Latest Articles about Russia

Another Step Forward Toward ‘Sovereign’ Russian Internet

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov talked with Russian journalists on Wednesday, February 27, following news reports in the United States claiming that US Cyber Command had actively hacked and briefly taken offline the St. Petersburg–based Internet Research Agency. The US cyber strike on this entity, often... MORE

Can the Kremlin Finally Realize the North-South Transit Corridor?

One of Vladimir Putin’s earliest proposed mega-projects—first announced on September 12, 2000—calls for the creation of a North-South transportation corridor linking Russia with the Caspian littoral states, including Iran, as well as India and Sri Lanka. Such a transit network would permit these countries to... MORE

Putin Promotes New Hypersonic Weapons Systems

Russian President Vladimir Putin used his annual address to the Federal Assembly (upper chamber of parliament), on February 20, to, among other issues, highlight advances in the country’s hypersonic missile systems (see EDM, February 21, 25). It was not the first time that Putin has... MORE

Turkmenistan Redirects Its Oil Exports From Azerbaijan to Russia

Swiss firm Vitol and Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR have been embroiled in a quarrel over the transportation of crude oil from Turkmenistan. While the respective companies and government officials from Azerbaijan, Russia and Turkmenistan have kept silent on the matter, media outlets tend to... MORE

Five Issues Putin Preferred Not to Talk About

The annual presidential address to the Federal Assembly (upper chamber of the Russian parliament) is a big political show in Russia, which tells little about the state of the country but much about the mood in the ruling elite. The address, delivered by President Vladimir... MORE

Belarusian Diplomacy and Leadership: Notable Activity on All Flanks

Recently, presidents Alyaksandr Lukashenka and Vladimir Putin spent three days (February 13–15) together in Sochi, Russia. As a result, Lukashenka sacrificed his previously planned trip to the Munich Security Conference. Besides negotiating, both heads of state skied, and Lukashenka took part in Putin’s talks with... MORE