Searching for the magic of conversations in these feral times

On May 20 2025, European Studies Centre at St Antony’s College, Oxford University, hosted a seminar chaired by Professor Timothy Garton Ash, Professor of European Studies and Emeritus Fellow of St Antony’s College, with Professor Paul Betts of Modern European History at St Antony’s joining as a discussant. The keynote was delivered by Dr Hakan Altınay, Academic Visitor at St Antony’s College, Oxford, Professor of the Practice at the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life, Tufts University, and founding Director of the European School of Politics in Istanbul. Together, they explored how today’s political malaise demands a rediscovery of camaraderie, trust, and the art of conversation as foundations for healthy democracy.

Dr Altınay began by invoking the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 as an “experiment” in reconnection—one whose promise has since been undermined by our underestimation of three vital ingredients. First, he argued, we have neglected camaraderie: the shared sense of belonging that flourished in thriving democracies. He noted that, in the United States, the proportion of congressional districts represented by the same party rose from 26 percent in 1979 to over 60 percent today, a measure of partisan Balkanisation fuelled in part by social media and manipulative design. In the United Kingdom, local communities have similarly fragmented into “anywhere people” whose weak ties to neighbours foster exaggerated perceptions of ideological opponents. Drawing on experiments at the University of Chicago, he suggested that many of our political dislikes stem not from deep conviction but from too little genuine interaction with those who differ from us.

Rethinking Socialist Space in the Twentieth Century

On May 14 2025, European Studies Centre at St Antony’s College, University of Oxford, hosted a seminar to rethink socialist space in the twentieth century. The event was chaired by Dan Healey, Professor of Russian and Soviet History at St Antony’s, and brought together Dr Jennifer Altehenger, Associate Professor of Chinese History and Jessica Rawson Fellow in Modern Asian History at Merton College, Oxford; Professor Paul Betts, Professor of Modern European History at St Antony’s College, Oxford; Dr Marcus Colla, Mark Kaplanoff Research Fellow in History at Pembroke College, Cambridge; Dr Thục Linh Nguyễn Vũ, Postdoctoral Fellow at the Research Center for the History of Transformations, University of Vienna; and Dr Bethan Winter, Lecturer in History at the University of Oxford. Each panelist explored how socialist states—across China, Eastern Europe and Vietnam—produced distinctive spatial logics that shaped everyday life and collective memory.

Paul Betts opened by recalling that this volume emerged from an online conference during the 2021 lockdown, a collaboration principally between himself and Marcus Colla. He reflected on how the impossibility of travel prompted historians to rethink “socialist space” not as a fixed rubric but as a series of contested practices and imaginaries.

Building on Betts’s introduction, Marcus Colla examined the impact of transnational history on the study of twentieth-century socialism. He argued that after 1945, scholars stabilised categories—socialism versus capitalism—that now appear insufficiently nuanced. Colla asked: how did socialist authorities govern space as an instrument of power? He showed that Soviet planners sought to shape spatial imagination through schools, factories and collective farms, embedding ideological content in the built environment. Colla’s chapter interrogates whether “socialist space” remains a meaningful category, emphasising its ties to physical and emotional experiences of loss. He further traced how COVID-19’s brutal lockdowns provided historians with fresh insights into the material and affective dimensions of confined spaces.

The Long Disenchantment: Reassessing UK–EU Relations from Accession to Brexit

On May 6, 2025, the European Studies Centre at the University of Oxford hosted a seminar inviting Ilaria Poggiolini, Professor of European Studies and specialist in post-war peace-making, to introduce her new book The Long Disenchantment. Timothy Garton Ash, Emeritus Fellow, joined as discussant, and Catherine Briddick, Andrew W. Mellon Associate Professor of International Human Rights and Refugee Law, chaired the event.

