security Policy of the Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies (Norway). The conference gathered scholars, experts and practitioners, especially from Arctic countries, EU and NATO member states. The conference, aimed to broaden the debate on the security and defense in the North Atlantic and Arctic region, has the purpose to raise awareness on current pressing global challenges, and provide opportunities for researchers to share views that will enhance the future of the Euro-Atlantic and collective security.

Sociological Knowledges for Alternative Futures, Abstract Book of 15th ESA Conference, Dec 2021

This paper aims to shed light on the right to information and the freedom of the media in the con... more This paper aims to shed light on the right to information and the freedom of the media in the context of the COVID-19 outbreak. Infection disease outbreaks are invariably characterized by myths and rumors, boosted by social media accounts, that media often pick up and circulate. Under the justification to avoid panic and confusion, and to combat “fake news” during the COVID-9 pandemic, some governments took emergency measures that curtail the freedom of information. The lack of a legal definition of the term “fake news” leaves room for arbitrary and broad interpretations. Decrees issued during the state of emergency – including the practice of detaining journalists for their work and the abuse of pre-trial detention and Internet censorship – sound like measures adopted to restrict the freedom of expression and the freedom of the media, and to shout down dissenting voices. Any kind of pressure against journalists has an immediate consequence, not only on them but also on the public’s right to be informed. Media play a key role in providing important information to the public, and a pluralistic and vibrant media landscape is indispensable to any democratic society. Access to information and a free working environment are therefore essential and need to be ensured at all times, even under state of emergency. Authorities cannot invoke the state of emergency or national security as a motivation to suspend or limit fundamental human rights. The fight against COVID-19 can be a pretext for restricting civil liberties.

Resumos de Comunicações das Áreas e Secções Temáticas - XI Congresso Português de Sociologia (Book of Abstracts of the XI Portuguese Congress of Sociology), Mar 30, 2021

Programme and Abstract of the 4th International Conference Europe as a Global Actor (EGA) 2019, May 2, 2019

Turkey is a member of the Council of Europe, of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and a can... more Turkey is a member of the Council of Europe, of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and a candidate to the accession to the European Union. As a transcontinental country, Turkey belongs both to Asia and Europe, and can be used as a benchmark to assess the narrowing of human rights and civil liberties in the fight against terrorism. While having become the central platform for action for Islamist groups in the Middle East, as a result of the gradually Islamized domestic and foreign policy of Ankara since 2011, Turkey demands its Western allies to stand by it in the fight against terrorism. Turkey has a concept of terrorism that clashes with the principles enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights, that should be obliged to comply, together with other international instruments. The authoritarian turn put in place by the Turkish government after the failed coup d’état of 15 July 2016 is a challenge to the values of European and Western civilization, and pillories all the contradictions and the limits of the latter concerning defending fundamental human rights while countering terrorism. This paper scrutinizes the policy of the Turkish authorities to counter terrorism within the country and at its external borders, and the inconsistencies of this policy with the international legal commitments and with the values of European and Western nations.

Programme and Abstracts of the International Conference Europe as a Global Actor (EGA) 2016, Nov 4, 2016

The wave of jihadism which affects western countries since 11 September 2001, has pushed governme... more The wave of jihadism which affects western countries since 11 September 2001, has pushed governments to pass repressive legislation, which restricts the fundamental rights and freedoms. Complementing this, have been taken true warfare actionsto counter this phenomenon in the countries of origin. However, little or nothing has been done to try to understand why many European actors – namely grown and often born in western countries – turned themselves into ‘lone wolves’ or ‘foreign fighters’. What drove them to embrace the religious fanaticism that leads to terror- ism, and leaving their European homes to fight in the milita of the Islamic State? This essay aims to give a ‘cultural’ approach to the phenomenon of terrorism in Europe, and suggests a new holistic and comprehensive strategy to counter it.

