Regime Competition
The research group “Regime Competition” brings together PRIF research and expertise to study how political actors deal with the diversity of political regimes in an increasingly multipolar world shaped by great power rivalries, and how this affects conflict dynamics and political orders at the global, regional, and national level. We study global trends, different policy fields, as well as specific cases of global importance.
In the first phase of the research group (2023-2025) we had two research foci. First, we explored if, to what extent and how increasing regime diversity affected regional politics and international alliances in selected world regions (Latin America, South-East Asia, West Asia and North Africa), all of which are affected by great power competition and multipolarization. Second, we studied how these dynamics of regime competition impacted on intrastate conflicts and related foreign and development policies.
In the second phase (2026-2028), the research group, first, looks at global patterns of international cooperation and conflict and studies to what extent these are shaped by (perceived) regime differences. Second, we investigate if and how regime diversity affects the patterns of cooperation and conflict in specific policy fields (e.g. energy transition, digital technologies). Third, we conduct in-depth studies on conflicts of high global importance and relevance for regime competition such as the Taiwan Strait.
![[Translate to Englisch:]](/fileadmin/_processed_/a/0/csm_Sidney_Michelini_08e9b4fa2f.jpg "Sidney Michelini")
- China’s Response to the EV Dispute: What it Tells us about the China–EU Rivalry
| 2026
Fung, Ying Long (2026): China’s Response to the EV Dispute: What it Tells us about the China–EU Rivalry, PRIF Blog.
Publication - Die Weltordnung und der Systemwettbewerb: Zur außenpolitischen Positionierung der Parteien im Bundestagswahlkampf
| 2025
Abb, Pascal; Weipert-Fenner, Irene; Wolff, Jonas (2025): Die Weltordnung und der Systemwettbewerb: Zur außenpolitischen Positionierung der Parteien im Bundestagswahlkampf, PRIF Blog.
Publication - Regime Competition in a Fragmented World: Consequences for Peace and Conflict
| 2023
Abb, Pascal; Weipert-Fenner, Irene (2023): Regime Competition in a Fragmented World: Consequences for Peace and Conflict, PRIF Blog.
Publication - Do regime differences shape developmental engagement? How China and Japan compete in post-coup Myanmar
| 2023
Abb, Pascal; Yennie Lindgren, Wrenn (2023): Do regime differences shape developmental engagement? How China and Japan compete in post-coup Myanmar, PRIF Blog.
Publication - Debating Foreign Interference in a Multipolar World: Is the EU Becoming Illiberal?
| 2023
Wolff, Jonas (2023): Debating Foreign Interference in a Multipolar World: Is the EU Becoming Illiberal?, PRIF Blog.
Publication - “Russian Self-Defense”? Fact-Checking Arguments on the Russo-Ukrainian War by John J. Mearsheimer and Others
| 2023
Driedger, Jonas J. (2023): “Russian Self-Defense”? Fact-Checking Arguments on the Russo-Ukrainian War by John J. Mearsheimer and Others, PRIF Blog.
Publication - Germany’s New China Strategy: A Defensive Shift
| 2023
Abb, Pascal (2023): Germany’s New China Strategy: A Defensive Shift, PRIF Blog.
Publication - Nicht darüber reden ist auch keine Lösung: Die Rolle von Autokratie und Demokratie in der Nationalen Sicherheitsstrategie
| 2023
Abb, Pascal; Pfeifer, Hanna; Weipert-Fenner, Irene; Wolff, Jonas (2023): Nicht darüber reden ist auch keine Lösung: Die Rolle von Autokratie und Demokratie in der Nationalen Sicherheitsstrategie, PRIF BLOG.
Publication - Is Antarctica Still Exceptional?
| 2023
Flamm, Patrick (2023): Is Antarctica Still Exceptional?. The Case for “Co-opetition” at the South Pole, PRIF Spotlight, 5, Frankfurt/M. DOI: 10.48809/prifspot2305 - Decoupling and the “New Cold War”: Cautionary Lessons from the Past
| 2023
Dembinski, Matthias; Peters, Dirk (2023): Decoupling and the “New Cold War”: Cautionary Lessons from the Past, PRIF Blog.
Publication - Xi and Putin’s Strategic Tango: Unpacking the Complexities of Russia-China Relations After the 2023 Moscow Summit
| 2023
Abb, Pascal; Polianskii, Mikhail (2023): Xi and Putin’s Strategic Tango: Unpacking the Complexities of Russia-China Relations After the 2023 Moscow Summit, PRIF Blog.
Publication - International Conference Dealing with Autocracies in a Fragmented World Conference Report
| 2023
Abb, Pascal; Weipert-Fenner, Irene; Wolff, Jonas; Driedger, Jonas J. (2023): International Conference Dealing with Autocracies in a Fragmented World Conference Report, PRIF Conference Report, Frankfurt a/M. - Socioeconomic reforms in times of political transformation: Conflicts over the political economy in Egypt and Tunisia post-2011
| 2025
Weipert-Fenner, Irene (2025): Socioeconomic reforms in times of political transformation: Conflicts over the political economy in Egypt and Tunisia post-2011, Mediterranean Politics, 30: 1, 102–107. DOI: 10.1080/13629395.2023.2207428 - With friends like these: the Sino-Russian partnership is based on interests, not ideology
| 2023
Abb, Pascal; Polianskii, Mikhail (2023): With friends like these: the Sino-Russian partnership is based on interests, not ideology, Zeitschrift für Friedens- und Konfliktforschung. DOI: 10.1007/s42597-023-00090-2 - Gemeinsam gegen die bösen Autokratien? Zu den Fallstricken demokratischer Allianzbildung als Pfeiler einer zukünftigen deutschen Sicherheitsstrategie
| 2022
Abb, Pascal; Pfeifer, Hanna; Wolff, Jonas (2022): Gemeinsam gegen die bösen Autokratien? Zu den Fallstricken demokratischer Allianzbildung als Pfeiler einer zukünftigen deutschen Sicherheitsstrategie, PRIF BLOG.
Publication - Chinese Conceptions of Peace – Historical foundations and implications for contemporary conflict agency
| 2025
Abb, Pascal; Yuan, Xinyu; (2025): Chinese Conceptions of Peace – Historical foundations and implications for contemporary conflict agency, FriEnt Report, Bonn: FriEnt – Working Group on Peace and Development.
Publication - New FriEnt Study on Chinese Peace Conceptions
| 2025
New FriEnt Study on Chinese Peace Conceptions.
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