Made in Humane Club
OPEWI – Europe’s War Institute
Europe & neighborhood focus, led by practitioners, only with European funds
Why this Brussels-based think tank?
Europe now faces war at its borders but also within.
In that context, OPEWI aims to gather conflict practitioners from all over Europe to lead a tactical and technical conversation on how to best allocate defence resources according to today’s and tomorrow’s threats.
More importantly, we want to prove that European defence is possible, thet Europeans can overcome their differences and prejudices to protect their own continent.
Pic source: United 24
Our Team
Michael Benhamou
Executive Director
Former EU/NATO political adviser (Kosovo, Afghanistan, Libya, Brussels).
MA Sorbonne & Sciences po
Nationality: French
Francesca Sterzi
Research Director
Political Advisor at NRDC-ITA (reserve officer). Formerly deployed on frigates.
PhD International Law, Sant’Anna
Nationality: Italian
Mate Paden
Defence Director
Retired Lt. General. Former MilRep to NATO and to the EU. Former DCHOD.
PhD (candidate) in Economic Science, Zagreb University
Nationality: Croatian
Advisory Council
Erhard Bühler
Lt. General (ret.). Former Commander of NATO forces – KFOR (Kosovo), JWC, Brunssum.
CoB: Germany
Andrzej Fałkowski
Lt. General (ret.). Former Military Representative to NATO/EU. Former DCHOD.
CoB: Poland
Ketil Olsen
V. Admiral (ret.). Former Military Representative to NATO. Formerly in the Navy Coast Guard.
CoB: Norway
Antonios Platias
Brig. General (ret.). Former StratCom officer in NATO/EU missions. Operations: Bosnia.
CoB: Greece
Gary Deakin
Maj. General (ret.). Former senior officer at NATO JFC Naples, SHAPE, Afghanistan. Operations: Southern Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.
CoB: UK
Marco Serronha
Lt. Gen. (ret.). Former Deputy Commander to NATO/EU operations – Kosovo, Central African Republic.
CoB: Portugal
Juha Vauhkonen
V. Admiral (ret.). Former Military Representative to NATO. Formerly head of Intelligence. Operations: Afghanistan.
CoB: Finland
Antonios Platias
R. Admiral (ret.). Former chief of Staff to Estonian Defence Forces. Former military representative to EU/NATO. Operations: Afghanistan, Baltics.
CoB: Estonia
Robbie Boyd
Retired Brig. General. Former adviser to the Chair of the NATO Military Committee Operations: Cyprus, Afghanistan, Iraq, Bosnia, Sudan.
CoB: Ireland
Our Goals
1.
Influence EU and European policymakers on police and defence matters – legislation, budgets, programmes.
2.
Foster security cooperation & autonomy in Europe by connecting industries with elected officials and civil servants.
3.
Convince the European public, on all platforms, of the necessity to finance and ramp up European defences.
Our Values
Courage
OPEWI is a place where police & military are honoured – active duty, veterans, wounded personnel.
Integrity
Only European projects and sponsorships, whether public or private, are accepted (EU27, UK, Switz., Norway & Iceland)
Mobility
Our staff is on the road, visiting leaders, factories, war zones, unsafe neighborhoods, throughout the whole year.
Community
We are creating a European community federated by a Brussels-based house where staff and guests can gather.