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Latest Articles about Europe's East
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Conserved Conflict: Russia’s Pattern in Ukraine’s East
Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine’s east—directly and by proxy—has saddled Ukraine with a “frozen” conflict in its Donetsk and Luhansk provinces. The parallel situation in Crimea also qualifies as a “frozen conflict,” insofar as Russia’s forcible annexation is not recognized internationally, and in that sense... MORE
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Belarus’ Nobel Prize Winner and Her Country Defy Clichés
On December 7, Belarusian writer Svetlana Alexievich, the winner of the 2015 Nobel Prize in literature, gave her Nobel lecture in Stockholm (Naviny.by, December 7). The lecture was delivered in Russian, the language in which Alexievich writes. In it, she first dwelled on her post–World... MORE
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Destruction of Donbas Economy Supports Local Russia-Backed ‘Insurgency’
Ukrainian oligarch Rinat Akhmetov’s key energy company DTEK announced the restructuring of its $750 million and $160 million Eurobonds, which are set to mature in 2018 (Interfax-Ukraine, December 1). One of the main reasons for the company’s continuing financial troubles has been the war in... MORE
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China to Build Hongdu Light Attack Aircraft in Ukraine Next Year
When the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) collapsed in December 1991, its integrated military-industrial complex was shattered and split up among 15 newly independent countries. Ukraine received many significant assets, including top-notch fighter and aircraft plants as well as the USSR’s most advanced shipyards... MORE
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EU Draws Transnistria Closer to Avoid Looming Instability
On November 29, Transnistria—the Russian-supported separatist region of Moldova—held parliamentary and local elections. Despite predictions to the contrary, the opposition forces won a landslide victory, claiming 31 of the 43 seats in the local legislature (Novosti Pridnestrovya, December 2). Even if unrecognized by the international... MORE
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The Crimean Blockade: An Unfinished Saga
Crimea, which had almost faded from the global political agenda following Russia’s ensuing military operations, first in Eastern Ukraine and then in Syria, has again reemerged in the headlines. Despite the Russian occupation, the annexed peninsula continued to receive all its critical goods, services and... MORE
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Biden Issues Warning to Oligarchs as Corruption Accusations Fly in Ukraine
Now may be the last chance to stop corruption from eroding the foundations of the Ukrainian state, the United States’ Vice President Joe Biden told local politicians during his visit to Kyiv on December 6–8. Addressing the Ukrainian parliament on December 8, he warned against... MORE
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The End of Russia’s ‘International Isolation’: Potential Implications for Ukraine
The Islamist terrorist assault in Paris on November 13, traced in part to the Syria crisis, has conclusively broken what the Barack Obama administration had claimed to be Russia’s international isolation over its aggression in Ukraine. The Paris attack was the turning point in a... MORE
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Russia’s Intervention in Syria: Potential Implications for Ukraine
Russia is angling for recognition as the West’s ally in combating “international terrorism.” This, ostensibly, is the rationale of Russia’s military intervention in Syria—an operation made possible by the forfeiture of the Pax Americana in the Middle East, with ripple effects now engulfing Europe. The... MORE
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Tensions on the Rise between Belarus and Russia
After several weeks of ostensible silence, discussions over a potential Russian airbase in Belarus have taken on new vigor. As early as September, President Vladimir Putin of Russia asked his government to sign the airbase agreement with Belarus. The initial public reaction of Putin’s Belarusian... MORE