Latest Articles about Diplomacy
Xi Signals Firm Strategy but Flexible Tactics at China’s Central Foreign Affairs Work Conference
Executive Summary: The readout from the Central Foreign Affairs Work Conference (CFAWC) at the end of December indicated an emerging strategy of countering US leadership by mobilizing the support of Global South countries while dividing the West on contentious global issues. Recent changes in official... MORE
Belarus Prepares for War but Hopes to Avoid It
Executive Summary: Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka approved a bill that would suspend Belarus’s participation in the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE), removing numerical ceilings on armed forces and main conventional weapons systems. Numerous voices in the West have suspected that Minsk could... MORE
The Future of the Eurasian Economic Union
Executive Summary: The Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) has attempted to increase its influence by creating a permanent free-trade zone with Iran, entering talks with India on a free-trade agreement, and encouraging Uzbekistan to become a member. The EAEU has served as a way for Moscow... MORE
Belarusian Economy Sees Growth Despite Hurdles
Executive Summary: The Belarusian economy experienced 3.9-percent growth in 2023, a positive outcome compared to the 4.7-percent decline in 2022. Minsk is expanding its trade partners, and Belarusian officials have developed numerous connections with their international counterparts in the Global South and elsewhere over the... MORE
Ukrainian-Georgian Relations Reach New Low
Executive Summary: Relations between Tbilisi and Kyiv have reached an all-time low as the two governments remain at odds over Russia’s war against Ukraine and the release of former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, a Ukrainian citizen, from prison. Georgia’s ruling party has claimed that the... MORE
Geopolitics of the South Caucasus Intensifies
Executive Summary: NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg’s tour of the South Caucasus was closely observed by Moscow, whose centuries-old hegemony in the region is at stake. Armenia continues to pursue closer ties with the West, while Azerbaijan maintains a “multi-vector” foreign policy posture to avoid conflict... MORE
Belarus’s Diplomatic Activities Reflect a Non-Ideological Foreign Policy
Executive Summary: Belarusian Foreign Minister Sergei Aleinik’s recent visits to India and Mongolia highlight Minsk’s growing ambitions to court alternative economic partners to Russia and the West. These efforts reflect a non-ideological basis for Belarus’s foreign policy, as pragmatic economic considerations almost always trump ideological... MORE
Azerbaijan and Iran Seek Common Ground Amid Regional Tensions
Executive Summary: New developments in the South Caucasus have opened a window for possible long-term rapprochement between Iran and Azerbaijan, especially on trade and transit matters. Baku seeks increased regional stability amid tense peace negotiations with Armenia and a falling out with some Western countries... MORE
Italy and Kazakhstan Work to Broaden Ties Beyond Energy
Executive Summary: Kazakh and Italian officials met in March to underscore their healthy bilateral relations and discuss increasing economic and trade cooperation. Kazakhstan and Italy’s strategic economic partnership gives the countries a foothold to deepen their engagement with the European Union and Central Asia, especially... MORE
Russian Military Intelligence Takes Over Wagner Operations in Libya
Executive Summary: Moscow is consolidating the Wagner Group’s operations in Libya under the direct control of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces (GRU) and relying on the African Corps under the purview of Russia’s deputy defense minister. Field Marshal... MORE