The Ukrainian parliament adopted several symbolic amendments to the Constitution, on February 7. The amendments, which President Petro Poroshenko signed into law on February 19, aim to make Ukraine’s strategic course toward the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Union irreversible (Ukrinform.net, February... MORE

In a February 20 interview for a Ukrainian media outlet, former secretary general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Anders Fogh Rasmussen predicted that unless Belarus launches “reforms leading to democracy and freedom” it will fall victim to war and annexation by Russia. Rasmussen... MORE

On Sunday, February 24, the citizens of the Republic of Moldova voted for a new parliament (Cec.md, February 24). Although the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) assessed the vote as “competitive,” its monitoring mission found that the campaign was nonetheless “tainted by... MORE

The Kremlin’s concerns about maintaining Belarus within its geopolitical sphere of influence have been mounting as of late. In particular, Moscow feels threatened by Minsk’s efforts to preserve its independence and autonomy in foreign policy, as well as by the latter’s ongoing normalization of relations... MORE

The Commander of the Naval Forces of Ukraine, Admiral Ihor Voronchenko, introduced the “New Strategy of the Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to 2035” at the International Maritime Security Conference, in late November 2018. At least a year of intensive work preceded... MORE

Recently, presidents Alyaksandr Lukashenka and Vladimir Putin spent three days (February 13–15) together in Sochi, Russia. As a result, Lukashenka sacrificed his previously planned trip to the Munich Security Conference. Besides negotiating, both heads of state skied, and Lukashenka took part in Putin’s talks with... MORE

Two weeks ago (February 5, 2019), the Lithuanian intelligence community released its annual “National Threat Assessment” (Kam.lt, February 5). As in the past, this report asserts that the greatest intelligence threats to Vilnius come from Russia and Belarus. But for the first time, it adds... MORE

On February 13, President Alyaksandr Lukashenka of Belarus and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, met for the fourth time over the course of two months (President.gov.by, February 13; Belta, February 6). As widely predicted, the agenda of their negotiations revolved around months-long unresolved economic issues.... MORE

Five years since the EuroMaidan and “Revolution of Dignity” fervently rejected systemic corruption and graft, Ukrainian politics continues to experience enormous influence from local oligarchs. In this environment, Ukraine’s presidential election campaign is in full-swing, with the vote scheduled for March 31. To date, 59... MORE

*To read Part One, please click here. Ukrainian Minister of Infrastructure Volodymyr Omelyan stated, on February 1, that “Russian’s most recent actions in the Sea of Azov have resulted in Ukraine losing $360 million” (RBC, February 1). The announcement pointedly contrasted with comments from several... MORE