More Pressure on Ukrainian Oligarchs, Russia Tightens Conditions for Migrants
Plus, Moldovan authorities seek more than $1 billion in missing bank loans and a Dutch museum challenges Crimea’s claim on Scythian gold artifacts. …read more Source: Transitions Online...
OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine to hold news briefing in Kyiv today
KYIV, 9 April 2015 – The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) will hold its regular news briefing today in Kyiv. Michael Bociurkiw, the SMM spokesperson, will talk about the recent Mission’s activities and the general security situation throughout Ukraine. Journalists are invited to attend the news briefing today, 9 April, at...
State Duma Members Call on Russian President to Abolish Federal Districts
On April 4, the Russian newspaper Nezavisimaya Gazeta reported that a group of State Duma deputies are preparing to call on the country’s president and government to reform or even abolish the federal districts in the Russian Federation. Removing the federal districts from the Russian administrative map would save the government about $50...
His Master’s Voice: Lavrov Tours Latin America
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov’s recent tour of Latin America aimed to build on Moscow’s previous successes among pro-Russian regimes there—Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela—as well as to establish stronger ties with pro-US countries like Colombia. But beyond bilateral relations, Lavrov also endeavored to enhance Russia’...
Ukraine Rapidly Dismantling Gazprom’s Supply Monopoly
Quantitative indicators show a dramatic reorientation of Ukraine’s natural gas supply strategy. Dependence on Gazprom has become a thing of the past. Kyiv demonstrates political resolve to pursue supply diversification and adapt to changing market conditions with the European Commission’s backing. Along with supply diversification,...
Romania Cuts Taxes, Serbia Blasts Albanian ‘Unification’ Talk
Plus, new fighting breaks out near Mariupol; Georgian Chechens plead for help to stop IS recruiting. …read more Source: Transitions Online...
Zwischen Allianzfreiheit und Einbindung
Alarmiert durch die Ukraine-Krise und Russlands militärische Aktivitäten in der Ostsee-Region, führen Finnland und Schweden derzeit eine intensive Debatte über ihre nationale Sicherheit. In beiden Ländern wird angesichts einer sich wandelnden Bedrohungslage an der eigenen Verteidigungsfähigkeit gezweifelt. Zunehmend steht der...
Spot report by the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine: “DPR” member opened fire towards an SMM patrol on the outskirts of Shyrokyne, 7 April 2015
This report is for media and the general public. On 7 April, while traveling east on road E58 toward a “Donetsk People’s Republic” (“DPR”) checkpoint in Shyrokyne (20km east of Mariupol, 99km south of Donetsk), the SMM was halted by an improvised “DPR” roadblock, located on the northern edge of Shyrokyne (“DPR”-controlled). As the SMM...
The fog of ‘regular’ war
Hugh White’s considered response to the questions I posed in our recent exchange on the fundamentals of Australian defence strategy prods me to elaborate on my previous arguments as well as to make some counterpoints. On the question of irregular warfare, we seem to be in agreement that it is certainly the most common form of warfare today...
Poroshenko Open to Autonomy Referendum, Poland to Build Towers on Russian Border
Plus, Belarusian leader signs decree fining the unemployed; Czech politicians slam president over planned Moscow trip. …read more Source: Transitions Online...
