Without words, without writing and without books there would be no history, there could be no concept of humanity.
Hermann Hesse

By Azra Isakovic

February 03, 2021

Good morning

Welcome to Your Wednesday Briefing

Books

Biography books – The Mysterious Life and Death of Robert Maxwell  Duncan Campbell, The Guardian
Studies of Hitler and Stalin –Varieties of Totalitarianism  Peter Kenez, Law & Liberty
Religion/Capitalism – God and Mammon  David Skeel, The Wall Street Journal
Religion/Capitalism – Religion and the Rise of Capitalism, by Benjamin M. Friedman |  Penguin Random House

Must-Reads

Health/Russia –The Sputnik V Vaccine and Russia’s Race to Immunity, Joshua Yaffa, New Yorker
Health/Brazil – The Brazil Variant is Exposing the World’s Vulnerability, James Hamblin, The Atlantic
Nuclear – It’s time to take domestic nuclear terrorism seriously, Jayita Sarkar, The Washington Post
US/Russia/Arms Control – Should U.S. Missile Defenses Be a Part of Arms Control Negotiations With Russia? Steven Pifer, The National Interest
Germany – Russian Pipeline Is Germany’s Greatest Foreign Policy Embarrassment, Mathieu von Rohr, Der Spiegel
Romania/China – Romania issues ‘memorandum’ blocking Chinese firms from public infrastructure projects, Bogdan Neagu, Euractiv
EU/US – Strategic autonomy or strategic alliance? Maria Demertzis, Bruegel
Europe/US/Africa – A Transatlantic Approach to Address Growing Maritime Insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea, Pierre Morcos, CSIS

Research & Analysis

EU – The EU after Brexit: Renewed Debate about Enlargement and Deepening, Barbara Lippert, SWP
Resilience – The Universe of Resilience: : From Physics of Materials Through Psychology to National Security, Oksana Iliuk and Dmitri Teperik, International Centre for Defence and Security
China/Europe –  How China became a power in the Western Balkans, by Vladimir Shopov | ECFR PDF
Energy – Nordic PPAs – Effects on renewable growth and implications for electricity markets | OIES Space – Rethinking Military Roles and Missions in a New Administration by  Todd Harrison | CSIS PDF

Podcasts

Inégalités – Posséder la terre, terreau des inégalités ? | France Culture