Niklas Helwig
Leading Researcher- EU foreign policy and defence cooperation
- German foreign and defence policy
- EU-US relations
Niklas Helwig is a Leading Researcher at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs and an Associate Professor in International Relations at Tampere University. His research focuses on EU foreign and security policy, German foreign and security policy, as well as EU-US relations. He currently co-leads an Academy of Finland-funded project on “Transforming strategic cultures in contemporary Europe” (STRAX).
He worked at various think tanks in Europe and the US, including the RAND Corporation in Arlington VA, Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik in Berlin and the Centre for European Policy Studies in Brussels. He was a DAAD Fellow at the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies in Washington D.C. in 2018.
Helwig has published extensively in peer-reviewed academic journals, including Journal of Common Market Studies (JCMS) and Zeitschrift für Politikwissenschaft. He served as special issue editor of German Politics and European Foreign Affairs Review. He has written policy analyses for government and non-profit organisations including the US Army and Air Force, the Finnish and German governments, and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation. His journalistic articles appeared for example in Die Zeit, Internationale Politik und Gesellschaft, War on the Rocks and Euractiv.
Helwig completed his PhD on the transformation of European foreign and security policy after the Lisbon treaty at the Universities of Cologne and Edinburgh. He holds a master’s in economics from the University of Cologne.
Degrees
PhD in Politics, Universities of Edinburgh and Cologne, 2014
Diploma in Economics (Master equivalent), University of Cologne, 2010
Language skills
English and German (working languages), Finnish (basic skills)
Work experience
Adjunct Researcher and Visiting Research Fellow, RAND Corporation, Washington DC, 2018-2019
Research Fellow, American Institute for Contemporary Germany Studies (AICGS), SAIS – Johns Hopkins University, Washington DC, 2018
Visiting Research Fellow, German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), Berlin, 2017-2018
Visiting Research Fellow, Center for Transatlantic Relations, SAIS – Johns Hopkins University, Washington DC, 2016-2017
Senior Research Fellow, Finnish Institute of International Affairs, Helsinki, 2014-2016
Tutor and co-lecturer for “The EU as a global actor” (B.A. Honours), University of Edinburgh, 2013
Researcher and Marie Curie Fellow, Finnish Institute of International Affairs, Brussels, 2011-2012
Researcher and Marie Curie Fellow, Centre for European Policy Studies, Brussels, 2011
Student Assistant, Jean-Monnet-Chair for European Politics, University of Cologne, 2007-2010
Academic awards
DAAD/AICGS Fellowship, 2018
TAPIR Fellowship (Transatlantic Post-Doc in International Relations and Security), 2016-2018
Marie Curie Fellowship, 2010-2013