Latest Articles about Foreign Policy
Putin’s Turn to East Boosts Demand for Chinese Language Expertise and Fears of China
Executive Summary: Booming demand for Russians who know Chinese, a product of Putin’s turn to the East, is exacerbating long-standing fears that Moscow will lose control over lands east of the Urals. The flight of Russians from the vast and underpopulated region, combined with the... MORE
Serbia Bolsters Connections With Russia and China
Executive Summary: Serbia’s new government is bolstering its connections with Russia through the appointment of Kremlin-linked ministers. Belgrade is also expanding its economic and media links with China following the visit of Chinese Communist Party General Secretary Xi Jinping. The Aleksandar Vučić administration continues to... MORE
Week of Ceremonies Marks Wobbly Start for Putin’s New Presidential Term
Executive Summary: Russian President Vladimir Putin began his new presidential term by holding a week of events to demonstrate his continued reign but has not received the blind following he anticipated. The Kremlin is playing up its nuclear capabilities as a response to the expansion... MORE
Propaganda and ‘Active Measures’ in Russian Information Operations
Executive Summary: Russia employs various tools to influence people’s minds domestically and internationally, from “positive propaganda” to intricate “information operations.” For a long time, the Kremlin’s primary propaganda narrative has been to instill the notion that truth is subjective or non-existent. The core methods of... MORE
Foreign Fixations at the Heart of Chinese-style Modernization
Executive Summary: A new report from two high-end PRC think-tanks details the country’s path to modernization in anticipation of July’s Third Plenum but suggests that any shifts in policy direction will be muted. The report emphasizes the triumph of Chinese-style modernization over the Western model... MORE
Minsk Confirms Deployment of Russian Tactical Nuclear Weapons in Belarus
Executive Summary: At the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly in April, Belarusian officials confirmed that Russian tactical nuclear weapons had been deployed in Belarus. The new military doctrine of Belarus declares the role of Russian TNWs as an essential component of preventive deterrence against unfriendly states. The... MORE
Azerbaijan Continues to Strengthen Ties With Central Asia
Executive Summary: Russia’s war against Ukraine has given Azerbaijan fresh motivation to strengthen relations with Central Asian countries to improve their collective trade, transit, and energy potential. Continued development and increased use of the Middle Corridor is central to Baku’s increased cooperation with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,... MORE
Shifting Geopolitics Threaten to Shelve China–Kyrgyzstan–Uzbekistan Railway Project
Executive Summary: Beijing, Bishkek, and Tashkent have been discussing the construction of a joint railway project for almost 30 years, which runs the risk of completely unraveling due to geopolitical and alliance changes in Central Asia. Moscow and Astana are happy with the project’s delays,... MORE
Russia’s War in Ukraine Starves Belarusian Railways of Upgrades
Executive Summary: Belarus remains heavily dependent on Russia for its export infrastructure, especially as its Ukrainian options have been closed since Moscow launched the full-scale invasion. Minsk is seeking alternatives to Russian railways by using the still incomplete International North-South Transport Corridor and discussing plans... MORE
Russian Security Services Use Cyprus as EU Beachhead to Undermine the West
Executive Summary: The FSB and other Russian intelligence agencies’ activities have transformed Cyprus into a Kremlin beachhead in Europe, going largely unnoticed. Moscow has long focused on European countries, like Cyprus, that are a part of the European Union but not NATO members, to undermine... MORE