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RusLab

The Russia Observatory (RUSLAB) is a dedicated research hub for the study of Russia, its domestic politics, historical trajectories, and international role, combining academic rigour with policy-relevant analysis and public-facing outputs. The research is situated within the broader debate on post-liberal contestation and the transformation of the international order.

RuLAB’s work aims to integrate close analysis of domestic governance, political economy, and social dynamics with a strong historical perspective rooted in Soviet and imperial legacies. It also examines how past institutional configurations, political cultures, and identity narratives continue to shape contemporary Russian politics and society.

Thematically, the Observatory covers four main interconnected areas:

Domestic politics and society — governance structures, center–periphery relations, regional identities, social stratification, ideological, religious and cultural evolutions, and the interaction between elites and the Russian society.
Russia–Europe relations — historical entanglements, energy interdependence, security architecture, and the reconfiguration of ties under war and sanctions.
The Eurasian space — relations with neighboring states, regional integration, and alignments involving China, Turkey, India, and other major Global South actors.
Global footprint — Russia’s political, economic, and security presence in Africa, the Middle East, and Russia’s role in reshaping the broader international order.

Head of Unit

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Alfonso Giordano

Alfonso Giordano is an associate professor of Economic and Political Geography at Niccolò Cusano University of Rome and an adjunct professor at LUISS University, where he teaches “Exogeography, Astropolitics, and Space Economy”. His research focuses on population geography, political demography, and human-environment interactions, with a particular emphasis on border studies. Recently, he has investigated the geographical, political and economic dimensions of space exploration, analysing its implications for governance, resource allocation, and territoriality beyond Earth.
Angelo Mario Taraborrelli

Angelo “Mario” Taraborrelli has held strategic senior roles for over three decades in the national and international energy sector, significantly contributing to the definition of industrial and corporate policies in the oil & gas field and, more recently, in the electricity sector. With a strong background in international law and oil economics, he began his career at Eni in 1973, progressively taking on top positions, including that of CEO of the Refining & Marketing division, where he led a thorough strategic restructuring program and important international M&A operations. As Senior Vice President of Strategic Control, he directly influenced capital allocation decisions and key investments for the entire Eni group. Subsequently, he expanded his influence in the energy sector by joining the Board of Directors of Enel SpA, where for years he chaired the Internal Control and Risk Committee, contributing to the evolution of corporate governance in the context of the energy transition. Since 2015, he has been an Adjucnt Professor of Energy and Climate Policies at Luiss University, combining managerial expertise and academic vision in the global political-energy field.
Antonio Leandro

Antonio Leandro (Law Degree, Bari; PhD, Rome-La Sapienza) is a Full Professor of International Law at the Department of Law of the Aldo Moro University of Bari, where he teaches public and private international law, international law of the sea, and international trade law. Expert for the European Commission and UNIDROIT, member of the Italian Foreign Policy and Security Laboratory at the CISS, he has been appointed as Scientific Advisor to the Italian Navy. He served as a director of a short-term master’s program on safety and security at sea in cooperation with the Italian Financial Police (Guardia di Finanza).

Author of five monographs and several scientific papers, he is also editor or co-editor of six collective volumes. He serves on the editorial boards of several academic journals and co-directs an international law book series. His research interests range across private international law, public international law, and their intersections with European Union law.

As regards maritime topics, he particularly focused – through scientific publications, workshops and lectures – on the Exclusive Economic Zone, maritime security, piracy, criminal jurisdiction at sea, migration by sea, maritime labour safety standards, naval peace-keeping, maritime spatial planning, underwater normative and regulatory framework, foreign direct investments in port and maritime environment, economic warfare in maritime activities, GHG emissions, and sustainable development in ocean governance.
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Emiliana De Blasio

Emiliana De Blasio is Advisor to the Rector for Diversity, Inclusion and Sustainability and Professor of Sociology of Cultural and Communicative Processes at LUISS, where she teaches Sociology of Communication, Open government, Political participation and governance and Gender politics. She has been awarded research grants such as FIRB and PRIN and coordinated several research projects throughout her career.

She has taught at Italian and foreign universities, including New York University, SciencesPo, Pontifical Gregorian University, University of Molise. She regularly teaches at LUISS Masters, Executive Masters and School of Journalism on topics related to inclusion, diversity and sustainability. She is also part of the Italian Open Government Forum and member of several scientific associations such as SISCC, AssoComPol, ECPR, ESA, SISP.
Francesca Maria Corrao

Francesca Maria Corrao is Full Professor of Arabic Culture and Language in the Department of Political Science in LUISS University of Rome, director of MISLAM Program (Master in Economics and Institutions of Islamic Countries) of the School of Government at the same university. Previously she was Professor at the University of Naples “L’Orientale” (1996-2011), and visiting professor at the Alsun Faculty of the ‘Ayn Shams University in Cairo (2004), École Pratique des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales (Paris 2007), at Fudan University (Shanghai 2017), Science Pò (Menton 2017/19). She held conferences and seminars at the Universities of Cairo, Beirut, Amman, Rabat, Tunis, Cambridge, Oxford and Harvard. The main focus of her scholarly activity is on Arabic Literature, Islamic Culture and History, Mediterranean Studies, Intercultural dialogue.

