Kleptocracy Daily: August 16, 2017
News Paul Manafort partnered on an $850 million New York real-estate deal with an ally of Vladimir Putin and a Ukrainian moneyman whom the Justice Department recently described as an “organized-crime member.” Russia says it’s against further tightening sanctions on North Korea, warning that economic pressure on Pyongyang has reached its...
What We Talk About When We Talk About North Korea
By Allison Fedirka “We don’t know” may seem like an unacceptable phrase for an organization such as ours. But it’s a phrase that’s uttered in our virtual hallways more than you might think. For us, it’s not so much a matter of always having the “right” answer but of having the correct model, based on the available...
What next for Alexei Navalny?
Earlier this summer, Russia celebrated its 27th birthday. The National Day ceremonies didn’t go as smoothly as the country’s officials would have hoped. Anti-corruption protesters staged rallies at several big cities, with the largest protest in Moscow. Several thousand demonstrators marched through the capital’s main street,...
Russia Feels American Pressure
Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump meet at G20 summit, photo via Office of the President of RussiaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 561, August 16, 2017 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Russian-US relations have reached their lowest point since the end of the Cold War. President Donald Trump has signed a new package of anti-Russian sanctions into law and...
The plight of Russia’s technocrats
Politics Why are government reform programs, developed by highly-qualified experts, implemented so poorly in Russia? According to the Center for Strategic Research, the “Strategy-2010” program, adopted in 2000, is still only 36% complete. The subsequent program “Strategy-2020” has been even less successful – just 29.5%. Reforms in the...
Iran and North Korea: Brothers in Nuclear Arms
Editor’s note: On Aug. 14, nearly two months after the original publication of this Deep Dive, reports surfaced that North Korea received Soviet-era technology from a facility in Ukraine that expedited the construction of its intercontinental ballistic missiles. As we determine the veracity of the reports, we republish our own assessment of...
The Challenge Ahead in Eastern Ukraine
Bloody fighting between government troops and pro-Kremlin separatists and Russian regulars has continued for three years in Ukraine’s east. Meanwhile, an equally fierce battle is being waged for the hearts and minds of civilians on the Ukrainian side, many of whose loyalties hover between Kyiv and Moscow. …read more Source: Kharkiv...
Watch List: Aug. 15, 2017
The items listed below represent potential emerging issues that our analysts are tracking. These can be long term or short term, but will be updated daily. If an item on our Watch List becomes critical, we will email you a full analysis explaining its significance. Each Saturday, we will follow up our daily Watch List for each week with our...
Russia accuses Ukraine of Trying to Sabotage Crimean Electricity with a Handsaw
The FSB have seized another Ukrainian in Russian-occupied Crimea and claimed that he was carrying out acts of sabotage for the SBU, Ukraine’s Security Service. …read more Source: Kharkiv Human Rights Protection...
August 15th, 2017
CHINA Hong Kong Police Arrest Activist Over Abduction ClaimBBC A democracy activist in Hong Kong who claimed he was abducted and tortured by mainland Chinese agents has been arrested by police. Authorities are accusing Howard Lam of providing misleading information. Mr. Lam claimed last week he was abducted because of his efforts to get in touch...
