Section: Research Organizations & Think Tanks about Ukraine
Donetsk, Luhansk ‘People’s Republics’ Seek International Legitimization Through Local Elections (Part Two)
*To read Part One, please click here. The armistice signed in Minsk on February 12, 2015, (Minsk Two agreement) opens the way for staging local elections in the Donetsk and Luhansk “people’s republics” (“DPR, LPR”) and the possible validation of those elections’ outcome by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe...
Sergei Shoigu: Putin’s Point Man in the Ukraine Conflict
Since the Russian military became a policy tool in the Kremlin’s conflict in Ukraine, Defense Minister Army-General Sergei Shoigu received surprisingly little attention from observers of Russia’s defense policies. Shoigu offered broad support for the operation to “restore” Crimea to Russia, while emphatically denying the presence of...
How to Counter Russia’s Anti-Democratic Strategy
BERLIN—At a summit last week in Latvia, the European Union and the countries of the Eastern Partnership reiterated that democracy is essential for a closer political and economic association. The joint declaration issued by the EU members and Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Moldova, Georgia, and Ukraine avoided any specific mention of Russia. But...
What’s It Like To Be Hated By The Russian Internet?
Image credit: Steve GladfelterOther Mediafeaturing Michael McFaulvia The GuardianOnline abuse has got much worse since the annexation of Crimea: the Russian-language debates on Twitter are much more personal. Sometimes it’s just a few very unpleasant tweets. Sometimes it’s hundreds of Twitter messages saying the same thing, as if they...
The Russian Armament Program Comes Under Reconsideration
May 26, 2015 By Sergey Aleksashenko, Former Deputy Finance Minister of Russia Western sanctions on Russian military production companies and the operation in Eastern Ukraine has led Putin to direct more funding to the Russian Army. In the past few weeks, Russian President Vladimir Putin has held at least nine meetings with top Russian military...
The Disastrous EU Summit on the European Partnership
The European Union’s Summit on the Eastern Partnership, held May 21-22 in Riga, was a disaster for Ukraine. For friends of democracy, the rule of law, and Ukraine, it would have been better had this EU summit never taken place and its joint declaration never written. …read more Source: Atlantic...
Will Greece Follow Ukraine’s Gamble?
After months of patient negotiations with its creditors, the Ukrainian government decided to gamble on May 19—by passing a motion through parliament to impose a moratorium on paying international bondholders. This calculated measure was taken after talks with creditors bogged down earlier in May. RealTime post by Simeon Djankov. …read more...
Can Russian-Western Cooperation in the Arctic Survive the Current Conflict?
The ongoing conflict in Ukraine affects the prospects for peace and general cooperation in the region and far beyond. One such area to consider is what impact the conflict will have on the future of the Arctic. Is there an agenda and, if so, the necessary political will for continued Russia-West cooperation in this theatre? What would such...
Will Putin Gamble All On A Broader Ukraine Invasion?
Westerners strain to predict Moscow’s next moves in Ukraine, and elsewhere. President Vladimir Putin may think that Russia can weather Western reactions if he decides to move beyond the occupied part of eastern Ukraine, perhaps seeking to forge a land bridge between Russia and Crimea. But will he consider economic and political constraints,...
POLITICO Brussels Playbook — Dinner with David — Lunch with Nigel — Fightin’ Finns?
RIGA REVIEWED: Daniela Schwarzer of the German Marshall Fund offers this assessment for Playbook readers of the Eastern Partnership Summit, which ended Friday night: “The Summit reaffirmed the Eastern Partnership as the EU’s framework for its policy towards the six countries. Anything else would have been a symbolic surrender to...
