Latest Articles about Russia
Lines of Communication Are Closing Between East and West
Last week (July 30), at a press conference in the newly furnished National Defense Center, on the Frunsinskaya embankment in downtown Moscow, Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov (60) presented the defense ministry’s latest major PR project: the opening of the First Army Games International, which... MORE
Police Questioning of Circassian Children Angers Circassian Activists
Circassian villagers in Krasnodar region have come under pressure from the authorities for campaigning for the Circassian cause. Even school age children have reportedly been harassed by the authorities, sparking an uproar among Circassian activists. The first reports about the questioning of children by the... MORE
Ukraine’s Antiterrorism Cooperation With Russia
The financial intelligence services of Belarus, Russia and Ukraine have been intensively cooperating to prevent the financing of illegal armed groups, according to Vyachaslaw Reut, the head of the financial monitoring department of Belarus’ State Control Committee (KGK) (TASS, July 22). “Despite the existing political... MORE
Will Belarus Be Putin’s Next Target?
Both certain Belarusians and some Russian analysts are convinced that Vladimir Putin’s next target will be Belarus. They have their reasons, and these reasons are compelling: Taking Belarus would give Putin a victory he has not been able to achieve in Ukraine; a move of... MORE
Elections in the Donetsk-Luhansk ‘People’s Republics’ Have No Legal Basis
Local elections are looming in the Donetsk and Luhansk “people’s republics” (“DPR, LPR”) in October. If validated internationally, such elections could lead to internal Ukrainian constitutional negotiations that would preserve the Russia-Ukraine conflict—unsolved, but in a different form. It would conclusively vindicate Russia’s thesis about... MORE
Russia Set to Strengthen Hard Power Options
Russia’s Armed Forces, feeling the strain of unofficial involvement in Ukraine and maintaining higher readiness throughout the crisis, have recently experienced a number of high-profile air force crashes and setbacks for military modernization. The annual VDV Day saw an opportunity to extol the 85th anniversary... MORE
Southern Gas Corridor’s Advances Cool off Energy Cooperation Between Italy and Russia
The European Union–backed Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) project continues to gain traction against the Moscow-led Turkish Stream natural gas pipeline initiative. The game-changer in the Euro-Russian “battle” for pipelines and energy hubs could be the participation of the major oil and gas producers Iran and... MORE
Elections in Donetsk-Luhansk ‘People’s Republics’ And Russia’s New Conflict-Freeze Model
Western governments regularly disagree with the Kremlin over the meaning of democracy and free elections. Nevertheless, Western diplomacy currently supports Moscow’s goal for local elections to be staged in the Russian-controlled territory of Ukraine’s east. If validated as apparently intended by the Organization for Security... MORE
Investigative Report Suggests Russian Security Services Pushing North Caucasus Militants to Flee to Middle East
Russia’s policy toward the Islamic State (IS) group in the Middle East is controversial. On the one hand, involvement in IS activities officially became a crime in Russia in February 2015 (Rossiyskaya Gazeta, February 27). On the other hand, Russia does not seem to have... MORE
Russia Insists on Own Impunity, Gains Pariah Status
The Russian nyet in the United Nations Security Council, which blocked the resolution on setting up an international tribunal on the downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 over eastern Ukraine, was entirely predictable (see EDM, July 30). President Vladimir Putin had described the proposed legal... MORE