In “L’Orientale” University of Naples, Corrao was in charge of the Socrates European Projects: “Les Communautés Africaines en Europe” ( Paris 2000), Les Communautés Musulmanes en Europe” (Paris 2001). She is the “contact person” for the “Manifesto” for Inclusive University” (http://manifestouniversitainclusiva.unhcr.it/), Universities network for peace (RUniPace http://www.runipace.org/ ) and for the University Corridors for Refugees UNICORE 3.0 (http://universitycorridors.unhcr.it/ ); the latter is promoted by Italian universities with the support of UNHCR, in cooperation with the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other partners. Corrao chairs the Scientific Committee of the Fondazione Orestiadi in Gibellina (Sicily); She is Overseas Research member of the Institute of Oriental Studies (Soka University, Tokyo); and is also Member of the European Union of Arabist and Islamist (UEAI), the Scientific Council of the Cortile dei Gentili (Pontifical Coucil for Culture, Vatican), International Affairs Institute IAI-Rome, the European Teachers of Modern Arabic Literature (EMTAR), Member of the Scientific committee of the Journals: Rivista Africa e Orienti, Semicerchio, ARABLIT, Journal of Arabic Literature, Dialoghi Mediterranei, open access e-journal of the Istituto Euro-Arabo.

Her most recent books include: Corrao F.M., Redaelli R., States, Actors and Geopolitical Drivers in the Mediterranean, Palgrave 2021; I cavalieri, le dame e i deserti. Storia della poesia araba (Istituto per l’Oriente, 2020); In guerra non mi cercate. Poesia araba delle rivoluzioni e oltre, with O. Capezio, E. Chiti e S. Sibilio (Le Monnier, 2018); L’Islam non è terrorismo, with L. Violante (Il Mulino, 2018); Islam, Religion and Politics (LUP, 2017); Islam, State and Modernity. Mohammed Abed Al-Jabri and the Future of the Arab World, with Z. Eyadat and M.Hashas (Palgrave, 2017); Le Rivoluzioni Arabe. La transizione Mediterranea, (Mondadori, 2011); Poeti Arabi di Sicilia (Mesogea, 2002); Giufà il furbo, lo sciocco, il saggio (Sellerio 2001, Nawādir Juhā, in Arabic 2020).
Francesco Cherubini

Francesco Cherubini is Associate Professor of EU Law at the Department of Political Science, Luiss “Guido Carli”, Rome. He is also the Director of the Luiss intensive course for the diplomatic career and the coordinator of the Luiss Master in Art Law. From 2022, he is UNCHR independent expert at the Rome Commission for asylum. Among his recent publications: Decisions under the Law of European Union: ‘You May Be Six People, but I Love You’, in YEL, 2022, pp- 1-60. 
Gianfranco Pellegrino

Gianfranco Pellegrino is an Associate Professor at LUISS Guido Carli Rome, where he teaches Political Philosophy. His interests are in the history of political thought (mainly Jeremy Bentham and Henry Sidgwick), distributive justice theories, migration, and environmental ethics. He wrote on global justice, the ethics of climate change and the Anthropocene. Among his publications: The Handbook of the Philosophy of Climate Change (edited with M. Di Paola), Springer, Switzerland, 2023, “Sidgwick and the Many Guises of the Good”, Philosophical Explorations, 2021; “Robust Responsibility for Climate Harms”, Ethical Theory and Moral Practice, 2018, “Climate Refugees: A Case for Protection”, in G. Pellegrino e M. Di Paola, eds, Canned Heat. Theoretical and Practical Challenges of Global Climate Change, London/Delhi: Routledge, 2014.
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Researcher

Abdelkarim Skouri

Abdelkarim Skouri is the Research Unit Coordinator at CISS and Teaching Assistant for the African Politics and Institutions course at LUISS University. He is also a Research Associate at the Mediterranean Platform – LUISS School of Government, focusing on governance, regional integration, and Mediterranean-Africa relations, particularly in the Global South. He holds a Master’s in International Relations from LUISS, and previously studied Political Science at Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (Rabat) and Sciences Po (Paris). His academic interests include security, diplomacy, and political economy in the MENA region. He has interned at institutions such as the International Chamber of Commerce, IDRN, and the International Affairs Institute, and is the founder of the LUISS Students Diplomatic Association (LUSDA).
Ada Pia Visciotti

