Today, August 9, marks the fifth anniversary of Belarus’s 2020 presidential election. This election represented a critical juncture for Belarus, not just because of its preordained outcome—Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s fraudulent and corrupt victory—but rather because of the mass mobilization of Belarusian citizens and subsequent regime crackdown... MORE

Executive Summary:    In the five years since Belarus’s 2020 protest movement, Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s authoritarian regime has become characterized by systematic, violent repression of dissent. The country, isolated from the West, became a military foothold for Russia and fell into political, economic, and informational... MORE

Executive Summary: The Kremlin has increased its suppression of regional self-government since the beginning of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, fearing any manifestation of independence. In several regions, however, the local population has opposed such suppression, and the people’s mood aligns closer with... MORE

Executive Summary: Returning veterans of the war against Ukraine pose an increasingly sinister threat to Russian society as violent crime in the country has skyrocketed, reaching a 15-year high. A return of “Afghan syndrome” and the inability to utilize specialized combat skills after military service... MORE

Executive Summary: New laws upping the penalties for Russians who access “extremist” content through unauthorized means reflect Moscow’s growing paranoia with an increasingly frustrated population. Russian officials have justified widespread Internet outages as necessary to the war effort, though many see it as a smokescreen... MORE

Executive Summary: Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Moscow has aimed to stamp out any open criticism or opposition to Russian President Vladimir Putin and his war. Russia has expanded its definition of those it considers “foreign agents” and “terrorists and extremists”... MORE

Executive Summary: Starting September 1, Moscow will fine Russians for accessing or searching for “extremist” content, including via virtual private network (VPN) technology, to control how Russians use the Internet without fully blocking it. The Putin regime has taken these steps to limit the growing... MORE

Executive Summary: Former Russian Transport Minister Roman Starovoit was found dead on July 7, reportedly due to suicide, just hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin fired him from the position. The active replacement of Russian elites has been a regular occurrence in Russia since the... MORE

Executive Summary: The Kuomintang (KMT) is undergoing a complex transformation, seeking to redefine itself by moving away from its perception as a “pro-China” party to one grounded in support for the Republic of China’s (ROC) democratic institutions. Internal factions—ranging from pro-unification traditionalists to sovereignty-leaning localists—reflect... MORE

Jamestown Senior Fellow Janusz Bugajski just returned from a trip to Warsaw and Kyiv. He is the author of Pivotal Poland: Europe’s Rising Power. The book explores Warsaw’s determined efforts to shape NATO’s eastern policy, to maintain a strong alliance with the United States, and to... MORE