The Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE) and the Forum for Research on Media and Democracy in Eastern Europe (FROMDEE) invites paper submissions to a one-day conference on “Democratic backsliding and electoral autocracies” with a keynote lecture by Arturas Rozenas (New York University) on 13 October 2023 in Stockholm, Sweden.

Russian history is marked by oppression, with the war in Ukraine serving as a painful reminder. However, in the last 170 years, there have been moments of hope for the country. SSE student and Applied History course alumn, Isak Axelson explores three periods of liberalization in Russia that provide valuable lessons.

As of today, Russia’s aggression against Ukraine has persisted for a year. While several countries have helped Ukraine with military, financial and humanitarian aid, Ukraine requires additional assistance to endure the conflict with Russia. What other forms of support and aid are needed for Ukraine’s survival? And how can the EU and Sweden support Ukraine’s victory?

Klara Strömberg received a diploma for the best essay during the Applied History course in 2021. In the interview, Klara discusses her main findings and the impact the course had on her outlook, and shares her current pursuits in pursuing a master’s degree in economics and international economic policy.

On December 6, 2022, Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE) hosted the annual Development Day, this year focusing on how to maintain and organize support for Ukraine. See photos and highlights from the conference to learn more.

What is the biggest problem with imposing sanctions on autocracies? How are the cost of sanctions shared across the sanctioned party? Jonathan Lehne, Assistant Professor at the Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE), talks about the "Fortress Russia" strategy and how the Russian economy's exposure to sanctions has changed since 2014.

The Forum for Research on Eastern Europe and Emerging Economies (FREE Network) stands for peace, security and democracy and condemns Russia’s invasion of the independent and democratic nation of Ukraine and violation of international law.

Given the current situation, Swedish financial support to Russia has been put into question. This was recently discussed in the major Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter, in an article in which Anders Olofsgård, Deputy Director of the Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE), was interviewed among others.

In a recently published op-ed in Dagens Industri (in Swedish), Torbjörn Becker shares his insights on Russia's real threat from the West, which is economic and not military.