Section: Research Organizations & Think Tanks about Ukraine
Hybrid: what’s in a name?
Security analysts and practitioners have a tendency to coin new terms which capture the challenge(s) they are facing or the mandate(s) they are supposed to embrace. Terms such as ‘low-intensity conflicts’, ‘failed’ or ‘fragile’ states, ‘asymmetrical’ threats or even, for that matter, ‘comprehensive approach’ are all...
Hybrid operations: lessons from the past
The security situation in and around Europe has changed dramatically over the past two years. The conflict in Ukraine and the success of the Islamic State (IS) in the Middle East and North Africa have put territorial defence and homeland security back on the agenda in Europe. Hybrid threats and operations against the EU and its partners are real...
Politician’s Arrest, Release Spotlight Moldova’s Split Personality
Pro-Russian party leader claims to have tapes incriminating leading politicians in misdeeds. …read more Source: Transitions Online...
US fears a Russian attack on undersea internet cables that could plunge world into chaos
EPA/Pavel KonovovIt may sound far-fetched at first, but there’s a growing fear of the damage a newly aggressive Russia might inflict in a time of tension or conflict simply by damaging or cutting the undersea cables that carry almost all of the West’s internet traffic. The New York Times reported that Russian submarines and spy ships...
US fears Russian attack on internet cables could plunge world into chaos
EPA/Pavel KonovovIt may sound far-fetched at first, but there’s a growing fear of the damage a newly aggressive Russia might inflict in a time of tension or conflict simply by damaging or cutting the undersea cables that carry almost all of the West’s internet traffic. The New York Times reported that Russian submarines and spy ships...
Ukraine’s Local Polls, Marred by Irregularities in Big Cities, Show East-West Split Remains
The ruling coalition won most local elections across Ukraine on October 25, according to preliminary figures. Results from the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) are expected next week, but it is already clear that compared to the 2010 local elections, the kleptocratic elites who used to support former President Viktor Yanukovych lost dominant...
Cossacks Split Between Claiming to Be an Ethnic Group or a Social Class
On October 17, Cossack groups with combat experience held a conference in the city of Mineralnye Vody in Stavropol region. According to the organizers, the conference participants were veterans of the conflicts in Chechnya, Transnistria, Tajikistan, South Ossetia, Abkhazia, Crimea, Karabakh, and the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. These Cossacks...
Five Steps to Unleash Ukraine’s Economy
Ukraine faces numerous challenges that would be hard for any government to address. However, it must implement economic reforms to stabilize the country and show immediate positive results. Ordinary Ukrainians want to see their bottom line improve, and businesses want fair rules.Developing an effective competition policy to eliminate the...
Kremlin Perplexed by Montenegrin Leader’s ‘Strange’ Statements
Russia is trying to derail his country’s NATO aspirations, Milo Djukanovic says. …read more Source: Transitions Online...
Forget Russia, European energy security begins at home
With Russian-European relations at a low ebb, now is a tricky time to push forward a new energy agreement between the two. Nevertheless, on September 4, a consortium of energy companies—including Gazprom, Shell, ENGIE, OMV, BASF, and E.ON—signed a shareholders’ agreement on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. With a total capacity of 55 billion...
