Latest Articles about Diplomacy

Russia’s Row With Finland Exacerbates Baltic Solitude
Russia’s geopolitical influence is increasingly shrinking in the Baltic Sea region. The most recent episode in the region’s worsening relations with Moscow was the sudden arrival of hundreds of migrants from the Middle East and Africa in November to the busy border crossing between Russia... MORE

Poland’s New Government Looks to Adapt Foreign Policy Approach
On October 15, after eight years in power, the Law and Justice (PiS) government in Poland lost its absolute parliamentary majority. While PiS technically won a plurality of the vote, it was unable to form a coalition government. On December 11, the Sejm (lower house... MORE

All Eyes on Hungary as Ukraine’s EU Membership Hangs in the Balance
On December 4, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán sent a letter to European Council President Charles Michel urging him to take the opening of EU accession talks with Ukraine off the forum’s agenda. Orbán argued that “the obvious lack of consensus [on whether to open... MORE

Kazakhstan Turns Toward China Amid Cooling Relations With Russia
In late October, Kazakhstan halted the export of 106 products to Russia, a move attributed to Astana’s growing compliance with Western sanctions. Kazakhstan’s Deputy Minister of Trade and Integration Kairat Torebayev confirmed that the banned products are primarily linked to military goods, including drones, their... MORE

Strained Relations Between Azerbaijan and the West
On November 16, Baku canceled a meeting between the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan scheduled to take place on November 20 in Washington (Apa.az, November 16). The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry asserted that, under the current circumstances, it is not possible to proceed with US-mediated... MORE

Challenges For Beijing’s Digital Renminbi Ambitions
Arriving in the midst of an intensifying great power competition between China and the United States, the digital Renminbi (RMB) has been the subject of intense speculation and hype since its launch in October 2020, mostly from observers outside of China who overstate its potential... MORE

Money Alone Is Not Enough: The Future Of The China-Argentina Relationship
Observers assessed the outcome of the first round of Argentina’s presidential elections held on October 22 as good news for the Chinese government (VOA, October 26). Against the odds, Sergio Massa, the Peronist candidate and current minister of economy, emerged on top, despite his overseeing... MORE

The Kremlin Resumes Nuclear Testing in Escalation of War in Ukraine (Part Two)
On November 2, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the bill officially withdrawing Russia’s ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT). Putin’s move is designed to restore parity in nuclear arms control commitments with the United States, which has never ratified the treaty. The document signed... MORE

France Agrees to Send Arms to Armenia in Another Blow to Russia’s Regional Influence
In September, Azerbaijan carried out a swift military operation to reclaim full control over the Karabakh region (see EDM, September 20). Since then, Armenia has begun searching for new partners, as Yerevan has become deeply distrustful of Moscow (see EDM, February 9). On October 3,... MORE

Russian Nuclear Blackmail Remains Ineffective
The degradation of Russian morale in the trenches of Avdiivka and Bakhmut has driven Moscow to try altering the course of the war with a revival of nuclear blackmail tactics. On October 30, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu stated that Western attempts to inflict strategic... MORE