The United States’ suspension (as of February 2) of the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, was no surprise—but still delivered a hard blow to Russia’s international position. President Donald Trump announced his intention to withdraw from the outdated but still important Cold War–era agreement... MORE

There is a growing perception that, in their efforts to undermine the US-built international rule-based system, Russia and China pursue quite different strategies. While Russia usually plays the role of the loud disruptor, China seems to prefer the role of a silent replacer, all the... MORE

In the last 24 hours alone (January 30–31), a string of anonymous phoned-in bomb threats forced the evacuations of multiple schools, hospitals and other public places in the Russian cities of Krasnoyarsk (Siberia) and St. Petersburg (Ngs24.ru, Fontanka.ru, January 31, 2019). The recent bomb threats... MORE

The new plan for peace in Ukraine’s east, disclosed by Ambassador Martin Sajdik (see EDM, January 30, 2019) and the reactions to it from Kyiv, Moscow, Donetsk and Luhansk (see below), illustrate three basic facts about the Russian-imposed Minsk “agreements” and their non-implementation from 2014/2015... MORE

The economic and political crisis in Venezuela is seen in Russia as an imperialist conspiracy, led by the United States, to oust a Russian ally: the “legitimate” and “progressive” government of President Nicolás Maduro. The Kremlin’s involvement in Latin America goes back many decades. In... MORE

The two-year contract between the government of Georgia and the Russian energy giant Gazprom on natural gas transit from Russia to Armenia expired on December 31, 2018 (Georgia Today, January 21, 2019). And talks are now ongoing about extending or renegotiating this arrangement. Tbilisi and... MORE

Moscow is no longer inclined, even pro forma, to consider the terms of a United Nations peace mission in Ukraine’s east. A full year has elapsed since the Kremlin’s negotiator on this issue (and overseer of Ukraine’s Russian-occupied territory), Vladislav Surkov, last consented to meet... MORE

On January 17, Ukrainian Minster of Defense Stepan Poltorak stated that Russia’s ultimate goal in the Azov–Black Sea region is to “force Ukraine to renounce its right to navigate through the Kerch Strait and to annex the Sea of Azov in its entirety” (Telegraf.com.ua, January... MORE

Amidst the New Year’s celebrations and political tumult in Ulaanbaatar (South China Morning Post, December 6, 2018), Chinese Ambassador Xing Haiming published a long seasonal greeting in the Mongolian media (Montsame, December 21, 2018). His message to the landlocked, Northeast Asian host country on the... MORE

Russian-Belarusian tensions are still a major topic of discussion in the Belarusian media. Artyom Shraibman of Tut.by, notably predicts that neither side will yield to the other; therefore, Belarus will have to cope with slower economic growth and look for financial aid elsewhere (Tut.by, January... MORE