Soon after the Ukrainian crisis began to unfold in 2014 it became clear that returning to the status quo ante as enshrined in the 1990 Charter of Paris for a New Europe was no longer feasible in the short- or medium-term. The concept of the ›Common European Home‹ has been replaced by a real-world confrontation between Russia and the West reminiscent of the Cold War. This time around, both the experience of and mechanisms for managing such a confrontational relationship are lacking.

Despite the absence of many essential traits of the Cold War, such as ideological an¬tagonism, a global reach and nuclear stand-off, the current situation may be even more dangerous. In light of this, it is hardly accidental that ›peaceful coexistence‹, the catchword of détente, is gaining currency. Given the current circumstances, peaceful coexistence could imply a strategy to reconcile the competing prescriptions of ›containment‹ and ›engagement‹ – or ›congagement‹.