Book of Abstracts of the Unequal World Conference, 2020

The Charter of the Nürnberg Tribunal introduced crimes against peace and crimes against humanity ... more The Charter of the Nürnberg Tribunal introduced crimes against peace and crimes against humanity into international criminal law. War crimes, that include grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions and other serious violations of laws and customs applicable in armed conflict, were included upon proposal by the United States in the Rome Statute that establishes the International Criminal Court (ICC). The ICC goes beyond the limits of multilateral international criminal justice which has been applied to the Nüremberg Trials.

The Rome treaty, which essentially codifies customary jus cogens war crimes, allows the ICC to exercise jurisdiction over the nationals of non-party countries if the crime is committed in the territory of a party country. The U.S., which inspired the ICC, signed but not ratified the Rome Statute, and therefore has no legal obligations arising from such signature. Since 1998, the U.S. has declined to join the ICC because its broad powers could pursue "politically motivated prosecutions of Americans", thus posing a threat to U.S. sovereignty.

When in January 2015, after the State of Palestine accessed the Rome Statute, the ICC opened an investigation for alleged war crimes committed by Israel – which is not a member of ICC – the U.S. sided with the government of Tel Aviv and began undermining the credibility of the Court. In fall 2016 South Africa, Burundi and The Gambia withdrew from the ICC, accusing it to be an instrument of political pressure of Western powers – The Gambia and South Africa revoked their decision in 2017. In November 2016 Russia, which has never ratified the Statute, withdrew all support for the ICC after its prosecutors said Moscow's 2014 annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol “amounts to an ongoing state of occupation”. When, in November 2017, the Court’s Office of the Prosecutor opened an investigation on alleged crimes committed in Afghanistan by U.S. military and civilian personnel, the U.S. stepped up efforts to de-legitimize the ICC. The U.S. stated that it wants to continue to exercise domestic jurisdiction over its nationals charged by the ICC for war crimes, thus removing them from international justice. Finally, the Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute in March 2018, soon after the ICC began investigating whether President Rodrigo Duterte committed crimes against humanity in his drug crackdown.

By weakening international justice institutions such as the ICC, we will return to a multilateral justice, or to the law of the strongest. Justice and law, to become universal values, must be applied anytime and everywhere without being bent to the interests of the strongest. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.

Conference Programme & Abstract Book of the 7th Annual Conference on Eurasian Politics & Society (IEPAS2020) , Sep 21, 2020

Is it reasonable to label State institutions as a "terrorist organizations"? This study is aimed ... more Is it reasonable to label State institutions as a "terrorist organizations"? This study is aimed to establish if a political party represented in a national parliament – or even a State or a Government as a whole – can be considered a "terror organization", and therefore proscribed as such. Through the analysis of some cases stories, this research assesses the legitimacy – or the lawfulness – of some political institutions in the Middle East. The essay scrutinizes, inter alia, the case of Hezbollah ("Party of Allah" or "Party of God"), a radical Islamic Shiite organization based in Lebanon, and the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), a Sunni movement based in Gaza, both backed by the Government of Tehran – Iran as a whole is also taken into account. To have a broader framework in the region, this analysis touches also on: Turkey, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Afghanistan under Taliban rule.

Conference Programme & Abstract Book of the 6th International Conference on Eurasian Politics and Society (IEPAS2019), Jul 4, 2019

Turkey is a member of the Council of Europe, of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and a can... more Turkey is a member of the Council of Europe, of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and a candidate to the accession to the European Union. As a transcontinental country, Turkey belongs both to Asia and Europe, and can be used as a benchmark to assess the narrowing of human rights and civil liberties in the fight against terrorism. While having become the central platform for action for Islamist groups in the Middle East, as a result of the gradually Islamized domestic and foreign policy of Ankara since 2011, Turkey demands its Western allies to stand by it in the fight against terrorism. Turkey has a concept of terrorism that clashes with the principles enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights, that should be obliged to comply, together with other international instruments. The authoritarian turn put in place by the Turkish government after the failed coup d'etat of 15 July 2016 is a challenge to the values of European and Western civilization and pillories all the contradictions and the limits of the latter concerning defending fundamental human rights while countering terrorism. This paper scrutinizes the policy of the Turkish authorities to counter terrorism within the country and at its external borders, and the inconsistencies of this policy with the international legal commitments and with the values of European and Western nations.

