Viewed from Moldova, the Kremlin’s assault on Ukraine (like the earlier one on Georgia) aims to prevent the country permanently from joining Europe and the West writ large. To defeat those aspirations, Russia acts to destabilize Ukraine’s Western-oriented government and to break up the country’s... MORE

As the Crimean Tatars commemorated the 70th anniversary of their deportation from Crimea on May 18, many wondered what the Tatars’ next moves under the Russian occupation will be. Having already deported ethnic groups en masse—the Karachays in November 1943, the Chechens and Ingush in... MORE

Ukraine’s wealthiest industrialist, Donetsk-based Renat Akhmetov, on May 20, urged the workers of Donbas to protest against “those who call themselves some kind of people’s republic of Donetsk [secessionist leaders].” In a televised address via the Ukrayina channel, Akhmetov declared that the region’s population “can... MORE

The Russian military seems to have begun a genuine pullback of combat forces, which had been poised for almost three months on the eastern borders of Ukraine. On May 19, President Vladimir Putin flew to Shanghai to oversee the signing of a grandiose agreement to... MORE

On May 7, 2014, clashes occurred along the disputed border between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, injuring as many as 60 people (Ozodi, May 8). Reportedly, the clashes began with a small group of drunk youths throwing stones at each other, but the incident soon escalated to... MORE

The Russian government, like its Soviet predecessor, has a long history of sending draftees to places far from their homes and using non-Russians as cannon fodder in conflicts of one kind or another. But rarely has the cynicism behind such policies been so evident or... MORE

Russian military operations in Crimea have increased the prestige of serving in the Armed Forces, which has been a welcome boost to Moscow’s on-going efforts to recruit larger numbers of contract personnel. This drive to strengthen military manpower is accompanied by considerations of the technological... MORE

Ukrainian forces are struggling to contain Russia’s proxy insurgency in Donbas (Donetsk and Luhansk provinces). The Ukrainian “anti-terrorist operation,” under way since April 13, remains inconclusive thus far. This operation has revealed how deeply Ukraine’s army and police were hollowed out in recent years, materially... MORE

On May 13, a 25-year-old Circassian, Timur Ashinov, died in the hospital in the city of Adygeisk in the Republic of Adygea. Ashinov and a fellow Circassian were attacked by a mob at a pizzeria in the nearby city of Krasnodar in Krasnodar region on... MORE