Election 2015: Devising new defence platforms (Part 3)
A couple of weeks ago, I was frustrated that the major parties had not articulated Defence platforms so I wrote one for the Liberals and then one for the NDP, and then the Liberals came out with their statement. I left the Conservative platform for last. Why? Because it is the hardest to write. Why? Because it could simply be “more of the same”...
OSCE Special Co-ordinator visits Belarus ahead of presidential election observation
COPENHAGEN, 24 September 2015 – The Special Co-ordinator of the OSCE’s short-term observers for the presidential election in Belarus, Kent Harstedt (MP, Sweden), met with high-level officials and a range of other interlocutors in Minsk and Homel this week to discuss the preparations and environment for the upcoming vote. “I thank the...
Latest from OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine based on information received as of 23 September 2015
The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the implementation of the Minsk agreements”. Its monitoring was restricted by the parties and security considerations*. The SMM noted a large concentration of tanks in a “DPR”-controlled area along the contact line. The SMM recorded some ceasefire violations, demining and...
OSCE Secretary General visits Vienna’s West Station to meet refugees and representatives of Austria’s Interior Ministry, Police and humanitarian organizations
VIENNA, 24 September 2015 – OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier today met refugees and representatives of local aid organizations at the Vienna West railway station (Westbahnhof), where he was briefed by Austria’s Interior Ministry and the Vienna police about their operations. The visit, organized in co-operation with Austria, was...
Ukraine Introduces Sanctions Against Russian Citizens, Companies
On September 16, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signed a decree introducing sanctions against 105 firms and 388 individuals, mainly from Russia, for supporting the annexation of Crimea and the war in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas (President.gov.ua, September 16). The decree came into effect on September 22, when its text was...
The Emergence of a New Reality
In the last two years, out of the four options on Ukraine, Russia, and NATO, one that in the past had seemed the least likely, has suddenly materialized: Russia treated Ukraine so badly that it has driven Ukrainians into NATO’s arms. This option came second on the list, but last on expectations. It depended on two failures: the failure of...
Putin Ready for Unilateral Strike on Islamic State – Bloomberg
With or without the U.S., Russia is preparing to launch airstrikes against IS from Syria base, say unnamed sources. …read more Source: Transitions Online...
Międzynarodowa grupa robocza: Wspólna refleksja o europejskiej przyszłości
Instytut Spraw Publicznych był współorganizatorem polsko-niemiecko-ukraińsko-rosyjskiego spotkania ekspertów, którzy wspólnie dyskutowali o przyszłości Europy w kontekście konfliktu rosyjsko-ukraińskiego. Poniżej krótkie podsumowanie spotkania. Over the last two days (21/22 September 2015), civil society actors and think tank experts from Poland,...
Links and quotations for September 23, 2015: Kids won’t eat government-mandated fruit, Sweden’s six hour workday, and more
Sweden is experimenting with the six-hour workday in its senior care facilities… Even there, there are major questions whether it’s workable. That and more, including how you can give kids an apple but not make them eat, and how history illustrates donor politics as part and parcel of human progress. Printing press, anyone?For China, a...
Latest from OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine based on information received as of 22 September 2015
This report is for the media and general public The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the implementation of the Minsk agreements”. Its monitoring was restricted by the parties and security considerations*. The situation remained largely calm in Donbas with only one non-training ceasefire violation recorded by the...