Book of Abstracts - Proceedings of the 2nd World Conference on Advanced Materials for Defense, Jul 6, 2020

This brief study focuses on skin as sensory interface, and explores the latest discoveries in bio... more This brief study focuses on skin as sensory interface, and explores the latest discoveries in bioelectronic science. The work analyzes at what extent invisibility is possible by emulating nature, and if military applications can really benefit from technology that combines epidermal systems and virtual reality.

Abstracts from the Decision Support and Risk Assessment for Operational Effectiveness (DeSRA) 2016 Conference - Conference Proceedings, Aug 2, 2016

The scope of this abstract is to pursue and increase the quality levels of the military instrumen... more The scope of this abstract is to pursue and increase the quality levels of the military instrument to enhance the effectiveness, operational capabilities and overall employability by providing a timely information representation and a catchy and tailored visualization and communication support.

The impact of information and communication on civilian/military maritime operations should be addressed in a social and political perspective.

The success of communication, both indoor and outdoor, is essential for achieving goals. A fully informed and favorable outdoor and indoor environment supports and facilitates the achievement of military objectives.

Communication must be multimedia, multiplatform and multilevel.

Communication to be strength, must represent information in a simply and clear way through short text elements integrated with interactive visual representations: they capture at best the audience attention, without compromising the efficacy of the information content to be transmitted.

Online availability through user-friendly and intuitive interface, enabling a positive user experience, is strongly recommended. Language should be natural for not military audience, and glossary should be available. Information should be manually categorized for not military audience.

Communication results should be measured through a validation and verification process.

International Forum on Advanced and digitalised Smart Textiles (IFAST), Jun 15, 2021

This paper aims to reflect on the challenges of adopting new technologies in Technical Textiles a... more This paper aims to reflect on the challenges of adopting new technologies in Technical Textiles and Materials for defence concerning the current readiness and capacities in the European Union. Identified bottlenecks are the manufacturing readiness, the supply chain capacity and autonomy, and the knowledge and technical skills required.

International Society of Military Sciences 2020 (ISMS 2020), Nov 7, 2020

Introduction The lines between conventional and unconventional conflicts become blurred. Alongsi... more Introduction

The lines between conventional and unconventional conflicts become blurred. Alongside non-international and international conflicts, a third category of armed conflict is emerging: hybrid, asymmetric, and transnational conflicts which involve state and non-state actors whose legal status and classification is disputed.[1] While it’s a blend of traditional and irregular tactics, hybrid warfare makes use of a wide range of tools: military and civilian; conventional and unconventional. Hybrid warfare was linked almost exclusively with non-state actors. Afterwards the concept of hybrid warfare developed in a way that is now commonly accepted to describe the interplay between conventional and unconventional means used also by governments and regular armies.

For such emerging conflicts/warfare there is no legal definition, therefore leaving room for interpretation and applicable law. International law (IL) and international humanitarian law (IHL) – in particular the law of war (Geneva and Hague law) – apply in case of armed conflict. The law of war, a branch of public international law, sets the acceptable justifications to engage in war (jus ad bellum) and the limits to acceptable wartime conduct (jus in bello). The law of war regulates inter alia: declaration of war; acceptance of surrender and the treatment of prisoners of war; military necessity, along with distinction and proportionality; and the prohibition of certain weapons that may cause unnecessary suffering.

Research problem and question investigated

The research aims to investigate whether and how current international customary[2] and treaty law applies to unconventional conflicts that characterize the 21st century. The study investigates whether new rules are required, or if current rules are still valid and can be used/adapted.

The research aims to check whether and to what extent states abide IL/IHL in dealing with unconventional conflicts, or if, through their course of conduct, states are attempting to create new customary law, or to adapt the existing instruments to the challenges that unconventional conflicts pose. The study investigates also whether these conducts abide customary IL and peremptory norms (jus cogens), that are not consent-based, but still are obligatory upon state and non-state actors.

