Belarus openly admits to pursuing a multi-directional foreign policy. And Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei has made multiple statements about the difficulties of balancing between East and West under growing tensions and belligerent rhetoric from both sides (see, for example, Belta, June 2). But if Belarus’s... MORE

Based on the words of the Russian leadership and the actions of local officials, the country has entered a new stage of confrontation with the West and now has to prepare for looming war. Speaking, on November 22, at a meeting of defense ministry leaders... MORE

Though Sudan’s national economy is near collapse, the November 23 visit of Sudan’s president Omar al-Bashir to Russia’s top leadership in Sochi was dominated by expensive arms purchases and Sudan’s appeal to Russia for “protection from aggressive actions by the United States” (TASS, November 23;... MORE

Like his father Heydar Aliyev before him, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev remains committed to a balanced foreign policy, one that seeks to maintain good relations with both the Russian Federation and the West. But a series of Russian actions that Baku views as hostile have... MORE

A Russian court in occupied Sevastopol sentenced Ukrainian former military expert Dmitry Shtyblykov, on November 16, to five years imprisonment in a strict penal colony (Regnum, November 16). Shtyblykov worked at the think tank Nomos, which, prior to the illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014,... MORE

Russia’s most recent advancements in Electronic Warfare (EW) capabilities (see EDM, September 8; July 19) were again underscored in remarks delivered last month by the chief of the General Staff, Army General Valery Gerasimov (Voenno-Promyshlennyy Kurier, November 14). But in contrast to how dynamically EW... MORE

Armenia and the European Union signed a Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) at the fifth Eastern Partnership summit in Brussels, on November 24 (Armradio.am, Eeas.europa.eu, November 24). CEPA, which took nearly two years of consultations and negotiations to come to fruition, replaces the Association... MORE

In late October, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) detained the interior minister’s son, Oleksandr Avakov. Allegedly, he was indicted in a corruption scheme that cost the Ukrainian budget over 14 million hryvnas (about $520,000). The younger Avakov and two other senior officials at... MORE

Whatever friendly feelings United States President Donald Trump might personally hold toward Moscow, the anti-Russian policy of his administration is even bolder than the course set in the last year of Barack Obama’s presidency. This conclusion was articulated by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who... MORE

Contrary to expectations, Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka ignored a personal invitation to participate in the November 24 Brussels summit of the European Union’s Eastern Partnership (EaP) and sent his foreign minister instead. Lukashenka’s decision not to attend seems unusual at first glance. After all, following... MORE