Moscow plans to increase its military basing presence in Syria, building on its main existing agreements with the Bashar al-Assad regime in relation to the Khmeimim airbase in Latakia province and the naval logistical facility in Tartus. While these facilities will also be expanded, on... MORE

The month of May is important from the perspective of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict because it marks the anniversaries of both the occupation of Azerbaijan’s Shusha city and Lachin districts (rayons) as well as the later signing of the “ceasefire agreement”—the terms of which are still... MORE

A respected economic policy think tank in Uzbekistan released the results of a recent poll on the attitudes of both public- and private-sector professionals inside the country about Uzbekistan’s membership in the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) and the World Trade Organization (WTO) (Review.uz, May 20).... MORE

After Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka rejected the Kremlin’s so-called integration ultimatum at the end of 2019, and following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s announced constitutional changes, the following January, to effectively reset his presidential term tally to zero (see EDM, January 14, 16, March 16), some... MORE

The Russian Federation is strengthening its economic integration with several Central Asian states. At the beginning of April, the authorities of Uzbekistan and Russia agreed to set up an economic cooperation program in May that would take into account the influence of the novel coronavirus... MORE

Introduction The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China’s ambitious overseas economic and infrastructure program, is having a significant impact on the world economy. The People’s Republic of China (PRC) has pledged $1 trillion in investment; the extensive geographic scope of the initiative involves more than... MORE

Introduction: China Renews Its Maritime Sovereignty Claims at the Expense of Vietnam The outbreak of the global COVID-19 pandemic that began in the Chinese city of Wuhan has not deterred the People’s Republic of China (PRC) from pursuing its long-term strategic vision of asserting its... MORE

The parliament of Bulgaria has adopted a declaration criticizing Ukraine’s policy toward the Bulgarian minority in Odesa province (see EDM, May 26). This move might seem to indicate that Bulgaria is about to emulate Hungary or Romania, each of which, in its own way (Hungary... MORE

President Donald Trump announced, on May 21, that the United States would be withdrawing from the 1992 Treaty on Open Skies, which permits reciprocated surveillance overflights of participating members’ military facilities as a confidence-building measure. The treaty depositary countries (Canada and Hungary) were sent official... MORE

Last week (May 20), pro-Russian legislative deputies in Bulgaria and pro-Moscow ethnic-Bulgarian politicians in Ukraine protested a decision by the Ukrainian government to redraw administrative borders in Odesa Oblast. The Kremlin-leaning ethnic-Bulgarians who expressed their objection said the move was intended to divide their more-than-200,000-strong... MORE