Neutrality Studies

Neutrality Studies substack: https://pascallottaz.substack.com(Opt in for Academic Section from your profile settings: https://pascallottaz.substack.com/s/academic)Merch & Donations: https://neutralitystudies-shop.fourthwall.com

Stas' channel: https://www.youtube.com/@MrSlavikmanNeutrality Studies substack: https://pascallottaz.substack.com(Opt in for Academic Section from your profile settings: https://pascallottaz.substack.com/s/academic)Merch & Donations: https://neutralitystudies-shop.fourthwall.com

After 4 years of all-out war in Europe it is high time for peace. A german alliance of thinkers, journalists and a former Ex-NATO General have submitted a proposal to finally end the bloody Ukraine war. But the EU is still immovable.I’m joined again by Michael von der Schulenburg, Member of the European Parliament and longtime UN/OSCE peace negotiator. We talk on the fourth anniversary of the full-scale Russia-Ukraine war and the uncomfortable gap between public war rhetoric and the hard limits of real diplomacy. Michael explains the peace proposal his group drafted, the letters sent to EU leaders, and the political climate that treats negotiation itself like a taboo. We also dig into collapsed arms control, the fading “red lines” of nuclear risk, and the way Ukraine’s future gets discussed in rooms far from the front.Links:Europe Needs Peace: https://michael-von-der-schulenburg.com/europa-braucht-jetzt-den-mut-zum-frieden/Open Letters to Kaja Kallas and Roberta Metsola: https://pascallottaz.substack.com/p/open-letter-to-kaja-kallas-and-robertaMichael von der Schulenburg (website): https://michael-von-der-schulenburg.com/Michael von der Schulenburg (European Parliament profile): https://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/256966/MICHAEL_VON%2BDER%2BSCHULENBURG/homeNeutrality Studies substack: https://pascallottaz.substack.com(Opt in for Academic Section from your profile settings: https://pascallottaz.substack.com/s/academic)Merch & Donations: https://neutralitystudies-shop.fourthwall.comTimestamps:00:00:00 Anniversary setting and opening stakes00:01:40 Letters to EU leaders and peace proposal00:06:38 OSCE vision, Paris Charter, ignored security00:12:20 Deadlock mindset and endings in past wars00:19:41 US-Russia track and Europe as spoiler00:26:20 Military realism and silencing peace voices00:33:22 Propaganda lock-in and breaking the frame00:37:10 Backchannel attempts and Ukraine collapse risk00:45:21 Where the letters will be published and close

YouTube: https://youtu.be/mj5-wmnZBeQCan “limited” nuclear war be planned on European soil, or only survived in fantasy? Can preparation for nuclear use ever make sense once Berlin-scale firestorms, shelter deaths, and fallout are put on the table?I’m Pascal Lottaz (Kyoto University), joined by Ted Postol (MIT professor emeritus, nuclear weapons researcher) and Rainer Rupp (German former intelligence professional with NATO experience). Ted walks through the real physical effects of a single airburst over Berlin, then Rainer connects that reality to the 1983 war scare, Able Archer, and the dangerous gap between nuclear planning and what nuclear weapons actually do.Links:Able Archer 83: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Able_Archer_83Operation RYAN: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_RYANNeutrality Studies substack: https://pascallottaz.substack.com(Opt in for Academic Section from your profile settings: https://pascallottaz.substack.com/s/academic)Merch & Donations: https://neutralitystudies-shop.fourthwall.comTimestamps:00:00:00 Introduction and nuclear war premise00:01:06 One detonation over Berlin setup00:05:02 Fireball heat and shockwave basics00:13:08 Thermal burns and blast at 5 km00:22:00 Firestorms shelters and mass death00:26:21 1983 war scare Able Archer and RYAN00:43:11 Pentagon view submarines and accident risk00:53:14 Leadership blind spots and short warning time01:09:42 2026 Europe nuclear debate and closing remarks

