26.8.2025 📣📰📘New in JCMS: Journal of Common Market Studies:
Moritz Weiss and Benjamin Daßler contend that, rather than getting bogged down in renewed debates over a European Army, the EU should position itself as a dual security manager - developing capabilities through regulation and budgets while leveraging geoeconomic power to deter adversaries, in close coordination with willing NATO partners.
A timely alternative to recurring “European Army” debates and an optimistic take on how the EU can carve out a distinctive role in today’s blurred landscape of economic and military statecraft.
Read for free here 👇
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcms.70029
14.8.2025 In their latest article, Benjamin & colleagues explore the logic behind Europe’s seemingly contrasting strategies to address digital dependency threats. We argue that the EU’s approach varies because it faces fundamentally different types of threats, which shape their responses:
🔐 Threats of Intrusion (e.g., 5G backdoors)
The EU responds by creating strict rules and regulations designed to prevent unauthorized access and secure critical infrastructure.
🏗️ Threats of Exclusion (e.g., potential cut-offs from chip supplies)
The EU focuses on building domestic capacity and attracting investment to reduce reliance on external suppliers and strengthen strategic autonomy.
⚠️ Why This Matters Now:
The EU is drafting its first comprehensive Economic Security Doctrine - a playbook for when to apply which kind of instruments in “response to specific risks” (https://lnkd.in/d8gtRVQR). Our argument implies that the (structural) variation in issue-specific threats will significantly shape decisions across critical sectors - from quantum computing, artificial intelligence, to rare earth minerals. Read the article for free below:
Full article: Politics of de-risking: how the EU confronts vulnerabilities in critical digital infrastructures tructures
10.02.2025 Trump's return represents a seismic shift in global politics, posing a significant threat not only to the United States but also to the global community. His illiberal, authoritarian, and inhumane policies are likely to have far-reaching consequences for many within and beyond U.S. borders.
His return to power also poses a serious risk to the future of international institutions, clearly illustrated by his prompt decisions to exit the Paris Agreement and the World Health Organization.
Together with Tim Heinkelmann-Wild, Benjamin Daßler wrote a short article for the Duck of Minvera 🦆 tking a closer look at what we can expect over the next four years.
While the overall outlook for the U.S. and the rest of the world is poor, we suggest that Trump's approach to international institutions may be more complex and nuanced than simple, unbridled escalation of contestation. 👇
12.12.2024 🚨New publication in International Studies Quarterly (ISQ): Together with Tim Heinkelmann-Wild & Martijn Huysmans (Utrecht University), Benjamin has published a paper on "Insuring the Weak: The Institutional Power Equilibrium in International Organizations." In the paper, they argue that international organizations (IOs) are designed to balance power disparities between strong and weak states by incorporating institutional safeguards, such as veto or exit rights, into their constitutional treaties. Analyzing IOs created between 1945 and 2005, the study finds that these safeguards are influenced by the power distribution among founding members and serve as functional substitutes to protect weaker states from exploitation during IO operations. Find the paper for free (OA) here: Insuring the Weak: The Institutional Power Equilibrium in International Organizations | International Studies Quarterly | Oxford Academic
15.11.2024 Gemeinsam mit Tim Heinkelmann-Wild und Kruck Andreas hatte Benjamin Daßler die Möglichkeit einen Gastbeitrag für ZEIT ONLINE zu verfassen. Darin zeigen sie Wege auf wie die Liberale Internationale Ordnung (LIO) für Trump 2.0 fit gemacht werden könnte. Der Gastbeitrag für ZEIT ONLINE findet sich hier:
12.11.2024 Together with Andreas Kruck & Tim Heinkelmann-Wild, Ben has published a LSE USA blog post on how to safeguard the LIO in the context of Trump 2.0.: They argue that stakeholders must embrace a strategy of "liberal restraint" that entails providing powerful member states more veto power. Read the full blog post here: 👇
29.10.2024 New Publication in The Review of International Organizations (RIO)🚨
Discover how a state's 'negative institutional power' shapes its approach to contesting international organizations. In their new study , Benjamin Daßer, Tim Heinkelmann-Wild & Andreas Kruck introduce the "Negative Institutional Power Theory" (NIPT), examining cases from the Trump era and beyond. Key insights for policymakers and scholars on reforming global governance structures. Get your copy of the article for free here:
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11558-024-09574-z
27.09.2024 New Publication🚨
In their latest article for the German Political Science Quarterly (PVS), Benjamin Daßler, Sandra J. Bandemer, Berthold Rittberger, and Moritz Weiss delve into the European Union’s strategic interactions with international organizations during crises. 🌍🔍
The EU’s internal crisis responses are well-documented, but what about its external engagements? Key insight: EU's approach is shaped by the convergence of ends & means with other IOs. The paper offers detailed case studies on the EU’s crisis-induced cooperation collaboration with the IMF, NATO, and the European Court of Human Rights.
Discover how the EU navigates complex international landscapes during turbulent times. This research is essential for understanding the EU’s multifaceted crisis management strategies.
The article will be part of a special issue on "Crises, adaptation and resilience: Exploring the transformation of regional organizations from the perspective of EU studies and comparative regionalism"
Find the full article open access here: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11615-024-00572-9
30.08.2024 For The Review of International Organization (RIO) Jean Frederic Morin has reviewed Benjamin Daßler's book "The Institutional Topology of International Regime Complexes", published by Oxford University Press.
Find the book review here:
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11558-024-09562-3
🌍 🗺 If you want to know more about the diverse institutional landscapes shaping international cooperation in intellectual property, tax avoidance, financial stability, development aid, and energy governance you can find the book here 📖:
https://academic.oup.com/book/55135
05.08.2024 Are you interested in why and how crises reshape the interinstitutional authority structures underlying international regime complexes? 🌍
In their new paper published in the Chinese Journal of International Politics (CJIP), Felix Biermann and Benjamin Daßler examine how the COVID-19 pandemic has altered the relationship between legacy international organizations (IOs) and their challengers in the financial assistance regime complex.
Learn how the two most prominent new multilateral development banks (MDBs), the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the New Development Bank (NDB), used the COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity to position themselves as viable alternatives to legacy institutions such as the World Bank (WB). 🏦
Read the full article here: 📖
04.07.2024 What can Euro 2024 teach EU leaders about global politics? In their Verfassungsblog article Moritz & Ben explore how the EU can become a geopolitical powerhouse without its own army. Read why smart coordination, not military duplication, is Europe's path to become a geopolitical champion on the world stage.
Soccer Meets Geopolitics – Verfassungsblog
24.06.2024 What does a "European Zeitenwende" mean? Moritz Weiss and Benjamin Dassler argue in their LSE EUROPP blog post that weaponizing member states and partnering with NATO, not creating a European army, is the key to a real "Zeitenwende" in EU defence policy.
The need for a real "Zeitenwende" in EU defence policy | EUROPP