The research has the purpose to contribute to develop solutions for the global challenges of today and tomorrow by understanding the present and imaging future scenarios.

Basic design of the study, including sources and methods

The research topic involves main cross-cutting issues (the rule of law, fundamental human rights and ethical principles) and therefore requires an interdisciplinary approach: history, political science, political philosophy, sociology, law, ethics.

The research requires an empirical, positivist framework that rests on qualitative data analysis.[3] Although in complicated legal systems no ultimate distinction can be made between legal and moral standards, as positivism insists, socio-legal theory offers a contrasting/complementary perspective that will be useful in a global study like this. The research is conducted applying the concept of triangulation, which combines different methods (exploratory, descriptive and analytical) and fits to qualitative studies.

The specific nature of the methodology employed in this study is reflected in its structure, which is divided into two principal parts. The first part considers the theoretical elements, definitions and current research. The second part analyzes the legal aspects of some case studies and nests them within the broader discussion on the applicable law, starting from an analysis based on three pillars: historical, theoretical-conceptual and legal (in the light of IL/IHL).

To answer the starting question, the research moves from a historical-documentary analysis, then takes into consideration the literature and eventually focuses on some case studies of the post Cold War era: NATO bombing of Yugoslavia (1999); Gulf War (1990); Iraq War (2003); invasion of Afghanistan (2001); Syrian conflict (2011); the War on Terror (2001).

At first stage the study explores the theoretical elements: literature and legal framework. The legal framework consists of customary IL/IHL; international instruments (conventions and treaties); documents produced by relevant UN international agencies, bodies and entities; rulings of relevant supranational courts and international tribunals. Then an empirical analysis based on these tools checks the compliance of some case studies with current IL/IHL. Under most circumstances, an analysis of this type requires an empirical, positivist framework that rests on either a qualitative or quantitative data analysis.

Major findings

The approach to warfare in political and legal discourse changed dramatically over the last fifty years and left significant room for free interpretation by policymakers and military leaders. Current rules are applied partially (and with difficulty) in situations that go beyond the rigid classifications established by international conventions and customary law. International law, in particular IHL, is good as long as it dealt with conventional conflict, or with civil war within a single country, but it shows its limits when faced with hybrid conflict. However, current rules may be sufficient to manage unconventional conflicts, but must be strictly respected and applied by all actors. Some governments and international organizations such as the NATO face difficulty using the tools currently available and therefore attempt to overtake IL/IHL by adopting a course of conduct to change de facto current legal framework through customary law. The nature and the scope of IL makes it easy for states to escape from their obligations, in the absence of mandatory constraints and of an effective sanctioning mechanism.

Lastly, lexicon and definition of terms are essential, and the international community should find common, undisputed and unambiguous legal formulations for terms such as: conventional/unconventional; traditional/non-traditional; kinetic/non-kinetic; lethal/non-lethal.

Interpretations and conclusions

This research does not rest on pre-defined hypotheses, but rather relies on the ability to divulge meaning from different elements of research without being bound by pre-existing limitations. While this presents a serious challenge, it does open much room for possible explorations of new fields of research without necessitating a fixed point of departure – or arrival. Findings and conclusions are to be considered provisional.

Acknowledgment

This study received financial support by the European Social Fund (ESF) and by the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT), Portugal, under grant SFRH/BD/136170/2018. The participation in this conference was funded by the Military University Institute (IUM), Armed Forces General Staff (EMGFA), Ministry of National Defence (MDN), Portugal.

Disclaimer

This abstract is published open access under the CC BY 4.0 license in the FNDU institutional repository "Doria"at with URN http://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe2020110489302 at https://www.doria.fi/handle/10024/178092.

[1] For a definition of the term hybrid conflict, see: Gray, C.S. (2005). Another Bloody Century: Future Warfare, London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson.

[2] For a discussion, see: Bederman, D.J. (2004). International Law in Antiquity. Cambridge University Press.

[3] For a definition of research methods cited: Given, L.M. (ed.) (2008). The SAGE Encyclopedia of Qualitative Research Methods Vol. 1&2. Los Angeles/London: SAGE.

