Publications
The paths not (yet) taken: Ulrich Beck, the ‘cosmopolitized world’ and security studiesJournal Articles
This article sets out to experiment with sociologist Ulrich Beck’s work and explores paths that have not yet been taken with Beck in the Security Studies. The paper argues that if we want to take Beck seriously, we need to look beyond his ‘risk society’ thesis and acknowledge that his main thesis was that we live in a social reality that is qualitatively new and, consequently, calls for a radical shift in how we look at and talk about this ‘new world’. This implies two things. First, it requires accepting that research inspired by Beck can always only be ‘provisional’ because of the inherent provisionality of his own scholarly endeavour. Second, it means that if one wants to take Beck’s work as a whole seriously in Security Studies, ‘security’ needs to be studied from within the ‘new world’ he imagines.
The Construction of “European security” in “The European Union in a Changing Global Environment”: A Systematic AnalysisJournal Articles
This article systematically studies HR Federica Mogherini's strategic paper "The European Union in a Changing Global Environment" to understand the discursive foundations of the new EU Global Strategy.
Global Security Cultures: A Theoretical Framework for analysing Security in TransitionWorking Papers
This paper introduces the concept of security cultures as a theoretical framework to enable scholars to make sense of the competing ideas and practices that currently characterise the field of security.
From hybrid peace to human security
An effective second generation human security policy that would actually improve everyday security, both in conflict zones and in Europe, may well be critical for the very survival of the EU.
Dayton, 20 Years Later: Reconciliation in the Former Yugoslavia?Blog
In his contribution to Esglobal's special issue on the 20th anniversary of the Dayton Peace Agreement, Dr Iavor Rangelov takes a critical look at transitional justice and the discourse of reconciliation in the region and asks: Is reconciliation a good idea?
How Peace Agreements Undermine the Rule of Law in New War SettingsJournal Articles
This article argues that internationally endorsed peace agreements entrench the restructuring of power relations that take place in ‘new wars’. It characterizes new wars as ‘mutual enterprises’ in which networks of state and nonstate actors engage in violence for economic and/or political gain. The article shows the way in which such networks subvert efforts to implement a rule of law, primarily using the example of Bosnia.
From Hybrid Peace to Human Security: Rethinking EU Strategy towards ConflictPolicy BriefsWorking Papers
The Berlin Report of the Human Security Study Group - Presented to the European External Action Service, 24 February 2016, Brussels
Resilience and resilient in Obama’s National Security Strategy 2010: Enter two ‘political keywords’Journal Articles
This article looks at the use of the words 'resilient' and 'resilience' in Obama's National Security Strategy 2010 and argues that it constitutes an exercise in ‘occupying’ these words with ideologically loaded meanings. This can be interpreted as the actualisation of both words as ‘political keywords’.
The Drones of Others: An Insight into the Imagination of UAVs in GermanyJournal Articles
This paper explores the imagination of 'drones' in Germany and reveals how they are symbolically ‘tamed’ through a (modern) understanding of bordered social ‘containers’, in which they are imagined to exist and, subsequently, are subject to ‘compartmentalised’ responsibilities.
The movement of refugees to Europe will continue, regardless of how dangerous EU states make it
It typically costs around $1200 per person to be smuggled on a boat from Turkey’s shore to a neighbouring Greek island. That’s what I learned from Syrians I met in Istanbul in October. I had a long conversation with two women from the Yarmouk suburb of Damascus, originally a Palestinian refugee camp. It has been decimated by Syrian government forces and the remaining population live under conditions of siege with many close to starvation.