Reading the Ukrainian media earlier this year gave one the impression that Ukraine was fighting not Russia, but Chechnya (vesti.ru, May 28). Few doubted that Chechens were fighting on the Russian side in eastern Ukraine, but their numbers were greatly exaggerated. The deployment of Russian... MORE

On September 15, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, announced on national TV that he had ruled out Iran’s participation in the U.S.-led military coalition to combat the Islamic State organization, previously the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria... MORE

On Tuesday, November 4, the United States held its 2014 midterm elections and voted the Republican Party into the majority in the U.S. Senate, giving them control of both houses in Congress and, as Chinese analysts noted, a major political victory. The overall Chinese response... MORE

For over a decade, academics and policymakers have been engaged in an unusually public and at times ad hominem debate over the future direction of China’s ethnic policies. [1] A group of maverick Chinese thinkers claim current policies engender disunity and could cause China to... MORE

The parties of President Petro Poroshenko and Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk won an early parliamentary election on October 26 and have started talks on forming a new governing coalition. As radicals of all kinds lost the election, Ukraine now has a chance to obtain a... MORE

At times it appears as if Russia’s treatment of its Muslims is completely devoid of prior experience or historical lessons learned. Otherwise, it is difficult to explain why the Russian state does not seem to have a clear policy toward a part of its population... MORE

On October 5, Terek Cossacks held a rally in the village of Sengileevskoe in Stavropol region. About 200 Cossacks from Stavropol region, the republics of the North Caucasus and the rebel-controlled areas of eastern Ukraine gathered to discuss what they see as the region’s precarious... MORE

The unrecognized “people’s republics” of Donetsk and Luhansk (“DPR,” “LPR”) elected would-be presidents and legislatures on November 2, in territories seized from Ukraine (see accompanying article). The decision to proceed with these elections came undoubtedly from Moscow and it signifies (inter alia) a temporary suspension... MORE

On November 2, the Russian-controlled Donetsk and Luhansk “people’s republics” (“DPR, LPR”) in Ukraine’s Donbas (eastern region encompassing the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces) staged “presidential” and “legislative” elections for the first time. These were conducted in the presence of Russian and proxy troops on what... MORE

On November 4, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili sacked Defense Minister Irakli Alasania, who enjoys strong backing in Washington. In response to this development, Euro-Atlantic Integration Minister Aleksi Petriashvili vowed to step down the same day, and Foreign Minister Maia Pandjikidze resigned on November 5... MORE