CIEP Working Papers, Oct 2, 2019

Since the fall of the Berlin Wall, non-state actors and hybrid threats emerged as the major challenges to international security. NATO is evolving in response to new strategic reality, and terrorism and weak states are among the most pressing challenges the Alliance faces. NATO is playing an increasingly important role in crisis management and peacekeeping.

Since the African Union was established in 2001 as the successor to the Organization of African Unity, it faces difficulties in achieving the African ownership in peace and security. The chronic lack of funding and of appropriate military resources, makes the African Union depending on external aid – NATO provides military support, while the EU provides money. NATO cooperates with the AU since 2005, and all NATO-AU activities are coordinated with the EU.

The NATO-EU partnership is complementar and mutual, and is based on common values and strategic interests, and should be strengthened to secure the European southern border, and to guarantee security in the Mediterranean region. Therefore, stronger and permanent NATO-EU partnership in Africa would be desirable. This brief paper investigates the ties between these three organizations, and suggests some recommendations to improve the 'trilateral' relationship to ensure security to their member states.

Threats from Africa undermine the security of Europe. The European Union and NATO have 22 member ... more Threats from Africa undermine the security of Europe. The European Union and NATO have 22 member countries in common, namely most of EU member states. The fundamental role of the Atlantic Alliance is to safeguard the freedom and security of its member countries by political and military means. Since the fall of the Berlin Wall, non-state actors and hybrid threats emerged as the major challenges to international security. NATO is evolving in response to new strategic reality, and terrorism and weak states are among the most pressing challenges the Alliance faces. NATO is playing an increasingly important role in crisis management and peacekeeping. Since the African Union was established in 2001 as the successor to the Organization of African Unity, it faces difficulties in achieving the African ownership in peace and security. The chronic lack of funding and of appropriate military resources, makes the African Union depending on external aid-NATO provides military support, while the EU provides money. NATO cooperates with the AU since 2005, and all NATO-AU activities are coordinated with the EU. The NATO-EU partnership is complementar and mutual, and is based on common values and strategic interests, and should be strengthened to secure the European southern border, and to guarantee security in the Mediterranean region. Therefore, stronger and permanent NATO-EU partnership in Africa would be desirable. This brief paper investigates the ties between these three organizations, and suggests some recommendations to improve the 'trilateral' relationship to ensure security to their member states.

the rest: journal of politics and development, 2021

The Rest: Journal of Politics and Development, Aug 1, 2021

Review of the book A World Divided. The Global Struggle for Human Rights in the Age of Nation-Sta... more Review of the book A World Divided. The Global Struggle for Human Rights in the Age of Nation-States, by Eric D. Weitz. Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2019, ISBN: 978-0-691-14544-0, 544 pp.

The Rest: Journal of Politics and Development, Jun 2, 2020

In the intentions of the authors, Small Wars, Big Data, is aimed to address the complex issue of ... more In the intentions of the authors, Small Wars, Big Data, is aimed to address the complex issue of civil or intrastate wars and their impact on civilians. This is certainly a topical issue, and it will be a key topic in the coming years, given the spreading of unconventional conflicts. Ongoing conflicts in Syria, Yemen and Afghanistan, addressed in the chapters of this book, show how the boundary between international and non-international conflicts became blurred after the Second World War.

The impact of conflicts on the civil population is the authors' greatest concern. Civilians have always been the innocent victims of every war, but, although protected by the Geneva Conventions, they have become the subject of indiscriminate attacks since 1945 (e.g. the allied bombing of Dresden, Hiroshima and Nagasaki).

At the core of this work, there is the change in the type of warfare. It is a thorny issue, which would require a discussion of what is meant by terrorism and whether and when guerrilla warfare is to be considered a legitimate tactic by insurgents – guerrilla was categorized as "terrorism" from a certain point in time. Today everything from political opponents to hybrid conflicts and even organized crime is "terrorism".

