Section: Research Organizations & Think Tanks about Ukraine
Why negotiations on Donbass failed
On April 16-20, another attempt was made to resolve the military conflict in eastern Ukraine. France, Germany, and Ukraine (Trilateral Contact Group) convened for consultations, with Russia joining the talks (“Normandy format”). Once again, the negotiations ended in stalemate, as the parties failed to agree on measures to reduce escalation on the...
Planning a trip to Paris, Ukraine’s Zelenskiy has much to gain
By Steven PiferPresident Volodymyr Zelenskiy reportedly will soon travel to Paris to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron. That is a trip very much worth making. After German Chancellor Angela Merkel steps down this fall, Zelenskiy may find himself more dependent on Macron, both in the Normandy format and for leadership in the European...
Nord Stream 2: Background, objections, and possible outcomes
By Steven PiferExecutive Summary Nord Stream 2 is an almost-finished natural gas pipeline from Russia to Germany. The Biden administration opposes it and has come under congressional pressure to invoke sanctions to prevent its completion, in large part because the pipeline seems a geopolitical project targeted at Ukraine. The German government,...
War Time: Temporality and the Decline of Western Military Power
War Time: Temporality and the Decline of Western Military Power Book dora.popova 22 February 2021 A series of prolonged and unsuccessful wars waged in recent decades by the United States and its allies have contributed to intense debate on a ‘decline of the West.’ In War Time, war studies experts examine this trajectory of Western military...
War Time: Temporality and the Decline of Western Military Power
War Time: Temporality and the Decline of Western Military Power Book dora.popova 22 February 2021 A series of prolonged and unsuccessful wars waged in recent decades by the United States and its allies have contributed to intense debate on a ‘decline of the West.’ In War Time, war studies experts examine this trajectory of Western military...
Russia and the Costs of EU Foreign Policy Division
The recent visit of EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell to Moscow and its aftermath has shown how immature EU foreign policy still is. The EU needs to learn from this affair to start rebuilding a foreign policy consensus and overcome costly divisions. The start of a new U.S. administration, the departure...
Why Victoria Nuland Is Dangerous and Should Not Be Confirmed
Victoria Nuland exemplifies the neocons who have led US foreign policy from one disaster to another for the past 30 years while evading accountability. It is a bad sign that President Joe Biden has nominated Victoria Nuland for the third highest position at the State Department, Under Secretary for Political Affairs. As a top-level appointee,...
Reckless Rhetoric Is A Reckless Standard For An Impeachment Trial
Below is my column in the Hill on how the second Trump impeachment could become a trial over reckless rhetoric in America. The House managers may be playing into that very danger by selecting some managers who have been criticized in the past for their own over-heated political rhetoric. As managers were replaying the comments of former President...
Alexei Navalny and Public Dissent in Russia
Alexei Navalny, image via Wikimedia CommonsBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,928, February 11, 2021 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The massive protests staged in Russia by supporters of opposition leader Alexei Navalny pose a serious threat to the country’s political elite. The Kremlin has a problem on its hands no matter what it does. Whether...
EU support for Russian democracy is inadequate
By Constanze Stelzenmüller“A very complicated visit,” was the verdict of the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell on his trip to Moscow last week to protest at the jailing of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. In a statement published on Sunday, he added: “An aggressively-staged press conference and the expulsion of three EU...



