With a month remaining before the presidential election, scheduled for March 31, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko found himself caught up in a scandal that could further harm his chances for reelection. A recent investigation by journalists from Nashi Hroshi alleges that one of Poroshenko’s close... MORE

The Ukrainian parliament adopted several symbolic amendments to the Constitution, on February 7. The amendments, which President Petro Poroshenko signed into law on February 19, aim to make Ukraine’s strategic course toward the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Union irreversible (Ukrinform.net, February... MORE

Kazakhstani President Nursultan Nazarbayev will turn 79 in July, and talk of an impending succession has significantly intensified since the end of last year. Numerous local experts noted the harsh criticism that the president leveled at domestic utilities companies during a November 2018 session of... MORE

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

On Sunday, February 24, the citizens of the Republic of Moldova voted for a new parliament (Cec.md, February 24). Although the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) assessed the vote as “competitive,” its monitoring mission found that the campaign was nonetheless “tainted by... MORE

Ikhtiyor Abdullaev left the State Security Service (SSS) of Uzbekistan on February 11, one year after having been appointed to head the powerful internal security force. The presidential decree regarding Abdullaev’s departure asserts that the reason for him stepping down was linked to having undergone... MORE

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

The idea that the Cossacks could create their own country dates back to an idea pushed by Cossack emigres after 1917. This goal was realized briefly during the Russian Civil War and then in northern Italy at the end of World War II (Russia Seven,... MORE

One year ago, on March 1, 2018, in his annual address to the parliament, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke at length about plans to kick-start the stagnant economy, increase household incomes and pensions, as well as spend more on education and medicine. The promises were... MORE

On January 17, 130 families were resettled from the two Lezgin villages of Khrakh-Uba and Uryan-Uba, located on the border between Azerbaijan and Dagestan. The resettlement of ethnic Lezgins had been planned since November 2017, when the Russian authorities issued 138 accommodation certificates, providing 38... MORE