Originally, terrorism was an offshoot guerrilla military tactic employed by resistance groups. Early examples of insurgencies and guerrilla warfare can be traced back to the Túpac Amaru indigenous uprising in highland Peru against Spanish control in the 1780s and in the Caste War in the Yucatán peninsula of Mexico in the 1840s and 1850s (Castro, 1999).

From the fifties onwards, in the aftermath of the Cuban Revolution, insurgency in Latin America was grounded on Marxist-Leninist ideology, and characterized by the use of a variety of violent and nonviolent tactics, including terror, to overthrow governments with guerrilla warfare (Debray, 1967). This phenomenon, previously classified as "insurgency" and/or "guerrilla", was then rebranded "terrorism".

The meaning of terrorism has changed over time. Since the early sixties the term has often been used in a political sense to label national liberation movements in Africa and later in Latin America. It took hold as an instrument in political struggles against governments in the U.S. and Europe, and finally has been identified with the Islamic world.

Any violence can be terrorism, or anti-terrorism. Legitimate defence or aggressive attacks are semantics that depend on the arbitrary judgment of the involved parties. This, by definition, defeats the concept of justice and legality. Terrorism is an effective method of conflict because it is limited in scope, targeted against civilians, and almost impossible to eradicate. This isolates it from the traditional military applications, and by extension, from the same legal and judicial argumentation. However, there are cases where terrorists were those who defended their land from invaders, and the invaders were the ones who marked them as terrorists. There needs to be a clear division between what is and what is not terrorism, and only then will it be possible to clearly define the terms and the scope of conflict against those who are terrorists.

The words "terrorist" and "terrorism" became fluid terms, easy to be manipulated. Today everything, from political opponents to hybrid conflicts and even organized crime, can be construed as terrorism. The very concept of terrorism has changed since the word has a political meaning. Thus, it becomes difficult to distinguish ‘true’ terrorists from those who are political opponents or just common criminals. Terrorism has become an umbrella term encompassing criminals and political opponents. It seems that the problem in labelling acts as terrorism is not what is done, but who does it. Klabbers (2003, p. 300-1) argues that "today's terrorist is tomorrow's freedom fighter", due to the "state-centric nature of international law" and to the "sheer supremacy of politics over law".

The authors correctly frame the international, transnational and hybrid nature of terrorism, as well as its various purposes, whether purely criminal, or political. The limitation of this approach is that the hypothesis that terrorism can also have a state matrix, as demonstrated by several parts, is not taken into consideration at all – this is especially true regarding the recent conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, undertaken in the name of the "War on Terror".

There are hundreds of definitions of terrorism, none of them tackle the problem of state terrorism. Currently the term ‘terrorism’ is commonly used to describe acts committed by non-state or subnational entities, thereby excluding acts committed by lawful governments – it allows those who determine the merit of inclusion the ultimate decision-making power, and there is no accountability, and no oversight of these decisions. Those who pursue these tactics are not persecuted, nor are their methods questioned thoroughly. It would be appropriate to develop a definition of terrorism that would encompass the possibility of a pseudo-state led by terrorists, and the appropriate response in case of a conflict with such a state (e.g. ISIS).

Bockstette (2008, p. 8) wrote that terrorism is "political violence in an asymmetrical conflict that is designed to induce terror and psychic fear (sometimes indiscriminate) through the violent victimisation and destruction of non-combatant targets (sometimes iconic symbols)". Deeming that terror acts are performed by "an illicit clandestine organisation", he excludes their being carried out by a government or its agents. In his definition we perceive Bockstette's typically military vision, which makes a distinction between tactics ("short-and midterm political goals") and strategy ("desired long-term end states").

Through the ten chapters of this book, are analysed conflicts that occurred in the last twenty years in Afghanistan, Iraq, Nigeria and in the Philippines, establishing a relationship between rebels, governments and civilians. The authors conclude that ‘conventional military methods’ might succeed but undermine lasting peace.

