experts
Sophia Besch
Senior Fellow, Europe Program

about

Sophia Besch is a senior fellow in the Europe Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Her area of expertise is European defense policy.  

Before joining Carnegie, Sophia was a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform (CER) in London and Berlin, where she led research on European armament policy, the EU’s role in European defense, transatlantic relations, German defense policy, and the security implications of Brexit.

Sophia has also worked with the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies and the Atlantic Council's Europe Centre, where she served as co-chair of the US-Germany Renewal Initiative.  Earlier in her career, Sophia was a Carlo Schmid fellow in NATO’s Policy Planning Unit and a researcher for the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. She is a member of the Atlantik Brücke Young Leaders program. 

Sophia regularly comments on political and defense issues in print and broadcast media and has published opinion pieces in the AtlanticForeign AffairsForeign Policy, Internationale PolitikPoliticoProject SyndicateWar on the Rocks, and others. She has served as an expert witness for the UK House of Commons Defence Select Committee, the German Bundestag EU Committee, and the European Parliament Subcommittee for Security and Defence.  

She holds a doctorate in European Studies from King’s College London, and degrees in international relations and international security from Sciences Po Paris and the London School of Economics. 

education
PhD, King’s College London; MSc, London School of Economics ; MA, Sciences Po Paris, BA, Münster University  
languages
English, French, German
featured work
In The Media
in the media
A European Plan for Trump (and Harris)

A Trump win is still possible. Germany and Europe should develop innovative tactics to position themselves intelligently in case of transatlantic chaos. Even if Harris wins, these efforts wouldn’t be in vain.

Internationale Poltik
paper
Europe’s Conscription Challenge: Lessons From Nordic and Baltic States

As Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine reminds European countries about the importance of manpower, many are once again weighing the promise and perils of compulsory military service.

In The Media
in the media
Resuscitating Europe's Defense Industry

A discussion on the urgency of making Europe’s defense industry fit for the demands of today’s security challenges.

Center for a New American Security

All work from Sophia Besch

filters
69 Results
podcast
Fixing Global Trade: Why Tariffs and Trade Wars Aren’t Enough

Sophia Besch sits down with Michael Pettis to talk about the failures of our modern global trading system and how to fix them.

· December 5, 2024
a cargo ship
commentary
A Chinese-Flagged Ship Cut Baltic Sea Internet Cables. This Time, Europe Was More Prepared.

Complex security challenges to undersea communications infrastructure are forcing NATO, the EU, and individual European governments to adapt, yet many efforts remain in their infancy.

· December 3, 2024
podcast
Is Europe Ready for Trump 2.0?

Rym Momtaz, Sophia Besch, and Christopher Shell discuss how Donald Trump’s victory might reshape transatlantic relations.

· November 20, 2024
Trump pointing
commentary
Europe Does Not Have the Luxury to Panic Over Trump’s Election

It must work together to prevent the worst for Ukraine, NATO, and the European project.

· November 7, 2024
podcast
Maritime Power Plays: The U.S. and China in the Indian Ocean

Sophia Besch sits down with Darshana Baruah to discuss maritime security and great power competition in the Indian Ocean.

· November 7, 2024
podcast
Will America’s Next President Bring Real Change in Foreign Policy?

Sophia Besch sits down with Chris Chivvis and Stephen Wertheim to discuss why meaningful change in U.S. foreign policy is so difficult to achieve—and what it would take for the next American president to make such a change happen.

U Council President Charles Michel (R) arrives with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan before a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the EU headquarters in Brussels on March 9, 2020.
paper
Strategic Autonomy as a Dynamic of Convergence in Türkiye-EU Relations

Türkiye’s foreign policy has been deemed by analysts as a “re-orientation” and rupture with the country’s diplomatic past.

· October 22, 2024
a soldier's boots next to a rubber container used as a ballot deposit box
Can Tunisian Democracy Survive the President’s Second Term?

Kais Saied has chipped away at a decade of progress, but a few factors offer hope for the country’s democratic future.

· October 17, 2024
podcast
Can Tunisia’s Democracy Survive Saied’s Second Term?

Sarah Yerkes, a senior fellow in Carnegie's Middle East Program, joins Sophia to discuss the recent re-election of President Kais Saied and what it means for Tunisia's democracy.

· October 10, 2024
sunset over clouds
The Promises and Risks of a Controversial Approach to Cooling the Planet

Solar geoengineering could be a climate lifeline. It’s also a gamble, with no comprehensive global governance.

· October 4, 2024