Latest Articles about Foreign Policy

Japan Looks to Central Asia for Strategic Resources

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On November 10, Japan announced it would provide $700 million to the resource-rich Central Asian countries for exploitation of oil, gas and rare earths minerals (REM). The announcement was made at the fourth meeting of foreign ministers representing member-states of the “Central-Asia plus Japan” Dialogue... MORE

North Caucasian Activists See Relations with Georgia Under Threat

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After the dramatic changes in Georgia’s political leadership in October 2012, experts in the North Caucasus see signs of a decreasing Georgian presence in the politics of the North Caucasus. “The North Caucasian policy of Georgia will become more flexible, cautious and subtle,” Lachin Lachinov,... MORE

Belarus and Lithuania: The Estranged Brethren

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On November 6, two unknown perpetrators threw two bottles with a flammable substance into the Lithuanian embassy compound in Minsk. The Investigating Committee of Belarus launched a criminal investigation; the Belarusian ambassador to Vilnius was handed a note of protest; and the Lithuanian ambassador to... MORE

Will Georgia Continue to Seek to Influence Eurasian Countries?

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Most of the non-Russian countries in the post-Soviet space have pursued foreign policies directed at defending their interests “in the framework of a limited geographic region,” two Russian analysts say. But under President Mikhail Saakashvili, Georgia has been an exception, regularly seeking to promote itself... MORE

Setbacks and Squabbles in Russia’s Foreign Policy

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The Kremlin is moving from confusion to controversy in international affairs, a policy area which used to boost Russia’s “great power” status and bring joy to its leaders. Moscow cannot formulate a coherent position on the eruption of violence in the Gaza “black hole,” and... MORE

Kazakhstan Elected Member of UN Human Rights Council

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On November 12, the 67th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) elected Kazakhstan for the first time to the UN Human Rights Council, for the 2013–2015 term, with 183 of 193 member states voting affirmatively. Various international human rights groups openly lobbied against... MORE

A Bump in the Road for Taiwan and Japan but Little More

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Although its voice is often ignored in the escalating spat over the disputed Diaoyu/Senkaku islands in the East China Sea, Taiwan reacted with uncharacteristic bombast to the Japanese government’s purchase of three islets in the disputed island chain in September. The response reached unprecedented levels... MORE