In my opinion, the difference between conventional/unconventional – both legally undefined terms – seems to be outdated. A knife, a broken bottle neck (if it cuts your jugular), even a fork, a hammer, a baseball bat, or a stone – according to the biblical story David kills Goliath by hurling a stone from his sling and hitting him in the centre of forehead – are all unconventional and potentially lethal weapons. Nevertheless, distinguishing between weapons, their effect and consequence, is necessary in order to avoid a cascade effect and undesirable outcomes (i.e., civil casualties).

Practitioners and researchers will find this publication useful, as it provides a comprehensive case study of the main conflicts that have occurred in the last twenty years. Small Wars, Big Data does not come to general conclusions, but it’s instead a compilation of stories and lessons learned, that could be useful to policymakers and military leaders to ‘open up political space to get deals done’; this is the strong point of the book.

Lecture given at the 8th ADA EU Summer School: The European Union and the Challenges of the New G... more Lecture given at the 8th ADA EU Summer School: The European Union and the Challenges of the New Global Context, day 2, 13 June, 2023, Session 4, h. 11:45–13:00 "EU's Foreign Policy & External Relations", ADA University, Baku, Azerbaijan

The nature of conflict has changed dramatically over the last few decades. Conflicts between Stat... more The nature of conflict has changed dramatically over the last few decades. Conflicts between States have become the exception rather than the rule. On the other hand, we increasingly witness acute crises and hybrid conflict characterized by internal strife, sometimes in the context of failed or dysfunctional States; or violent separatism, in some cases accompanied by quasi-military operations affecting the civilian population.

The law of war or international (humanitarian) law, i.e. theGeneva and Hague Conventions, is a branch of public international law that sets the acceptable justifications to engage in war (ius ad bellum) and the limits to acceptable wartime conduct (ius in bello). Some principles of customary law became peremptorynorms of jus cogens, a "formal" source of internationallaw that apply erga omnes. Any existing treaty which isin conflict with these norms becomes void and terminates.

Lecture held online at the University of Minho, Master Degree in International Relations, Course ... more Lecture held online at the University of Minho, Master Degree in International Relations, Course Unit in Multilateral Cooperation, Braga, 5 March 2021, h. 20.00-22.00. Version 2 (updated) of the lecture held on 17 April, 2020, 17h00-19h00 (10.5281/zenodo.3746270)

Master Degree in International Relations, Course Unit in Multilateral Cooperation, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal, Apr 17, 2020

Report presented by Working Group D – When might civil violence, even civil war, be justified? at... more Report presented by Working Group D – When might civil violence, even civil war, be justified? at the International Graduate Workshop "Civil Resistance – How Peoples, Ideas and Movements can change Politics", held online on 5–7 October 2021, organized by Oxford University, Göttingen University, Stiftung Adam von Trott, Imshausen e.V.

e-Instructor Insights: Applying the lessons of Pandemic Learning, Jun 30, 2023

Teaching at higher education institutions relies traditionally on ex-cathedra methods—those based... more Teaching at higher education institutions relies traditionally on ex-cathedra methods—those based on the authority of the professor’s position. The COVID-19 pandemic blasted online education years into the future and exposed its many challenges. Technology has provided smart and innovative solutions for distance education, which have opened new teaching methods and techniques and boosted the internationalization of higher education. While critics of these innovations denounce alleged flaws, the benefits are likely to be greater than the costs, a turning point in teaching that is difficult to reverse.

Anuario del Boletín de la Academia de Yuste: Reflexiones Sobre Europa e Iberoamérica, Jun 15, 2023

El conflicto ruso-ucraniano muestra los límites y las debilidades de la Unión Europea. Además, el... more El conflicto ruso-ucraniano muestra los límites y las debilidades de la Unión Europea. Además, el conflicto pone de manifiesto las incoherencias entre los principios de la UE y las políticas aplicadas por la Unión. No es solo el autoproclamado papel del “actor global” que la UE se impuso a sí misma1 lo que se cuestiona, sino también el papel de defensora de los derechos humanos fundamentales que argumenta defender. Por último, el conflicto advierte de los riesgos de una adhesión apresurada de Ucrania a la UE.

Newsletter Annual of the Academy of Yuste: Reflections on Europe and Ibero-America, Jun 15, 2023