The first quarter of this century has proven that relations within Eurasia as a region and its relations with the rest of the world are unpredictable and volatile. The factors dividing this region often appear far more salient than any similarities. The work of the... MORE

Executive Summary: The Baltic states recently marked a major milestone by disconnecting from the Soviet-era electricity system and synchronizing with the continental European grid. The disconnect from the Moscow-controlled system was marked by Russian influence operations and incidents related to critical infrastructure in the Baltic... MORE

Executive Summary Russian hybrid attacks targeting critical undersea infrastructure (CUI), particularly fiber-optic cables, have surged in the Baltic and Arctic regions since 2021. These disruptions threaten essential communication channels and expose the vulnerabilities of Northern Europe’s infrastructure. Incidents in 2023 and 2024 involving Chinese vessels... MORE

Executive Summary: An armed Russian drone crash incident reveals in Latvia on September 7 the significant shortcomings within the Latvian comprehensive defense system. These shortcomings are related to the lack of certain military capabilities within the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). They also expose critical... MORE

Executive Summary: In the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, governments in Eastern Europe have begun reducing the presence of the Russian language in their education systems to combat Moscow’s influence and the Russification of their populations. The preservation of the Russian language abroad is... MORE

Executive Summary: Belarusian Foreign Affairs Minister Maxim Ryzhenkov published an op-ed outlining Minsk’s assessment of the current and prospective bilateral relations between Belarus and Lithuania, signaling a desire from Minsk to further engage with Vilnius in the future. In Vilnius, Ryzhenkov’s suggestions were received coldly,... MORE

Executive Summary: Western officials have raised concerns about increased Russian naval and sabotage activity, which could potentially target the global underwater cable network vital for international communication, financial transactions, and trade. Russia’s specialized unit, the Main Directorate for Deep-Sea Research (GUGI), possesses a significant fleet... MORE

Executive Summary: Twenty-three North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)member states have undertaken bilateral security commitments to Ukraine. The ten-year agreements operate under the umbrella of a Ukraine Compact, outside NATO’s framework, and postpone Ukraine’s NATO membership in deference to Russia. The assistance offers are potentially massive... MORE

Executive Summary:  Moscow says that Western actions in Gotland, Bornholm, and other islands in the Baltic Sea threaten Russian national security and that Russia will soon have no choice but to respond militarily. Russian President Vladimir Putin has regularly used the logic that Russia wants... MORE

Executive Summary: The Russian Defense Ministry posted and then took down a plan for Moscow to unilaterally redraw sea borders in the Baltic region, alarming and then reassuring observers inclined to dismiss this as bureaucratic infighting. The document as first posted is consistent with Russian... MORE