On 22 October 2025, Elena Lazarou participated in the panel “East Meets West: Europe, Eurasia, and the Shifting Geopolitical Landscape”, hosted by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs in Chicago. The event brought together a high-level group of speakers—including Alexander Cooley, Nonresident Senior Fellow, Eurasia Affairs, Liana Fix, Senior Fellow for Europe, Council on Foreign Relations, and Rachel Rizzo, Nonresident Senior Fellow, Europe Center, Atlantic Council, moderated by Leslie Vinjamuri, President & Chief Executive Officer, Chicago Council on Global Affairs, to examine how the war in Ukraine is reshaping power dynamics across Europe, Eurasia, and the broader international order.
The Chicago Council on Global Affairs is a leading US-based think tank dedicated to fostering informed debate on global issues and strengthening international cooperation.
The speakers examined how the war in Ukraine has redrawn European and transatlantic geopolitical visions and priorities. The discussion explored diverging threat perceptions across Europe, the speed and scope of Europe’s energy decoupling, developments in EU defence, NATO’s credibility as a deterrent, and the future of European engagement across its neighbourhood—from Georgia and Moldova to Central Asia. The conversation also turned outward to the Global South, questioning the limits of European influence and what Europe’s response to shifting power dynamics should look like.
In her remarks, Dr. Elena Lazarou, Director General of ELIAMEP, focused on the need for strategic coherence across EU member states, and for the EU to move forward taking into consideration security concerns across its member states, competitiveness challenges and the recalibration of its international relations, including with the United States. She emphasised that strategic autonomy does not mean isolation, but the capacity to act decisively alongside partners. Reflecting on NATO’s recent commitment to raise defence spending to 5% of GDP by 2035, she noted that Europe’s autonomy today involves both strengthening its own defence capabilities and remaining a reliable partner to the US. She also highlighted the need to sustain commitments economically and politically, ensuring public support and policy consistency, including continued aid to Ukraine. In closing, she emphasized the importance of clarity of purpose and unity of action, acting with vision rather than only in reaction to crises.
The visit was also an opportunity to lay the groundwork for future collaboration between ELIAMEP and the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.
Watch the full discussion here.
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