Ada Pia Visciotti is a consultant to the European Commission, where she works on the integration of socio-economic policy frameworks into EU development cooperation. Her focus includes social protection, distributional impact assessments, and inequality-sensitive approaches across grants and blended finance. She holds a Double Master’s in Policies and Governance in Europe from LUISS Guido Carli and King’s College London, where she received the Best Dissertation Award for her research on structural power in Africa–EU relations combining topic modeling of institutional and corporate discourse and Global Production Network analysis for value chains reconstruction. Her research interests include socio-economic development policy, structural power and trade, inequality reduction, global value chains, and the political economy of food systems.
Adriana Lori

Adriana Lori is a diplomat currently serving at the Permanent Mission of Italy to the OSCE. Her previous roles include Consul at the Italian Consulate General in Chongqing, China, and head of the Partnerships section within the NATO Office at the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. Her research centers on the impact of technology and artificial intelligence on international security and foreign policy.

Fluent in English, Chinese, and Spanish, with working proficiency in French and basic Russian, she holds a Double Master’s Degree in International Relations from LUISS Guido Carli and China Foreign Affairs University. She also completed postgraduate courses at Harvard Kennedy School, focusing on security and emerging technologies.

In her free time, she enjoys kickboxing, running, and immersing herself in French and Russian literature.
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Alessandro Ranieri

Alessandro Ranieri, Law Degree and PhD in International and European Union Law at the Aldo Moro University of Bari, has lectured in the law of the sea within the Degree Programme in Sciences and Management of Maritime Activities offered by the same University in cooperation with the Italian Navy. He has also taught European Union Law at the Training School of the Italian Financial Police (Guardia di Finanza).

Dr Ranieri has also contributed to various research projects, particularly under the coordination of the Taranto Port Authority and CoNISMa (Consorzio nazionale interuniversitario per le scienze del mare). Author of a monograph on arms transfers at sea, as well as of several scientific publications in the field of the Law of the Sea. His PhD thesis focused on maritime piracy.
Alfonso Giordano

Alfonso Giordano is an associate professor of Economic and Political Geography at Niccolò Cusano University of Rome and an adjunct professor at LUISS University, where he teaches “Exogeography, Astropolitics, and Space Economy”. His research focuses on population geography, political demography, and human-environment interactions, with a particular emphasis on border studies. Recently, he has investigated the geographical, political and economic dimensions of space exploration, analysing its implications for governance, resource allocation, and territoriality beyond Earth.
Amedeo Antonucci

Amedeo Antonucci is a retired Brigadier General of the Italian Financial Police (Guardia di Finanza). He holds degrees in Law and Economic and Financial Security Sciences.

He is the co-author and co-editor of several legal and operational publications. He has also lectured and delivered presentations in university courses and master’s programmes on maritime law enforcement, international law of the sea, immigration law, maritime security, and related fields.

From 2020 to 2025, he commanded the Guardia di Finanza Nautical School, the training institution responsible for the education and specialist training of Guardia di Finanza personnel operating at sea.

Throughout his career, he held command positions within operational units of the Guardia di Finanza, where he planned and directed numerous air-naval law enforcement operations against illicit maritime trafficking at both national and transnational levels. Some of these operations, following the related criminal proceedings, contributed to the development of established case law and became important reference points in the sector. From 2013 to 2017, he also served as Local Coordinator for Frontex operations.

His expertise focuses on the legal and operational management of air-naval operations targeting illicit maritime trafficking in territorial waters and on the high seas, as well as on maritime investigations. He currently works as a legal consultant.
Andrea Capati

Andrea Capati is a post-doctoral researcher and adjunct professor in the Department of Political Science at Luiss Guido Carli University, and a visiting researcher at the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies at the European University Institute. His research examines the institutions and policies of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), with a particular focus on the integration of EU financial assistance. His work has appeared in Journal of European Integration, Comparative European Politics, European Political Science, Politics and Governance, Italian Political Science Review, and Contemporary Italian Politics, among others. His forthcoming monograph, All for One? The Politics of Financial Rescue in the European Union, is under contract with Palgrave Macmillan.
Andrea Gilli

Andrea Gilli is a Senior Researcher at the NATO Defense College, Rome. He received his PhD in Social and Political Science from the European University Institute in 2014. His research interests focus on issues related to technological change and military innovation. His Twitter account is @aa_gilli.
Antonino Alì

Antonino Alì is an associate professor of International Law at the University of Trento. Previously, he conducted research at the Universities of Geneva and Milan. He teaches the course “National Security from the Perspective of International and European Union Law” and researches the interaction between state economic security and international and European law. Since 2024, he has been a member, as an expert, of the Strategic Evaluation and Analysis Unit on the Exercise of Special Powers at the Italian Presidency of the Council of Ministers.