Russia has been long working to build an independent GPS (GLObal’'naya NAvigatsionnaya Sputnikovaya Sistema –GLONASS) system.  Yet, on December 5, the program received a blow as 3 new GLONASS-M satellites plunged into the Pacific Ocean some 1,000 miles north of the Hawaiian Islands after a... MORE

The risk-fraught prospect of Western arms sales to Russia was not an agenda item at NATO’s annual summit, just held in Lisbon. Although such sales, on top of Russia’s own rearmament programs, can increase Russian military capabilities on NATO’s eastern borders, the Alliance avoids dealing... MORE

Debate on the implications of military sales to Russia is stifled in NATO. The proposed sale of French Mistral-class warships to Russia is by far the largest among possible Russian procurements under discussion. Non-member country Georgia has taken the lead in airing concerns over the... MORE

Unlike in the case of several regional neighbors, including Russia, the recent WikiLeaks transcripts hardly carry the potential of spoiling relations between Washington and the current administration in Kyiv. However, WikiLeaks has shed new light on the role of energy businessman, Dmytro Firtash, as a... MORE

The April 2010 extension of the Black Sea Fleet (BSF) treaty base in Sevastopol until 2042 or 2047 has three ramifications for Ukraine’s democracy, its relations with Russia, NATO and the EU. Russia now has an investment in President Viktor Yanukovych staying in power at... MORE

The conclusion in early November of the trial against 21-year-old Roshonara Choudhry, convicted of attempting to murder British member of Parliament Stephen Timms, marked the end of a case that dealt with the importation of the concept of the “lone jihadi” as espoused by American-Yemeni... MORE

Mass arrests of alleged terrorists in three European countries –Belgium, Holland and Germany– were shown live on TV in Holland and Belgium in late November. The campaign started with bold headlines referring to the arrests of individuals from the Chechen branch of Islamists. In an... MORE

In November, the European Union offered Kyiv a plan for visa-free travel and the European parliament recognized that Ukraine has a right to apply for EU membership. Previous Ukrainian governments, perceived in Europe as more pro-European than the current one, could not boast such achievements.... MORE

Moldova’s Communist Party has won yet again a solid plurality in the parliamentary elections held on November 28. The party chairman, former head of state (2001-2009) Vladimir Voronin led the campaign this time from the opposition, against heavy odds. With all in-country votes counted by... MORE

In late October Kazakhstan’s President, Nursultan Nazarbayev, visited Brussels where he met with Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme, the European Council president, Herman Von Rompuy, and NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen. The parties discussed energy and economic relations, Kazakhstan’s chairmanship of the Organization for Security... MORE