On September 3, an estimated 70,000 people gathered around Wenceslaus Square in central Prague to protest against the incumbent government of Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala. The demonstration centered on cost-of-living complaints incurred by increasing energy costs, rapidly rising inflation and perceived overly generous aid... MORE

Oleg Manaev, a seasoned Belarusian sociologist, whose polling firm conducted quarterly national surveys of Belarusians from the early 1990s until 2016, when it was shut down by the Minsk authorities, made a robustly substantiated statement that is at loggerheads with what Belarusian opposition has been... MORE

August is said to be the cruelest month in Russia—one that brings major political upheavals (see Prism, August 18, 1995), embarrassing setbacks on the battlefield (CNN, August 9, 1996) and various assorted catastrophes, both natural and man-made. But one could make an equally strong case for September,... MORE

Despite unprecedented repression by the Russian authorities against anyone who doubts the necessity of President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine, more citizens are finding the courage to speak out. At the beginning of September 2022, a group of deputies representing St. Petersburg’s Smolninsky district appealed... MORE

One of the greatest nightmares for the countries of Central Asia; outside powers, such as Russia, China and the United States, who are worried about regional stability; and even for Kabul itself, which fears regional blowback, is that radicals from Afghanistan will cross into the... MORE

Political scientist Fyodor Krasheninnikov, who emigrated from Russia, noted that the Kremlin did everything to ensure that Mikhail Gorbachev’s funeral was “silent.” No speeches were made in memory of this historic politician. As Krasheninnikov lamented, “Everything that can and should be said at his grave... MORE

Amid heightened tensions between Russia and Kazakhstan over the war in Ukraine, Astana is betting on high-level diplomacy to build international support for its sovereignty and territorial integrity. Pope Francis’ visit on September 13 for a highly publicized global interreligious summit coincided with the first... MORE

Samarkand did not go well for Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit hosted by Uzbekistan in the ancient city gathered many leaders of various Eurasian states, from Belarus to Mongolia. But it was Putin’s meeting with Chinese Chairman (the title Putin... MORE

The Western sanctions imposed on Russia due to its aggression against Ukraine include a ban on overland cargo transit through Russian territory. This situation has highlighted new promising prospects for Georgia as a transit country (see EDM, April 19, April 20, June 9). Indeed, Georgia... MORE

Not since the 1920s has there been such a large Russian emigration committed to change at home, with at least some members prepared to support or even organize violent attacks on the regime in Moscow. And so, it should come as no surprise that some... MORE