Section: Research Organizations & Think Tanks about Ukraine
Neither a miracle nor a disaster – President Zelensky’s first year in office
20th May marked the end of Volodymyr Zelensky first year as President of Ukraine. Thanks to the clear victory of his Servant of the People party in the snap parliamentary election held in July 2019 and the establishment of the government of Oleksiy Honcharuk the following month, Zelensky swiftly gained full power. …read more Source:: Centre...
Is It Time to Boycott the United States?
In his infinite ignorance, Donald Trump has invited world leaders to the White House for a face-to-face meeting at the end of June. Unlike the other countries in the G7, the United States has yet to get the coronavirus pandemic under control. One of the hotspots that the White House itself has identified is none other than Washington, DC. And...
The Abandonment of the South Lebanon Army: A Moral and a Strategic Failure
South Lebanon Army memorial in Marjayoun, later destroyed by Hezbollah, photo via WikipediaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,579, May 24, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: With the May 2000 abandonment of the South Lebanon Army, Israel signaled to its regional allies that it is not a reliable mainstay. This influenced the lukewarm response of the Golan...
The Minsk Conundrum: Western Policy and Russia’s War in Eastern Ukraine
22 May 2020 The Minsk agreements rest on two irreconcilable interpretations of Ukraine’s sovereignty: is Ukraine sovereign, as Ukrainians insist, or should its sovereignty be limited, as Russia demands? Instead of trying to resolve an unresolvable contradiction, Western policymakers should acknowledge the starkness of the Minsk conundrum....
The CIA’s Murderous Practices, Disinformation Campaigns, and Interference in Other Countries Still Shape the World Order and US Politics
In the weeks before the 2016 presidential election, the most powerful former leaders of the Central Intelligence Agency did everything they could to elect Hillary Clinton and defeat Donald Trump. President Obama’s former acting CIA chief Michael Morrell published a full-throated endorsement of Clinton in the New York Times and claimed...
The Return to the Era of Spheres of Influence in Eurasia
Map of Eurasia in a 1936 textbook, photo by Bryan Costin via Flickr CCBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,575, May 21, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Geopolitical trends of the last two decades show that pivotal states in Eurasia are working to recreate their zones of influence. In so doing, they are challenging the US, which implies a corresponding...
Annexations in the West Bank: Europeans need to punch their weight
In the coming weeks, crucial decisions on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are likely to be made. After three rounds of elections and difficult tactical manoeuvres, a coalition government under Benjamin Netanyahu was sworn in last week. The coalition agreement between the main partners – Likud, and Blue and White – stipulates that, as of 1 July,...
Iran’s Nuclear and Military Efforts in the Shadow of Coronavirus and Economic Collapse
Iraj Harirchi (left), Director of Iran’s National Center for the Fight Against Coronavirus, showing signs of infection at press conference on Feb. 23, 2020, photo via Wikimedia CommonsBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,568, May 17, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Notwithstanding the difficult challenges of the coronavirus crisis and a...
Laying Waste To The American Economy And The Doctors’ Plot
Today the Wall Street Journal has a story on how the debt-ridden households of America are coming to the end of their ropes. But its MSM narrative for the default calamity now gathering a ferocious head of steam could not be more ass-backwards: Lenders are declining to defer payments for some borrowers who were behind on their payments before the...
Twin Pillars of Russiagate Crumble
House Intelligence Committee documents released Thursday reveal that the committee was told two and half years ago that the FBI had no concrete evidence that Russia hacked Democratic National Committee computers to filch the DNC emails published by WikiLeaks in July 2016. The until-now-buried, closed-door testimony came on Dec. 5, 2017 from Shawn...
