Sign in

Ian Bond

@cerianbond.bsky.social
34K followers 11K following 2.1K posts

Deputy director, Centre for European Reform, London @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social . Supporter of democracy, the rule of law, the EU & Ukraine. Opponent of authoritarianism, corruption & Putin's Russia.

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
🗓️ JOIN US: 12/10/26 @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social/Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung UK & Ireland hybrid launch of 'Resist, constrain and change: A European strategy for relations with Russia' with @cerianbond.bsky.social, @ruthdeyermond.bsky.social & Jürgen Hardt Email events@cer.eu for info & registration
042
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
This definitely feels like a mis-step. Russian-language news etc had already been curtailed earlier this year. Why give people whose main language of communication is Russian more reason to seek out 'news' from Russian state channels?
3165
Reposted by Ian Bond
Maria Popova @popovaprof.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Headline writers saying Putin "warned the West against escalation" should stop helping the russian dictator manipulate the narrative. He started the war. If he attacks more European countries, he'll be escalating. The West hasn't matched his escalation, let alone ever escalated.
524766
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
I agree with this by @andrewchak.bsky.social 100 per cent.
23211
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
If Putin accepts, every European leader (at least) should boycott the event. The G20 no longer serves the useful purpose it had during the global financial crisis, when it was founded, so nothing that matters will be lost by not being there.
710250
Reposted by Ian Bond
Kate from Kharkiv @kateinkharkiv.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Please share the information about Oleshky everywhere you can! ​Russia is starving residents of the town and nearby villages by denying food supplies and evacuation. People in Oleshky need help, or else they won't survive the winter!
10588430
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
When @thomasmaddock.bsky.social & I predicted in March that the Trump/Netanyahu war on Iran would be "a prolonged nightmare", we were unfortunately right. Whether Trump carries out his latest threats of genocide or not, he has done huge harm to the US's allies in Europe, the Middle East & Asia.
0187
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Absolutely right. The American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine have been raising this with the administration for ages; they have got nowhere.
116147
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Fixing the UK's relationship with the EU is the only way to get our economy back on track, says @eddavey.libdems.org.uk, calling for an EU-UK customs union & UK membership of the single market. I wd welcome that; but how wd UK persuade the EU27 to make this a priority? A hard sell at present.
Ed Davey MP making his closing speech at the Lib Dem conference in Brighton.
1153
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
I enjoyed chairing this excellent discussion. Lots of good ideas for EU-UK co-operation. Thanks to @euinuk.bsky.social for support & welcome (back) to the world of British political party conferences, Jukka Salovaara! A gentle re-introduction, with @libdems.org.uk the most pro-EU UK party.
071
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Koalicja antybalistyczna, do której przystąpienie ogłosiła Polska, dowodzi, że Europa uniezależnia się od USA i nie zmieni tego koniec kadencji prezydenta Donalda Trumpa - uważa @cerianbond.bsky.social, wiceszef think tanku @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social. buff.ly/hi7bLhP
buff.ly
https://www.pap.pl/aktualnosci/ekspert-koalicja-antybalistyczna-pomoze-trwale-zmniejszyc-zaleznosc-od-usa
042
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
I don't suppose cyber attacks would affect vote counting - since the numbers will have been made up well in advance to meet whatever target the Kremlin has set for showing fealty to Putin.
2315
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Good piece by CER associate fellow @caminomortera.bsky.social. @vonderleyen.ec.europa.eu took the right line yesterday: "Ceuta's border is a European border. Because Ceuta is Spain. Ceuta is Europe. And Europe will be there for you." But that wasn't what happened in July - Spain got no solidarity.
0166
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Good thread by @ruthdeyermond.bsky.social. Another risk with this bill is that Trump will use its tariff provisions to punish countries he doesn't like (eg Europeans who still buy Russian LNG) while sparing at least some of the big buyers of Russian fossil fuels (eg China, India, Turkey).
1259
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Just over 24 hours to go! If QMV makes you go "OMG", you can't resist a good trilogue & you read the OJEU while drinking your morning OJ, this may be the job for you
0197
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
It's not an election, it's a Special Political Operation. I'm baffled by the Western commentators who act as though Putin is on tenterhooks, waiting to see whether his war of aggression against Ukraine has cost him votes in Nakhuygrad South-West. @andrewchak.bsky.social offers an antidote...
416639
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
I was honoured to take part in this discussion. The point I want to underline: European governments can't just rely on Ukraine to take the whole weight of defending Europe forever. Europe needs to help UA much more actively, not just praise the resilience of the Ukrainian people.
