Executive Summary: Xi Jinping’s personal imprimatur on the Party-state’s policies in Xinjiang are unambiguous, according to a new white paper published to coincide with a central-level delegation to the region in late September. The Party uses cultural and historical arguments to justify its ongoing policies... MORE

Executive Summary: Two new pieces of national security legislation in Hong Kong introduce six offenses and six “prohibited places,” signaling closer alignment with the laws of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) mainland and raising concerns about the safety and freedom of foreigners and locals.... MORE

Executive Summary: Throughout his tenure, but especially since the start of his expanded war in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin has dramatically expanded the use of punitive psychiatry against his opponents and other dissenters, a practice that its victims have said made the Soviet Union,... MORE

Executive Summary: The Ukrainian parliament has voted to recognize Russian actions against the Circassians in the 19th century as an act of genocide—a move Circassians and human rights activists hope will lead other countries to follow. Moscow is working to blunt the impact of Ukraine’s... MORE

Executive Summary: Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s November 28 announcement about suspending EU integration discussions has caused a pre-revolutionary situation to develop in Georgia, with protests spreading across the country. The government has stepped up repression against the Georgian people in response to the demonstrations.... MORE

Executive Summary: Xi Jinping’s vocational education reforms, designed to address a skills gap, have been distorted at the local level, with uneven implementation and coercive measures intensifying stress on students. The centralized power structure of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) incentivizes local officials to... MORE

Executive Summary: Xi Jinping faces mounting challenges to his legitimacy from multiple directions, with economic troubles, mass killings, and corruption in the military eroding his grip on power. A spate of unrelated violent incidents and rising social protests across the People’s Republic of China (PRC)... MORE

Executive Summary: Moscow is facing ever greater problems filling the ranks of its invasion force. Increasing signing bonuses and pardons for those who serve are less effective than advertised. The Kremlin is turning to ever more repressive and deceptive measures, but these are not working... MORE

Executive Summary The Consulates General of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in New York, San Francisco, and Chicago have been conducting gray zone “pop-up” consular service events across the United States under the initiative “Bringing Consular Services into the Community,” often at non-diplomatic facilities.... MORE

Executive Summary:  The Russian State Duma announced that it conceptually supports a new law to ban “the childfree ideology,” that is, the conscious refusal to have children in Russia, in an effort to “preserve family values.” In practice, these measures are not capable of improving... MORE