About IDS
Independent analysis for consequential choices.
The Institute of Deterrence Studies is a collective of military, security policy and defense-industry thinkers from Europe. We publish in a personal intellectual capacity.
Our purpose
Clear thinking about risk, credibility, and restraint.
IDS is a collective of European and Asian military, security-policy and defense-industry thinkers. We share an interest in deterrence, escalation, and strategic stability: how leaders interpret threats, how geography changes bargaining power, and how military actions create political dilemmas. Our perspective is European and Asian.
We write here in a personal intellectual capacity. Nothing on this site represents the positions of any employer, government, company, or institution with which contributors are or have been affiliated.
The Institute for Deterrence Studies is in no way associated with the U.S.-based National Institute for Deterrence Studies.
Our work uses scenarios to test assumptions rather than predict events. We focus on strategic choices and their consequences, not operational advocacy.
Follow us on X / Twitter: @eurothumos.
Editorial principles
Independent
Analysis is guided by the question, not by institutional affiliation or a preferred policy outcome.
Reciprocal
We test strategic logic from more than one direction and distinguish deterrence from wishful thinking.
Responsible
Scenarios remain strategic and non-operational, with assumptions and uncertainty made explicit.