Section: Research Organizations & Think Tanks about Ukraine
Abuse of Chechens and Ingush in Russian Prisons Creates Legions of Enemies
Sixteen years have passed since the start of the second Russian-Chechen war, but Chechen and Ingush detainees from various parts of the Russian Federation continue to cry out for help. In accordance with Russian law, the convicts are often sent to the farthest corners of the country to serve their sentences, most often to Siberia and the Russian...
Ukraine Defuses Pro-Russia Instigations in Odesa Province
President Petro Poroshenko recently instructed the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) to “nip any separatist organizations in the bud […] so that Ukraine should not again have to pay a heavy price later on,” as is now the case in Donetsk-Luhansk (Dzerkalo Tyzhnia, March 25). In the spirit of preventive action, Ukrainian law enforcement agencies...
Russian Military and Paramilitary Forces Preparing to Suppress Internal Dissent
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s approval ratings are sky-high, and his aggressive anti-Western policies enjoy wide support. Over 50 percent agree “Russia is moving in the right direction,” despite its present economic doldrums (Interfax, February 26). Only 13 percent of Russians disapprove of Putin’s work record—not that a small...
Poroshenko Goes Hunting for Oligarchs
Ukraine won an important battle in the war against the oligarchs with the removal of Dnipropetrovsk Governor Ihor Kolomoyskyi last week. But Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and the Ukrainian parliament are just getting started. On April 7 the government challenged billionaire Rinat Akhmetov’s grip on energy companies. Some...
Can Gazprom Really Cut Out Ukrainian Transit Post-South Stream?
Despite an unceremonious end to the controversial South Stream mega-pipeline, Russia remains outspoken and determined in its effort to carve Ukraine entirely out of its European natural gas deliveries which accounted for 62 billion cubic meters (bcm) of Gazprom’s European-bound exports in 2014. Formally announced in 2007, South Stream had...
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...
Tsipras and Putin strike positive tone but agree little of substance
Tsipras and Putin strike positive tone but agree little of substanceFollowing a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow yesterday, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras spoke of a new “Spring” in the relations between the two countries and stressed Greece was a “sovereign state” and had the right to pursue a “multifaceted foreign...
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,...
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...
