SIPRI Update September 2023: Ukrainian translation of SIPRI Yearbook 2022, SIPRI hosts IAEA chief, SIPRI research at Africa Climate Week, and more

SIPRI, in collaboration with the Razumkov Centre (Ukrainian Centre for Economic and Political Studies), is pleased to announce that the Ukrainian language translation of SIPRI Yearbook 2022 is now available. SIPRI Yearbook 2022 is the 53rd edition of the SIPRI Yearbook and the 23rd edition of the Yearbook in Ukrainian. This translation was made possible by the long-time cooperation between SIPRI and the Razumkov Centre and the financial support of the Swiss Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport. It is available for free in PDF format on both SIPRI’s and the Razumkov Centre’s websites.

Read more | Download the Ukrainian translation of SIPRI Yearbook 2022

On 29 August, SIPRI hosted Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), for a roundtable discussion and international press conference. The meeting was a part of the IAEA’s official visit to Sweden and Rafael Grossi’s first visit to Sweden as Director General. The visit to SIPRI was widely covered in the media by journalists from major outlets such as Reuters, AP, AFP, TV4, Dagens Nyheter, TT and Swedish Radio. These outlets all attended the press briefing organized on-site by SIPRI following the roundtable.

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SIPRI and the European Union Non-Proliferation and Disarmament Consortium (EUNPDC) invite students of engineering disciplines to apply for an intensive introductory course on the proliferation of nuclear weapons, mechanisms to control their further spread, the security of nuclear materials and installations, and pathways to disarmament. The course will take place 28–30 November 2023 in Stockholm, Sweden.

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SIPRI played an active role in Africa Climate Week (ACW) held in Nairobi, Kenya on 4–8 September. Kyungmee Kim, SIPRI Researcher, spoke on a panel on the topic, ‘Water Diplomacy and Transboundary Water Resources Management in the Horn of Africa’. Additionally, during ACW, Karen Meijer, SIPRI Senior Researcher, spoke at an event on, ‘Enhancing Locally-led Climate Action: Integrating Peacebuilding and Conflict Management in Climate Action Plans for Kenya’s Hotspot Counties’. Aside from disseminating research, SIPRI acted as a convenor for the ACW side event on the topic, ‘Climate, Peace, and Food Systems: Empowering Africa’s Resilient Solutions’. 

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Thanks to SIPRI’s translation partners, the summary of SIPRI Yearbook 2023 is now published in Catalan, Dutch, French, Italian, Spanish and Swedish. All six translations can be downloaded today, and additional languages will be added as they become available.

Read more | Download translations of SIPRI Yearbook 2023

On 23 August, SIPRI hosted Ambassador Mike Hammer, United States Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa. Ambassador Hammer participated in both a briefing on SIPRI’s work on the Horn of Africa and a closed roundtable discussion on climate, peace and security challenges in the region. The roundtable discussion was led by SIPRI’s Climate Change and Risk Programme. It was attended by SIPRI Researchers as well as counterparts from the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Folke Bernadotte Academy and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency. The Ambassador also took part in a SIPRI Spotlight interview where he discussed security challenges in the Horn of Africa and the need for cooperation.

Read more | Watch the Spotlight interview

This SIPRI Topical Backgrounder unpacks food security programming. It argues that the deepening global food crisis, driven by concurrent economic shocks, conflict and global warming, requires urgent action. Food security programming must become both more effective and more efficient. This means not only being more responsive but also having a longer-term, preventive focus. Food security interventions cannot be just about providing food; they need to be part of supporting peace and helping communities to become more resilient, secure and sustainable—and thus less vulnerable to food insecurity in the future.

Read the SIPRI Topical Backgrounder

This Topical Backgrounder uses SIPRI data to analyse the current situation unfolding on the Belarus–Poland border. Belarus’s relations with NATO neighbours have deteriorated, with troops deployed on both sides of the border, raising concerns of a military clash. Belarus, though not officially part of Russia’s war in Ukraine, has allowed Russian forces to operate from its soil. However, Belarus’s military spending is relatively low compared to its NATO neighbours, and it relies heavily on Soviet-era and Russian-imported equipment. Unilateral aggression seems unlikely as Belarus’s capacity appears low and NATO’s Article 5 provides for collective defence in the case of attack on a NATO member. Nevertheless tensions remain high.

Read the SIPRI Topical Backgrounder

SIPRI experts were recently featured in the following external outlets:

• ‘Kabul and Islamabad: Myths and reality’ (in Russian), by Omar Nessar and Petr Topychkanov, published in Russia in Global Politics on 1 September.

• ‘The promise and limits of water diplomacy’, by Johan Schaar, published in Bled Strategic Times on 29 August.

• ‘The PA’s revolving door: A key policy in security coordination’, by Alaa Tartir, published by Al-Shabaka: The Palestinian Policy Network on 27 August.

• ‘Fluid state-building in the Kurdistan region of Iraq: Taking advantage of the 2003 US-led invasion’, by Kamaran Palani and Shivan Fazil, published in International Peacekeeping on 25 July.

• ‘Building an Environment of Peace’, by Claire McAllister, published by TEDx Talks on 5 July.