Although Belarus has resolved its argument with Russia about the price of natural gas, the parameters of this resolution are still subject to different interpretations. The two sides have apparently not yet reached a consensus on the scale of the price discount (if any) or... MORE

Though still two years away, the presidential elections in Russia are already on the minds of the political elite in Moscow. The sitting head of state, President Vladimir Putin, is constitutionally permitted to run again in 2018. And though most expect that he will, his... MORE

Political infighting and bureaucratic red tape in Italy are jeopardizing the realization of the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), the westernmost segment of a wider energy corridor to bring Azerbaijani natural gas to Southeastern Europe. In turn, these problems are frustrating Rome’s efforts to establish a Mediterranean... MORE

The Moscow media—and all too often news outlets in the West—paint Russians as a nation 100 percent behind Vladimir Putin’s war in Syria, and Belarusians as a nation fully behind Russia. But in fact, Russian support for Putin’s aggression and Belarusian support for Russia is... MORE

A significant spike in violence has been registered in the North Caucasus. Within the span of just one week, October 3–9, an estimated 18 people were killed and 4 more suffered injuries in insurgency-related violence across the region. Fifteen suspected rebels, including eight in Chechnya,... MORE

Russia’s military operations over the past two and a half years—from the seizure of Crimea, to support for separatists in Donbas, to its intervention in Syria—have revealed differing aspects of the country’s growing military capability. While the use of hard power in these divergent theaters... MORE

On October 8, both the United Kingdom’s and United States’ embassies in Bishkek issued warnings about an increased threat of a terrorist attack on Kyrgyzstan sometime that month. The suspected attack, if it materialized, was supposed to possibly involving the kidnapping and hostage taking of... MORE

The nine-month-long argument about the price of Russian natural gas for Belarus has finally been resolved—for now. Belarus will compensate Russia for underpayment from January 1 to July 1, 2016 (during that period, Belarus payed only $73 per 1,000 cubic meters instead of $132, as... MORE

The latest meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Algeria, on September 28, brought some relief to producers, with the price of oil finally trading above $50 per barrel for the first time in months. News of a preliminary deal, whose implementation... MORE

Late on the evening of October 4, a car was blown up next to Tbilisi’s Freedom Square. Givi Targamadze, a high-ranking member of Georgia’s United National Movement (UNM) party, along with his driver, survived; four passersby were injured, one seriously (Civil Georgia, October 4). Targamadze... MORE