Last week, we had the pleasure of being a partner of the RECET Festival of Historical and Social Sciences 2026. Under the theme “Transformations of Labour”, the festival explored the many forms, meanings and changing realities of work across past and present societies.
On 10 June, research assistant Elena Marko attended the panel discussion “Gastarbajteri”, moderated by Miranda Jakiša, which focused on art and activism relating to guest workers and addressed, among other things, the question of how the experiences of guest workers and their subsequent generations can be artistically processed from a post-migrant perspective. Olga Kosanović (filmmaker), Marko Marković (hor 29. novembar), Anna Seidel (MUSMIG Museum of Migration), and Katharina Tyran (University of Helsinki) offered fascinating insights into the relationship between migration, art and identity, and demonstrated how artistic and activist work can challenge and influence social conditions.
http://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/reflecting-together-on-the-future-of-work-idm-is-delighted-to-be-a-partner-of-the-recet-festival-2026.png13501080barbara Osoriohttps://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/logo3-de.pngbarbara Osorio2026-06-16 07:58:322026-06-16 08:02:58RECET Festival
On 19 May 2026, the IDM Danube Salon was held in the framework of the Europa Forum Wachau under the theme “European Regions Fostering European Integration.” The event marked the 15th anniversary of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) and focused on the importance of regions when it comes to the future of EU enlargement and EU integration.
The event was opened by Simon Ortner (Secretary General of the Working Community of the Danube Regions (ARGE Donauländer) and Head of the Department of International and European Affairs at the Office of the State Government of Lower Austria) and featured a presentation of the ARGE Donauländer annual programme by Vadym Shkarivskyi (Deputy Chairman of the Odesa Regional Council and Chairman of ARGE Donauländer for 2026–2027).
The subsequent panel discussion brought together Martin Eichtinger (Director of the Diplomatic Academy Vienna), Harald Stranzl (National Coordinator of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region and the EU Strategy for the Alpine Region at the Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs), Vadym Shkarivskyi,Răzvan Ștefan Rab (National Coordinator of the EUSDR at the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs) and Sophia Beiter (Research Associate at IDM). Moderated by Sebastian Schäffer (Director of the IDM), the discussion explored the future of European integration and the importance of cross-border cooperation, while also highlighting the importance of citizen engagement and regional networks like the EUSDR and the ARGE Donauländer for a resilient Europe.
Panel discussion Central Europe: Where Europe’s Future Is Decided 13 June 2026
On 13 June 2026, IDM Director Sebastian Schäffer moderated a high-level panel discussion at the Volt Europe General Assembly in Bratislava, bringing together leading voices from across Central Europe to debate the region’s role in shaping theEuropean Union’s future.
Under the title “Central Europe: Where Europe’s Future Is Decided”, the panel featured Magda Vášáryová (Slovak diplomat and former Ambassador), Anna Donáth (Hungarian former MEP, Momentum), and Mikuláš Peška (Volt Czech Republic),offering perspectives from three countries at the heart of current European debates.
The conversation addressed democratic backsliding and resilience across the region, the geopolitical reorientation prompted by Russia’s war against Ukraine, and what Central European societies expect – and demand – from European integration. Panelists also reflected on the role of pro-European civic movements in rebuilding trust between citizens and EU institutions.
At the end Schäffer asked the panelists if the title of the discussion is rather a promise or a warning, concluding with a clear answer: both.
http://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/volt-ga-panel-ce-where-europes-future-is-decided.jpeg12001600Amelie Petiauxhttps://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/logo3-de.pngAmelie Petiaux2026-06-15 09:37:272026-06-15 09:37:27Panel discussion Central Europe: Where Europe’s Future Is Decided
IDM Director Schäffer on Whether Trump’s Iran Focus Is Pushing Ukraine Down the Agenda
In a new episode of FO° Talks, IDM Director Sebastian Schäffer joins host Rohan Khattar Singh to discuss whether the Trump administration’s growing focus on the war with Iran is sidelining support for Ukraine. The conversation takes place against the backdrop of a full‑scale Russian war that has entered its fifth year, while political attention in Washington is increasingly absorbed by the confrontation with Iran and its regional consequences.
