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Latest Articles about Europe
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Moldova’s De Facto Ruler Enthrones Pro-Russia President
On December 13, Moldova’s Constitutional Court validated the election of Socialist Party leader Igor Dodon as head of state, one full month after the November 13 presidential election runoff. The outspokenly pro-Russia candidate Dodon won by an unexpectedly narrow margin, 52 percent versus 48 percent,... MORE
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Are the Kremlin’s LPR and DPR About to Unite or Fight Each Other?
The Kremlin has deliberately obscured the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and the Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR), in eastern Ukraine, under a fog of confusion. As such, on a single day last week, a Russian analyst argued that the two self-styled republics are about to... MORE
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Soviet Breakup and the Ongoing Fight for Belarusian Identity
December 8 marked the 25th anniversary of the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The document that did away with the USSR was signed by the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus in Viskuli, at a hunting lodge belonging to the Communist Party leaders, in the... MORE
From Hip-Hop to Jihad: A Profile of Italian Foreign Fighter Anas el-Abboubi
On September 28, 2016, the U.S. Department of State designated Islamic State (IS) member Anas el-Abboubi as a Special Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) under Executive Order 13244, which imposes sanctions on foreign individuals determined to commit acts of terrorism. El-Abboubi is the first Italian citizen... MORE
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Europe Seeks Consolidation in the Face of Cyber and Information Threats by Russia
On November 23, the European Parliament adopted a non-binding resolution aimed at consolidating the European countries in countering Russian propaganda and preventing cyber attacks. The resolution included strong language stressing that the European parliament is “seriously concerned by the rapid expansion of Kremlin-inspired activities in... MORE
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Legislative Election in Gagauzia: The Autonomous Region Turns its Back on Moldova Again
On December 4, Moldova’s Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia held the second round of its legislative election. The People’s Assembly (Gagauzia’s legislature) is composed of 35 members elected for a four-year term in 35 single member districts. A winner needs to gain at least 50... MORE
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Terek Cossacks Reveal Their Extensive Participation in the Annexation of Crimea
As President Vladimir Putin openly admitted to planning and executing the annexation of Crimea in 2014 (YouTube, March 15, 2015), the role of various Russian forces that participated in the takeover of the Ukrainian peninsula has increasingly come to the forefront. The scale of Russian... MORE
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Wife Abandonment Syndrome: Russia’s Concern About Being Betrayed by Belarus
On November 22, Vladimir Solovyov, a Russian documentary filmmaker and a TV talk show host, made a public appearance at the Palace of the Republic in Minsk. Immediately before the gathering, a dozen or so opposition-minded youths demonstrated in front of the venue, bearing slogans... MORE
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Moldovan-Romanian Relations Under a Dodon Presidency: Off to a Rocky Start
After giving his first major post-election interview to Zvezda, a television channel owned by the Russian Ministry of Defense (Tvzvezda.ru, November 17), a week later, Moldovan President-elect Igor Dodon offered his first extensive interview to the western media—Romania’s National Public Broadcaster (Tvr.ro, November 24). The... MORE
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Belarus and Ukraine Face Strained Relations
On October 21, a regular Kyiv–Minsk flight by a Belavia (Belarusian state carrier) Boeing 737−800 passenger jet was interrupted. At 3:36 p.m., Ukrainian air traffic control demanded that the airliner, which had 136 passengers on board and took off 11 minutes earlier from Kyiv International... MORE