Publications

Croatia_A Stable Western Ally and a Playground of External Contestation

Croatia is a committed member of the EU and NATO and a stable ally of the United States in the region. Yet, it has been experiencing illiberal tendencies since becoming an EU member, marked by widespread corruption and a weakening of independent institutions which should control the executive.

montenegro

As we reflect on the aftermath of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, its effects on Montenegro's political landscape are evident. Democratic backsliding seems to have advanced even with the EU’s continuous support of Montenegro's integration process. As Montenegro treads its path, balancing influences from East and West, it faces critical decisions for its future.

Democratic Vulnerabilities of Small Systems

The PSSI's Western Balkans Project is delighted to publish the first analytical study under the project titled "The Western Balkans at the Crossroads: Democratic Backsliding and External Actors' Influence." The study examines democratic backsliding in Montenegro and the influences of external actors. It seeks to answer the following question: What is the role of non-European external actors in causing democratic backsliding in Montenegro?

 

Doporučení pro účinné sankce proti Ruské federaci

Od února 2022 Evropská unie úspěšně zavedla deset balíčků sankcí proti Ruské federaci s cílem omezit financování a zajišťování zdrojů pro její vojenské kapacity. Pro zajištění účinného sankčního režimu je zásadní vyhodnocovat výsledky, kterých členské státy dosáhly při provádění těchto sankcí, aby byl dosažen jejich maximální dopad. S tímto účelem byla založena síť organizací pro analýzu a monitorování evropských sankcí a nezákonného financování SIFMANet, ktorou súčasťou je aj Prague Security Studies Institute.

EU Faces a Momentous Choice.

Prague Security Studies Institute welcomes the EU's proposal to ban products associated with forced labor practices but believes the range should be significantly expanded. The Institute advocates for including products and companies from offending nations, specifically China, and calls for a complete ban on corporate offenders from entering or conducting business with EU countries. Additionally, PSSI emphasizes the need to prevent publicly traded companies linked to forced labor from trading securities or raising funds in European capital markets.

Hostile Narrative Brief_ War in Ukraine

 February 24, 2023 marked one year since the start of the unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation. These events have been accompanied by attempts to undermine support among Ukraine’s allies by spreading disinformation, conspiracy theories and generally, hostile narratives towards Ukraine exploiting socially contentious issues. To better track these hostile narratives, the Prague Security Studies Institute researchers joined the International Republican Institute’s Beacon Project in their series of reports monitoring the online media space of the Czech Republic, among other Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries. 

hostile narrative_slovakia

February 24, 2023 marked one year since the start of the unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation. These events have been accompanied by attempts to undermine support among Ukraine’s allies by spreading disinformation, conspiracy theories and generally, hostile narratives towards Ukraine exploiting socially contentious issues. To better track these hostile narratives, the Prague Security Studies Institute researchers joined the International Republican Institute’s Beacon Project in their series of reports monitoring the online media space of Slovakia, among other Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries.  

Hostile Narratine Brief

Regional Security Program // The Beacon Project, Kristína Šefčíková (Czech and Slovak country chapters) / 10 Mar 2023

Hostile Narrative Brief: War in Ukraine. A Year of Aggression

Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, PSSI in cooperation with IRI's Beacon Project monitored narratives around topics of Ukrainian refugees, sanctions, energy security, and NATO in the CEE media environment and beyond. Together with local experts in Ukraine, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Romania, Czech Republic, Germany, Lithuania and Poland we analyzed over 23 million articles & posts to find actors disseminating content that has the potential to undermine support for Ukraine by exploiting socially contentious issues.
 
 
green deal january 2023
PSSI monitored the Czech online debate about the European Green Deal, climate change, and energy-related issues from June to December 2022. Besides mapping the general online debate and related disinformation, part of our goal was also to explore how relevant stakeholders engage in strategic communication on the topic and possibly counter any circulating manipulative discourse. The monitoring was part of a larger initiative of the International Republican Institute’s (IRI) Beacon Project, European Green Deal: Mapping perceptions in Central and Eastern Europe, which took place in five EU countries simultaneously.
 
 
volby2
Prague Security Studies Institute (PSSI) se v rámci projektu „České volby v éře dezinformací: Prezidentské volby 2023“ podíval na veřejnou debatu v online prostoru o prezidentských volbách a kandidátech mezi prvním kolem voleb, které se konalo 13. a 14. ledna, a druhým kolem voleb, které proběhlo 27. a 28. ledna. Zaměřili jsme se konkrétně na to, jak bylo v předvolební kampani a v následné veřejné diskusi v online prostoru využito a manipulováno téma války na Ukrajině.