Schäffer outlines how the Iran war is consuming US diplomatic and military bandwidth, from congressional debates to strategic planning, and how this shift risks turning Ukraine into a lower‑priority theatre in American foreign policy. He notes that ongoing discussions on Ukraine’s future, including tentative peace initiatives and security guarantees, have lost visibility as the White House and Congress concentrate on managing the crisis around Iran. This development raises concerns in European capitals about the durability of transatlantic commitment to Ukraine and the credibility of NATO’s deterrence posture on its eastern flank.
The FO° Talks episode also looks at how Europe and Ukraine are responding to a more distracted United States. Schäffer stresses that European support for Kyiv is increasingly framed as a core investment in Europe’s own security and in the stability of its wider neighbourhood, from the Black Sea to the Western Balkans. In this context, the discussion links the war in Ukraine and the Iran crisis to broader debates on European strategic autonomy, energy vulnerability and the EU’s capacity to act as a reliable security and diplomatic actor in a more volatile international environment.
http://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-15-06-2026-a-1129.jpeg10751920Amelie Petiauxhttps://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/logo3-de.pngAmelie Petiaux2026-06-15 09:31:582026-06-15 12:56:08IDM Director Schäffer on Whether Trump’s Iran Focus Is Pushing Ukraine Down the Agenda
IDM Director Contributes to Expert Roundtable on Western Balkans at Australian Embassy Vienna
Sebastian Schäffer, Director of the Institute for the Danube Region and Central Europe (IDM), was invited to share his expertise at a high-level expert roundtable hosted by the Australian Embassy in Vienna on 20 May 2026. The event brought together specialists on the Western Balkans to discuss current political and economic trends in the region and facilitate knowledge exchange among diplomatic missions accredited to Western Balkans countries.
Alongside Schäffer, the panel featured Klaus Wölfer, former Austrian diplomat and IDM board member; Predrag Jurekovic, Researcher at the National Defence Academy of Austria; and Selma Sehovic, Regional Program Manager at the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Dialogue Southeast Europe. Representatives from multiple diplomatic missions contributed to what proved to be a timely and substantive exchange on one of Europe’s most dynamic regions.
The roundtable reflects IDM’s ongoing engagement with the diplomatic community in Vienna and its commitment to fostering informed dialogue on EU enlargement and regional integration in Southeast Europe.
http://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/picture-credit-australian-embassy-permanent-mission-to-the-united-nations-vienna.png450800Amelie Petiauxhttps://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/logo3-de.pngAmelie Petiaux2026-06-15 09:21:342026-06-15 09:21:34IDM Director Contributes to Expert Roundtable on Western Balkans at Australian Embassy Vienna
Andrea Amza-Andras (Chargé d’Affaires, RomanianEmbassy) and Adrian Corpadean (Dean of the Faculty of EuropeanStudies at Babeș-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca) visited the IDM for an exchange on 10 June 2026. The discussion highlighted a number of sharedpriorities, including EU integration, cooperationwith candidate countries, Romania’srole and positioning and the challenge of disinformation. The participants alsoexploredopportunities for joint projects in these areas as well as possibilities for academic and student exchanges between the Faculty of EuropeanStudies and the IDM.
http://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/adrian-corpadean-from-the-babes-bolyai-university-e1781260196161.jpg14181440Amelie Petiauxhttps://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/logo3-de.pngAmelie Petiaux2026-06-12 10:31:492026-06-16 07:26:05Exchange with Adrian Corpadean from the Babeș-Bolyai University
On 10 June 2026, a delegationfrom the International Cultural Centre (ICC) in Krakówvisited the IDM for a studyvisit. During the meeting, IDM Director Sebastian Schäffer presented the institute’sactivities, while ICC Deputy Director Agata Wąsowska-Pawlik introduced the work and projects of the ICC. The exchange focused on identifyingpotential areas for future cooperation, particularly in the fields of publications and cultural activities.
http://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/study-visit-e1781259785971.jpg11421440Amelie Petiauxhttps://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/logo3-de.pngAmelie Petiaux2026-06-12 10:25:582026-06-12 10:25:58Study visit from the International Cultural Centre (ICC) in Kraków
Through War, Resilience: Impressions from a Country Shaping Europe’s Future
As of 11 June 2026, Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has now lasted longer than the First World War.