14216
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
🎙️It is time for #Schengen to have its ‘Whatever it takes’ moment: both European countries and their adversaries should know that Schengen is here to stay and that it will be defended when necessary. #CERpodcast with @caminomortera.bsky.social & @cerianbond.bsky.social Listen here: buff.ly/7FTFb0v
1125
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
🗓️ JOIN US: 21/09/26 - @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social/ @euinuk.bsky.social fringe event at @libdems.org.uk party conference on 'Strengthening a rules-based world order: Beyond power politics' With @cerianbond.bsky.social, @monicaharding.bsky.social, @alpinkerton.bsky.social and Jukka Salovaara
021
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
A visit to Riga isn't complete unless you've heard a Latvian choir. Thanks to Balsis, capping an excellent #RigaConference2026.
1203
Reposted by Ian Bond
The Moscow Times @themoscowtimes.com · 10/09/2026
Opinion: Europe could put Russia’s frozen billions to work for Ukraine without confiscating a cent, argues Jamison Firestone. So why hasn’t it?
themoscowtimes.com
Belgium’s ‘Golden Goose’ Is Keeping Billions From Ukraine - The Moscow Times
Opinion | One of the most pressing questions surrounding the West’s financial support for Ukraine is whether the $300 billion in Russian state assets frozen by Western governments can be seized or oth...
2148
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
🗓️ JOIN US: 21/09/26 - @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social/ @euinuk.bsky.social fringe event at @libdems.org.uk party conference on 'Strengthening a rules-based world order: Beyond power politics' With @cerianbond.bsky.social, @monicaharding.bsky.social, @alpinkerton.bsky.social and Jukka Salovaara
012
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
"To work, #Schengen needs to be three things: definitive, defensible and credible. None is possible without mutual trust between EU member-states. And none were on display in #Ceuta," @caminomortera.bsky.social tells @cerianbond.bsky.social in the latest #CERpodcast. Listen here: buff.ly/zODFrdk
072
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Delighted to be back in Latvia for the 2026 Riga Conference, where I'm on a panel tomorrow on 'Ukraine's role as a pillar of European security'. Once you get away from this part of Europe, I'm not sure how much people further west understand that if that pillar falls, Europe falls. rigaconference.lv
rigaconference.lv
The Rīga Conference
0172
Reposted by Ian Bond
Meanwhile in Ukraine @meanwhileua.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Imagine telling a man wanted by the ICC over alleged war crimes that meeting him will be one of the greatest memories of your life. ㅤ Witkoff told Putin he would be “right at the top” of his retirement stories. ㅤ Ukraine was invaded. Putin gets admiration. Kyiv gets pressure.
2323370
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
For @cerianbond.bsky.social, the deputy director of @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social, the war bought a change in the German collective consciousness: “There was a realisation in Germany that Putin’s ambitions were not limited to Crimea and bits of Donbas. buff.ly/IHZ3EVX
independent.co.uk
Germany once cosied up to Putin. Now they are Russia’s public enemy number one
Berlin accused Moscow of being behind a recent drone attack at an airport in Leipzig. Experts tell Suha Kidwai that the Kremlin’s hybrid attacks are a deliberate ploy to destabilise the biggest…
4104
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
🗓️ JOIN US: 21/09/26 - @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social/ @euinuk.bsky.social fringe event at @libdems.org.uk party conference on 'Strengthening a rules-based world order: Beyond power politics' With @cerianbond.bsky.social, @monicaharding.bsky.social, @alpinkerton.bsky.social and Jukka Salovaara
012
Reposted by Ian Bond
Rosemary Thomas @rozzthomas.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Yes and yet Ukraine’s allies won’t openly acknowledge that this is the case.
0215
Reposted by Ian Bond
Manuel Maroczy @mavalon13.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
And the title of Putin's article was a rhetorical trick to begin with - when he writes "On the historical unity," he implies that this unity actually existed historically, but that is simply his first lie.
0123
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
This is - in more military language - what Putin set out in his July 2021 article 'On the historical unity of Russians & Ukrainians'. Putin's aims for Ukraine were & are genocidal. No-one in Europe should kid themselves that this is a war for territory, still less 'to prevent NATO expansion'.
4176108
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
“The EU is an extremely generous construct. It gives member-states a true voice in world affairs. Some may have it naturally and may have it bilaterally,” Ambassador Serrano of @EUdelegationUK told @cerianbond.bsky.social in the @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social podcast. Listen here: buff.ly/21EcBY3
1125
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
🗓️ JOIN US: 21/09/26 - @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social/ @euinuk.bsky.social fringe event at @libdems.org.uk party conference on 'Strengthening a rules-based world order: Beyond power politics' With @cerianbond.bsky.social, @monicaharding.bsky.social & @alpinkerton.bsky.social
062
Reposted by Ian Bond
PubAffairs EU Debates, News & Opinions 🇪🇺 @pubaffairsbruxelles.eu · 26/08/2026
[Podcast] #GlobalEurope - Unpacking Europe: Pedro Serrano reflects on two decades of #EU diplomacy, by @cerianbond.bsky.social & Pedro Serrano | @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social www.pubaffairsbruxelles.eu/podcast/unpa...
pubaffairsbruxelles.eu
Unpacking Europe: Pedro Serrano reflects on two decades of EU diplomacy - PubAffairs Bruxelles
As Pedro Serrano prepares to leave his post as EU ambassador to the UK, Ian Bond speaks to him about his 23 years in EU diplomacy and his time in London.
