Russia Makes Haste in Severing Ties With Europe
(Eurasia Daily Monitor) Russia has achieved much success last week in its rush toward self-isolation, and perhaps the most demonstrative step was made in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council…
How Russia Props up Putin in the Polls
(Washington Post) (Co-authored by R. Orttung and C. Walker) Russian President Vladimir Putin’s popularity appears to resist the laws of political physics. Despite the price of oil sinking below $50 a barrel and…
A Putin surprise in eastern Ukraine?
Despite the allure of another Russian spy scandal in New York City, the real news right now centers on the upsurge of fighting in eastern Ukraine. During the weekend, 30…
Amid Mounting Domestic Troubles, Putin Tries to Regain the Initiative in Eastern Ukraine
(Eurasia Daily Monitor) The sharp escalation of hostilities in eastern Ukraine last week (January 22) has disheartened many in Europe who had hoped for a gradual resolution of the Ukraine…
Greece goes to the polls, and Europe holds its breath
(The Washington Post) Greece just completed one of its shortest electoral campaign periods which — for the first time since 1964 — occurred right after the winter holidays. The polarized…
Russia’s Economic Crisis Is Just Getting Started
(St. Petersburg Times) The ruble price of the dollar rose by more than 20 percent on Dec. 15-16, 2014, and now that the currency markets have calmed down a bit,…
For Ukraine, Weakness Could Be Its Greatest Strength
(The National Interest) The United States and the EU have demonstrated significant commitment to Ukraine’s success since the Maidan revolution. However, no Western leader has ever suggested that Ukraine has…
Lifting of Cuba sanctions implicitly endorses Levitsky and Way’s argument: “linkage” is more productive than “leverage”
(Monkey Cage) The hacking of Sony Pictures and the terrorist attack on Charlie Hebdo in Paris differ in obvious ways: One involved a state-directed cyberattack on a private corporation; the other…
Futile Hope for the Dubious Summit in Astana
(Eurasia Daily Monitor) Despite the apparent deadlock in armed clashes in eastern Ukraine, an idea to bringing together the presidents of Russia and Ukraine, together with their peers from Belarus…
Russia Enters New Year Mired in Troubles
(Eurasia Daily Monitor) The post–New Year holidays in Russia have brought less joy or happy expectations than usual to the country’s elites, the urban middle classes and even to Russia’s…
The Last Post-Soviet War
(Russia in Global Affairs) – The Military-Political Dimension of the Ukrainian Conflict – The Ukrainian crisis in a way resembles wars of late feudalism in Europe, with private armies formed…
О сути причин конфликта в Донбассе
Ответ Юрия Мациевского на мою записку для PONARS оспаривает следующих четыре пункта: 1) объяснение времени мятежа; 2) объяснение пространственных вариаций мятежа; 3) объяснение источников страха среди местных жителей; и 4)…