To mark this significant moment, the IDM invites you to watch its special series, “Through War, Resilience: Impressions from a Country Shaping Europe’s Future.” The seven episodes follow IDM Director Sebastian Schäffer on his journey through Ukraine, witnessing the realities of war and the strength of a society that continues to stand.
This trip offers a record of the resilience and determination of Ukrainians fighting a war whose consequences will shape the future of Europe for generations.
Through the train windows: the journey from Vienna to Kyiv
Taking the train from Vienna to Kyiv is an experience that stays with you. Ukraine remains connected to Europe, even in the middle of a war. It is a long journey, but also a remarkably ordinary one in many ways. What makes this route different is whatinterrupts the ordinary: air raid alerts that remind you where you are heading to and what is happening.
The ever-changing face of Kyiv
Kyiv is one of those cities that does not leave you neutral. Walking through it means walking through layers of history that still very present: the Maidan, where people took the streets to fight for Ukraine’s European future, and countless other places thatreflect both the trauma and the determination of this city. What struck most were the reminders of loss alongside signs of everyday life carrying on: it seems that Kyiv is grieving and building at the same time. That tension is something you cannot fullyunderstand until you see it in person.
A new normality amid extraordinary circumstances
One of the most important things we wanted to convey from this trip is what daily life in Ukraine actually looks like. From the outside, it is easy to imagine a country paralysed by war. The reality is more complex, and in some ways more unsettling. Curfews,shelter routines, and constant awareness of security risks have become part of everyday life across most of the country. And yet people continue to work, study, make plans or watch a football match. What stays with us is this duality: the coexistence of theordinary and the extraordinary.
Witness to a fight for Europe’s future
Travelling between Kyiv and Lviv, you are confronted with things that are hard to look at and impossible to ignore. The evidence of Russia’s aggression is not abstract here: it is in the landscape, in the towns you pass through, in the stories people tell you alongthe way. But so is resilience. Sebastian has been to Ukraine many times, and every visit reinforces the same conviction: what is happening here is not only about Ukraine. It is shaping the future of Europe.
A painful but necessary walk of remembrance
There are places between Kyiv and Lviv where the ashes of history are still burning, where today’s war connects to older stories of resistance, survival, and European sentiment. These moments of historical depth matter, not as an escape from the present, but as a way of making sense of it. Ukraine is not just fighting for its territory. It is fighting for the idea that a country can choose its own future. That is a deeply European idea, and one Europeans should take for granted.
Continuing under air raid alarms
One thing that is difficult to convey from a distance is what it means to live with air raid alarms as part of everyday life. During Sebastian’s time in Ukraine, he observed and experienced how people navigate this: checking Telegram channels for real-time updates, making quick decisions about risk, carrying on when it is possible or heading to the nearest shelter when it isn’t. There is a kind of practised calm that develops. It is both impressive and sobering. Life continues in Ukraine, but it continues underconditions that most of us in Western Europe have never had to imagine for ourselves.
Heavy backpack, heavy heart: time to go back to Vienna
Sebastian’s last stop before heading back to Vienna was the Ivan Franko National University in Lviv, where I gave a lecture. It felt like a fitting end to the trip, a reminder that Ukrainian academic and civic life continue despite everything. Looking back on theweek, what stays with us is not one particular moment or conversation. It is the cumulative weight of it all: the people Sebastian met, the things he saw, the gap between how Ukraine is often discussed in European capitals and what it actually feels like on theground. IDM will keep engaging with Ukraine directly, because there is no substitute for showing up.
http://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/today-russias-full-scale-invasion-of-ukraine-outlasts-wwi-banniere-moyenne-us-paysage.png9601920Amelie Petiauxhttps://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/logo3-de.pngAmelie Petiaux2026-06-11 07:53:242026-06-11 10:57:54Through War, Resilience: Impressions from a Country Shaping Europe’s Future
IDM Director Sebastian Schäffer joined the QNews programme Think Tank to discuss the latest developments in Russia’s war against Ukraine, appearing alongside Peter Dickinson, Ukraine Editor at the Atlantic Council.
