Special issue no.1:

Europe and winning the Ukraine war

Call for papers: The inaugural edition of JWS will focus on the role of a key player in the West in what the editors think is the most pressing issue facing the West in late 2024: aiding Ukraine to win against Russia.

Ukraine is primarily a European security issue and Europe (and the wider West) has failed so far to make Ukrainian victory even a probability over the course of the war to date. There is a profound truth behind the call for Europe, a rich part of the world, to shoulder the responsibility of the security of its own continent, or at least, to a much greater extent than it has so far. It is without question that Europe has had an easy ride for decades. Allies from other continents should of course also assist in upholding the international system of sovereign states and borders torn up, if it were allowed to stand, by Russia’s aggression.

From this standpoint, how can Europe step up to do more to make Ukrainian victory secure? Scholarly articles exploring issues around this theme are welcomed and could include, not exclusively and by way of illustration, a range of themes or sub-themes:

- Critical exploration of European defence capabilities – individual, regional or collective

- Analysis of the strategic development of the war so far with special emphasis on European strategy

- Socio-political studies of the constraints operating in more than one European state regarding the response to the war in Ukraine

- An exploration of EU policy regarding security drawn widely but focused on the Ukraine response, too

- Investigation of the economic factors limiting European response

- Cultural histories of European attitudes at elite or public levels regarding war broadly drawn and in specific cases

- Studies focused on Russia’s relationship with Europe

- Economic and security opportunities for Europe in fully supporting Ukraine

- Detailed analyses of the war in Ukraine so far, identifying key developments regarding strategy, tactics, external involvement etc.

Articles submitted for this edition will be eligible for consideration for the annual Windsor Prize (worth approx. £1000)