IIEA Talks

The European Security Architecture finds itself at a crossroads. After decades of reduced military spending in Europe, Russia’s war against Ukraine has reminded the rest of Europe of the relevance of its own security and defence capabilities which have long been considered to be obsolete, or taken for granted by the United States. But what if Russia’s attack on Ukraine and the rules-based international order succeeds? What implications would this have for European security, and how should European states prepare for such a scenario?  This event has been organised in conjunction with the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS), UK and Ireland  Speaker bio:  Professor Dr Carlo Masala is a renowned German expert on military and security policy. He holds the Chair for Security and Defence Studies at the University of the Bundeswehr Munich and has published extensively on international relations, NATO and European security. He is the author of the bestselling book ‘If Russia Wins’, published in 2025, which has topped charts across Europe and cemented his reputation as a leading voice in geopolitics.

As 2025 draws to a close, the IIEA’s Research Team looks to 2026, and Ireland’s EU Presidency. Barry Colfer and Cian FitzGerald discuss Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union. They discuss EU competitiveness, and how Ireland can contribute to Europe’s economic prosperity. Moreover, against the backdrop of Russia’s war in Ukraine, they discuss how Europe is supporting Ukraine, as well as the EU’s preparations for a widening of the conflict.

In his address to the IIEA, Derek Scally reflects on the German federal election of February 2025 and what it reveals about the shifting political landscape in Germany. Following the collapse of the Scholz government, the election delivered major gains for both the CDU/CSU and the far-right AfD, alongside historic losses for the former governing parties. With Friedrich Merz now installed as chancellor at the head of a new CDU/CSU–SPD coalition, Mr Scally assesses the implications for domestic governance, Germany’s role in Europe, and what political challenges may lie ahead in 2026. About the Speaker: Derek Scally is a native Dubliner, who studied at Dublin City University and the Humboldt University in Berlin, where he has been Irish Times correspondent since 2001. Covering politics, business and culture, he is a regular contributor to German news outlets, including Die Zeit weekly and Deutschlandfunk/WDR radio. He reports regularly from northern Europe and is also author of ‘The Best Catholics in the World’, published in 2021 by Penguin.

In this latest webinar in our series on Finland's Future’s Ecosystem, the panel takes an analytical approach to the ecosystem. They will give a critical assessment of the Finnish model and compare it with other international approaches, especially Ireland’s. This webinar is the final event in a series that began with an address from Finland’s Minister for European Affairs Joakim Strand on Finland’s Futures Ecosystem in a European Context. The second in the series was an online panel event that outlined the core elements of Finland’s Futures Ecosystem. This event was organised in conjunction with the UCD Centre for Innovation, Technology and Organisation. Panellists include: Elizabeth Canavan, Assistant Secretary General at the Department of the Taoiseach Marc Ó Cathasaigh, former T.D. Niamh Garvey, Senior Policy Analyst, NESC Kevin Daly, Principal Officer at the Department of Finance

'Is Europe Ready for War?' The Russian President has recently said he is ready for war with Europe. Is Europe ready for war with Russia? In this edition of IIEA Insights, The Economist’s Defence Editor Shashank Joshi, will assess the progress democratic Europe has made in deterring attack since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which caused a sea-change in thinking about the threat of Russia. Other issues to be analysed will include how European countries assess the reliability of the US position on Nato’s Article 5 mutual defence commitment and the threats posed by China, directly via espionage networks and indirectly via its support for Russia’s war. Shashank Joshi is The Economist’s Defence Editor. Prior to joining The Economist in 2018, he served as Senior Research Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) and Research Associate at Oxford University’s Changing Character of War Programme. He has published books on Iran’s nuclear programme and India’s armed forces, written for a wide range of newspapers and journals, and appeared regularly on radio and television. He holds degrees from Cambridge and Harvard, where he served as a Kennedy Scholar from Britain to the United States.

The situation in the occupied Palestinian Territory is starker than ever with famine, genocide, and entrenchment of an illegal occupation. In their address to the IIEA, Dr Ammar Dwaik and Diana Buttu contend that the destruction of Gaza and the ongoing expansion of settlements is erasing prospects for a two-state solution and violating the most fundamental rights of the Palestinian people.  They outline the current reality in Palestine, and its future, through the prism of human rights, and what needs to happen within Palestine and in Israel to advance rights and to secure a just and lasting peace. They also reflect on what countries like Ireland and the international community need to do to ensure the protection of fundamental rights, including the right of Palestinians to self-determination. This event is part of the IIEA’s Development Matters Series which is kindly sponsored by Irish Aid. About the Speakers: Dr. Ammar Dwaik is the Director General of the Independent Commission for Human Rights in Palestine. He holds a Ph.D. in Social Policy and Management from Brandeis University (USA), a Master’s degree in Law and Government from the American University in Washington, and a Bachelor’s degree in Law from Yarmouk University in Jordan. Between 2004 and 2006, he served as the Executive Director of the Palestinian Central Elections Commission, where he oversaw the administration of the 2005 presidential elections and the 2006 legislative elections.  Ms. Diana Buttu is a Commissioner at the Palestinian Independent Commission for Human Rights (ICHR). She is a Palestinian lawyer with a Bachelor’s degree in Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies and a Master’s from the University of Toronto, a Ph.D. from Queen’s University Faculty of Law, and an MBA from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. She previously served as a Legal Advisor to the Palestine Liberation Organization and was part of the team that brought the issue of the Israeli Wall before the International Court of Justice. Ms. Buttu is a regular commentator on Palestinian affairs for international media outlets.

