Europe

Undoubtedly, integrated Europe and the United Kingdom have a curious and strange relationship. Since the very beginning of the European integration process the UK showed skepticism and, often, annoyance. The reasons for such a feeling can be identified in the peculiar history of the British people: local conflicts led to stabilization, growth and imperial splendor. The end of the Second World War, nevertheless, introduced a new era of international dialogue, mutual respect and led almost inevitably to the decolonization process.

The economic crisis is severely affecting many EU policy areas. Observers have been looking very closely at the distressing effects brought about by the austerity measures implemented by European governments. However, little attention has been paid to the impact on the foreign policy of the European Union and its member states. This "ISPI Studies" intends to shed light on this issue and tries to understand to what extent this general disregard has being translating into an increasingly inward-looking attitude of the EU in times of crisis.

Europe’s weakness and a stronger China in Eurasia pose new challenges, among them new possibilities for both competition and cooperation.

Nevertheless China and the EU are not only powers and factors of the geopolitical equation in Central Asia understood as macro-region.

Furthermore, Central Asia is in the process of positioning itself at the vanguard in some hot issues of the global agenda.

Italian government, as other European countries, was surprised by the first upheavals of Arab Spring. Italy and Libya have enjoyed a privileged relationship for the last forty years. After the decision of military intervention, preoccupied by the risk of geopolitical marginalization, Italy gradually started to adopt a bandwagoning policy. Libya’s present difficult transition maybe provides a new opportunity for Europe to be a key players in the country. Italy would profit from greater involvement in the stabilization of the country.