Russia’s response to the EuroMaidan, which dislodged president Viktor Yanukovych’s government, utilized a broad range of political and military tools leveraging Moscow’s influence in shaping the future of its close neighbor. It caught Western governments by surprise, stunned critics, silenced analysts, and left the public... MORE

Most Ukrainians and international observers are focusing on Russia’s invasion of southeastern Ukraine or on the possibility that Moscow will use forces from Moldova’s Transnistria to create a “Novorossiya” (“New Russia”) across southern Ukraine and eliminate Kyiv’s access to the Black Sea (see EDM, April... MORE

On May 27, Ukrainian First Deputy Prime Minister Vitaliy Yarema promised journalists that the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO) being conducted in the country’s eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions (Donbas) would be greatly intensified shortly following Petro Poroshenko’s inauguration (Interfax-Ukraine, May 27). However, during his inauguration speech... MORE

The latest Russia-Ukraine crisis has once again revealed the fragility of the energy security environment in Central and Eastern Europe. In particular, Russia’s repeated threats to cut its natural gas supplies, which transit through Ukraine, put pressure on European consumers dependent on Russia’s energy exports.... MORE

Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s balancing act (see EDM, April 2) includes his ability to make statements that defy unequivocal interpretation and may please two mutually hostile parties at the same time. After the June 7 inauguration of newly elected President Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine, Lukashenka... MORE

Russia seems at a crossroads in the Ukrainian crisis, unsure how to proceed: to seek some negotiated compromise with Kyiv, or intensify its support for pro-Russian separatists in southeastern Ukraine? During Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov’s visit to Finland last week, a possibility was discussed... MORE

Early in 2014, at a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers, Uzbekistan’s President Islam Karimov declared, “The main goals and priorities for advancing the economy in 2014 are dictated primarily by long-term program objectives of the country, the continuation of the adopted strategy ensuring high... MORE

Several cities in Donbas, the eastern portion of Ukraine comprising the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, have been embroiled in Russian-sponsored secessionist violence against Ukrainian authorities since early April 2014. And while Russia has no officially identified uniformed troops in the region, there are claims... MORE

Since Vladimir Putin was elected to the Russian presidency in May 2012, he has promised to place “smart defense” at the heart of Russia’s security strategy (https://www.rg.ru/2012/02/20/putin-armiya.html). Testing new concepts and approaches to the use of the Armed Forces featured in the operational-strategic exercise Zapad... MORE

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says that the West is opposing Moscow in Ukraine because Russia is returning to Orthodoxy. Whereas other Russian commentators suggest that Moscow must fight in Ukraine not just to oppose Kyiv’s shift toward Europe but also to block the eastward... MORE