Commentary & Analysis

Working with a wide community of experts and thought-leaders, the Eurasia Center delivers cutting-edge analysis and commentary on issues affecting Eurasia and the transatlantic community.

New Atlanticist

Mar 11, 2016

Putin Takes a Leaf from Tsarist Playbook

By Mikaila Altenbern

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s goal of restoring his country’s role in shaping the politics and policies of its near-neighbors—nations that were once part of the Soviet Union or the Russian Empire—is rooted in Tsarist “Russification policies,” according to Agnia Grigas, the author of a new book that takes a systematic look at the Kremlin’s policies […]

Russia Ukraine

Event Recap

Mar 10, 2016

Beyond Crimea: The New Russian Empire

By Eurasia Center

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s goal of restoring his country’s role in shaping the politics and policies of its near-neighbors—nations that were once part of the Soviet Union or the Russian Empire—is rooted in Tsarist “Russification policies,” according to Agnia Grigas, the author of a new book that takes a systematic look at the Kremlin’s policies […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 9, 2016

Ukraine’s New Political Law Privileges Party Bosses

By Brian Mefford

On February 16, the same day it almost approved no confidence in the government, Ukraine’s parliament successfully passed law #3700 on its eighteenth attempt. While the law was overshadowed by the controversy over the vote on the government, the legislation is the equivalent of a new “January 16th law” for Ukrainian politicians. What is a […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 9, 2016

What Nadiya Savchenko’s Example Can Teach the West

By Jeffrey Gedmin

March 5 marked the sixty-third anniversary of Joseph Stalin’s death. A friend texted me a photo of a poster from a Moscow bus shelter, a death mask of the Soviet dictator, captioned with the words: “That one died, this one will, too,” presumably a reference to Russia’s current ruler Vladimir Putin. There’s a certain sad […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 8, 2016

Will Ukraine’s Intrepid Female Pilot be Swapped for Russian Officers Held by Ukraine?

By Irena Chalupa

“Freedom does not have a price! I don’t believe anyone in Russia! I’m not afraid and I will not beg!”  These may be some of the last words that Nadiya Savchenko, Ukraine’s most famous political prisoner held by Russia, will speak. On March 3, the day her trial was scheduled to end and she was […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 8, 2016

The Church That Stalin Couldn’t Kill: Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Thrives Seventy Years after Forced Reunification

By Nadia M. Diuk

Seventy years ago, on March 8-10, 1946, under orders from Josef Stalin, an illegal “synod” of Kremlin-controlled clergy gathered in the city of Lviv, recently absorbed into the Soviet Union as part of the settlement of World War II. The purpose of the gathering was to liquidate the independent existence of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic […]

Russia Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Mar 7, 2016

Turkey and the Kurds: A Perfect Storm?

By John Roberts

A perfect storm appears to be brewing as tensions rise between Turkey and the main Kurdish groups in Iraq, Syria, and Turkey itself. And this at a time when there are fears in Ankara that Russian support for Kurdish fighters in Syria might be accompanied by covert assistance for Kurdish groups at war with the […]

Energy & Environment Energy Markets & Governance

UkraineAlert

Mar 7, 2016

Why Does Putin Surprise Us Again and Again?

By Stephen Blank

From Great Britain to the Black Sea, Russia is waging a constant, unceasing information war against virtually every European government. This war takes many forms, but information war in essence entails what Peter Pomerantsev called the weaponization of information in the form of lies, misinformation, propaganda, exploitation of agents of influence, and reflexive actions inducing […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 7, 2016

Russia Declares War on Crimean Tatars

By Halya Coynash

Two years after invading and annexing Crimea, Russia appears ready to outlaw the Crimean Tatar Mejlis, the representative body of the largest indigenous people of the peninsula. The behavior which Russia deems “extremist” is essentially the Mejlis’ implacable, but always peaceful, opposition to Russia’s occupation. It is unclear whether Western countries will respond with more […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 7, 2016

Mother of Hunger-Striking Pilot Calls for Justice

By Melinda Haring

Editor’s Note: Ukrainian fighter pilot Nadiya Savchenko started a “dry” hunger strike on March 3 after Russian prosecutors requested a 23-year sentence for Savchenko. In 2014, Savchenko was captured by the pro-Russian separatists in the Donbas, transferred to Russia, where she was accused of involvement in the death of two Russian journalists. Savchenko’s mother Mariya […]

Ukraine
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