Executive Summary: The European Parliament adopted a resolution requesting sanctions on Georgia and its informal leader, Bidzina Ivanishvili, following the parliamentary elections on October 26 if they are not free and fair.  Ivanishvili and his team claim that the West has already informally sanctioned the... MORE

Executive Summary: Moscow is now increasing the age limit for military service to fill the depleted ranks of its forces in Ukraine. This is a reflection of the manpower difficulties Russia faces in its long war. Visitors to the front, officials involved in meeting the... MORE

Executive Summary: Russian officials have begun to address the degrading state of critical civilian infrastructure, particularly heating systems, ahead of the coming winter. The past few years have seen catastrophic incidents leaving many Russians without heat. Russian officials blame numerous sources for these issues—including Russian... MORE

Executive Summary: The Russian Community, a Kremlin-backed group of far-right Russian nationalists, has increasingly been attacking marginalized communities such as non-ethnic Russians, immigrants, LGBTQ+ individuals, and abortion doctors. The Russian Community works with the Russian security agencies, but the government is not yet ready to... MORE

Executive Summary: In a departure from the long-term economic program announced at the Third Plenum in July, the Party leadership used an unusual politburo meeting in September to acknowledge “new situations and challenges” in the economy, unveiling its most significant stimulus package in recent years.... MORE

Executive Summary: In an apparent U-turn, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has initiated stimulus policies that have boosted the stock market and are attempting to jump-start key sectors and meet the annual GDP growth target of 5 percent. In the last week of September,... MORE

Executive Summary:  New corruption schemes are being developed to power Russia’s war machine and incentivize Russian citizens to fight in Ukraine through monetary support and the elimination of criminal liability. A powerful money-laundering network connected to military-patriotic organizations is conducting collections “for the needs of... MORE

Executive Summary: Moscow is using the Muslim Spiritual Directorates (MSDs) for the primary purpose for which they were established during World War II: to mobilize Muslims in Russia against a foreign enemy. The MSDs’ tasks include boosting the recruitment of young Muslims, limiting internal clashes... MORE

Executive Summary: Tbilisi’s ruling Georgian Dream party stated the possibility of returning the separatist regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia as part of their campaign for the parliamentary elections. Moscow has not expressed support for reintegrating the Russian controlled regions into Georgia but alternatively for... MORE

Executive Summary: Last month, Armenia arrested several individuals accused of recruiting others to stage a coup in the country. The group has a history of recruiting Armenian citizens as foreign fighters in Russia’s war in Ukraine. The Armenian government faces a potential vulnerability from militant... MORE