Ukraine’s independence from Russia is the single largest geopolitical gain to the free world and Ukraine’s neighbors, resulting from what Russian President Vladimir Putin bemoans as “the 20th century’s greatest geopolitical catastrophe.” Ukraine’s independence has transformed the politics of European security generally and the international... MORE

As President Viktor Yushchenko struggles to adapt to a situation in which his party controls neither the cabinet nor the parliament -- and the prime minister is not his ally, let alone his appointee -- he may also lose control of the regions. Prime Minister... MORE

The only European country without a definite status between the West and Russia, Moldova has made its choice in the West’s favor conclusively, but is too weak to implement its choice without hands-on Western political and diplomatic assistance. This moment is one of maximum weakness... MORE

Following the September 17 referendum that approved Transnistria’s secession from Moldova and goal of joining Russia in a Soviet-style 97% vote, Moldova is being pressed into negotiating with Transnistria without even a decent interval. The forces behind such pressure are a familiar constellation: Moscow and... MORE

In the past week, 83 journalists from 73 different Russian media outlets visited Belarus. They hailed from 48 regions of Russia and were given a tour of enterprises and collective farms in Hrodna and Mahileu oblasts. At the end of the tour they were invited... MORE

President Viktor Yushchenko is slowly coming to the realization that he has to co-exist with a disobedient prime minister that he cannot dismiss. This is a consequence of the constitutional reform that came into effect this year, curtailing presidential powers, and of the Yushchenko faction’s... MORE

Operating through coalition mechanisms that President Viktor Yushchenko has helped create, the Party of Regions is de facto appropriating the president’s formal authority to shape foreign policy. Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych’s September 13-14 announcements in Brussels, unilaterally turning down a NATO Membership Action Plan (MAP)... MORE

The accustomed division of prerogatives in Ukraine, whereby the president handles foreign policy while the prime minister oversees the economy, is no longer operational. The constitutional reform has shifted the balance of power in prime minister’s favor. By turning down a NATO-Ukraine Membership Action Plan,... MORE

Ukrainian Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych clearly exceeded the powers of his office, breached internal governmental procedures, and undoubtedly usurped the presidency’s constitutional authority by announcing in Brussels that Ukraine is opting out of NATO’s Membership Action Plan. Shocked, President Viktor Yushchenko and his supporters in... MORE