Europe & Eurasia

Military Analysis: How Much of Ukraine is Putin Thinking to Invade?

By Irena Chalupa

Less than a month after Russia’s annexation of Crimea, a further Russian incursion into eastern Ukraine remains a distinct possibility. President Vladimir Putin may be emboldened by the weakness of the central government in Kyiv and a failure so far of Western sanctions to enforce painful to consequences on Russia. Putin has had an invasion […]

US and Europe Can Ramp Up Their Pressures on Russia

By Irena Chalupa

Both Europe and the United States are designing broader sets of economic sanctions against Russia over its assaults on Ukraine says the Atlantic Council’s Fran Burwell. Like the Obama administration, the European Union is considering a further phase of sanctions that will likely include restrictions on Russian banks doing business in Europe, and on European […]

Turkey’s Future after Local Elections: A Conversation with Deputy Prime Minister Babacan

The Atlantic Council was delighted to host Ali Babacan, Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey for a small-circle, off-the-record lunch discussion.

US Troops May be Sent to Eastern Europe

By John-Thor Dahlburg, AP

NATO’s top military commander in Europe, drafting countermoves to the Russian military threat against Ukraine, said Wednesday they could include deployment of American troops to alliance member states in Eastern Europe now feeling at risk.

Hesitation Within NATO will Encourage Russia to Test Alliance

By Artis Pabriks, atlantic-community.org

Since the end of the Russian-Georgian war in 2008, Russia has been seriously increasing its military budget (up 15-20% annually) and conducting military exercises with more than 100,000 personnel (Zapad 2009, Zapad 2013), targeted towards its western neighbours.

US May Accelerate Deployment of Missile Defense System in Poland

By David Larter, Defense News

The military could speed up deployment of a land-based missile defense shield in Europe to hem in a resurgent Russia, the Navy 3-star in charge of the U.S. Missile Defense Agency said in early April.

Why We Can Play the Long Game on Russia

By James Clad & Robert A. Manning

With the benefit of hindsight, the Russian annexation of Crimea shouldn’t have been a great surprise: it has been obvious to those who chose to look that for most of the last twenty years, that Russian president Vladimir Putin never fully accepted the USSR’s demise. Now, as the West agonizes over another possible irredentist feint—possibly […]