Russian Church, Crime Fighters Reopen Probes of Nicholas II’s Death
Orthodox bishop denies anti-Semitic overtones in remarks about ‘ritual murder’ of last czar and his family. …read more Source: Transitions Online...
Chinese manoeuvres further confounding Middle East
I was in Doha, Qatar, for a conference on 13-14 November 2017, which was being held against the backdrop of the continued Saudi Arabia-led blockade of Qatar since June 2017 and the occurrence coincidentally of three other sensational, Saudi-related events on November 4. The first and most astonishing of the three events was the arrest and...
Arms control, security cooperation, and U.S.-Russian relations
By Steven PiferFor nearly 50 years, arms control agreements have contributed to more stable and predictable relations between Washington and Moscow. Beginning in the late 1980s, agreements such as the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty followed by the first Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START I) went beyond mere limitations to...
Mixed Results for Emerging Europe in Legatum Prosperity Index
World prosperity increased in 2017 and now sits at its highest level in the last decade, being 2.6 per cent higher than in 2007, according to the 11th edition of the Legatum Prosperity Index. However, the gap between the highest and lowest scores has increased and the spread between nations is growing. Each country has been measured on nine...
Isolationism is Not an Option
Editor’s Note: This blog is part of an ongoing series of contributions from participants in The German Marshall Fund’s flagship leadership development program, The Marshall Memorial Fellowship (MMF). I received a typical American education. In high school, I was taught that the United States’ love of isolationism was a root...
Council of Europe will betray its human rights mandate by giving in to Russia, Mr Jagland
The Council of Europe is considering reinstating Russia’s voting rights which were withdrawn after Russia’s invasion and annexation of Crimea in 2014. Crimea remains under occupation with ever-mounting human rights abuse, making the reference given to the Council of Europe’s ‘human rights mandate’ as excuse for removing...
Unexpected Freedom for two Crimean Tatar Dissidents
Russia / Europe In late October, President Vladimir Putin pardoned and released Ilmi Umerov and Akhtem Chiygoz, two Crimean Tatar dissidents. Both were members of the Mejlis, a legislative body for the Crimean Tatar people that has been dissolved since Russia’s capture of Crimea. Both were persecuted for their views: They openly stated that...
Крымские заложники Кремля
Russia / Europe В конце октября Владимир Путин помиловал и освободил Ильми Умерова и Ахтема Чийгоза – двух крымскотатарских диссидентов и членов Меджлиса крымскотатарского народа. Оба преследовались за свою позицию: они открыто заявляли, что произошел акт агрессии и аннексии Крыма Российской Федерацией и призывали к возвращению украинского...
Beyond Zapad 2017: Russia’s Destabilizing Approach to Military Exercises
The world can be relieved that Russia did not use this fall’s Zapad 2017 military exercise as a pretext for aggression or to permanently base troops in Belarus, as many analysts feared before the event. Much has been written about the exercise, most of it focusing on competing claims regarding its size and purpose. What has received less...
The Duplicitous Superpower
Ted Galen Carpenter For any country, the foundation of successful diplomacy is a reputation for credibility and reliability. Governments are wary of concluding agreements with a negotiating partner that violates existing commitments and has a record of duplicity. Recent U.S. administrations have ignored that principle, and their actions have...