042
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
"Books are the treasured wealth of the world and the fit inheritance of generations and nations" (Thoreau). Putin's genocidal war against Ukraine is waged also against its culture, history & language, with the destruction of millions of books.
04022
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Best response to this nonsense is probably no response. Europe shd also accelerate efforts to reduce reliance on the increasingly erratic & unreliable US; & find legal ways to block US funding of far right parties & organisations in Europe, designed to undermine European values & create 'EuroMAGA'.
410841
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
The @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social is looking for an EU institutions & EU politics fellow to join its research team in Brussels. Please see the #job description and details on how to apply below 👇 Deadline for applications 18/09/26 buff.ly/AbxXqg3
074
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
🗓️ JOIN US: 21/09/26 - @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social/ @euinuk.bsky.social fringe event at @libdems.org.uk party conference on 'Strengthening a rules-based world order: Beyond power politics' With @cerianbond.bsky.social, @monicaharding.bsky.social & @alpinkerton.bsky.social
162
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
And an essay by @cerianbond.bsky.social on how Britain can defend shared European security interests from outside the EU. buff.ly/nUHLHMz
cer.eu
Ten years after the Brexit referendum: Same threats, less say
Ian Bond on how Britain can defend shared European security interests from outside the EU.
093
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
How long before Trump reduces US defence support for Europe, on the basis Putin is "unthreatening & respectful"? Trump's treatment of South Korea shd be another warning to Europeans that as long as he is in the White House, the US will not be a reliable ally: www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...
washingtonpost.com
Trump reduces military exercises with South Korea, citing good ties with Kim Jong Un
The president cited the cost of the drills and said he did not want to send a signal that is "totally inappropriate and hostile" to North Korea. He also criticized South Korea for not helping him on I...
119941
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Excellent piece by @nigelgould-davies.bsky.social - though I don't think the problem is limited to the RU opposition: a lot of European governments, including the UK's, are also reluctant to try to weaken Russia too much or think about how to create conditions to favour systemic change there.
1165
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
Calling all euronerds! @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social is hiring in Brussels. A chance to join our great team, at one of the best small think-tanks in Europe, and to influence the future development of the EU.
01913
Reposted by Ian Bond
Sander Tordoir @sandertordoir.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
Word is spreading that pockets of the European economy are blossoming. Croatia, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Greece are also growing at a brisk pace. Those countries are in the EU single market - casting doubt on a German narrative that EU regulation is to blame for its woes.
822976
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
A decade after the #Brexit referendum, the essay collection from @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social brings together leading policy-makers, former politicians, senior officials & analysts to reflect on what the past decade has meant for the the future of UK-EU relations. buff.ly/jgBOT4e
buff.ly
Ten years after the Brexit referendum
A new CER essay collection reflects on what the past decade has meant for the UK, the EU, and the future of UK-EU relations.
164
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
Great thread on Soviet and Russian imperialism & Western failure to recognise it for what it is & oppose it accordingly.
12813
Reposted by Ian Bond
Phillips OBrien @phillipspobrien.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
If Trump wanted to help Ukraine, he could right now. He could send weapons such as Patriot interceptors, he could sanction Russian companies and those who do business with them--immediately. There is nothing stopping him except for the fact that he doesnt want to. Why is that?
31544147
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Totally agree - I have argued in favour of providing fighter cover, at least over western Ukraine, & helping Ukraine to increase its deep strike capability, for >2 years: www.cer.eu/publications... . Russia shouldn't be allowed to respond to UA successes by pounding UA civilians.
cer.eu
Does it matter if Ukraine loses?
Ukraine is retreating and Russia is advancing, militarily and politically. Western leaders seem to underestimate both the impact of Ukraine’s defeat and the West’s ability to prevent it.
14319
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
“The objective is not to cut China off from technology forever,” @sandertordoir.bsky.social of @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social said in an interview. “The objective is to show that Germany has teeth, to remind Beijing that China also has critical dependencies on Europe.”
buff.ly
031
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
If the Ukrainian government and the Rada do everything needed to align with the EU acquis, the promised EU membership should not be delayed. New @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social insight by @cerianbond.bsky.social Read here: buff.ly/mTvZFnR
042
Ian Bond @cerianbond.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
An extremely important statement of principle. Trump's willingness to abandon this in relation to Ukraine was a shocking departure from the longstanding US position on sovereignty and territorial integrity.
14511
Reposted by Ian Bond
Centre for European Reform @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
We’d like to thank Pedro Serrano who joined @cerianbond.bsky.social yesterday at our @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social / @euinuk.bsky.social event to look back on his career and reflect on how the EEAS has evolved since its formation, and how the EU-UK relationship has changed and continues to develop.
022