The annual UN climate summit, known as the COP, recently took place in Belém, Brazil, on the edge of the Amazon rainforest. The COP30 talks took place at a time of increasingly fraught geopolitical relations – with the US absent. This resulted in a set of negotiating dynamics and multi-layered COP outcomes that were even more complex than usual. In this webinar, Dr Simon Evans, senior policy editor at the climate news and analysis website Carbon Brief, will walk us through the key fights in Belém, the headline outcomes and what comes next for global climate action. For more background, the in-depth Carbon Brief summary of the talks is available here. About the Speaker: Dr Simon Evans is the Deputy editor and senior policy editor at the Carbon Brief, a UK-based website covering the latest developments in climate science, climate policy and energy policy. He holds a PhD in biochemistry from the University of Bristol and previously studied chemistry at the University of Oxford. He worked for the environment journal The ENDS Report for six years, covering topics including climate science and air pollution.

In his role as Minister of Economy and Finance of Greece, Kyriakos Pierrakakis has regularly called for the implementation of recommendations from the Draghi report in order for Europe to become further integrated and unlock the continent’s next phase of growth. In this fireside chat at the IIEA, Minister Pierrakakis discusses what the EU needs to get right in order to unlock new pockets of growth, as well as what the digitalisation of the EU’s economy means for the future. About the Speaker: Kyriakos Pierrakakis has served as Minister of Economy and Finance of the Hellenic Republic in Prime Minister Mitsotakis' Cabinet since March 2025 and is a Member of Parliament. Previously, he was Minister of Education, Religious Affairs, and Sports (2023-2025), where he initiated a series of reforms of Greece’s education system, most notably establishing a framework for private universities to formally operate in Greece for the first time and banning mobile phones in classrooms. As Minister of Digital Governance (2019-2023), he led Greece’s digital transformation, with the creation of the government portal gov.gr being the most notable initiative and one of the most popular reforms initiated in Greece. He has also served as the chair of the OECD's Global Strategy Group since 2021, a position he was re-appointed to in 2024. Minister Pierrakakis holds degrees from MIT (M.S. Technology and Policy), Harvard Kennedy School (Master in Public Policy), and Athens University of Economics and Business (B.S. Computer Science).

The European Commission’s publication of their recommendation on “Increasing the Availability of Savings and Investment Accounts with Simplified and Advantageous Tax Treatment” on September 30th marks an important milestone on the EU Savings and Investment Union journey. As a leading European funds and asset management centre, Ireland has a key role to play in this significant development in the European asset management industry – but a roadmap will be necessary if the potential of this initiative is to be realised. This event discusses the practical steps – and challenges – in establishing Savings and Investment Accounts across the 27 member states of the EU and the important role of the Irish funds and asset management industry in this step-change in EU savings and investment culture. This event features a keynote address from John Berrigan, Director General of DG FISMA. The event also includes a panel discussion including John Berrigan as well as: Seán Páircéir, Partner and Global Head of Investor Services at Brown Brothers Harriman Jonathan Cleborne, Head of Europe at Vanguard Susan O'Reilly, Head of Funds, Markets and Securities, Financial Services Division - Department of Finance. Dr Orlaigh Quinn, (Moderator), Former Secretary General of the Department of Enterprise Trade and Employmen

'Ireland-US Relations in Crisis?' The return of Donald Trump to the US presidency in January 2025 marked a dramatic change in America’s posture towards allies and adversaries alike. For Ireland, this has manifested in the unilateral imposition of tariffs, criticism of the scale of U.S. pharmaceutical manufacturing taking place in Ireland, and the fining of US tech companies for breaches of EU rules. Separately, unprecedented salvoes of public criticism of Ireland from US lawmakers over the Occupied Territories Bill have taken place along with wider criticism of Ireland for free riding on U.S. security guarantees and acting as a tax haven for US corporations. Former special assistant to President Joe Biden, Tom Wright, joins IIEA Insights to discuss the current state of Ireland-US relations and how relations might play out over the remainder of the Trump presidency. Thomas Wright, currently a senior fellow with the Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy and Technology at the Brookings Institution, served as special assistant to the president and senior director for strategic planning at the National Security Council in the Biden Administration. At the White House, Tom worked on a wide range of projects and issues, including the 2022 U.S. National Security Strategy, the Russia-Ukraine war and European security, U.S.-China relations, the global south, foreign economic policy, and countering the growing alignment between U.S. adversaries and competitors (China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea). He is also an author and contributing writer to the Atlantic.