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Latest Articles
Russians, Tatars and Chuvash Share Considerable ‘Psychological Similarity’
By Paul GobleA survey conducted by scholars at the Naberezhny Chelny Institute for Social-Pedagogical Technologies and Resources found that Russians, Tatars, and Chuvash living in Tatarstan’s second largest city share many positive and negative stereotypes about their own nation and the other two, something the... MORE
A Possible Third Way for Ukraine: No EU Association Agreement and No Customs Union
By Fuad ChiragovThe majority of experts think that only two options exist for Ukraine: either an Association Agreement with the European Union or the Russia-led Customs Union. However, there is actually a third way that was suggested by the Ukrainian newspaper Obozrevatel on August 20, with... MORE
Shifting Ethnic Balance in Sakha Sparks Russian Fears and Anger
By Paul GobleIn recent months, most discussions about the rise of xenophobia among ethnic Russians have focused on the impact of the influx of Central Asian and Caucasian guest workers into Moscow and other Russian cities. But there is another source of Russian xenophobia that... MORE
Few Azerbaijanis Distinguish Between Sunni and Shia Islam
By Paul GobleIn most Islamic countries where there is a significant Shia population, Muslims are deeply concerned about tensions between this and the Sunni branch of Islam, according to a Pew Forum poll. In Lebanon, 67 percent of the population says that Sunni-Shia tensions are... MORE
Ukraine’s Boxer Klichko May Be out of Presidential Race
By Oleg VarfolomeyevUkrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has signed into law a tax amendment that may disqualify world boxing champion Vitaly Klichko from the presidential race in early 2015 (president.gov.ua, November 8). The parliament, which is dominated by Yanukovych’s Party of Regions (PRU), on October 24,... MORE
‘Russian March’ 2013: A Post-Mortem Analysis
By Richard ArnoldThe “Russian March,” which took place on November 4—Russian Unity Day—passed off without a major violent incident this year, but the most interesting feature for observers of Russian politics is how central the nationalists have become to protests against the government and opposition... MORE
Ukraine Pursues ‘Small-Steps’ Tactics in 5+2 Talks on Transnistrian Conflict Settlement
By Hanna ShelestThe most recent round of official “5+2” format negations on the settlement of Moldova’s breakaway territory of Transnistria took place in Brussels on October 3 and became the fourth such negotiation session in 2013 (https://trm.md/en/politic/la-bruxelles-incepe-o-noua-runda-de-negocieri-in-formatul-5-2/). Ukraine’s success as a mediator in the Transnistrian... MORE
Cossack Participation in Elections May Destabilize Russia
By Paul GobleTwo weeks ago, the Russian Presidential Council of Cossack Affairs officially gave its blessing to the formation of Cossack “druzhinniki” patrol units, many of which have already been formed, and to the formation of Cossack political parties for participating in regional and municipal... MORE
Arguments in Favor of Russia Becoming Nation-State Put Forward by Kremlin-Sponsored Analyst
By Valery Dzutsev In what appears to be the latest reaction to Ukraine’s drift toward the European Union, a Russian analyst is now arguing that the Russian Federation should reject its imperial tendencies and embrace the identity of a nation-state. Kirill Rodionov, a fellow at... MORE
Russian-Led Customs Union More Likely than EU to Islamicize Ukraine
By Paul GobleRussians opposed to Kyiv’s plans to pursue a European rather than Eurasian vector in its foreign policy have raised the specter of all kinds of apocalyptic consequences for Ukraine if it does so. They have suggested that Ukraine will suffer economic collapse, that... MORE