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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.

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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.

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Unidentified gunmen at Simferopol Airport, Feb. 28, 2014

NATOSource

Apr 18, 2014

Putin’s Way of War and NATO’s Article Five

By Janine Davidson, Council on Foreign Relations

NATO countries have been reluctant to provide support to Ukraine’s military, who is not a member of the transatlantic alliance and therefore not entitled to a collective defensive response under NATO’s Article Five.

NATO Northern Europe
Russian President Vladimir Putin, April 17, 2014

NATOSource

Apr 18, 2014

Stop Blaming NATO for Putin’s Provocations

By James Goldgeier, New Republic

The principal problem with the argument against NATO enlargement is that it never offers an alternative beyond leaving Europe frozen in time in 1989.

NATO Russia
An armed man in Slaviansk, Ukraine April 16, 2014

NATOSource

Apr 18, 2014

NATO Military Commander: Evidence Proves Russian Forces Already in Ukraine

By Philip M. Breedlove, Allied Command Operations

It’s hard to fathom that groups of armed men in masks suddenly sprang forward from the population in eastern Ukraine and systematically began to occupy government facilities. It’s hard to fathom because it’s simply not true.

NATO Russia

In the News

Apr 17, 2014

Karatnycky on Russian Funding of Separatist Groups

By Adrian Karatnycky

Voice of America quotes Transatlantic Relations Program Senior Fellow Adrian Karatnycky on Ukraine’s announcement that Russian banks are funding separatist groups in eastern Ukraine: 

Russia Ukraine
REUTERS/Marko Djurica

New Atlanticist

Apr 17, 2014

Amid Chaos, a Humiliating and Dangerous Defeat for Ukraine

By Irena Chalupa

In Russia’s takeover of southeast Ukraine – which President Vladimir Putin is characterizing as a recovery of old Russian provinces lost in the 1920s – this week’s ineffectiveness and weakness of Ukraine’s government and armed forces are visible almost everywhere.

Eastern Europe Russia

New Atlanticist

Apr 17, 2014

Slocombe: Send US Military Aid to Ukraine, But Expect Battlefield Results to Take Time

By Irena Chalupa and James Rupert

The United States should provide military aid to Ukraine but should understand that the strength it lends the government in Kyiv will be more political than military, at least in the short run, says Former Undersecretary of Defense Walter Slocombe. As the Obama administration has limited its assistance to “non-lethal” supplies such as rations and […]

Eastern Europe Russia
CF-18 Hornets

NATOSource

Apr 17, 2014

Canada Sending Six Fighter Jets for NATO Operation in Eastern Europe

By Hannah Thibedeau, CBC News

Canada is sending six CF-18s and military personnel to assist NATO in operations in Eastern Europe.

NATO Poland

In the News

Apr 17, 2014

Benitez on Whether the Geneva Deal Will Solve the Ukraine Crisis

By Jorge Benitez

NATOSource Director and Brent Scowcroft Center Senior Fellow Jorge Benitez joins CCTV to discuss whether the deal reached in Geneva will help solve the crisis in Ukraine: 

Russia Ukraine

In the News

Apr 17, 2014

Hansen: “Putin’s Great Game Defies International Norms”

By Ian Hansen

Atlantic Council Program Assistant Ian Hansen writes for New Eastern Europe on the consequences of Russia’s interference in Ukraine:

Russia Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin, April 17, 2014

NATOSource

Apr 17, 2014

Putin Asserts Right to Use Force in Eastern Ukraine

By David M. Herszenhorn, New York Times

President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia emphasized on Thursday that the upper chamber of the Russian Parliament had authorized him to use military force if necessary in eastern Ukraine, and also stressed Russia’s historical claim to the territory

Russia Ukraine

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