Support us on Substack: https://pascallottaz.substack.com Our shop: https://neutralitystudies-shop.fourthwall.com Dr. Pietro ShakarianLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pietro-shakarian-7a792563/?originalSubdomain=amHomepage: https://people.aua.am/team_member/dr-pietro-a-shakarian/

Can Europe unify without repeating empire and breakup cycles? Is the euro a trap without a shared budget, and could real-time AI planning replace markets? I sit down with Captain Ivo Yotsov, professor at the Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy, to map six failed unifications and a choice for Europe.Links:Ivo Yotsov ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0300-9417Ivo Yotsov on ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ivo-YotsovNeutrality Studies substack: https://pascallottaz.substack.com(Opt in for Academic Section from your profile settings: https://pascallottaz.substack.com/s/academic)Merch & Donations: https://neutralitystudies-shop.fourthwall.comTimestamps:00:00:00 Introduction00:01:02 Liberal institutionalism vs realism00:03:09 Six unifications from 800 to Napoleon00:12:41 German order and the eurozone trap00:20:00 Yugoslavia and the center-periphery split00:24:19 Borders shift and the escape problem00:26:01 Fourth theory and real-time planned economy00:33:10 Direct democracy and system control00:38:56 Museum Europe or reindustrialized Europe

Ian Proud, former UK diplomat and author of The Peacemonger, draws on diplomatic experience to unpack geopolitics. He breaks down the US naval buildup near Iran and Israel's escalation risk. He critiques Europe’s role blocking a Ukraine settlement and explores EU militarization, fast-tracking Ukraine, and the Russia-China-Iran hedging triangle.

Original on YouTube: https://youtu.be/cGSMEkf5mCgMunich sounded like empire talk again: last gasp or full return? Sanctions as speech control, financial warfare aimed at China, and an oil shock hanging over Europe all come up fast. Today I’m joined by my friend Stanislav Krapivnik to take this apart, line by line.Links:Stanislav Krapivnik on X: https://x.com/StasKrapivnikStanislav Krapivnik on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MrSlavikmanNeutrality Studies substack: https://pascallottaz.substack.com(Opt in for Academic Section from your profile settings: https://pascallottaz.substack.com/s/academic)Merch & Donations: https://neutralitystudies-shop.fourthwall.comTimestamps:00:00:00 Introduction00:00:31 Rubio speech and empire nostalgia00:03:19 Family history and empire mindset00:11:10 US roots revolt and expansion00:15:12 Empire comeback framing in Europe00:24:35 Sanctions and speech discipline at home00:26:46 Protect Taiwan Act and financial coercion00:36:19 Economic power shift and bloc formation00:50:06 Cuba tankers Iran flashpoint Hormuz shock

Can a blacklist replace a court? Can a travel ban turn Europe into a cage? I sit down with Dr. Juan Branco, French-Spanish lawyer and activist who advised Julian Assange and now defends Nathalie Yamb, to trace EU sanctions from asset freezes to speech policing.-- Sorry for the choppy connection. The recording had issues. Links:Juan Branco on X: https://x.com/anatoliumNeutrality Studies substack: https://pascallottaz.substack.com(Opt in for Academic Section from your profile settings: https://pascallottaz.substack.com/s/academic)Merch & Donations: https://neutralitystudies-shop.fourthwall.com

Can EU sanctions turn into punishment without trial, and can foreign-policy powers be aimed inward at Europeans? In this talk, I’m joined by Colonel Jacques Baud (former Swiss Army colonel and intelligence officer), now targeted by EU sanctions, to unpack the legal gray zone, the evidence problem, and the wider push for narrative control.Links:Appeal & petition site: https://www.appeal-baud.comNeutrality Studies substack: https://pascallottaz.substack.com(Opt in for Academic Section from your profile settings: https://pascallottaz.substack.com/s/academic)Merch & Donations: https://neutralitystudies-shop.fourthwall.com