Poggiolini opened by challenging the familiar trope of Britain as a perpetually awkward outsider in Europe, drawing on Chapter 1—“Uninvolvement”—to show that London’s post-war reluctance was neither accidental nor purely inertial but rooted in a conscious strategy of balancing global commitments. She traced this stance to Churchill’s 1948 vision of “three interlinked circles”—the Commonwealth, the English-speaking world, and a potential integrated Europe—within which Britain remained the indispensable intersection . Building on Ernest Bevin’s 1950 reinterpretation of that model under the Atlantic Community, Poggiolini argued that Britain’s early support for the Marshall Plan sought to stabilise the continent under Anglo-American leadership as much as to foster European unity .

Contrary to narratives of “missed opportunities,” she demonstrated that Britain consciously opted for an intergovernmental approach—exemplified by its preference for the OEEC’s unanimous-vote structure—over Jean Monnet’s supranational design. This choice preserved sovereignty but also meant declining Schuman’s 1950 European Coal and Steel Community plan, as ministers feared domestic unrest and erosion of control over vital industries. Far from passive disengagement, this policy of “uninvolvement” only shifted when the collapse of the European Defence Community and the rise of EFTA made continued detachment unsustainable.

Europe and China in a Trumpian world

On May 1, 2025, the European Studies Centre of Oxford University welcomed Bo Zhou, Senior Fellow and China Forum Expert at Tsinghua University; Yang Yao, Professor and Director of the China Centre for Economic Research and Dean of the National School of Development at Peking University; and Janka Oertel, Director of the Asia Programme and Senior Policy Fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, to discuss the evolving relationship between Europe and China under the shadow of a potential second Trump administration. The event was chaired by Isabel Hilton, journalist, broadcaster, and Visiting Professor at the Lau Institute at King’s College London. The discussion was wide-ranging, covering structural economic challenges, manufacturing competition, foreign direct investment, and the future of global trade norms.

Zhou Bo opened the panel by emphasising China's recent diplomatic gestures, such as the lifting of sanctions on the European Union, which he interpreted as a clear signal of Beijing’s desire to improve relations with Europe. He expressed cautious optimism that under a second Trump presidency, relations might paradoxically progress—aside from the complications introduced by the war in Ukraine. Zhou suggested that it was unfair for China to bear indirect consequences of a conflict it is not participating in and underscored that although China maintains a so-called “unlimited” partnership with Russia, its position remains restrained: President Xi has publicly declared opposition to the use of nuclear weapons in Europe, and China has not provided missiles to Russia.

European defence: How can the EU best work with the UK and other non-EU states?

On April 29, 2025, a seminar at St Antony’s College, University of Oxford, brought together experts to examine how the European Union can best engage with the United Kingdom and other non-EU states in the context of evolving security and defence challenges. The panel featured Brendan Devlin, EU Visiting Fellow at St Antony’s College; Luigi Scazzieri, Senior Policy Analyst at the European Union Institute for Security Studies; and Armida van Rij, Senior Research Fellow at Chatham House. The discussion was chaired by Professor Timothy Garton Ash, Professor of European Studies at St Antony’s College. The speakers offered insights into the potential for a new European Defence Procurement Treaty, the implications for non-EU states such as the UK, and the broader geopolitical and institutional dynamics shaping European defence cooperation.

Brendan Devlin introduced the idea of a European Defence Procurement Treaty that would include both EU and non-EU countries. Drawing on the 2005 Energy Community Treaty as a precedent, he proposed a treaty framework that would operate under qualified majority voting, allowing it to function efficiently despite an expanded membership. He stressed the importance of ensuring “equivalence of esteem” for non-EU countries, in contrast to the EU’s traditional enlargement approach, which he described as a "take-it-or-leave-it" process that limits third countries’ influence. Devlin also argued for granting the treaty legal personality and rights, which would allow it to administer funds and engage in host government agreements. He proposed that participation should not be contingent on accepting the EU’s four fundamental freedoms, thereby offering flexibility for third-country involvement. Additionally, he suggested that the treaty include provisional application and sunset clauses to enable it to enter into force before full ratification and to allow it to expire automatically over time, avoiding the pitfalls of institutional permanence. He noted that EU directives—specifically Directives 2009/81/EC and 2009/43/EC—could serve as a legal foundation for this treaty, although he emphasised that real progress would require political initiative and a shared strategic outlook.