This week in Brussels, during a meeting of the NATO-Russia Council (NRC), Russian Defense Minister Anatoliy Serdyukov discussed with his Western counterparts the seemingly intractable problem of Moscow’s opposition to US-NATO plans for ballistic missile defense (BMD) in Europe.  Serdyukov stated there was no progress:... MORE

Belarusian President, Alyaksandr Lukashenka, is a man under pressure. Assailed by Western powers for his harsh treatment of former presidential candidates and protestors, he also faces mounting economic problems that have led to the devaluation of the national currency. At the same time, high rates... MORE

On June 4, two masked men from North Ossetia calling themselves “members of the anti-Wahhabi resistance” were shown on the Russian NTV channel. In the interview, which was cited by Regnum news agency but not available on the TV channel’s website, the masked men said... MORE

Moscow and Berlin converge in asking Chisinau to give up the 2005 law on Transnistria conflict-resolution principles, renounce the unitary character of the state, and (backstage) to move toward federalizing Moldova (EDM, June 6, 8). Chisinau may well face such demands on June 21 in... MORE

(Part Two) In the context of Russo-German special relations, the German government proposes to restart international negotiations on the Transnistria conflict from a modified basis, one largely favorable to Russian interests. On this issue, Germany’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs implements a policy that originates in... MORE

Amidst the ongoing violence in Syria, opposition groups gathered in the Turkish Mediterranean resort town Antalya to discuss the future of their struggle against the regime. Although the choice of Turkey as the venue prompted speculation that Ankara might change its position on Syria, Turkish... MORE

Russia, one of the world’s leading energy producers and exporters, has recently announced its decision to significantly increase customs duties on the fuel it sells abroad starting on May 1. Viewed as a temporary  measure to rectify the country’s domestic fuel deficit and rising inflation... MORE

On June 1, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych fired the deputy prime minister in charge of utilities and construction, Viktor Tikhonov, and his deputy, Yury Khyvrych. The two were dismissed not for the government’s failure to reform the utility sector, which would have been more logical,... MORE

On June 1-2, Russia’s Presidential Council for the Development of Civil Society and Human Rights held a conference in Makhachkala, Dagestan. The heated discussions at the conference indicated the enormous explosiveness of the situation in the republic, which is rooted in complex political, social and... MORE

In an interview with the defense ministry publication Krasnaya Zvezda, Major-General Aleksandr Zhuravlev the Commander of the 2nd Combined Arms Army (CAA: headquarters in Samara) outlined the challenges his forces will face during Tsentr 2011. This operational-strategic exercise will be the main test for the... MORE