A more circular economy and improved resource efficiency can bring significant benefits to the environment and to the economy. However, it can be argued that EU industrial policy has so far focused more on the transition to low-carbon production than on greening the demand side or increasing recycling rates. In this Perspective, SIEPS senior advisor Mats Engström suggests what a better policy mix might look like. (December 2023)

EU decision-making requires that member states cooperate. In this European Policy Analysis, four political scientists at the University of Gothenburg analyse the patterns for cooperative relations between the member states in the Council of the EU. The authors also test different explanations for why some pairs of states form closer relations. (2023:15 epa)

At the Gothenburg summit in 2017, EU leaders agreed on a set of principles to strengthen citizens' social rights and reduce inequalities within the Union. In this analysis, political scientists David Bokhorst and Sven Schreurs consider EU social and economic policymaking since the summit. They find that there has been a substantive change and reflect on whether it is likely to endure. (2023:14epa)

On 15 October, Poland will decide: four more years of strained relations with Brussels, or a government which will seek rapprochement? With just over a week to go, Natasza Styczyńska (Jagiellonian University) describes the state of play, how Poland got here, and where it might be heading. (2023:13epa)

European leaders are increasingly seen moving from airplanes to the negotiation table and on to photo opportunities. Summits have become commonplace. Could the increasing frequency of high-level political meetings be a symptom and a cause of power shifts? Daniel Tarschys considers and sets out some questions about contemporary statecraft. (2023:12epa)

The EU is growing, again. In the near future the European Union could have as many as 35 members and will have to adapt to absorb them. SIEPS asked leading experts what the Union can or should do to be ‘Fit for 35’? (2023:2op)

There are almost six million refugees from Ukraine living in the EU under a Temporary Protection regime. When this legal protection expires in early 2025, they risk being left in legal limbo. Expert in migration law Meltem Ineli Ciğer considers what can be done to avoid this. (2023:11epa)

The EU is investing up to €723 billion on top of its ordinary budget to support economic recovery and the ‘twin’ transitions. But is there sufficient accountability regarding how the money is to be spent? At present, says Maria-Luisa Sánchez-Barrueco, not really. (2023:3)

War in Europe, a revamped enlargement process, and the EU’s centre of gravity (perhaps) shifting to the east. Katarina Engberg examines German official and unofficial thinking on the country’s role in this new geopolitical landscape. (2023:10epa)

The EU Treaties proclaim the rule of law to be one of the Union’s founding values. Ongoing violations of it are therefore a major concern. In this SIEPS anthology, prominent legal scholars, political scientists and practitioners consider the scale of problem and examine attempted and potential solutions. (2023:1op)