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COMMENTARY & ANALYSIS

The Power Vertical

The Power Vertical is a blog and podcast for Russia wonks and Kremlin watchers by Brian Whitmore. It covers emerging and developing trends in Russian politics, shining a spotlight on the high-stakes power struggles, machinations, and clashing interests that shape Kremlin policy today.

Host and Eurasia Center Senior Fellow Brian Whitmore invites guest experts to deliver their insights and analysis in this weekly podcast. The Atlantic Council and the Charles T. McDowell Center for Global Studies at the University of Texas at Arlington co-sponsor this production.

The Russia Tomorrow series

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The Eurasia Center’s mission is to enhance transatlantic cooperation in promoting stability, democratic values and prosperity in Eurasia, from Eastern Europe and Turkey in the West to the Caucasus, Russia and Central Asia in the East.

Content

In the News

Oct 5, 2021

Friedlander quoted in Washington Post about how sanctions have disrupted Russian oligarchs who rely on US financial markets as an element of their power

By Julia Friedlander

Read the full article here.

Economic Sanctions Economy & Business

In the News

Oct 4, 2021

Katz in The Hill: “Moscow won’t side with Washington against Beijing just because we think it should”

By Atlantic Council

China International Norms

UkraineAlert

Oct 1, 2021

Europe is under attack from Putin’s energy weapon

By Sergiy Makogon

Moscow's Nord Stream 2 pipeline has yet to enter service but Russian President Vladimir Putin is already being accused of weaponizing energy supplies and attempting to blackmail Europe with high gas prices.

European Union Geopolitics & Energy Security

TURKEYSource

Sep 30, 2021

Experts react: The key takeaways from the Erdoğan-Putin meeting

By Atlantic Council IN TURKEY

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Russian President Vladimir Putin met in-person in Sochi, Russia for the first time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Atlantic Council experts give their take on the outcome.

Conflict Defense Industry

UkraineAlert

Sep 30, 2021

Europe’s new Russia policy must focus on human rights

By Dave Elseroad, Nora Wehofsits

As the European Union looks to review and update its Russia policy, it is vital EU leaders focus on the growing human rights crisis that is threatening to spill over from Russia itself and undo the EU's own post-1991 progress.

Civil Society European Union

BelarusAlert

Sep 29, 2021

Lukashenka vs. Ukraine

By Brian Whitmore

Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka has accused NATO of establishing military bases in Ukraine and has vowed to respond together with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Belarus Conflict

In the News

Sep 29, 2021

Alam quoted in TRT World on whether or not the Erdogan-Putin summit bring Turkey and Russia closer

By Atlantic Council

International Norms Politics & Diplomacy

BelarusAlert

Sep 23, 2021

No regrets: One Woman in White’s story from exile

By Melinda Haring

Anastasia Kostyugova is one of the hundreds of thousands of Belarusians who have fled their country since 2020. “My mother is in prison. I’m in exile. I didn’t expect this. We didn’t understand the value of human rights and democracy,” Kostyugova affirms.

Belarus Resilience & Society

UkraineAlert

Sep 23, 2021

Zelenskyy slams UN inaction over Putin’s Ukraine war

By Peter Dickinson

In a strongly worded address at the UN, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that failure to confront Russian aggression in Ukraine will have grave consequences for international security.

Conflict Politics & Diplomacy

Issue Brief

Sep 23, 2021

The special role of US nuclear weapons

By Matthew Kroenig

The United States needs to maintain a robust, flexible, and modernized nuclear deterrent. That means that United States needs to continue with nuclear modernization, reject a no first use (NFU) policy, and examine further nuclear capabilities.

China Defense Policy

Experts