Over the past five years, Moscow has made progress in gaining international recognition for its expansive claims to large portions of the Arctic. As some Russian media outlets reported in early December, this has come in part because the United States has not ratified the... MORE

Russia’s war against Ukraine has significantly altered the geopolitical terrain of Eastern Europe, and its repercussions have extended into the North Caucasus. One of the most notable consequences has been the reawakening of aspirations for independence among the dozens of ethnic groups that populate the... MORE

On December 4, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán sent a letter to European Council President Charles Michel urging him to take the opening of EU accession talks with Ukraine off the forum’s agenda. Orbán argued that “the obvious lack of consensus [on whether to open... MORE

In recent weeks, Russia has witnessed increased reports of violence against military personnel. The violence includes demonstrative retaliation against “refuseniks” (Russians who avoid conscription), “meat assaults” (human wave tactics used by the Russian military in Ukraine), and attempts to send wounded soldiers to the Ukrainian... MORE

On November 27, President Vladimir Putin signed into law the Russian federal budget for 2024–26 and planning period for 2025–26. As part of the budget, national defense spending for 2024 will be close to 10.8 trillion rubles ($119.6 billion, according to the expected exchange rate)... MORE

Russians have long viewed making direct appeals to their supreme leader as their last chance to achieve justice. Today, when ordinary political representation is blocked and participation in most protests remains dangerous, Russian citizens are increasingly writing letters to President Vladimir Putin discussing their personal... MORE

On December 1, Belta, Belarus’s official press agency, admitted that President Alyaksandr Lukashenka seemingly went off script during his speech at the UN Climate Summit and “added sharpness to his presentation” (Belta, December 1). Lukashenka declared that repeatedly expressing concerns about climate change at a... MORE

On November 20, the secretary-general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Jens Stoltenberg, declared that the alliance wholly supports Bosnia-Herzegovina’s territorial integrity. Stoltenberg was speaking in Sarajevo, his first stop on a five-day tour of the Western Balkans that included Kosovo, Serbia, and North... MORE

On November 20, Radio Tavisupleba, the Georgian service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, published an article about Russian citizens’ activism in Georgia in fighting against the Vladimir Putin regime and its invasion of Ukraine. According to the outlet, about 200 “elves” write hundreds of posts... MORE

At the Grain From Ukraine forum in Kyiv on November 25, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Ukraine has arranged to receive additional air defense systems from Western partners to ensure the safety of vessels traveling along the grain corridor in the Black Sea. According to... MORE