On President Zelensky’s offer of direct talks with Putin, Schäffer noted that while the gesture strategically plays on Putin’s insecurities, with the Russian president being, in Schäffer’s words, „too afraid to go anywhere else than Moscow,“ a just peace remains far from the horizon. Any genuine peaceprocess would need to address reparations for damages inflicted on Ukraine and accountability for war crimes. A ceasefire discussion may be possible; justice is another matter entirely.
On Hungary’s shifted position under new leadership, Schäffer welcomed the dropped veto as a positive signal, but cautioned against talk of fast-tracking EU accession. With roughly 1,800 remaining veto points built into the accession process, removing one obstacle is only the beginning. He pointedto the EU summit on 16 June as the next meaningful milestone and a potential opening of formal negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova.
Regarding Ukraine’s drone strikes on Russian oil infrastructure, including refineries on the Baltic coast near St. Petersburg, Schäffer framed these not primarily through the lens of global oil prices, but as a necessary response to over 12 years of Russian aggression and a demonstration of Ukraine’sexpanding long-range capabilities. He emphasised that not a single day in 2026 has passed without Russian strikes on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure.
On NATO’s eastern flank and Italy’s deployment of fighter jets to Romania following drone strikes on the city of Galați, Schäffer argued that strengthening Ukraine’s air defences is itself the most effective way to protect NATO territory. He expressed concern that some voices frame the protection ofRomanian lives as coming at the expense of Ukrainian ones. „We need to protect Ukrainian lives, and by extension we are also protecting NATO territory.“
Closing the programme, both guests were asked for a yes or no on peace talks within six months. Schäffer’s answer: „Unfortunately, I agree. I don’t see it.“
http://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-08-06-2026-a-1120.jpeg10401920Amelie Petiauxhttps://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/logo3-de.pngAmelie Petiaux2026-06-08 09:37:432026-06-08 09:37:43IDM Director Sebastian Schäffer on QNews Think Tank: No Just Peace in Sight, But Ukraine Must Remain at the Table
The strike by a Russian-made „Geran-2“ drone on a residential apartment building in Galați, Romania, on the night of 29 May 2026 marks a dangerous new threshold in the Russia-Ukraine war, one thatcan no longer be confined to Ukrainian territory alone. Two people were hospitalised, dozens evacuated, and for the first time, civilians on NATO soil were directly harmed by Russian weapons.
IDM Director Sebastian Schäffer spoke with Caliber.az about the political and strategic implications of the incident. Schäffer called it „the most serious incident of airspace violation of a NATO memberstate since the beginning of the Russia–Ukraine war,“ while cautioning that the political response signals reassessment rather than enforcement of red lines.
The IDM Director identified three likely consequences: accelerated air defence deployment along NATO’s eastern flank, stronger political justification for direct support to Ukraine’s air defencecapabilities, and – despite the gravity of the incident – a continued low risk of direct military escalation between NATO and Russia. His core message: „Weakening Russia’s UAV capabilities is the most effective way to reduce the risk of the conflict spreading to NATO states.“
He also posed a pointed ethical question that cuts to the heart of European policy: why does serious outrage only emerge once NATO territory is struck, when Ukrainians have been living under the same drone attacks for over four years?
http://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/peter-techet-on-klubradio-about-the-magyarmerz-meeting-in-berlin-1.png7681024Mathilde Eichelberghttps://www.idm.at/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/logo3-de.pngMathilde Eichelberg2026-06-05 11:13:072026-06-08 08:07:50IDM Director on the Russian drone strike in Romania
